404.1 Roles & Responsibilities

Owned by Chad
Last updated: Aug 23, 2023
2 min read

BUDGET AUTHORITY: The Budget Authority is responsible for reviewing all charges against department funds, including procurement card charges, to determine appropriateness and reviewing the monthly reconciliation of the card activity to the monthly statement. Additionally, the Budget Authority is responsible for requesting and authorizing the use of one or more procurement cards for use by his/her department and for authorizing a departmental employee to be the Card Custodian for the department.

BUSINESS MANAGER: The Business Manager can serve an additional role, primarily in larger high-purchase volume departments. This role serves as a backup to the Card Custodian and Budget Authority when appropriate.

PROCUREMENT CARD PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR (PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR): The Program Administrator is authorized by PSU’s Vice President for Finance and Administration to implement and maintain a procurement card program at his/her institution. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Development and maintenance of a comprehensive Program policy
  • Establishment of a training program
  • Maintaining a comprehensive listing of card users, card custodians, and budgetary authorities
  • Ensuring that all persons involved in the Program have completed any training required by policy  
  • Issuance of procurement cards
  • Establishment and maintenance of a monitoring program that is designed to help ensure the following:
    • expenditures charged through the Program are appropriate and within policy
    • complete and proper documentation supporting card charges are retained
    • use of each card is by authorized card users
    • fraudulent activity is identified and minimized
    • monthly reconciliations are performed as required
    • distribution of procurement card expenditures to appropriate account codes

CARD CUSTODIAN (CUSTODIAN): The departmental representative charged with the responsibility to hold departmental procurement cards in safekeeping until needed by authorized card users. Other responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Ensuring complete and proper documentation supporting card charges are obtained and retained
  • Examples include sales slips, cash register receipts, invoices, order forms, and receiving reports. Charge slips that do not itemize expenditures are inadequate documentation in and of themselves. When no other documentation exists, such as when making a telephone purchase, a purchasing log will be maintained to record transactions.
  • Ensuring that all card users have completed required training 
  • Maintaining procurement card usage log as required for multi-user cards
  • Monitoring card transactions for appropriate use
  • Monitoring card activity for fraud
  • Reporting questionable transactions to Budget Authority and Program Administrator
  • Performing a monthly reconciliation of the detail transactions with purchase records and distributing the charges or credits to the appropriate accounts

For more information, please see the p-card monthly checklist.

CARD USER: Person authorized to use a procurement card to make purchases of goods and services on behalf of a department. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Maintaining an understanding of the policies guiding procurement of goods and services, including those specifically related to the use of the procurement card
  • Safeguarding the card and the card number(s)
  • Limiting the use of the card to purchases that are authorized by policy
  • Personal responsibility for non-business charges
  • Responsible in providing the proper receipt and all documentation needed

For more information pertaining to the p-card program, please see the procedures manual. To assign roles and establish a p-card program, please complete a p-card signature sheet.