Office of Business Affairs
Non-Employee Travel Guidelines
Airfare
Airline arrangements are to be made by the Department Secretary. Candidate airline charges are to be paid using the College's NET (Non-Employee Travel) credit card.
If a candidate makes arrangements and purchases an airline ticket with personal funds, SUNY ESF will reimburse the candidate after their interview. The department must submit the following to Accounts Payable:
- a standard voucher signed by the candidate
- a purchase requisition
- itinerary of the interview
- the ticket stubs and proof of purchase
- Substitute W-9
Reimbursements and bookings will be Economy or Base fares only, no extras or upgrades should be added, and travel insurance is only allowable under certain circumstances and should be approved by the Business Office prior to booking anything.
If a candidate wishes to travel for personal reasons surrounding their business with ESF, cost comparisons of the original points of travel/dates of business will need to be submitted for any accommodations and only the lesser of the two will be reimbursed.
Meals
The candidate's reimbursement cannot exceed the New York State food allowance for Onondaga County.
If the search committee process includes taking a candidate out for a meal, a College employee will have to initially cover the costs. The College is tax exempt; therefore, a College employee should obtain a tax-exempt form from the Business Office or their department secretary. Employees of the College cannot be reimbursed for tax, however, the candidate can be reimbursed tax for meals they purchased themselves.
If being paid through State funds, a request for reimbursement to the employee of the College who pays for the meal(s) should be submitted to their Supervisor or Department Chair for approval and then submitted to Accounts Payable. A purchase requisition Form must be submitted to Accounts Payable and must include an Itemized Receipt from the restaurant. If the receipt is not itemized, the individual cannot be reimbursed. In addition, please include a list of names of those who attended the meal as well as the candidate interview agenda. Reimbursement cannot include alcoholic beverages. A tip is reimbursable; however, the tip amount should not exceed 20 percent.
Note: Candidate meals can only be paid by a committee member and should only include the candidate's meal and the meal of the individual paying, not the meals of the entire committee attending.
Lodging
Every attempt should be made to make arrangements at facilities that charge the State per diem rate. The Crowne Plaza, The Sheraton, Hotel Skyler, and the Genesee Grande hotels will directly invoice the College. Please submit a requisition to Accounts Payable with an agenda and the invoice following the candidate's stay.
Note: AirBnB and VRBO or any of those kinds of rentals are not permitted to be booked on NET cards. It can only be booked via personal funding and reimbursed later.
Mileage
If the candidate is requesting reimbursement for mileage, a Statement of Automobile Travel form showing mileage, mileage rate, and times of arrival/departure must be completed.
Reimbursement For Candidate Expenses
Reimbursement will be allowed to candidates who reside over 50 miles from the place of interview. Expenses may include transportation, food and lodging.
In order to reimburse the candidate for expenses that they have paid for, following completion of the interview process, the candidate must complete a State of New York Standard Voucher form and submit it with the proper paperwork, including a Substitute W-9. In addition, the department must prepare a purchase requisition form requesting reimbursement for the candidate. Attached to the requisition and standard voucher form should be the receipts for lodging, tolls, taxi, airfare, and mileage. The purchase requisition, voucher form, automobile travel form, and a copy of the interview agenda, along with appropriate receipts are to be submitted to the appropriate party (dean, vice president, search committee chairperson, department head, etc.) for signature and then submitted to Procurement & Payment Services. Payment will be made to the candidate requesting reimbursement. Please be sure that the voucher form shows the individual's name, home address and signature of the individual requesting reimbursement. The appropriate account number to be charged and authorized department signature must be included on the purchase requisition.
Note: The search committee should advise the candidate to keep all travel receipts.
Contact
Please contact Kristina Hart at travel@esf.edu with any questions.