Travel - Domestic | Colorado Mesa University

CMU Travel

The Travel Office oversees all training, facilitation, and compliance efforts surrounding employee and campus travel. For detailed information about the travel program, please refer to the CMU Travel Procedure and CMU Fiscal Rules found on the Reference Documents and Forms page.

If you will be traveling frequently for University business, you may be interested in a Colorado Mesa University U.S. Bank OneCard. For more information on the OneCard, please visit the OneCard page.

For all other travel documents and helpful links please see Reference Documents and Forms.

A Travel Expense Report (TER) is a form to be completed by an employee any time they travel on official University business. This form is a fillable excel spreadsheet that can be completed and then routed electronically for the necessary approvals. The form can be found on the Reference Documents and Forms page.

SINGLE DAY TRAVEL

A TER form does not need to be completed for travel within a single day, unless airfare was utilized or the travel is out-of-state. Instead, the Mileage and Parking Form should be completed. This form can also be found on the Reference Documents and Forms page.

Complete the blue section of the TER prior to making any travel arrangements. After this section has been filled out entirely, the traveler will then follow the instructions tab at the bottom of the form and route accordingly.

Once the form is received by the Travel Office, with all of the proper approvals, a Travel Authorization Number (TA Number) will be issued and emailed to the traveler. The traveler should retain this number in order to complete the post-travel section of the TER upon their return. As long as the traveler has received written approval from the appropriate manager (department head, director, VP, etc.) the traveler does not need to wait for the TA Number to be issued and sent to them to begin making travel arrangements.

Required approvals for Travel Expense Reports, and the responsibilities carried by the signatories and approvers, are as follows:

Employee's signature. By sending the Travel Expense Report form electronically, the traveler's signature is inherent in the email. By doing this, the employee is certifying that the travel is necessary to the business of the University; the estimated expenditures are reasonable, proper, and in compliance with travel policies; and no personal expenditures are included. The employee is also recognizing that the actual reimbursement paid may be less than the estimate shown on the Travel Expense Report depending on the actual expenditures as verified by supporting documentation or on the amount of funding approved.
Travel Approver. A travel approver must be the traveler's supervisor or higher authority. All international travel must be approved by the immediate supervisor and the President. Travel for faculty and staff must be approved by the department head; travel for department heads must be approved by the appropriate Vice President; travel for the Vice Presidents must be approved by the President of the University.
Supervisor's signature. By sending the Travel Expense Report form electronically to [email protected], the supervisor is certifying that he/she is aware of the employee's travel and that the travel is necessary to the business of the University, the estimated expenditures listed are reasonable and that arrangements have been made to cover position requirements in the employee's absence. The supervisor's signature is also inherent in their email.
Budget Authority signature. The Supervisor and Budget Authority may not always be the same person. If they are different, approval from both individuals is required. Electronic approval of the Travel Expense Report form, the orgn/cost center manager is certifying that funds are available in the amount of the Travel Authorization. The orgn/cost center manager has the authority and option of declining all or a portion of the submitted trip.
Travel Office authorization. It is the Travel Office's responsibility to verify that all proper information and supporting documents are included with the submission of the Travel Expense Report, and that all requests are in compliance with travel policies. The Travel Office has the authority to suspend the issuing of the Travel Authorization based on non-compliance with established travel procedures, until they are corrected.
Blanket Authorization. Some employees may be eligible for blanket travel authorization. Please inquire with the travel office by emailing a request to [email protected].
Workflow
1. Traveler emails TER to Supervisor
2. Supervisor forwards TER to Budget Authority (if necessary)
3. Supervisor/Budget Authority forwards TER to [email protected]
4. Travel Office responds to traveler with TA number

Air Travel (or travel by other common carrier)

Once supervisor/budget approval has been obtained, the traveler is encouraged, but not required, to book their airfare through the University's preferred travel agent, The Travel Society. Contact information for The Travel Society is below:

The Travel Society, Inc.

www.travelsociety.com

Tom Calcagno

The Travel Society

650 S Cherry St.

Suite 200

Denver, CO 80246

Email: [email protected]

Direct / Fax: 303.381.7425

When making airline reservations through the Travel Society, the agent will need the following information on ALL TRAVELERS, including candidates or recruits:

Name as it appears on the person's drivers license and/or passport.
Home address.
Home phone number.
Cell phone number.
Work phone number.
Email address of passenger.
Full passport information (for international travel).
Date of birth (for international travel).

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has implemented new standards for traveler identification. As of May 15, 2009 domestic aircraft operators must require and collect the traveler's full name and the date of birth and gender as of August 15, 2009. For international flights, full name, date of birth and gender must be requested and collected as of October 31, 2009.

This information is not optional. Travelers with reservations that do not contain this information will not be permitted to check-in online or via the airport kiosk, but must stand in line to see a ticket agent. Additional airport security screening and/or denied boarding may result.

Direct Booking

Travelers may wish to take advantage of favorable Internet airfares. The use of Internet airfares is permissible if the Internet fare will achieve a cost savings as compared to purchase through an approved state travel agent. If you choose to purchase internet airfare, here are a few things to keep in mind:

The traveler must purchase the Internet ticket using his or her individual U.S. Bank OneCard. The traveler accepts full responsibility for changes or cancellations to the Internet ticket in accordance with the restrictions for that specific ticket and Internet site.

Baggage Charges

Colorado Mesa University will reimburse charges for the first checked bag, but any charges for additional checked bags will be the responsibility of the traveler. For information on the checked bag charges, please visit the selected airline's website.

When renting a vehicle, the traveler is encouraged, but not required, to use one of the contracted rental car agencies

Enterprise & National Car Rental - Discount Code: XZ12416
Hertz Car Rental - Discount Code: 1874482

If the traveler is using a rental vehicle, the traveler should use their U.S. Bank OneCard to rent from an agency under a State of Colorado contract, currently Enterprise, National or Hertz. The state contract includes liability insurance and Card benefits include Collision Damage Waivers (CDW) for most vehicles and vans designated specifically as small group transportation vehicles with a maximum of eight (8) people including the driver. The traveler should charge the vehicle to their Card and decline CDW insurance on vehicles with up to eight (8) people. Employees who accept unnecessary rental insurance will not receive reimbursement for the purchase of this insurance.

If the vehicle being rented is an eight passenger or greater vehicle (such as a truck, cargo van, and vans), the traveler must purchase the additional CDW insurance from the rental agency unless you are utilizing Enterprise (then you may waive the CDW/LDW insurance). There are also often exclusions for areas outside the contiguous United States in which you will need to purchase the additional liability coverage (LDW and CDW). For this information please refer to the linked price agreements by selecting the rental car link above.

If a traveler does not have a U.S. Bank OneCard, arrangements should be made with their Department's Administrative Assistant.

RECEIPTS

Original, itemized receipts are required for reimbursement of rental vehicles. Please note that you will need to provide the final rental car receipt that indicates the final amount charged, not just the paperwork you received when originally renting the vehicle.

CLAIMS

If you have an accident or a rental vehicle is damaged in some way, please report this immediately to the Purchasing office. You will also need to report it to U.S. Bank Visa at 1.800.847.2911; where you will be given instruction on how to proceed with the claim.

PERSONAL VEHICLE USE

If the traveler chooses to use his/her personal vehicle while in travel status, the traveler may be reimbursed mileage at the rate set by the state. Click here for the current mileage reimbursement rates.

Reimbursement for 4WD vehicles is permitted between November 1st and April 1st, if the road conditions warrant the use of 4WD while traveling. If you are asking for 4WD mileage reimbursement outside of these dates, you must provide a justification with your request.

Lodging costs may be reimbursed at the single room rate up to the actual amount incurred by the traveler. The traveler should make every effort to obtain the lowest-cost lodging possible. In the case of a conference, the University permits the employee to stay at the conference hotel instead of seeking the lowest rate available.

Employees traveling on official University business may claim up to the per diem rate established by the State of Colorado for their destination city. In order to determine the per diem amount, please reference the links in the Reference Documents and Forms page. Further information about each link is below:

Use Appendix A1 (Domestic CONUS Per Diem Rates) to determine your per diem for the contiguous United States. First look up your destination by state and then the city. If there is not a listing for your destination city, then look for the county. If the county is not listed, then the per diem rate will be the base rate.

Use Appendix A2 (Allocation of Domestic CONUS Per Diem Rates) to determine the break down per meal for per diem rate.

Use the other appendices for other destinations at the State of Colorado Per Diem link.

If a meal is provided as part of a conference fee, the meal shall not be claimed for reimbursement unless the meal is determined to be inadequate by the traveler.
If a meal is provided by a commercial carrier as part of the transportation ticket, the meal shall not be claimed for reimbursement unless the meal is deemed inadequate by the traveler.
The authorized incidental expense may be claimed for any full-day travel. Incidental expenses includes fees and tips given to porters, baggage carriers, bellhops, hotel maids, and skycaps for airport check-in, and the cost of telephone calls. Incidental expenses do not include expenses for laundry, cleaning and pressing of clothes, and lodging taxes
Under no circumstances shall an employee claim more than the established per diem rate.
The per diem amount is a daily amount rather than an amount assigned to individual meals.
In the event only part of a day is spent traveling either going to a destination or returning, then the traveler will be reimbursed a partial amount. This amount will depend on the individual meal rate for that day and their travel time.

SINGLE DAY TRAVEL

If a traveler leaves and returns in a single day, per diem does not apply.

RECEIPTS

An individual traveling on State business does not need to provide meal receipts.

If a group is traveling, then itemized, original meals receipts are required for reimbursement. Also, please note you may not claim per diem for each person in the group in this instance.

Tips will be reimbursed for groups up to 20% of the total exclusive of taxes.

Conference/event registration fees are to be paid by a OneCard. These charges should be charged to Account 7150 and not to one of the travel expense accounts.

Upon return, the traveler will be required to complete the green section of the same TER that included the pre travel information for their trip. Once post travel information has been input, the form will again be routed electronically with all "out of pocket" receipts attached per the instructions tab at the bottom of the form.

Per IRS regulations, Accounts Payable must receive the signed and completed TER with all supporting documentation within 60 days of the trip completion to avoid having reimbursement reported as income.

Currently, it takes 7-10 days to be reimbursed for travel once the TER is received by the Travel Office. It will be processed for completeness, accuracy, and compliance with State policies. The reimbursement will be direct deposited to the same account as the traveler's payroll unless other arrangements are made with Accounts Payable.