Purchasing/Accounts Payable

All supplies and equipment shall be purchased in accordance with established written policies or addenda to the written policies.

Purchases of services or goods from District employees are discouraged. Reference is made to Board Policy DHA (Local), Sections 2 & 3, "All employees shall avoid personal investments that could reasonably be expected to create a substantial conflict between the employee's private interest and the public interest."

All purchases under $2,500 shall be made in a manner that will be most advantageous to the District. Prices and vendors may be selected by the Originating Department. Shopping for best value is encouraged.

The Originating Department shall solicit at least three (3) written quotes for all purchases $2,500 through $9,999.

Purchases of personal property with a value of $10,000 through $24,999, in the aggregate for the District for a twelve-month period.  Administrator approval is needed.

Single purchases of $10,000 through $24,999 shall be made in one of the following methods that provide the best value to the District.

• competitive bidding;
• competitive sealed proposals;
• request for proposals;
• a catalog purchase - as provided by Subchapter V, Chapter 2157, Government Code;
• an interlocal agreement; or
• a design/build contract.

All contracts valued at $25,000 or more must have Lone Star College System Board of Trustees approval and follow the above criteria for competitive bidding.

The College District is exempt from Federal, State and City taxes except in certain prescribed cases. An exemption certificate will be furnished to any supplier upon request. This does not include City and metro taxes for Hotel charges when traveling on official College business. All local Hotel taxes must be paid when traveling inside the State of Texas and all taxes must be paid to hotels outside the State of Texas.

While traveling, all services, parking, meals, fax, telephones and any other charges are taxable unless they are directly billed to the College, under the College name. The employee name cannot appear on the charges.

Rental cars are only tax exempt when rented by the College, in the College name. The billing for the rental must be directly to the College. The employee name cannot be listed as a renter on the contract (except for insurance purposes). A credit card with the employee name or cash cannot be used. All personal property taxes must be paid at the time of rental, there is no exemption for this.

All purchases must be made using the District's purchasing process. When appropriate, a purchase order will be issued. The Board of Trustee's Policy Concerning Purchase Transactions will be followed on all purchases. 

A Requisition Form must be prepared to initiate four types of transactions. o Purchase Order - a request to purchase equipment, furniture, supplies, long-term service, etc. No purchases may be made without a purchase order (Lone Star College System Board Policy, Section CFA - Local: Purchase Commitments). § Grant equipment purchases need prior approval from the District Director of Resource Development.

• o Check Request - a request that has a limited number of uses such as: payment for registration fees, small equipment repair (typewriter, personal computer, etc.), reimbursement over $50, cash advance for travel, etc.
• o Petty Cash Reimbursement - purchases under $75 may be made when necessary and reimbursement secured from petty cash (Lone Star College System Board Policy, Section CFB). The appropriate documents must be filled out and signed by the Department Supervisor.

Forms for Tax Payer ID, Tax Exemption Certificate, Budget Revision, Requisition, Check Requisition, Purchase Order Changes, Authorization for Leave of Absence, Travel Expense Voucher, Mileage Reimbursement, Independent Contractor, Petty Cash Voucher, Journal Entry, W-9's, and others can be found by clicking on Forms on this page.

For Questions pertaining to purchasing/accounts payable, credit card usages, and travel, please contact:

Karen Kincy, Purchasing, Accts. Payable
Karen.J.Kincy@lonestar.edu
281-351-3337