Business Services » Purchase Order FAQs

Purchase Order FAQs

  • What is the difference between an ASB and a district PO?
    • A district PO is a formal request for approval of an expense that is paid for with district funds (state and federal dollars) whereas an ASB PO is a formal request for approval of an expense that is paid for by funds raised by the students of a specific club or athletic team. The process and laws governing each type of PO are different.
 
  • How do I know if my expense is district or ASB?
    • A PO should be processed as an ASB expense if and only if the following conditions are met:
      • You are an ASB club advisor and your expense is directly related or required for the club which you manage/lead; or,
      • You are an athletic coach and your expense is directly related to the team for which you coach; or,
      • You are the athletic director and your expense is directly related to an athletic team's apparel, trophies, awards, entry fees, tournament fees, or other team related consumables. 
    • If the above qualifications do not apply to your expense then your PO should be considered a district expenditure.
    • If you have questions please email Maryssa Lopez [email protected] for clarification. 
 
  • How do I request a District PO?
 
  • How do I request an ASB PO?
    • Directions and necessary forms can be found here.
 
  • Who should I put as the vendor for my PO?
    • The "vendor" of the PO is the business or individual to whom the check will ultimately be made out to. This can be the employee being reimbursed, the hotel, the conference organization, business entity, etc. 
 
  • I am trying to purchase things from Amazon, Wal-mart, Michaels, Costco, etc. but I don't want to be reimbursed, I want the district to pay for it. Who is the vendor in this case?
    • In cases where the employee does not want to be reimbursed, and the vendor doesn't accept PO numbers as payment, the vendor would be "District Credit Card". 
 
  • How does paying with a PO work?
    • Many vendors, especially those associated with schools (conferences geared towards teachers, teaching supply stores, etc) allow payment in the form of PO numbers. When they do this all you need is the PO number to place your order. In this case the vendor is the Business Entity from which you are placing the order.
 
  • Why can't I place an order before I have the PO number if I am being reimbursed?
    • Until you have an approved PO your expenditure is not allowed per the auditors. Expenditures must meet both budget constraints and legal parameters before they can be formally approved. There is a chance your expenditures is not allowed or that you may not have budget remaining to cover the expense. You do not want to have to return items or be denied reimbursement.
 
  • How do I place my own order, schedule my own hotel, airfare, or conference registration, when I requested a PO for the District CC?
    • Once you receive your approved PO you can get your order/registration/reservation all set up and ready to go and come to the principal's office (for teaching staff) or the business office (for all others) to use the card to finalize your registration/reservation. Please bring your mobile device (surface/ipad) with you on the check-out page to finalize your reservation/registration/order.
 
  • Can I just do one PO request to cover multiple vendors?
    • No, you need to complete one PO request for each vendor. The check pay to line is pulled directly from the PO in the system and cant be modified. Therefore there needs to be one PO for each check that needs to be written. Take the AVID conference for example, you will need one PO for the conference registration to AVID, one PO for the hotel, and one PO to the employee for meal reimbursement, mileage and potentially parking fees.
 
  • How much can I be reimbursed for meals while traveling for work?
    • You are restricted to $11.00 for breakfast, $17.00 for lunch, and $28.00 for dinner for a total of $56.00/day. 
 
  • What is the mileage rate?
    • 67 cents per mile
 
 
This page will be updated as new questions arise. Please let us know if you think any additional information should be included on this page. Thank you - Business Office Staff