Fiscal Operations Manual
Section 400: Expenditures
Effective: 01/01/2003
Revised: 11/11/2010

408 Centralized Processing of Expenditures (Auto Pays)

On a pre-arranged basis Auto Pay Vendors submit to the Business Affairs’ office the following information:

• a hard copy statement
• copies of all invoices listed on the statement
• an electronic billing file

Payment information is obtained from individual invoices that are retained as backup documentation.  Invoices submitted for payment must legibly show the printed name of the person initiating the credit purchase, their signature, telephone number, unit name, six digit Index code and activity code if desired.  Vendors who submit invoices containing invalid or missing information may be requested to remove the charge from the OSU account.  Direct charges to the Agriculture Research Foundation (ARF) and OSU Foundation should never appear on Auto Pay accounts.  These foundations are separate entities from OSU.

Business Affairs processes the payment to the vendor and then posts the charges to the unit’s index. 

1. Type of business:
   Purchases made by OSU staff, faculty, and students from an auto pay vendor are not audited for appropriateness prior to purchase, therefore not all merchants are suitable to become a part of the Auto Pay system.  Merchants providing 1099 tax reportable services or equipment over the $5,000 purchasing threshold are not eligible to become Auto Pay vendors because of purchase order, audit, and tax reporting requirements.
2. Volume of Business:
   Monthly payment history should substantiate a minimum of twenty invoices, paying more than four separate OSU departments
3. Default account code:
   Central payments require the use of a generic account code, therefore credit purchases with individual merchants need to fall into one account code category
4. Ability to provide and maintain required billing procedures:
   An electronic billing file with a minimum of modifications needed, individual invoices with correct information, correct posting of payments to invoices.
5. Signed Agreement acknowledging requirements/provisions of Auto Pay Vendors:
   All contracts need to be negotiated through PaCS and approved by the Business Affairs  office prior to set up. 

Contact PaCS about setting up a new Auto Pay vendor.