Control and Use of College Equipment

Purpose:

To describe the general guidelines for maintaining the college’s equipment inventory and the procedures for disposal of college-owned property.

Definitions:

Asset Management (AM) system: a system to account for the college’s fixed assets with a value of $2,000 and above, as well as any equipment with a value of $500 and above funded by the Equipment Trust Fund (ETF), technology funds, or grants (including Community College Workforce Alliance).

Immediate family: an employee’s spouse, or any other person living in the employee’s household who is a dependent of the employee or on whom the employee is dependent.

MobileAsset.EDU: a system used to conduct inventory scanning of all tagged assets.

Policy:

J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College (Reynolds) shall receive, identify, record, and deliver to the appropriate department any and all equipment received by the college. The department manager or designee shall sign a form acknowledging receipt and acceptance of the item. Signatures on receiving reports shall serve to establish custodial responsibility. Deans or department managers should secure written receipts relieving them of responsibility when nontechnology tagged items are removed from the assigned location. The Department of Technology (DOT) personnel are responsible for moving all technology tagged items.

The warehouse supervisor or designee shall notify the college’s fixed assets coordinator when an ETF asset is received. When it becomes necessary for an item to be shipped directly to the ordering department, approval must be granted by the budget manager or designee. Purchase Order Reports are regularly reviewed and invoices are obtained by the fixed assets coordinator to ensure that non-ETF items are recorded in the AM system.

The vice president of finance and administration, through the purchasing and fixed asset functions, shall be responsible for maintaining an accurate record of all equipment in the possession of the college that meet the requirements for inclusion in the inventory system.

It shall be the duty of the fixed assets coordinator to record in the AM inventory system all college assets and equipment valued at $2,000 and above, as well as any equipment with a value of $500 and above funded by the Equipment Trust Fund, technology funds, or federal grants. The fixed assets coordinator shall also ensure that all college equipment meeting the above criteria is labeled with a Reynolds Community College identification tag, assigned the appropriate department code, and recorded in the Accounting Information System Asset Management (AM) and in the MobileAsset.EDU software application within forty five (45) days of receipt by the college or in time to meet year end deadlines. The fixed assets coordinator shall conduct random and/or periodic checks of equipment inventories as directed by college policy and/or requirements of the vice president of finance and administration, VCCS, and state auditors.

A physical inventory shall be required at least once every two (2) years. The inventory process shall be initiated and managed by the college’s fixed assets coordinator. Responsible persons shall assist as requested in conducting physical inventories in their area. Any discrepancies in the inventory shall be the responsibility of the dean or department manager. The responsible department shall have one week from the date of notification to clear up any discrepancies found in their inventory. If the discrepancies in the inventory are still not corrected, the budget manager shall notify the appropriate school dean or department manager for reconciliation. If the inventory is not reconciled within two (2) weeks of notifying the school dean or department manager, the budget manager shall take the issue to the vice president of finance and administration for final action.

To keep the equipment inventory current, deans and department managers shall promptly notify the fixed assets coordinator with the appropriate form when one of the following actions occurs (see procedures for disposing of college-owned property):

• When equipment is donated to the college, JSRCC Form No. 65-0007, Asset Donation Form must be completed. (Donated items must have the prior written approval from the vice president of finance and administration before acceptance of the item only if the acceptance will incur maintenance or installation cost for the college.)

• When non-technology equipment is transferred (location changes), JSRCC Form 65-0008, Fixed Asset Location Change Form, must be completed. When equipment is disposed of or retired, JSRCC Form 65-0009, List of Equipment for Disposal Form, must be completed.

• When computer or technology-related equipment is transferred by DOT personnel, a Mobile Asset scan should be done when moving the equipment to record the new location, or submission of JSRCC Form 65-0008, Fixed Asset Location Change Form, and shall be submitted by DOT personnel to the fixed assets coordinator within four (4) business days of transfer.

Equipment shall not be transferred from the assigned location without either a Mobile Assets scan changing location or the completion and submission of JSRCC Form 65-0008, Fixed Asset Location Change Form, to the fixed assets coordinator. The arrangements for the actual physical transfer of equipment shall be made with personnel from the college's Facilities Department and/or other college staff, as appropriate.

The individual to whom the equipment is assigned is responsible for taking reasonable precautions to avoid loss or breakage. Damaged equipment must be reported to the appropriate school dean or department manager with a memorandum clearly stating the cause of damage. The school dean or manager shall survey the equipment for possible repair, replacement, or disposal.

All college employees are responsible for ensuring that all rooms that contain valuable portable equipment are kept locked when not under faculty or staff supervision.

The use of college equipment and property is prohibited except in the course of performance of college-assigned duties and for the purposes thereof. For the purpose of providing community service, exceptions may be granted with the approval of the appropriate school dean or manager.

The short-term (ten [10] consecutive business days or less) use of college property off-campus in the performance of college-assigned duties shall be requested in writing to the employee’s supervisor and permission shall be given in writing with a copy of the request emailed to the fixed asset coordinator. College-owned technology equipment that is used off-campus in the performance of college-assigned duties shall be checked out from Information Technology Services, and it shall be the responsibility of Information Technology Services to document the use and location of the equipment. The request shall document the reason for the request and the site(s) where the equipment will be located during the period.

The long-term (more than ten [10] consecutive business days) use of college property off-campus in the performance of college-assigned duties is permitted under the following conditions:

• College personnel considering the use of college property shall request permission from the appropriate school dean or department manager with final approval by the vice president of finance and administration or designee. The request shall be made using either JSRCC Form 65-0006, Removal of College Property, or an electronic email request, and shall be subject to renewal every six (6) months.

• Use of college property shall at no time limit or restrict its availability for instruction or its intended purpose by the college.

• College personnel removing equipment from the college premises should be familiar with techniques to appropriately move, handle, and operate the equipment.

• College personnel removing college property from the premises shall assume full responsibility for the return of the property and shall also assume full financial responsibility if the property is lost or is found to be in an unacceptable condition due to negligence upon its return.

• The loan of college property, such as equipment, tools, and supplies, to non-college employees or organizations is prohibited except as authorized by the college’s vice president of finance and administration. The authorized loan of such property shall be recorded on JSRCC Form 65-0006, Removal of College Property

Procedures:

1. Disposal of property

   The following are acceptable methods for disposal of property. The fixed assets coordinator must be notified when any of the following occurs.

   1. Transfer: When a department no longer has use for an item and wishes to transfer that item to a department that does have use for it, the following must occur:

      1. A department wishing to accept an item available for transfer will notify the fixed assets coordinator.

      2. Transfers between departments will be accomplished by means of completing JSRCC Form 65-0008, Fixed Asset Location Change Form. This form will be signed by the school dean or department manager of both the receiving and the transferring departments.

      3. The signed form will be submitted to the fixed assets coordinator. It is the responsibility of the transferring department to obtain both signatures. The fixed assets coordinator will update the AM inventory. If the form is not returned with both signatures, the property will remain on the inventory of the department transferring the property, which will continue to be responsible for the property.

   2. Disposal as a result of lack of need: When an item is no longer needed by a department and no other department is known to have a need for it, the item will be considered surplus and the following procedure is applicable:

      1. JSRCC Form 65-0009, List of Equipment for Disposal Form, must be completed and sent to the fixed asset coordinator. A list may be attached to the form, including tag numbers where applicable, when multiple items are being surplused.

      2. The arrangements with the Facilities Department or other college staff as appropriate for the actual physical transfer of equipment will be coordinated by the fixed assets coordinator in conjunction with the department disposing of the item.

      3. All surplus property must be stored in a surplus property location designated by the fixed assets coordinator until transfer is arranged to the Department of General Services’ Division of Purchases and Supply surplus warehouse.

      4. The arrangements for the transfer of surplus property to the Department of General Services’ Division of Purchases and Supply surplus warehouse will be the responsibility of the fixed assets coordinator.

      5. The fixed assets coordinator will update the AM inventory.

   3. Loss, destruction, or theft: In order to validate insurance claims in case of loss, destruction, or theft of a controlled asset, the following procedures will be followed:

      1. Verbally report any missing item to the Department of Police immediately upon discovery. Notify the school dean or department manager.

      2. Follow up the verbal report with a written report containing as much information as is necessary to fully describe the item.

      3. The Department of Police will report in writing all cases of loss or theft to the vice president of finance and administration and the fixed assets coordinator. The Department of Police will notify the local or state police as necessary.

      4. The Department of Police will conduct an internal investigation and the findings will be forwarded to the vice president of finance and administration and the fixed assets coordinator. The Department of Police will notify the local or state police as necessary.

      5. JSRCC Form 65-0009, List of Equipment for Disposal Form, must be completed with a copy of the loss/destruction/theft report attached and forwarded to the fixed assets coordinator.

      6. The fixed assets coordinator will update the AM inventory.

      7. In cases of significant loss ($1,000 or more), the vice president of finance and administration will request replacement and or reimbursement through the risk management procedures.

   4. Unusable and non-repairable condition: When this situation occurs, the department must:

      1. Complete the JSRCC Form 65-0009, List of Equipment for Disposal Form, and submit to the fixed assets coordinator. The fixed assets coordinator will determine the best disposal method for the item and will notify the department of the approved disposal method.

      2. The fixed assets coordinator will update the AM inventory.

   5. Trade-In: When a trade-in is desired:

      1. The department initiates JSRCC Form 65-0009, List of Equipment for Disposal Form, noting the tag number, general description, department code, and the words “trade-in.”

      2. The Equipment Disposal form is attached to the new purchase request and is sent to the vice president of finance and administration; and, at his/her discretion and in consultation with the requesting department supervisor, an approval may be given for the trade-in.

      3. Once the trade-in is complete, the fixed assets coordinator will update the AM inventory.

2. Surplus Property

   1. Surplus property may be publicly auctioned. Reynolds currently utilizes the public auction site GovDeals.com.

   2. Reynolds employees and their immediate family may purchase the college’s saleable surplus via the GovDeals.com auction site, subject to the limits below:

      1. Employees and their immediate family may bid for and purchase surplus items up to a limit of $500 per item or lot. (Code of Virginia, § 2.2-3110, State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act).

      2. Employees may bid on the property listed for auction, provided they do not bid while on duty.

      3. Buyers may be subject to payment of state and/or local sales and/or use tax.

Other Information:

Code of Virginia, § 2.2-3110, State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act

JSRCC Form 65-0006, Removal of College Property

JSRCC Form 65-0007, Asset Donation Form

JSRCC Form 65-0008, Fixed Asset Location Change Form

JSRCC Form 65-0009, List of Equipment for Disposal Form