1

Commercial Card Program Administrator

State Controller Policy

Effective Date: 10/06/2017

Approved by: Robert Jaros, CPA, MBA, JD, Colorado State Controller

Definitions

  • Bank-Financial institution that provides Commercial Card services to the State. 
  • Program Administrator-Employee responsible for management of Department/Agency/ Institution of Higher Education's Commercial Card Program. 
  • State Commercial Card Program -All card (Procurement, Travel, One Card) accounts and services provided to the State and participating entities by the Bank.
  • State Commercial Card Program Manager-Employee responsible for the administration of the Commercial Card contract and monitoring of Department/Agency/Institution of Higher Education programs for policy and procedure compliance. 
  • Users -All cardholders, approving officials, card managers, reallocators, liaisons, card designees, card custodians and card managers 

Purpose

The objective of this policy is to outline the duties and responsibilities of Program Administrators of the State Commercial Card Program ("Program") as defined in C.R.S. 24-102-207. 

Responsibilities 

Program Administrators are responsible for oversight and management of the program. Program Administrators have a critical role in the internal control of the Program. The duties and responsibilities of Program Administrators include: 

  • Be the primary intermediary between the State Commercial Card Program Manager and the Bank;
  • Ensure that Users receive relevant policies and communications regarding the Program as defined in the CCARD Manual;
  • Establish and update Department/Agency/Institution of Higher Education's internal program policies and guidelines to meet the minimum requirements of statewide rules, policies, and procedures;
  • Provide training to Department/Agency/Institution of Higher Education Users;
  • Maintain signed cardholder agreement forms for all Users;
  • Coordinate maintenance of Department cards to include any additions, deletions and changes;
  • Evaluate needs of Users to determine appropriate controls for each individual card;
  • Ensure correct controls are assigned to each card in order to mitigate fraud and misuse. Controls include, but are not limited to:
    • Single Purchase Limits
    • Amount per Day
    • Amount per Cycle
    • Transactions per Cycle
    • Transactions per Day
    • Merchant Category Codes
  • Maintain all cards in a secure manner until issued to cardholder;
  • Maintain all cardholder records in a secure manner in accordance with the timeline prescribed in the Department of Personnel & Administration's Financial Record Retention Guidelines, except as defined by grant requirements or other external parties requirements;
  • Review cardholder charges on a regular basis, which may involve using statistical sampling, to ensure program compliance;
  • Request appropriate action is taken should violations or misuse occur on cards;
  • Report any issues of non-compliance with program to the cardholder's appointing authority, controller and department executive director/chief executive officer;
  • Report all misuse to the State Commercial Card Program Manager on an annual basis in accordance with fiscal rules;
  • Review instances of misuse and determine if changes are needed in the Department/Agency/Institution of Higher Education's procedures;
  • Ensure Department/Agency/Institution of Higher Education has proper back-up administration for the program should the primary Program Administrator be unavailable;
  • Monitor accounts within the Commercial Card and/or financial systems to ensure payments are posted properly and in a timely manner and follow-up with appropriate Department/Agency/Institution staff, as necessary, regarding payment status;
  • Notify the State Commercial Card Program Manager immediately of any changes or pending changes in Program Administrators; and
  • Respond to all requests for information from the State Commercial Card Program Manager.

Non-Compliance

The Program Administrator's non-compliance with this policy may result in remedies available to the State Commercial Card Program Manager including, but not limited to:

  • Request Appointing Authority to consider replacing Program Administrator whose actions are deemed contrary to the terms of this policy; and/or
  • Request Appointing Authority to consider issuing a written warning identifying noncompliance and directing remedial action. If not addressed, request Appointing Authority to issue a corrective action recommended by the Office of the State Controller.

 State Controller Policies