Employees who travel on College business may apply for a personal liability JP Morgan Chase credit card.  The Purchasing Office has application forms and pertinent details. You may also click here for information on this card.

We have an agreement with LaQuinta Inns which may help save you some money.  Please click here for details.  When making an on-line reservation, use booking code UTSTAT to get the best pricing.

There are some things to be aware of if you will be traveling on business for Dixie State College.  There are two forms which relate to business travel.  They are the Travel Authorization Form and the Travel Claim Form.

Travel Authorization Form (<Click to SeeSample) Due at least 3-5 business days before your trip.

Prior to your trip, you will need to fill out a Travel Authorization form to prepare a budget for the trip and obtain approval from your supervisor and the budget administrator(s) paying for the trip.  The TA form has a red, 4-digit number in the upper right corner.  All expenses relating to your trip will refer to this number.

Beginning on the left side of the form, please fill in your name and your Banner ID number.  If you don’t know the Banner ID, call Christie at extension 7613 and she’ll tell you what it is.  Next, fill in the Destination (city and state) of your trip.  In the box labeled Purpose of Travel and Comments, please be specific. Something like “Attend UPAC Regional Conference” would be fine.  Next, enter your Departure Date and Return Date.  Please note that any receipts for your trip must be for dates listed on your TA, so make sure your dates are correct.  Next, complete the section Planned Mode of Transportation for the trip.  You may need to mark several.  Perhaps you’re driving your personal vehicle to Las Vegas to catch a plane to Boston.  Check Personal Vehicle and also Commercial Airline in this scenario. 

Airfare - If you're traveling to Salt Lake City click here for current weekday flight choices.  All air reservations may be made through the Internet or through a travel agent of your choice.  The State of Utah Travel Office at 801-538-3350 is a good choice (and must be used to get the state rate to Salt Lake City) as well as Morris Murdock Travel here in St. George at 628-3633.  Both have a special DSC travel credit card on file.  Either agency will need your TA number to book your flight and will charge the credit card for your flight expenses. Purchasing will bill your index code(s) approximately 10-30 days after you book your flight through either agency.

The last box on the left side is for Faculty only.  Please make sure you outline clearly for your supervisor how you are covering your classes while you’re out of town. 

The right side of the TA form begins with a box entitled Estimated Cost of Trip in which you will estimate the budget for your trip.  It is important to estimate as carefully as possible, because if you go over your budget by more than 10%, we need an additional signature on your claim form. 

·         If you are taking your personal vehicle, you will be reimbursed 48.5 cents for each mile driven.  Estimate your mileage and multiple by 48.5 cents. We may be able to help you estimate the mileage to many destinations. Please note that your personal insurance covers you when you are using a personal vehicle for College travel.  There is no state coverage for privately-owned vehicles.  You should never drive a personal vehicle on college business if it is not insured. 

·         If you would like to drive a DSC vehicle, please call Felica Griswold in Campus Services at extension 7566 to make your reservation.  Purchasing will bill your index code(s) after you return from your trip.  Felica will need a copy of your approved TA prior to your departure.  There are gas credit cards in DSC vehicles for your use.  Visit with Felica about them, especially if you’re traveling out of state.  It is mandatory to take a safe driving course before driving any DSC vehicle. The DSC Library offers this course at your convenience. Spouses are allowed to accompany you in DSC vehicles, but are not allowed to drive them.  Minor children are not allowed to ride in DSC vehicles.  If you’re taking your children, either rent a car or take your own.

·         Current mileage rates for DSC vehicles are:

o       Sedan or minivan 48.5 cents per mile

o       Large van (Click to See Important Restrictions - 9 people max) $.50 per mile  

o       22-Passenger bus $.90 per mile (CDL driver required)

·         You may also rent a vehicle from Enterprise Rent-A-Car here in St. George.  You must have a credit card for identification purposes.  Call Enterprise at 634-1556 and identify yourself as a DSC employee.  Give them your TA number and they will bill Purchasing for your rental car expenses.  We’ll then charge your index code(s). Our agreement number with Enterprise is CUT0568 if you are asked.  Click here for current rates for rentals picked up in Utah or Idaho.   It is mandatory to take a safe driving course before driving rented vehicles for DSC business.  The DSC library offers that course at your convenience. 

·         Rental Vehicles For Pick-up Out of Town – When you need a rental car out of town, please make those reservations through the State of Utah Travel Office at (801) 538-3350 to take advantage of possible state contract rates in your destination city.  If you are able to get a state contract reservation, your insurance is included in the rate.  If you are not using the state contract, you must buy insurance. Please click here for information regarding rental vehicles outside of St. George.  Included is very important info on insurance.  When renting vehicles, you must have a credit card for payment.

·         Meals may be handled one of two ways, and you may also switch from one to the other option each day you’re traveling.  You may take a $36 daily per diem for meals while traveling in Utah ($9 breakfast, $11 lunch and $16 dinner), a $45 daily per diem for meals while traveling outside the state of Utah ($10 breakfast, $14 lunch and $21 dinner) or you may save all receipts for meals.  The daily maximum for meals is $50 with receipts, including tips (20% maximum.) The per diem rate includes tips, and no receipts are necessary.  You are allowed to claim per diem even if your conference or host provides some meals.  Please include meal per diem amounts only for those meals each day where you are away from St. George.  For example, if you leave town at 2 pm, just claim the dinner per diem allowance for that day.

Next, we ask if you will need a Travel Advance. Travel advances are available for group travel only.  If you are traveling with an academic or athletic group of students, you may ask for a travel advance for part of all of the expenses.  Please note that we need a minimum of 3 to 5 working days to process a travel advance.  If you need an advance, please mark the Yes box and fill in the amount you would like.  You are required to sign your name under the black box in the space entitled Signature of Traveler if you are asking for a travel advance.  Please read the black box info before signing.

The next section is labeled Prepayments.  We would be happy to send your conference registration fee in for you with a check if you would like us to.  Fill in the name of the entity we are to cut the check to as well as the amount of the check in this box.  Attach an invoice or registration form to your TA which will serve as backup for this prepayment, and we’ll send the check off for you.  It is best not to prepay hotels.  Many times the checks are lost or applied to a hotel reservation incorrectly and you arrive to find that the hotel says they have not been prepaid.  Please use your personal credit card or a DSC Travel Credit Card to reserve and pay for hotel rooms.

• A DSC Travel Credit Card is a JP Morgan Chase MasterCard which you may apply for.  We have the applications here in Purchasing.  This is a personal liability card which you will make the payments on, and it is a great way to separate your personal expenses from your College expenses.  See link in second paragraph of this page for more info on this card.

The next box is the Approval and Accounting Info box.  Budget administrators must sign to approve expenses for each index code (budget) being used for the trip.  If multiple index codes are being used, fill in the amount to be charged to each.  In addition, your direct supervisor must sign in this box.  Without these signatures, we are unable to process anything for this trip.

Wow, that was a mouthful!

Now enjoy your trip!  When you get back, you’ll need to complete a ----

Travel Claim Form (<Click to seeSample) - Due to Purchasing within 60 days of your trip. After 60 days, we cannot reimburse you.

Beginning on the left side of the form, please fill in your Name.   Next, tell us how you traveled. 

• If you used a College Vehicle, check the box and simply enter the miles you traveled.  Don’t try to figure out the amount. 

• If you used a Private Automobile, check the box and enter the exact miles you drove and fill in the current rate (currently 48.5 cents).  Multiply one by the other and enter that amount under the Cost column.

•  If you traveled by air, please check the box, Commercial Airline and fill in the "Travel Agency" line.  For example, Morris Murdock or Internet or State Travel.  Include the price of your ticket.

• Other – check this box and indicate how you traveled.  Some choices would be "rental car" or "traveled with others."  Please be specific.   If there was a cost involved, please list it here.

Now add all transportation costs and enter an amount in the Total Transportation box.

The next box is entitled Meals and Lodging.  Fill in the date and amount of the meal in each box.  See information on per diem rates above.  Under the lodging column, fill in the hotel name and the amount which was spent.  Please note that you need an itemized folio for hotel/motel expenses.  We need to see what nights you spent there, what the room number and rate were, etc.  When you travel you may also stay with a relative and pay them $20 per night to host you.  You will need to create a receipt for this stating who you stayed with, the nights, and the amount paid to them.  Sign this and turn it in with your claim so that we may reimburse you for this expense. Write “Relative” in the Place box on the Claim in this instance.

Then please add up all the meals, entering an amount in Total Meals.  Also enter the amount for Total Lodging.

The Other Costs area of the form is where you will enter expenses such as conference registration fees, skycap or maid tips ($5 maximum), shuttle bus expenses, cabs, gasoline for a rental car, etc.  You need receipts for everything except the skycap or maid tips.  Add up all Other Costs and enter the total in the box in the middle of the form entitled Total Other. 

Now add up all the center column subtotals and enter the Total Expenses for Trip amount.

If you had a travel advance, enter the amount of the advance in Less Travel Advance Received.

If you had expenses for this trip which were prepaid or billed to Dixie State College, add them up and enter that amount in Less Prepayments Sent. 

Now subtract the travel advance and/or the prepayments and enter the amount you owe DSC or the amount DSC owes you in the appropriate box.  Attach all receipts to the Travel Claim and sign it.  If you exceeded your budget for the trip by more than 10%, you’ll need the budget administrator(s) approval in the lower left corner. 

Completed forms should be sent to Purchasing for processing.  We’ll either send you a bill for what you owe back on a travel advance, or we’ll have a check cut for you and send it to the Cashier’s Office for you to pick up.  This should just take two or three days if your claim is filled out correctly and the appropriate receipts are attached.

We understand that this is rather complicated.  Please give us a call at extension 7612 or 7613 if we may be of assistance.