Guidelines on Closing Imprest Funds and Third Party Draft Sites Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 16:21:21 -0500 To: "AO - All Administrative Officers", "AE - Administrative Employees" From: "Alice A. Sabatini, Division Administrative Officer, WRD" Subject: Guidelines on closing imprest funds and third party drafts Memorandum November 13, 1998 To: Imprest Fund and Third Party Draft Cashiers From: Susan R. Sheely, Chief Travel Management Branch Subject: Guidelines on Closing Imprest Funds and Third Party Draft Sites The Debt Collection Improvement Act (DCIA) requires that all Federal payments made after January 2, 1999, be made electronically, unless specifically waived. Included are all travel reimbursements, travel advances, and vendor payments. Electronic payments mean the payment is made directly through the banking system to the recipient's account at a financial institution. Neither third party drafts (TPD) nor imprest funds are considered acceptable payment mechanisms under the DCIA, since they are not EFT compliant. These types of payments will no longer be authorized beginning November 28, 1998, for TPD's and January 4, 1999, for imprest funds. There are specific guidelines to be followed in order to close the TPD sites and imprest funds. Each process is described below. Designated imprest funds may remain open for specific types of payments if approved by your Division Chief and the Associate Director for Operations. Procedures on how to request such a designation will be issued shortly. Contact me at 703-648-7602 or ssheely@usgs.gov if you think your imprest fund qualifies for this designation. How to Close Third Party Draft Sites Since the third party draft program is not considered EFT compliant and will be terminated, the last day to issue drafts will be Friday, November 27, 1998. Our contract with First State Marketing Corporation (FSMC) expires on December 31, 1998, which allows 5 weeks for all drafts to clear an employees' financial institution as well as through FSMC. Instructions for closing the TPD sites are as follows: 1. Complete a final Third Party Draft Reconciliation form (Exhibit 6 in the TPD Handbook). Have the unused drafts counted and verified by two disinterested persons. 2. Prepare a transmittal memo to Jacqueline E. Lynch, Third Party Draft Coordinator, OFM, stating that the TPD site #______ is closing. Included in this memo should be the serial numbers of the unused drafts and the names of the two disinterested individuals who did the verification. 3. Send the entire package (reconciliation, memo, and drafts) in a blue 'Special' envelope marked for Jackie Lynch ONLY. Package must be sent via Federal Express and addressed: U.S. Geological Survey 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive 270 National Center ATTENTION: Jackie Lynch Reston, VA 20192 4. Please e-mail Jackie at jelynch@usgs.gov to advise her that the unused drafts are being sent via FedEx. Jackie can also be reached at 703-648-7680. We realize that the third party draft program has been extremely successful, especially in the area of travel voucher reimbursements. From the onset, the travel voucher reimbursements were intended to be temporary while the FFS Travel Manager Interface (TMI) was developed, tested and implemented. The second version of the TMI is being upgraded to work with all our technical platforms. We anticipate delivery of this product in late November 1998, which will be followed by testing and piloting before it can be released to all Divisions. In the interim, travel vouchers will be processed in the Travel Management Branch of the Office of Financial Management. Although reimbursements will not be as prompt as with third party drafts, the use of direct deposit/electronic funds transfer by all travelers will accelerate the process. Travelers are reminded that travel vouchers must be completed within 5 days after returning from official travel status. How to Close Imprest Funds Payments by cash drawn from imprest funds are not considered EFT compliant. Therefore, imprest funds must be closed and alternative payment mechanisms adopted. An inter-Divisional workgroup addressed this issue and concluded that most payments made by imprest funds can be made with a bankcard. Convenience checks can be used in those instances where cash-type transactions are still needed; however, payments by convenience check should be held to a minimum. Instructions on closing an imprest fund are: 1. A final Administrative Review/Cash Verification is to be conducted by two disinterested individuals using the checklist in the USGS Handbook for Imprest Fund Cashiers (335-2-H). 2. Determine the amount of cash on hand to be turned in and obtain a cashier's check or money order made out to the U.S. Geological Survey. 3. Prepare a transmittal memo to Jacqueline E. Lynch stating that the Imprest fund is closing and include the administrative review and the money order or cashier's check. 4. Send the entire package (review, memo, and money order/cashier's check) in a blue 'Special' envelope marked for Jackie Lynch ONLY. Package must be sent via Federal Express and addressed: U.S. Geological Survey 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive 270 National Center ATTENTION: Jackie Lynch Reston, VA 20192 5. Please e-mail Jackie at jelynch@usgs.gov to advise her that the a check/money order is being sent via FedEx. Jackie can also be reached at 703-648-7680. Questions concerning third party drafts and imprest funds should be addressed to Susan Sheely at (703) 648-7602 or sheely@usgs.gov. cc: Division Administrative Officers