How It Works

The Purchasing Card program simplifies the purchasing/disbursement process by facilitating point-of-sale procurement. Purchasing responsibility is delegated to the ordering department who is thereby enabling the cardholder of that department to place an order directly with a vendor/supplier. The Purchasing Card program provides enhanced control for all transactions by producing immediate decisions on five specific authorization criteria as explained below.

When a purchase authorization is requested by a vendor/supplier at the point-of-sale, the Visa system validates the transaction against pre-set limits established by the Purchasing/Accounting Services offices in conjunction with department administrators. All transactions are approved or declined instantaneously based on the following Purchasing Card authorization criteria.

  • Number of transactions allowed per day.
  • Number of transactions allowed per month.
  • Single purchase limit not to exceed $4,999.00.
  • Approved commodity codes.

The authorization process occurs through an electronic system that supports the Purchasing Card program under the University's bank agreement with U.S. Bank, NA.