REV 09/05

Section 4.3

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PROCESS

OVERVIEW:

Purchase orders are required for all purchases except as defined in Section 4.2 or

Sections 6 with imprest checking accounts, or Section 7 with reimbursement

vouchers. Purchase orders are a means of providing clear information and order

terms to vendors, encumbering/tracking budgets, and providing historical data on

orders. Purchase orders should always be used for the contractual services as well

as for purchase of fixed assets or theft sensitive assets.

REQUESTING A PURCHASE ORDER:

The District is using the IFAS on-line purchasing system to produce purchase

orders. Detailed instructions about how to use IFAS are included in your IFAS

training manual. If you need help or aren’t sure how to input your information,

please call ext. 4180 for assistance. When you input a Purchase Request, please

keep the following in mind:

•

Provide detailed information/description about your order. Please be as

descriptive as possible when entering your Purchase Request. Only the first

line of the description carries over into the receiving screen in IFAS.

Therefore, the first line should clearly identify the item as much as possible.

•

An “open” or “not to exceed” purchase order to cover a specific time period

should indicate in general what will be purchased on the PO. If multiple

payments will be issued against an open PO, remember to reverse the dollar

amount with the quantity when you enter your purchase request. (For

example: 1000 at $1.00 each for a $1000 open PO.)

•

Attachments to Purchase Requests should be marked with the Purchase

Request number and forwarded to the Purchasing Office as soon as possible

for timely processing.

•

Include the appropriate shipping amounts and sales tax rates. More

information on sales tax is included below.

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Section 4.3

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SALES TAX:

We are required to pay sales tax on all purchases, including shipping and handling.

If a purchase is made from an out of state vendor that does not charge tax, we are

still required to pay tax to the State of Washington. This is called “

Use Tax”.

The

sales tax rate is determined by the location of the sale:

•

The sale of tangible property from a Washington vendor is charged at the tax

rate of the retail outlet of the seller.

•

The sale of tangible property from outside of Washington is taxed at the rate

of the sellers in-state presence (examples: resident sales person, office, etc.)

or at the buyers location if the vendor has no in-state presence.

•

If in doubt, use the default sales tax rate on your purchase request. The

Accounting Office will determine the appropriate rate when payment is made.

PURCHASE ORDER REVISIONS:

When it becomes necessary to revise a purchase order, please use the Purchase

Order Revision form.

Examples of revisions to a purchase order might be:

•

Increase/decrease in dollar amount over $50 ($50 and under may be

revised via an e-mail)

•

Change in product

•

Change in account number

Be as descriptive as possible when completing the Purchase Order Revision form.

Please indicate whether or not the vendor needs written authorization to make the

change you are requesting.

RETURN OF MERCHANDISE:

When items need to be returned to the vendor, schools or departments should

contact the vendor for a return authorization number, a shipping address, and any

other instructions the vendor may require.

•

Securely package the item as per their instructions.

•

Include a copy of the packing slip or other identifying paperwork.

•

Return authorization numbers, if provided, should be clearly written on the

outside of the box and on the packing slip inside the box.

•

Address the box as per the vendor’s instructions. Be aware that

sometimes shipments are returned to different locations.

•

Ship, preferably by traceable method, to the vendor. Keep records of the

tracking number and return information until your package is received and

credit is issued.

•

Mark the item as “Rejected” on the purchasing receiving screen. This will

help ensure that the Accounting Office does not process payment.

Schools and departments should notify Accounting that a credit or refund is pending.

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Section 4.3

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ENTERING NEXT YEAR PURCHASE REQUESTS IN IFAS

Remember there are special requirements governing which year a purchase may be

charged to as per section 4.1. Sites may begin entering next year POs in IFAS

when notified by the Finance Department, usually June 1

st

. Exceptions such as fall

sports, fall workshops, etc. may be entered as early as May 1

st

. Exceptions will be

determined on a case by case basis. Please contact Purchasing for assistance.

When entering a next year Purchase Request into IFAS, there are two important

fields to flag to ensure your encumbrance is posted to the correct year:

Text Code:

Enter

NY

in the first text code box. This code indicates Next

Year.

Date:

Change the date to September 1

st

.

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VENDOR INFORMATION

REASON FOR CHANGE - PLEASE NOTE

Code change

Monetary Change

Disencumberance

DESCRIPTION

AMOUNT

Revised Subtotal:

Revised Shipping:

Revised Sales Tax:

Revised Total:

PO CODING ADJUSTMENTS

Debit:

$

$

Debit:

$

Credit:

$

$

Credit:

$

Debit:

$

$

Debit:

$

Credit:

$

$

Credit:

$

AUTHORIZED BY

DATE

PURCHASING APPROVAL

DATE

Everett Public Schools

PO Box 2098

Everett, WA 98213

Purchasing (425)385-4180 fax (425)385-4172

Contact/Phone #

ASB

CAPITAL PROJECTS

The following revisions are hereby authorized on the above referenced Purchase Order.

Purchase Order #

Requisition #

Vendor #

School/Department:

PURCHASE ORDER REVISION

GENERAL FUND

Debit:

Debit:

Debit:

Debit:

$0.00

Rev. 10/04

Section 4.3

Page 4 of 4