MnTAP Intranet

MnTAP Policies & Procedures

Please review MnTAP’s policies and procedures. When a policy or procedure has been developed by the University of Minnesota and MnTAP staff members are to abide by that, the link is included. Please see team leaders and/or MnTAP’s director for more information on the policy and procedures manual.

Travel, Purchase, Reimbursement

Expense Reports on Chrome River

Expense reports must be filled out and submitted for work-related purchases, metro mileage, non-metro mileage, and multi-day trips. Use Chrome River to fill out an expense report.

To access Chrome River:

• Login to MyU
• Click on Key Links
• Select U Travel
• Chrome River Login (on the right hand side)

OR

• Chrome River Login

Helpful Links:

• Getting Started with Chrome River – General Reporting Instruction provided by the U of M
• Chrome River Materials – list of comprehensive step-by-step guides.
• Purchases Job Aid – Step-by-step instructions for reporting purchases/expenses

Purchases

• Written pre-approval (via email) from your supervisor is required if the purchase amount is greater than $100
• Order supplies to MnTAP office
  • Do not order supplies to your home (unless you have appropriate justification) 
• For office/general supplies, ordering through U Market is preferred when possible; contact Shelly for help with ordering supplies
• Make purchases using your own credit/debit card and fill out a Chrome River expense report for reimbursement 
  • You may wish to ask Shelly to make the purchase for you using the department P-Card, e.g. for larger purchases; it is best to give her advance notice in these cases
• Chrome River expense report notes:
  • Select “Non Travel” for Trip Type and “United States / Minnesota / Minneapolis” as the Destination
  • Select the date purchase was made for Trip/Expense Start and End dates
  • Under Business Purpose include a brief explanation of how the purchase benefits MnTAP
• Complete the remaining items on the Expense Report and submit within 60 days of purchase date. 

Metro Mileage

• Submit quarterly.
• Create an expense report using Chrome River.
  • The report title should include the months of the quarter, e.g.: “Jan-Mar 2019 Metro Mileage Expenses.”
  • Under “Business Purpose” include “(Qtr mileage log attached)” in the justification statement, e.g.: “Traveled to various sites in the metro area to participate in MnTAP projects (Qtr mileage log attached)”
• Fill out the Metro Mileage form, itemizing each trip.
  • Note: the Metro Mileage form must be uploaded as an attachment to the Mileage item within the listed Expenses before you can submit the Expense Report on Chrome River – do not attach the form to the main body of the Expense Report itself.
  • You can upload the receipts to Chrome River via email to receipts@chromefile.com; however this method may take several minutes to process before the receipts appear in your receipts gallery.
• Use the “+” button at the top of the expense report to add expenses. Click “Create New.”
  • Under “Ground Transportation” select “Mileage” and enter in total trip distance in “Miles.”
  • Do not use the “Calculate Mileage” feature.
• Fill out all remaining entries as appropriate.
  • Under “Allocation” choose the appropriate grant under which the work was carried out. Select “Travel Local” in the second field.
  • Attach your completed Metro Mileage form.
• Submit the completed report.

Forms Associated with Metro Mileage:

• Found Here – Z:\_Common\Administration\Forms\Intranet
• For remote access connect to VPN first

Non-Metro Mileage and Overnight Travel

• A separate Chrome River expense report is required for each trip outside of the 7 metro counties, or for costs associated with overnight travel expenses (e.g. hotel reservation, meals)
  • Remember: non-metro travel with your personal vehicle cannot be included in a quarterly Metro Mileage report
• Obtain supervisor approval for trips via email:
  • Include trip departure and estimated return date(s), times, destination, purpose of travel, and if you will be traveling with a Fleet vehicle
  • CC Shelly Ring in the email exchange for her and Bridget Brennan’s records
• Create one Chrome River expense report per trip
• Submit the expense report within 60 days from the trip end date

Filling out your Chrome River expense report:

• For Trip Type select Minnesota
• Select “Add another location” if you had visits in multiple cities 
• If you used your personal vehicle use the Calculate Mileage tool to determine the mileage for your trip (Create a new expense, then under Ground Transportation select “Mileage”)
  • Click Calculate Mileage to launch the tool
  • Enter in your start and destination addresses in each line
  • Click Return to Start for the round trip mileage
  • Save trip; the calculated trip mileage should now automatically populate the Miles field
  • For Mileage Type select “Local Travel”
  • Select the appropriate grant for Allocation
  • Underneath the grant, select “Travel Minnesota (MN)”
  • Save the expense (you should be able to see a map of your trip as an attachment)
• Overnight Travel will generally incur additional expenses that should be included in the report
  • Under the Per Diem expense category, use Per Diem Wizard to calculate your per diem allocation using the start and end dates of your trip
  • Be sure to include expenses such as hotel accommodation (under Lodging) or parking (under Ground Transportation), etc. if applicable

Use of Rental Vehicle from Fleet Services

• You will need approval from your supervisor or whomever is the project manager if the trip pertains to work carried out under a particular grant; you DO NOT need to fill out a Chrome River expense report for this type of expense
  • Approval is needed regardless of if the trip is within the metro or not
  • Obtain approval via email; CC Shelly Ring in the exchange for her and Bridget Brennan’s records
• After approval, make the car reservation using the Fleet Service vehicle reservation form:
  • Click “Make Reservation” on the left hand side and follow instructions to complete the form
  • Sub-compact, compact, mid-size or full-size car is generally recommended; consider sizing up when appropriate (e.g. multiple passengers will be accompanying you)
  • For the Department field, select “Environmental Health Sciences”
  • You need to enter the appropriate:
    • 4-digit Fund number
    • 5-digit Department ID (always 11174)
    • Project ID number
    • These three numbers (“ChartFields”) comprise the ChartField string used for University accounting purposes; refer to the list of active MnTAP account strings found in the current year’s Metro Mileage form (See Sheet 3 of the Excel file) or consult with Laura
  • For Destination, enter in the appropriate city you will be visiting
  • For Reason for Trip, a general explanation  describing your intended purpose is sufficient (e.g., “Site visit with a client”)
• Rental invoices will be emailed from Fleet Services directly to Shelly or Bridget
• Fleet Service vehicle reservation and rental information

Forms Associated with Non-Metro Mileage and Trips

• Traveling on University Business – Use Form 1612 – University Employee Expense Sheet
• Instructions for Completing the Employee Expense Sheet
• Travel and Expense Reimbursement Justification

More Information

Travel Services at the University of Minnesota is responsible for administering University travel contracts, the development and implementation of travel policies and procedures and informing University staff about these contracts, policies and procedures, and travel conditions, as necessary. If you need more information about traveling, including domestic per diem rates, visit the Travel Services web page.