Property Control Procedures

Op8.17 Property Control Procedures

The Property Control Office is responsible for maintaining the University's capital assets inventory and for the disposition of equipment and supplies that are no longer required by the University. It is the responsibility of each department head to track, monitor, and locate capital assets assigned to his/her department and to account for items below the capitalization threshold purchased by, or transferred to, his/her unit.

The Property Control Procedures Manual provides guidance in the following areas:

Inventory Procedures

Property Control is charged with identifying the equipment to be inventoried, assigning an inventory control number, affixing an inventory control tag, and recording in the inventory control system all equipment purchased by the University that conforms to, or is consistent with, the following criteria:

  • Equipment: Items where the original acquisition cost is $5,000 or more and the items have a useful life of at least one year, with the exception of firearms and licensed vehicles which must be inventoried regardless of the acquisition cost. Donated equipment is subject to the same guidelines as purchased equipment; however, items that are donated must be processed through the Development Office prior to being added to a department’s inventory.
  • Original Acquisition Cost: The original acquisition cost includes the purchase price, shipping, handling, and/or delivery charges, warranty costs, and installation fees, as may be applicable.
  • Software: Software is not assigned an inventory control number. If it is an integral part of a computer or computer-based system, the cost is included in the acquisition cost.
  • Computers: The purchase price for the computer and all associated components, such as the monitor, keyboard, integral software, speakers, etc., is used to determine the original acquisition cost of the computer or system.
  • General Plant Equipment: Equipment that is hard-wired or plumbed into a facility is not assigned an inventory control number. Such equipment is coded to general plant.

An annual inventory of University equipment is required by the statutes of the State of Missouri (Section 34.125, RSMo). Departments are responsible for accounting for all items purchased by, or transferred to, their units.

Property Control will conduct an annual inventory of all items with an acquisition cost of $5000 or more. Department heads will be notified when an inventory of their units is going to be conducted. Property Control will provide a copy of the completed inventory to each major department on an annual basis. A Reconciliation Report must be completed if the department is not able to locate items reported missing by Property Control.

  • Units must notify Property Control of location changes of inventory items to facilitate the annual inventory. When equipment is relocated within a department, an email to the Property Control Office may be used in lieu of the Equipment Tracking/Transfer Form. Transfer forms must be used when inventory items are transferred out of the department. Items will not be transferred out of a department until Property Control receives a copy of the transfer form, signed by the receiving department. Property Control will email the sending department when items have been transferred from their inventory.

Should items on the inventory form not be located, the following actions must be taken:

  • If an item is believed to have been stolen, the Springfield Police Department must be notified. After a copy of the police report is sent to the Property Control Office, the item will be removed from the inventory.
  • If an item listed on the inventory has been sent to surplus or transferred to another department, forward a copy of the signed surplus or transfer form with the inventory so that Property Control may correct the inventory listing.
  • If an item cannot be located, a Reconciliation Report must be filled out and submitted with the inventory listing. Items that are lost or missing will remain on the departmental inventory for three years before they are deleted from the inventory listing. These lost or missing items are left on the inventory for three years in case they are found and to encourage units to continue seeking them after they are reported lost or missing.

Returning Equipment to Vendor

All items that are to be returned to a vendor for repair or replacement must be processed through the Receiving Department. Inventory items need to be taken to the Receiving Department with the shipping box open. Receiving personnel will remove the inventory tag and ship the item to the vendor. A call tag, return authorization, and/or budget number must be provided to return the item to the vendor. When the replacement/repaired item is returned to the University, the Receiving Department will re-tag the item and deliver it to the appropriate department.

Disposal/Donations of University Property

University property (which includes items that are below the $5,000 inventory threshold), and except as exempted below, is to be disposed of through the Property Control Office.

To dispose of such unwanted property, a Surplus Form must be filled out and returned to Property Control. All assets and items that are not on the departmental inventory (items under $5,000) need to be noted on the form. When listing assets include the asset inventory tag number. A signed copy of the form needs to be completed and returned to Property Control to initiate the surplus retrieval process.

At the time that Property Control picks up surplus property, a copy of the surplus form should be retained by the department until an updated inventory is provided to the department and the department ensures that items sent to surplus have been removed from its inventory.

Departments in possession of equipment that is purchased with grant monies must attach disposition instructions to the surplus form stating any special surplus stipulations within the funding grant. If no instructions are attached to the surplus form, the items will be disposed of as University property.

When a department desires to surplus computers or items with data drives, the equipment must be sanitized and the form must be signed by a representative from Computer Services before the items will be picked up. Should help be required to perform this function, the Information Security Office may be called at 417-836-5226.

Items that are no longer needed by the University will either be sold at public auction, or by sealed bid, at the discretion of the Property Control Coordinator. The auction/sealed bid will be advertised online or in the local newspaper two times prior to the auction/sealed bid date. In addition, donations may be made to other governmental bodies (e.g., public schools, other public colleges and universities, et cetera) at the discretion of the Property Control Coordinator.

Departments will be given an opportunity prior to the surplus auction to retrieve useful items for University use. Property may not be donated to non-profit or for-profit organizations or individuals, as Missouri law adheres to the Public Purpose Doctrine. Certain University Property is exempt from this Disposal/Donations provision:

  • Agricultural products should be disposed of according to the University’s Policy for Disposing of Excess Agricultural Animals and Products.
  • Used University purchased apparel (including but not limited to: uniforms and practice gear issued to student athletes; and robes, costumes, uniforms used in University music, band and theater productions and performances) may be sold to the public and the proceeds retained by the applicable University department pursuant to the direction of the applicable Department Head or College Dean, and with the approval of the President.
  • Equipment utilized at the Jordan Valley Innovation Center (JVIC) may be sold to the public and the proceeds may be used to acquire additional equipment for JVIC, with the approval of the President.

Additionally, the President may, in coordination with the University Property Control Office, authorize the disposal of additional categories of University Property or specific property items in ways not contemplated by this Property Control Procedure.

Trade-in of Equipment

If existing equipment is to be traded in on the purchase of new equipment, that trade-in must be accomplished through the Office of Procurement Services. The inventory control number and a description of the equipment to be traded in must be listed on the purchase order for the new equipment so that the equipment being traded in may be removed from the department’s inventory.

University Equipment Off-Campus

University equipment that is not portable in nature (such as a desktop computer) and will be used off-campus must have the written approval of the department head. The Off-Campus Equipment Authorization Form must be completed, signed by the department head, and the completed form maintained in the department’s office until the item(s) is returned to campus.

Equipment that is portable in nature that is to be used off-campus for University business does not require the equipment authorization form to be filled out unless the equipment is to be off-campus for more than two consecutive weeks. For example, cellular telephones, PDAs, and laptop computers that are regularly transported to and from campus do not require completion of the Off-Campus Equipment Form unless kept off-campus for more than two consecutive weeks.

Transferring Inventory Items to Another Department

When equipment is transferred to another department, an Equipment Tracking/Transfer Form must be completed, signed by the department receiving the equipment, and forwarded to Property Control. Items will not be transferred on the inventory unless the form is signed by the department receiving the equipment.

Equipment Location Changes

When equipment locations are changed, the Equipment Tracking Transfer Form should be filled out and forwarded to Property Control. For location changes that involve a room change only, an email to Property Control noting the location change will suffice.

Excessive Missing Equipment

A department's equipment budget may have the depreciated value of missing items withheld. For Property Control purposes, a 10-year straight line depreciation schedule will be used. However, the depreciated value will not drop below 50 percent of the adjusted acquisition cost. Funding will be reinstated upon written notice to the Director of Accounting and Budgeting that all reasonable and appropriate means have been taken by the department to account for or locate the missing equipment.

To view a PDF version of this policy, see the Property Control Procedures Manual*.

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