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Mobile Allowance Policy

The University of Portland Mobile Communication Allowance Policy outlines guidelines for employee use of cell phones and handheld devices for work purposes. It provides taxable monthly allowances of $30 for voice-only service or $80 for combined voice and data service. Department supervisors must request allowances for employees, which vice presidents approve. The employee is responsible for equipment costs and service contract fees if the allowance ends. Reimbursements are available only for infrequent business use exceeding a personal plan.

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316 views3 pages

Mobile Allowance Policy

The University of Portland Mobile Communication Allowance Policy outlines guidelines for employee use of cell phones and handheld devices for work purposes. It provides taxable monthly allowances of $30 for voice-only service or $80 for combined voice and data service. Department supervisors must request allowances for employees, which vice presidents approve. The employee is responsible for equipment costs and service contract fees if the allowance ends. Reimbursements are available only for infrequent business use exceeding a personal plan.

Uploaded by

leonciong
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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office of information services

5000 North Willamette Boulevard


Portland, Oregon 97203-5798
(503) 943-7540

MOBILE COMMUNICATION ALLOWANCE POLICY


FOR CELL PHONES AND HANDHELD DEVICES

Policy Overview
In general, the University of Portland does not purchase cell phones and wireless handheld devices (such
as smart phones) for individual employees nor pay directly for employee service plans for cell phones or
handheld devices. Employees may request reimbursement for business-related calls under the college’s
normal business expense reimbursement policy.

For employees whose job duties require the frequent use of these devices or services, the University may
provide a taxable allowance. This allowance does not constitute an increase to base pay and will not be in-
cluded as base compensation for future raises, salary adjustments, retirement contributions, and employee
benefits.

As a taxable allowance, the University will not reimburse employees for any additional taxes as a result of
receiving this allowance. Specifics of this policy are described below.

Taxable Allowance Policy Limits


For qualified employees the University will provide an allowance subject to the following limits
n Monthly allowance for voice-only service is $30
n Monthly allowance for combined voice and mobile data device service will be $80*

* $5.00 of the monthly allowance is to cover the cost of the handheld device

Qualification and Administration of Allowance


Based on their knowledge of the job duties of a position, budget considerations, and good judgment, super-
visors should submit requests for a cell phone or handheld device allowance for employees under their
supervision to their divisional Vice President. If the Vice President approves a supervisor’s request for an
employee in his/her department to receive an allowance for a cell phone or handheld device, the Vice
President should send an email to the payroll office ([email protected]), indicating the individual and level
of allowance to be received.

Vice Presidents are responsible for an annual review of these allowances to determine whether they
should be continued or adjusted. The payroll office should be notified promptly of any changes.

The University of Portland will not provide direct payments to a vendor for the purchase of equipment or
monthly service charges for the equipment covered. Additionally, the University will not enter into con-
tracts with vendors for employee use of these devices or services on behalf of employees. Since the employee
is the direct holder of the contract, he or she will be responsible for lost, damaged or malfunctioning equip-
ment.
The employee must retain an active service contract as long as this type of allowance is being paid and use
these devices and services in a prudent manner at all times. Use of these devices or services in any manner
contrary to local, state, or federal laws will constitute misuse and will result in immediate termination of
the allowance and other actions, as appropriate.

Payroll Processing
After the Payroll office receives and approves the request to pay an allowance, it will be added to the indi-
vidual’s payroll check. Appropriate payroll taxes on the allowance will be withheld from the paycheck, and
the amount of the allowance will be included on the individual’s year-end W-2 form.

Fees for Contract Changes or Cancellations


The employee will be responsible for any fees associated with a change or termination of the contract
caused by a personal decision by the employee, employee misconduct, involuntary termination, or misuse
of the device or service.

If, prior to the end of the service contract, the decision is made to discontinue the allowance to the employ-
ee (for example, the employee’s supervisor has changed the employee’s duties and the device or services is
no longer needed for University purposes), the employee may be eligible for reimbursement of all or a por-
tion of the service contract cancellation fees. If the employee does not want to retain the current contract, a
request for reimbursement of the cancellation fees should be submitted to the Vice President for Information
Services within three weeks from the time of either the decision to discontinue the allowance or the em-
ployee’s last date of employment. An invoice from the service provider indicating the service has been can-
celled and the amount of the cancellation fees should accompany the request. The University will reim-
burse the employee for that portion of the fees that represents the university business use. The University
will reimburse fees for the cancellation of contracts with no more than two years remaining. Fees will be
prorated on contracts with greater than two years remaining.

Shared Phones
On the rare occasion when a department may make a cell phone available for multiple individuals to use
and a cell phone is not assigned to a specific individual and no personal calls are made on these phones, the
phone may be used by employees without using the taxable allowance program. Such phones should be
pre-approved in writing by Information Services.

Special Phones
There may be situations in which departments, such as Physical Plant, Public Safety, and Events, deter-
mine that a cell phone or similar device provides a more reliable and cost effective solution than the two-
way radios that would normally be provided by the University. In these situations the University will pro-
vide the cell phone with the understanding that it will be used mainly for university business. However, if
the employee exceeds the limits provided (the University determines the limits), the employee will reim-
burse the University for any charges for extra usage.

Infrequent Reimbursements
Faculty or staff may be reimbursed for out-of-pocket costs associated with personal cell phones or handheld
devices when the following conditions are met:
n The personal cell phone or handheld device was used for university business
n The out-of-pocket costs are in excess of the regular monthly cost of his/her personal plan
n Reimbursement requests are documented in accordance with University of Portland’s expense reim-
bursement policy
n Reimbursement requests are infrequent in nature. (Please note that if this is a regular, ongoing activ-
ity, the taxable monthly allowance should be used)
Exceptions
Exceptions to this policy should be pre-approved in writing by the Vice President for Information Services.

Other College Policies


When using personally owned devices that are connected to University of Portland networks, or when
using University provided devices or resources, all individual are expected to comply with relevant
Information Services policies.

Responsibility for Approving and Maintaining this Policy


The Vice President for Information Services is responsible for approving modifications to this policy. The
Controller is responsible for coordinating an annual review of this policy.

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