Oversight of Expense Purchase Cards
Background
The expense purchase card is the most commonly used purchase card in the U.S. Postal Service. Postal Service personnel use it for purchases under $10,000 when day-to-day operational needs cannot be met through other sources such as catalogs and contracts. Only employees with a written delegation of authority can use the card. In addition, cardholders are required to obtain prior approval before making purchases and must maintain records to support their purchases for 3 years.
Cardholders and credit card approving officials must also complete expense purchase card training and approving officials must reconcile cardholders’ transactions monthly to verify they were made for business purposes. From December 31, 2012, to December 31, 2014, cardholders made 931,926 expense purchase card transactions, totaling $530.7 million.
Our objective was to assess the Postal Service’s oversight of expense card purchases and payments.
What The OIG Found
The Postal Service did not adequately oversee expense card purchases and payments. Some cardholders made purchases without proper approval and some did not maintain accurate and complete records to support their purchases. Further, cardholders and approving officials did not always provide proof they completed the required purchase card training and not all cardholders maintained delegations of authority.
Of the 209 transactions we reviewed, 133 were missing required documentation such as purchase approvals, receipts, and delivery documentation. Of the 133 transactions, 51 were made without proper approval.