Before the Trip
Complete paperwork as soon as you know about the trip. 30 days minimum.
All Travel Paperwork is in Staff Central - Teacher and Student Travel Documents
https://comalisd.sharepoint.com/sites/StaffCentral/SitePages/Forms-and-Docs.aspx
You may also download relevant forms here :
Employee Professional Travel Request Checklist
Professional Travel Request Form
Hotel Occupancy Tax Exemption Form
State Sales Tax Exemption Certificate
Travel Reimbursement Request Form
In-State Overnight Trip Request Form
Out of State Overnight Trip Request Form
Travel paperwork MUST be submitted and approved before any registration can be completed. Your invoice for your registration cannot be dated before your travel paperwork has been submitted to all required approvers. If you have something that is coming up and you know the dates of the conference, stock show and or contest, please get your paperwork started and completed before you submit your registration information.
Traveling for Stock Shows/Professional Development - Request for Professional Travel.
Traveling with students - In-State or Out-of-State Overnight Trip Request form. Teacher Request for travel is not required with this packet. List all names of students and staff attending and all the costs associated with the trip, including teacher meals. Rooming list and hotel preferences are required. If you are requesting meal money for your students from activity funds, make sure this is also listed on your paperwork.
Attach Registration information, if applicable
Pony all Travel Paperwork to Support Services - Attn: Kelly Young, Business Office. Do not email paperwork.
After the Trip
Submit Travel Reimbursement within 14 days (this time may be shorter in the summer)
Attach map if requesting mileage reimbursement. Remember the shortest route will be reimbursed.
Include staff vendor number. This is not your employee number. If you do not remember your number or have a vendor number, email Kelly.
Staff Development Travel Guidelines
In order to provide quality staff development opportunities to the largest number of career and technical education teachers, travel monies must be utilized with prudence.
Travel budget amounts are set during the normal budget planning process and are determined largely on previous amounts budgeted and anticipated need. Teacher travel/staff development is very important but cannot have a detrimental effect on money available for instruction. A concerted effort has been made to accurately anticipate need, but it is still only a best estimate.
Obtaining prior approval by the CTE Director.
Priority will be given to those trips which impact CTE and District Goals
Teachers traveling to the same city to attend the same conference/meeting and that will be expected to room two people of the same gender to a room. Teachers preferring to room alone will be responsible for their own room cost and should make arrangements separate from the group reservation.
Allowances for teacher travel will be based on the following general criteria: Teachers traveling to the same city to attend the conference will ride together a minimum two per vehicle. Those choosing not to travel together will not be reimbursed for mileage. (It is understood that the number traveling will have a bearing on the number of vehicles needed.)
Travel policies may be adjusted if the travel request exceeds budgeted amounts.
Teachers are not mandated to attend workshops, or conferences. However, if they choose to do so, it is their responsibility to register for their conferences and workshops after approval is granted by the CTE Director.
The CTE Director reserves the right to approve or disapprove a request to travel.
All staff development travel is contingent upon the availability of funds and the appropriateness of the travel to the stated CTE goals.
Staff development travel with spouses and family is discouraged.
When federal funds are used for staff development travel, itemized meal receipts will have to be submitted in order for the teacher to receive reimbursement. This is a change in federal legislation and applies to all federally funded programs.
Mileage reimbursement rate is .58 cents per mile.
If commercial transportation is used, reimbursement shall be made for actual expenses and a receipt is REQUIRED.
Each employee is assigned a home campus. Mileage will not be paid for travel between the employee’s residence and his/her home campus. When traveling to places other than the home campus, mileage shall be computed from the home campus or from the employee’s residence (whichever is less). For itinerant staff, your home campus is the first campus you visit for the day.
Coordination of travel must occur when two or more District employees employed at the same school on the same dates with the same itinerary to conduct the same official district business. Coordination of travel is not required if the employee’s Director determines BEFORE travel that the coordination of travel is infeasible.
Google Maps are required for mileage reimbursement. Please do not use Mapquest.
The District may verify mileage and change accordingly when mileage is deemed excessive or unreasonable.
There shall be NO reimbursement for in-district travel expenses other than mileage.
MEALS- EMPLOYEE OVERNIGHT stays will be reimbursed at the rate of $36/day and no receipts are required. The employee must have incurred the expense in order to be reimbursed. By signing the travel reimbursement you agree to the reimbursement. This rate is subject to change. Meal per diem on the first day and last day of travel is limited to 75% of allowable ($36 * .75 = $27). Not to exceed actual expenses. There is no meal allowance for day travel.
The time of day is significant to the reimbursement. If you return before 6:00 p.m. you are NOT allowed meal reimbursement for dinner. If you return prior to 12:00 p.m. you are NOT reimbursed for lunch.
If conference fee includes meals, there will be no meal allowance for those meals.
Send Kelly Young hotel request form listing 3 hotel choices.
Hotel reservations will be made by Kelly Young once request for travel has been approved.
If a room is shared, a Request/Approval for Professional Travel form must be filled out by BOTH individuals.
Hotel receipts are due no later than 3 days after you return from travel to Kelly Young. No state sales tax is allowed and the balance due must be $0.00. You may email them to her and put the original on the pony.
EXCLUDING STATE SALES TAX. AMOUNTS EXCEEDING THE STATE RATE WILL BE AT THE EMPLOYEE’S EXPENSE AND WILL NOT BE PAID BY THE DISTRICT.
A tax exempt form must be taken to the vendor.
Overnight hotel stays are not allowable for Austin or San Antonio.
The following expenses are NOT ALLOWABLE for travel.
Per diem paid regardless of participant’s actual expenses
Tips or gratuities of any kind
Alcoholic Beverages
Any expense for other persons must be a Comal ISD employee
Entertainment, recreation or social events
Automobile mileage, car rental or taxi fares for other than official business of the meeting, conference, or workshop
Personal accident insurance or personal effects coverage for rental cars
First-class air fare
Expenses incurred by family members
State Sales Taxes, movie charges, personal entertainment, telephone calls, internet charges, dry cleaning
Within 10 calendar days of return of travel, each employee must complete a Travel Reimbursement Form and return to CTE Accounting Specialist along with required documentation/receipts.
For more detailed information regarding travel procedures, you may refer to the Comal ISD Accounting Manual found on Staff Central under Business Services Resources - Accounting Manual.