District credit-card policy revisions considered

Changes are needed to comply with state law

Mentor School Board is considering revisions to the district’s credit-card policy to conform with requirements of a new state law.

The board is scheduled to hear a second reading of the revised six-page policy at its next regular meeting on Nov. 13. A first reading of the proposal was completed at the panel’s Oct. 9 meeting.

“This is an update to the current policy based on a recent legislative change in the state of Ohio advocated for by the state auditor,” Mentor Schools Chief Financial Officer Daniel Wilson said at the October meeting.

That change comes in the form of House Bill 312, which was signed into law by Gov. John Kasich on Aug. 2.

H.B. 312, which goes into effect Nov. 2, requires all forms of local government to enact credit policies specifying how the cards can be used and who is authorized to use them, according to a news release from Ohio Auditor Dave Yost.

“Credit-card misuse is one of

the most prevalent causes of misspending by Ohio’s local governments,” Yost stated in the release. “This legislation will help protect Ohio’s tax dollars by requiring public officials to address many of the weaknesses at the root of the problem.”

State Reps. Kirk Schuring, R-Canton, and Dave Greenspan, R-Westlake, sponsored H.B. 312 and introduced the proposed legislation in July 2017 after Yost released a report titled “Credit Card Dangers: Local Governments at Risk of Theft.” The report showed that showed more than $1.2 million in public funds have been stolen or misspent at Ohio governments through credit-card abuse since 2011.

In addition, the report revealed that some local governments may be putting taxpayer money at risk because they don’t have basic policies to prevent dishonest

employees from abusing government credit cards.

However, in Mentor Schools, Wilson said the district’s current creditcard policy has proven effective at monitoring use and preventing problems.

“I’m pleased to report many of the safeguards embedded in our current board policy address the majority of those legislative mandates,” he said.

H.B. 312 also bans the use of debit cards, except for certain law-enforcement purposes and grant-related activities, and requires credit-card policies to provide guidance on credit limits, reissue periods and the number of cards in use.

One new section in the revised version of Mentor Schools’ credit-card policy states that, “No authorized user of the credit card may incur more than $50,000 in debt through the use of the credit card for any individual transaction.”

“And that’s intended for those circumstances when our credit card is used to purchase goods or materials from a vendor and not

for professional travel or personal expenses,” Wilson said.

But Wilson added that for every credit card assigned throughout Mentor Schools, the district has individual limits set based on historical use in consultation with the superintendent.

Other additions in the proposal to revise the district’s credit-card policy include:

• Only the district treasurer is authorized to request the issuance, reissuance or cancellation of a district credit card.

• The treasurer shall annually file a report with the School Board detailing all rewards received based on use of the credit-card account.

• The assistant treasurer — operations will serve as the compliance officer for the district’s creditcard program.

“So this will bring us into full compliance and add some additional safeguards to ensure the appropriate use of credit cards,” Wilson said.