2000 DFPS Travel Policy
2100 State Travel Charge Cards
Travel Policy June 2025
State Travel Charge Cards (STCC) provide services to travelers. The state benefits financially by negotiating lower rates.
2110 Charges
Travel Policy June 2025
State Travel Charge Cards (STCC) are issued only for official state travel. STCC cardholders are expected to use the charge card for all eligible, business-related travel expenses.
2111 Unallowable Charges
Travel Policy June 2025
An authorized cardholder cannot use the card for the following:
- Personal charges.
- Alcoholic beverages. Cardholders may not seek reimbursement for alcoholic beverages.
- Incidental travel charges that are not reimbursable, such as phone calls not for business purposes, in-room movies, meal tips, fuel for a personal vehicle, etc., for overnight trips.
2112 Allowable Charges
Travel Policy June 2025
An authorized cardholder may use the card for the following:
- Meals, lodging, and incidental business expenses for overnight business trips.
- Parking, fuel for a rental car, and fuel for a personal car (when conducting official state business).
- Meals and expenses for minor clients, as described in 2750 Minor Clients and Foster Children Expenses.
- Contracted airfare if the agency’s central billing accounts were not used to purchase the airfare.
The table below shows appropriate and inappropriate use of the State Travel Charge Card. Note: Inappropriate and some appropriate charges are non-reimbursable. Appropriate reimbursable charges may be reimbursed on the employee’s Travel Claim.
| Appropriate Reimbursable Use |
Appropriate Non-Reimbursable Use |
Inappropriate Use |
|---|---|---|
Meals while on business out of town overnight |
Tips at meals while on business out of town overnight |
Meals or tips while on business in headquarters (HQ) or home city |
A long-distance business call charged to the employee’s lodging bill while on business out of town |
A long-distance personal call charged to the employee’s lodging bill while on business out of town |
A long-distance personal call from the employee’s HQ |
N/A |
A tire for or repair to an employee’s personal car during a business trip |
Fuel for an employee’s personal car for a family trip |
Airfare and luggage fees for an employee to attend an agency meeting |
Preferred airline pre-boarding fees |
Airfare to go to an amusement park or airfare for an employee’s spouse |
N/A |
N/A |
Alcoholic beverage purchases |
N/A |
An in-room movie charged to an employee’s lodging bill while out of town on business |
Renting any video for personal use that is not specifically for DFPS training purposes |
Tip for a bellhop to carry bags as a special accommodation for a person with a disability |
Tip for a bellhop to carry bags when a special accommodation is not needed |
N/A |
2120 Eligibility for State Travel Charge Card
Travel Policy June 2025
To apply for a State Travel Charge Card (STCC), an authorized traveler must:
- Have a job description that lists travel requirements.
- Not have had a state agency corporate charge card revoked.
The employee is expected to spend at least $1,000 per fiscal year on travel expenses for official state business.
An STCC cardholder is not eligible for Advance Travel.
2130 Charge Card Holder Payment Responsibility
Travel Policy June 2025
DFPS does not assume any liability for charges made on individually issued State Travel Charge Cards (STCC). Delinquent accounts are strictly prohibited. To avoid delinquency, a cardholder must pay the STCC statement promptly, on time, and without regard to Travel Claim reimbursement status. Statements are emailed to the address entered on the STCC application. The statement date is the 3rd of each month, and the due date is the 28th of each month. Balances must be paid in full each month. Cardholders must check accounts online frequently in the bank’s account management system. Failure to pay the charges on an STCC may result in disciplinary action.
Appropriate reimbursable expenses may be reimbursed on the employee’s Travel Claim. A traveler may submit Travel Claims for complete trips as soon as the claim reaches $200 in expenses or every 30 days if less than $200.
The cardholder must immediately notify and provide a written explanation to the supervisor or the agency’s STCC coordinator when, while conducting official state business, the employee has an emergency related to the business of the state agency (such as lost luggage or a repair to a personal vehicle).
The following actions are taken on delinquent accounts:
- 30 days delinquent — The supervisor gives the employee a verbal warning that the card will be suspended if the next report shows a 60-day delinquent balance. If all or any portion of a payment is not received by the bank within 58 days of the first statement date, the bank assesses a late fee equal to 2.5% of all past due balances. Delinquency assessments are not a reimbursable expense.
- 60 days delinquent — When the account reaches 61 days past due, the bank suspends the account until it is paid. Travel Claims and Services sends a written notification to the employee suspending the card, with copies to the regional director and the supervisor. If the account is repeatedly 60 days delinquent, Travel Claims and Services closes the account.
- 90 days delinquent – The bank closes the account, and it is not reopened.
An employee whose STCC is canceled and closed due to a delinquency will not be eligible for re-issuance of a card during the employee’s remaining tenure with DFPS and is not eligible for Advance Travel funds.
2140 Unauthorized Use of State Travel Charge Cards
Travel Policy June 2025
Use of a State Travel Charge Card (STCC) for personal purchases, including alcoholic beverages, is prohibited. Use of the charge card for anything other than official state business is a direct violation of the state’s contract with the bank and the rules of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA) (1 TAC 34 §20.413). Violations may result in cancellation of the STCC, and they may subject the employee to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
2150 Applying for a State Travel Charge Card
Travel Policy June 2025
The employee takes the following steps:
- Completes the online Texas Corporate Travel Charge Card Application (for instructions, see How to Apply for the State Travel Charge Card on the DFPS intranet).
- Signs the Statement of Responsibility regarding appropriate use of the State Travel Charge Card. The supervisor must also sign the form certifying that the employee has met the requirements to hold a State Travel Charge Card.
- Scans the signed and approved Statement of Responsibility and emails it to the DFPS STCC mailbox. Online applications are not approved by the STCC team without the Statement of Responsibility.
Once the application form and Statement of Responsibility are received by the STCC team, the application process begins. Then, the steps are as follows:
- The employee receives an email from the bank once the application has been approved by the STCC team.
- The card is mailed to the STCC team in approximately three weeks, once the bank has approved the application and issued the card.
- The employee receives notification of the STCC team mailing the card to the employee’s residence address.
- The employee should reply to the DFPS STCC mailbox upon receipt of the travel charge card.
- If the employee does not receive the travel charge card within 10-12 calendar days of the STCC email notification, the employee contacts the DFPS STCC team for further instructions.
- If the bank denies the application, a letter is mailed from the bank to the employee’s residence with the reason for the denial. Additionally, the STCC team emails the employee a notification that the team has been advised that the employee was denied.
Refer to the Travel – STCC section on the DFPS intranet for additional instructions, information, tip sheets, and FAQ.
2160 Cancellation of a State Travel Charge Card
Travel Policy June 2025
A State Travel Charge Card (STCC) may be canceled for the following reasons:
- The employee requests the cancellation.
- DFPS cancels the card due to misuse or account delinquency.
- The bank cancels the account due to late payment, nonpayment, or non-use.
- Termination of employment with DFPS.
Upon cancellation of an STCC, the employee must cut the card and surrender it to the supervisor.
The supervisor does the following:
- Makes a copy of the cut card, signs and dates the copy, has the employee sign and date the copy, and files the copy in the employee’s personnel file.
- Disposes of the cut card and sends a written cancellation request to the DFPS STCC mailbox.
If an employee does not return the STCC or is terminated for cause, the supervisor sends notification to request cancellation of the credit card account to the DFPS STCC mailbox.
If an employee’s job duties change or the employee accepts another position within DFPS and no longer meets the requirements for having an STCC, the employee should cut the card and send notification to the DFPS STCC mailbox.
If the STCC is canceled or closed due to a change of job duty, or if the employee leaves and returns to DFPS on good terms, the employee may re-apply for the card. A new bank application and SOR will need to be completed. Employees who have or have had an STCC are not eligible for Advance Travel funds.