INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD PROGRAM: FOURTH QUARTER CARDHOLDER BULLETINS

Date: Wed, 04 Aug 1999 11:07:57 -0400
To: "AO - All Administrative Officers"<distribution>,
        "HS - Headquarters Secretaries"<distribution>
From: "Alice A. Sabatini, Division Administrative Officer, WRD" <aasabati>
Subject: Departmental Guidance on Charge Card Issues
Cc: "Elizabeth A Brenner, Management Assistant, Reston, VA "<ebrenner>,
        "Vicki Bass, Chief, Mgmt. Support Section, Reston, VA "<vtbass>

Please note!  The following Departmental notification bulletins contain
some major changes/issues in the bankcard program.  Here's a summary:

o The grace period for delinquencies ends in August.
o Balances are due on the date indicated on the bills and must be paid
promptly.  Delinquencies are calculated from the bill date not the date
due.  Cards will be suspended when payment is not received 61 days from the
bill date.  Cards will be cancelled when payment is not received 96 days
from the bill date.
o Incorrect balances must be disputed promptly to avoid card suspension
and/or cancellation.
o Card usage will be mandatory in January 2000 (personal cards can no
longer be used for official travel expenses).
o Cards cannot be used for personal expenses--misuse and delinquencies are
a large problem now and supervisors will be encouraged to take disciplinary
action against employees.
o Bank of America logos will begin to show on August invoices.
o Cards will be reissued in the 1st quarter FY 2000 to implement a
renumbering to enforce tax exemption.

Please make sure all travelers in your cost center receive this information.


					July 30, 1999



                  Memorandum

To:	Assistant Directors for Administration

From:	Debra E. Sonderman, Director	 /S/
	Office of Acquisition and Property Management

Subject:   INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD PROGRAM: FOURTH QUARTER CARDHOLDER BULLETINS

Please find attached for distribution to your respective charge
cardholders, fourth quarter bulletins containing information updates,
reminders, and advice related to the Department of the Interior (DOI)
Integrated Charge Card Program.  More specifically, these bulletins cover
account/payment delinquencies, logo changes resulting from the NationsBank
- Bank of America merger, card reissuance, card misuse, and the newly
published Federal Travel Regulations concerning charge card use for travel.  

Copies of the bulletins will be posted on the Office of Acquisition and
Property Management's charge card web site:
http://www.doi.gov/pam/charge.html.  Bulletins will be issued periodically
on various card program issues.  Any comments or suggestions regarding
bulletin features or topics are welcome.  Electronic copies of the attached
bulletins are also being provided to you for general transmittal to
cardholders or incorporation in your bureaus' internal guidance and/or web
pages.

As we proceed through the fourth quarter of fiscal year 1999, and into the
next fiscal year, our DOI Charge Card Implementation Team  and other
representatives will continue to administer the charge card program both as
a Departmentwide group and as leaders and members of eight newly-formed
focus groups.  The focus groups will concentrate their efforts in the
following areas:
	
		Card Reissuance		Invoicing
		Fleet Management		Communications
		EAGLS Rollout		Travel Delinquencies
		Reports  			Management Controls

The focus groups will identify issues, develop action plans for completing
our implementation, coordinate with Department and Bank of America
officials, and report to the main Charge Card Implementation Team in their
areas of specialization.  We expect that these groups will be able to
pinpoint any potential problem areas and resolve them in an expedited
manner.  Thank you for supporting the charge card program and for
permitting your staff to participate in our charge card groups' important
work.  

Attachments
------------------->

                	U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
                        INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD BULLETIN
Fourth Quarter - Fiscal Year 1999				   July - September 1999

                	   Issue # 1 - Bulletin # 1					
	DELINQUENCY GRACE PERIOD ENDS IN AUGUST

Our contract with NationsBank, now Bank of America, your own cardholder
agreements, and the Department of the Interior Integrated Charge Card
Program Guidelines (November 1998) require that charge accounts be
suspended if any undisputed individually billed transactions remain unpaid
61 days after the billing/closing date on the statement of account.  If any
undisputed individually billed transactions remain unpaid 96 days after the
billing/closing date on the statement of account, the account will be
canceled. 

A grace period, suspending this standard policy, was temporarily put in
place in order to allow our contractor time to correct transaction
processing backlogs and billing errors.  That grace period is scheduled to
expire at the end of the August billing cycle, i.e., August 27, 1999, and
the standard 61 day-suspension/96 day-cancellation policy put back in force.

You are obligated to pay the individual balance due on your account on time
each month, whether or not you have received reimbursement.  If payment is
overdue on your charge card account, please correct any delinquencies
before August 27th.  If the delinquency is the result of an error or
billing problem, contact your Agency/Organization Program Coordinator
(A/OPC) and ask for their help.

Charge card account delinquencies may jeopardize your eligibility to
maintain your existing card and receive a replacement when the charge cards
are reissued in Fiscal Year 2000.  Remember, authority to have and keep
your personal charge card depends a great deal on your ability to maintain
your account in good standing.   This same principle holds true for the
Government charge card.

If you have any questions regarding this bulletin, please contact your
A/OPC.  For more information on Interior's charge card program, access:
                                  http://www.doi.gov/pam/charge.html. 
Send suggestions, comments or requests for other bulletin topics to Delia
Emmerich@os.doi.gov.



                   U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
                 INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD BULLETIN

Fourth Quarter - Fiscal Year 1999				July - September 1999
									Issue # 1 - Bulletin # 2

 		 IT'S OFFICIAL - NATIONSBANK IS NOW
		         	 BANK OF AMERICA

NationsBank has merged with the Bank of America.  Up until now, your
billing statements and charge card related correspondence have featured the
NationsBank logo with which we have all become familiar.  However, account
statements and correspondence issued between August and October 1999 will
feature the logos of both NationsBank and the Bank of America.  Beginning
in November, only the Bank of America logo will be used.  Please keep this
in mind when you receive charge card related correspondence and/or billing
statements over the next few months.  

If you have any questions regarding this bulletin, please contact your
A/OPC.  For more information on Interior's charge card program, access:
                            http://www.doi.gov/pam/charge.html
Send suggestions, comments or requests for other bulletin topics to Delia
Emmerich @os.doi.gov.



		    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
		  INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD BULLETIN

Fourth Quarter - Fiscal Year 1999				July - September 1999
									Issue # 1 - Bulletin # 3

        DEPARTMENTWIDE CHARGE CARD RE-ISSUANCE
       PLANNED FOR FY 2000

Due to contractor error during the Governmentwide charge card transition,
Department of the Interior charge cards were not given the general
Governmentwide tax exemption code that was to be a standard in the 16-digit
charge card account number for cards issued under the General Services
Administration's SmartPay contract.  This error has resulted in taxes being
improperly assessed against DOI transactions. The charge card contractor,
NationsBank, now Bank of America, has agreed to reissue charge cards
Departmentwide.

The Department's Charge Card Implementation Team is working together with
the Bank of America to resolve any outstanding issues that may complicate
the card re-issuance process.  Individual cards will be issued in a phases
on a bureau-by-bureau basis during the First Quarter of FY 2000.
Vehicle-assigned fleet cards will be reissued beginning in January 2000.  A
detailed plan is being developed and should be completed by mid-August
1999.  We will update this bulletin regularly as plans are developed and
preparatory steps identified.  In the meantime, continue to use your
current individual and fleet cards.  They will remain valid until you
receive and activate your new cards.

If you have any questions regarding this bulletin, please contact your
A/OPC.  For more information on Interior's charge card program, access: 
                                  http://www.doi.gov/pam/charge.html 
Send suggestions, comments or requests for other bulletin topics to Delia
Emmerich@os.doi.gov.


	            U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
		  INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD BULLETIN

Fourth Quarter - Fiscal Year 1999				July - September 1999
									Issue # 1 - Bulletin # 4

                              CHARGE CARD MISUSE

While the vast majority of DOI charge card holders use the charge card in a
responsible and compliant manner, there have been some abuses.  On June 23,
1999, the Director, Office of Acquisition and Property Management, issued a
Charge Card Program Advisory to Assistant Directors for Administration.
The advisory was issued as a reminder of possible administrative and
criminal penalties associated with charge card misuse.  (Please call (202)
208-1906 if you would like a copy of the advisory.)

Thanks to reporting technology now available from our contractor, the Bank
of America, reviewers can identify abuses and take corrective measures
faster than ever before. Under past charge card programs, reviewing
officials and auditors were heavily dependent on paper charge card
transaction statements, that could be lost or destroyed.  Newer charge card
programs offer centralized electronic transaction reporting with special
features that allow reviewers to access, among other data, electronic
"Exception Reports."  

Exception Reports can identify to the transaction  any questionable
expenditures or expenditures that vary from a cardholder's standard buying
practices. Within DOI, our Exception Reports are working.  The Department
is analyzing transactions and referring cases directly to
Agency/Organization Program Coordinators and the Office of Inspector General.

Charge card misuse will result in suspension or cancellation of your
account, and disciplinary action against you, up to and including removal.
Remember - your Government charge card may ONLY be used for official
government business.  ATM cash withdrawals are ONLY permitted for expenses
related to official government travel.   Let's all do our part to keep the
charge card program an effective and compliant one.  

If you have any questions regarding this bulletin, please contact your
A/OPC.  For more information on Interior's charge card program, access:

                  http://www.doi.gov/pam/charge.html 
Send suggestions, comments or requests for other bulletin topics to Delia
Emmerich@os.doi.gov.


		    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
                   INTEGRATED CHARGE CARD BULLETIN

Fourth Quarter - Fiscal Year 1999				July - September 1999
									Issue # 1 - Bulletin # 5

   FEDERAL TRAVEL REGULATION: MANDATORY USE OF           THE TRAVEL CHARGE
CARD - INTERIM FINAL RULE
 ISSUED

In the July 16, 1999, issue of the Federal Register, the GSA Office of
Governmentwide Policy issued its interim final rule on mandatory use of the
travel charge card (Volume 64, Number 136, pages 38527- 38531), part of the
Federal Travel Regulation.  The interim rule implements Public Law 105-264,
October 19, 1998, and covers required use of the travel charge card,
collection of amounts owed, and reimbursement of travel expenses. 

The interim rule was effective on July 16, 1999, and applies to payment of
expenses in connection with official Government travel performed on or
after December 31, 1999. 

If you have any questions regarding this bulletin, please contact your
A/OPC.  For more information on Interior's charge card program, access: 
                http://www.doi.gov/pam/charge.html 
Send suggestions, comments or requests for other bulletin topics to Delia
Emmerich@os.doi.gov.