Purpose
This policy is intended to ensure that the university:
Meets legal standards.
Optimizes the use of space.
Minimizes the cost of record retention.
Destroys outdated and useless records.
Reference
Board of Regents Regulation 05.08.01 (Currently under revision)
Policy
Financial records must be retained by UAA departments for the periods listed below:
Retention Periods for Financial Records
| Type of Records | Retention Period | Comments |
| General Financial Records | | |
Interdepartmental billing computations, receipt acknowledgments, and other documents of service departments substantiating interdepartmental charges | Five years | Failure to adhere to this policy could result in cost disallowance to UAA and possible charge-backs of previous billings to departments. |
Documentation of purchases made with a UAA Purchasing Card. Documentation includes cash register receipts and other point of sale documents that specify what was purchased. | Seven years | All documentation for Purchasing Card transactions is maintained in the department making the purchase. The documentation must be available for review/audit for seven years. |
| Cash receipts details and cash register tapes | Three years | --- |
Departments with delegated journal voucher entry and approval authority will be responsible for the retention of the supporting documentation | See Comments | Supporting documentation must be retained until it has been transmitted to Statewide Fund Accounting for microfilming (approximately 18 months after the end of the fiscal year). |
Reconciliation forms and supporting documentation for ticket, pass and permit sales must be retained to substantiate activity. | Three years | --- |
All other financial records including accounting system printouts | Three years | Financial Services typically maintains a copy of these records for seven years. |
| Sponsored Project Records | | |
| Project documentation including the following: - Credit card purchase documentation
- Progress, technical, intellectual
property and equipment inventory reports - Correspondence pertaining to the award
| Retention Period as indicated above plus three years after the submission of the last financial report on the project | If any litigation, claim, or audit has started before the expiration of the three year period, the records should be retained until the findings involved have been resolved. |
Departments with limited storage space may contact
Material Management for information on storage alternatives.
Effective: 07/10/2005, Revised: 6/27/2007