§18B-5-9 Higher education fiscal responsibility.
§18B-5-9. Higher education fiscal responsibility.
(a) The governing boards of Marshall University and West Virginia University each shall ensure the fiscal integrity of its operations using best business and management practices.
(1) The practices include at least the following:
(A) Complying with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GAAP); and the Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards of the Government Accountability Office (GAGAS);
(B) Operating without material weakness in internal controls as defined by GAAP, GAGAS and, where applicable, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-133;
(C) Maintaining annual audited financial statements with an unqualified opinion;
(D) Presenting annual audited financial statements to the respective governing board;
(E) Maintaining quarterly financial statements certified by the chief financial officer of the institution; and
(F) Implementing best practices from Sarbanes-Oxley, or adopting the applicable tenets of Sarbanes-Oxley as best practices.
(2) Marshall University, West Virginia University and the research corporation of each:
(A) Shall comply with the OMB Circular A-133 annual grant award audit requirements; and
(B) Is exempt from the provisions of section fourteen, article four, chapter twelve of this code.
(3) Within thirty days of the completion of the financial audit report, the governing boards of Marshall University and West Virginia University each shall furnish to the Commission, the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability and the Joint Committee on Government and Finance copies of the annual audited financial statements.
(b) The Commission or Council, as appropriate, shall ensure the fiscal integrity of any electronic process conducted at its offices and at all other institutions using best business and management practices.
(c) Marshall University, West Virginia University, the Council and the Commission each shall implement a process whereby, to the maximum extent practicable, employees of Marshall University, West Virginia University, the Council, Commission and all other state institutions of higher education receive their wages via electronic transfer or direct deposit.
(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of section ten-a, article three, chapter twelve of this code, and except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the amount of any purchase made with a purchasing card used by the Council, the Commission or any other state institution of higher education may not exceed five thousand dollars.
(1) Subject to approval of the Auditor, any emergency payment and any routine, regularly scheduled payment, including, but not limited to, utility payments, contracts and real property rental fees, may exceed this limit by an amount to be determined by the Auditor.
(2) The Council, Commission and any state institution of higher education may use a purchasing card for travel expenses directly related to the job duties of the traveling employee. Where approved by the auditor, such expenses may exceed five thousand dollars by an amount to be determined by the auditor. Traveling expenses may include registration fees and airline and other transportation reservations, if approved by the president of the institution. Traveling expenses may not include fuel or food purchases except, the state institutions of higher education known as Marshall University and West Virginia University may include in traveling expenses the purchase of fuel and food.
(3) The state institutions known as Marshall University and West Virginia University each shall maintain one purchasing card for use only in a situation declared an emergency by the institution's president. The Council, Commission and all other institutions shall maintain one purchase card for use only in a situation declared an emergency by the president of the institution and approved by the appropriate chancellor. Emergencies may include, but are not limited to, partial or total destruction of a campus facility; loss of a critical component of utility infrastructure; heating, ventilation or air condition failure in an essential academic building; loss of campus road, parking lot or campus entrance; or a local, regional, or national emergency situation that has a direct impact on the campus.
(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of section ten-f, article three, chapter twelve of this code, or any other provision of this code or law to the contrary, the Auditor shall accept any receiving report submitted in a format utilizing electronic media. The Auditor shall conduct any audit or investigation of the Council, Commission or any institution at its own expense and at no cost to the Council, Commission or institution.
(f) The Council and the Commission each shall maintain a rule in accordance with the provisions of article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. The rule shall provide for institutions individually or cooperatively to maximize their use of any of the following purchasing practices that are determined to provide a financial advantage:
(1) Bulk purchasing;
(2) Reverse bidding;
(3) Electronic marketplaces; and
(4) Electronic remitting.
(g) Each institution shall establish a consortium with at least one other institution, in the most cost-efficient manner feasible, to consolidate the following operations and student services:
(1) Payroll operations;
(2) Human resources operations;
(3) Warehousing operations;
(4) Financial transactions;
(5) Student financial aid application, processing and disbursement;
(6) Standard and bulk purchasing; and
(7) Any other operation or service appropriate for consolidation as determined by the Council or Commission.
(h) An institution may charge a fee to each institution for which it provides a service or performs an operation. The fee rate shall be in the best interest of both the institution being served and the providing institution, as approved by the Council and Commission.
(i) Any community and technical college, college and university may provide the services authorized by this section for the benefit of any governmental body or public or private institution.
(j) Each institution shall strive to minimize its number of low-enrollment sections of introductory courses. To the maximum extent practicable, institutions shall use distance learning to consolidate the course sections. Marshall University, West Virginia University, the Council and Commission shall report the progress of reductions as requested by the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability.
(k) An institution shall use its natural resources and alternative fuel resources to the maximum extent feasible. The institution:
(1) May supply the resources for its own use and for use by any other institution;
(2) May supply the resources to the general public at fair market value;
(3) Shall maximize all federal or grant funds available for research regarding alternative energy sources; and
(4) May develop research parks to further the purpose of this section and to expand the economic development opportunities in the state.
(l) Any cost-savings realized or fee procured or retained by an institution pursuant to implementation of the provisions of this section is retained by the institution.
(m) The provisions of subsection (b) of this section do not apply to the state institutions known as Marshall University and West Virginia University. Each is authorized, but not required, to comply with the provisions of subsections (f), (g) and (h) of this section.
(1) The governing boards of Marshall University and West Virginia University, respectively, each shall promulgate a rule on purchasing procedures pursuant to the provisions of section six, article one of this chapter. Neither institution is subject to the rules required by subsection (f) of this section.
(2) If either governing board elects to implement the provisions of said subsection (g) of this section, the following conditions apply:
(A) The governing board makes the determination regarding any additional operation or service which is appropriate for consolidation without input from the Council or Commission;
(B) The governing board sets the fee charged to any institution for which it provides a service or performs an operation. The fee rate shall be in the best interest of both the institution being served and the providing institution, but it is not subject to approval by the Council or Commission; and
(C) The governing board may not implement the provisions of this subdivision in a manner which supercedes the requirements established in section twelve, article three-c of this chapter.