Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Procedures Eligibility Pursuant to Section 1012.71, Florida Statutes, a “classroom teacher” means a certified teacher employed by a public school district or a public charter school in that district on or before September 1 of each year whose full-time or job-share responsibility is the classroom instruction of students in prekindergarten through grade 12, including full-time media specialists and certified school counselors serving students in prekindergarten through grade 12, who are funded through the Florida Education Finance Program.
Principals
Designate a school employee to collect Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures forms and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures. Notify teachers that failure to provide the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures by the deadline that it will result in the collection, via payroll deduction, of the amount that was paid but not supported by receipts. Supply supporting documentation of this notification to the designee. By February 15, 2017, contact each teacher on the list supplied by the designee of all teachers that have not submitted any receipts or whose total submitted receipts are less than the full amount of their allocation. The list should include the teacher’s name and the amount of the allocation not supported by receipts. Remind these teachers that the amount not substantiated by receipts by March 1, 2017 will be collected, via payroll deduction. The designee will report any questionable purchases. Contact the teacher for more information to determine if the purchase is eligible.
Teachers
Section 1012.71, Florida Statutes, requires that the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program agreement must be signed prior to receiving Teachers Lead funds. What are the terms you are consenting to on the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Agreement? o You acknowledge that Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program funds are appropriated by the Legislature for the sole purpose of purchasing classroom materials and supplies to be used in the instruction of students assigned to you. o In accepting custody of these funds, you agree to submit legible copies of receipts for all eligible expenditures to your school’s designee by March 1, 2017. o You understand that if you do not submit legible copies of the receipts for all eligible expenditures, funds will be collected via payroll deduction for any unsubstantiated receipts. These funds will be allocated to the school advisory council account of the school at which you were employed when you received the funds. o You are authorizing the District to process a payroll deduction for any amount that is not substantiated by a receipt.
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The 2017 Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Agreement is accessible through our district's ePortal website. o If you have not already done so, please sign on to your ePortal account and click on the "Payroll" tab on the top menu then click on the "Teacher Lead" button on the left hand menu to access the agreement. o The agreement process must be completed by September 25, 2016 in order for Payroll to facilitate the payment of the Teachers Lead stipend by the September 30th pay date. Eligible employees who complete the agreement process between September 26 and December 1 will be paid on a later pay date. o Please note that consenting to the terms of the Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance agreement does not guarantee your eligibility for the Teachers Lead stipend. o Once you have completed the agreement process on the ePortal, you cannot revoke your consent. o You are required to consent to this agreement each school year, even if you have consented in previous years. Eligibility for the Teacher Lead stipend will be determined by the criteria stated in the statute. The amount that each eligible teacher will receive has not yet been determined. A proportionate amount will be calculated for each eligible teacher, which is that teacher's share of the total amount allocated to the district. Funds will be distributed in the September 30, 2016 paycheck for those that completed the agreement by September 25, 2016. o Eligible employees who complete the agreement process between September 26 and December 1 will be paid on a later pay date. o The deadline to complete the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Agreement via the ePortal is 11:59 P.M. on December 1, 2016. o The allocation will be listed on your pay stub under “Other”. The detail can be viewed under the “Invoice Detail” section of the pay stub tab on ePortal. Suggested Purchases: Arts & crafts materials Charts, maps, globes, posters DVD/CD disks for students’ use Flash cards Game balls & supplies for PE Inexpensive musical instruments Purchases NOT Allowable: Clothing Electronics Equipment (item cost over $100)
Ink and toner for printers Math manipulatives Paper, books, etc. Pencils, pens, markers, etc. Protective smocks, aprons Software subscriptions (temporary access to site)
Food, unless it is a classroom material/supply Personal items Services Software licenses (considered equipment)
New for 2017:
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires adequate accounting for allowances or reimbursements paid to employees for job-related expenses that are excluded from wages and that are not subject to withholding taxes. Therefore, in order to substantiate the amount of the payment issued, teachers must provide legible copies of all applicable receipts for the purchases of classroom materials and supplies. Page 2 of 5
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Deadline to complete the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Agreement via the ePortal is December 1, 2016. If a teacher is on leave of absence, but will be returning to the classroom during the school year, the teacher is eligible for the funds. The teacher, however, must complete the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Agreement via the ePortal prior to the December 1, 2016 deadline. A Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and legible copies of receipts for ALL eligible expenditures must be submitted by the March 1, 2017 deadline. Any funds not substantiated by a receipt will be collected, via payroll deduction. A Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form must be obtained from the District’s Finance website. A link to this website is provided in the ePortal. Save this form on your computer for future use. Since the form automatically calculates the total, the form should not be “hand-written”. Once you have receipts substantiating the total amount received in Florida Teacher Classroom Supply Assistance Program funds, do the following: Complete the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures and print the form. Sign and date the form, acknowledging that the funds were spent for the sole purpose of purchasing classroom material and supplies to be used in the instruction of students assigned to you. Also, you understand that the portion of the amount that was paid to you, but not supported by receipts, will be collected via payroll deduction. Attach legible copies of all receipts, highlighting the applicable charge(s) on receipts that include charges that do not pertain to the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program. Retain a copy of the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form as well as the original receipts for your records. Submit all documentation to the school’s designee by March 1, 2017. Do not submit receipts or the form for individual purchases. Please compile the receipts for ALL eligible expenditures and submit ONE (1) form to the school’s designee by March 1, 2017. Receipts must be dated between June 1, 2016 and March 1, 2017. Failure to provide the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures by the deadline will result in the collection, via payroll deduction, of the amount that was paid but not supported by receipts. The portion of the amount that was paid to you, but not supported by receipts, will be collected via payroll deduction. Funds spent in EXCESS of the amount paid to the employee will NOT be reimbursed. Funds collected via payroll deduction for unsubstantiated receipts will be allocated to the school advisory council account of the school at which the classroom teacher was employed when that teacher received the funds.
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School Designees:
School designees will act as the custodian of receipts and will track and manage all eligible teachers, the return of receipts, and notify Payroll of the amount per teacher unsubstantiated by receipts. A spreadsheet will be available after December 1, 2016 on the District’s Finance website listing all teachers at your school having received Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program funds as well as the amount received. More information on how to retrieve the listing for your school will follow. The spreadsheet should be saved on your computer for future use. It is due in Payroll by March 31, 2017. Obtain documentation from your principal to support notification to the appropriate teachers that failure to provide the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures by the deadline will result in the collection, via payroll deduction, of the amount that was paid but not supported by receipts. Prior to the deadline, verify that every teacher listed on the spreadsheet has submitted a Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and legible copies of receipts for ALL eligible expenditures. Compile a list of every teacher on the list that has NOT submitted a Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and legible copies of receipts for ALL eligible expenditures. The list should include the teacher’s name and the amount of the allocation not supported by receipts. Submit this list to your principal by February 15, 2017. Check receipts to ensure that purchases are for classroom materials and supplies. Notify your principal/director of any questionable purchases. Update the spreadsheet for teachers that submitted a Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and legible copies of receipts. Enter the total amount substantiated by legible copies of receipts. Email the completed spreadsheet to Payroll by March 31, 2017. For teachers that have transferred TO your school from another VCS school, verify that the teacher has already submitted the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures to the school or collect the form and copies of receipts from the teacher. For teachers that have transferred FROM your school, notify the receiving school whether or not the teacher has submitted the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures. For terminating teachers, collect the Florida Teachers Classroom Supply Assistance Program Documentation of Expenditures form and receipts for ALL eligible expenditures prior to termination. Immediately notify Payroll of the unsubstantiated amount so that Payroll will have enough time to collect the funds from the last paycheck. Receipts must be retained for five (5) years. Be prepared to forward the receipts to Finance for auditing (upon request).
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Alternate Method of Receipt Collection:
At the principal’s discretion, a folder can be saved on your school/site’s server drive (NOT on your own computer). The folder should be named “2017_FTCSAP_ORG” (where ORG is your school number). Teachers can scan their receipts and save the scanned image (preferably as one document) using the following file name convention: 2017_ORG_Employee #_Last Name_$$$.pdf (where $$$ = total amount of receipts) The document must be saved on the school/site’s folder or emailed to the designee by March 1, 2017.
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