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Purchasing Card Program History & Recognition
The West Virginia State Purchasing Card Program was implemented in 1996 when
State Auditor Glen B. Gainer III envisioned the need for a process that would
create more accountability for purchases, improve relations with vendors and
save the State millions through cost avoidance.
The Purchasing Card Program has achieved great success being
recognized by VISA International in a 2004
nationwide study performed by Deloitte & Touche, which called WV's program
"one of the nation’s best", having implemented 12
of the nation’s top 26 best practices.
The purchasing card offers many benefits such as increased accountability for
purchases, improved reporting of purchasing activity, and fraud prevention.
"Industry standard" for purchasing card misuse accounts for
$250 of every $1 million transacted.
The purchasing card allows the State Auditor's Office to know almost immediately
when potential fraud has occurred. The swipe of the card immediately sends
notification if abnormal purchases have taken place. For example, if a
cardholder’s routine purchases are office supplies and suddenly there is a
purchase at a jewelry store, the State Auditor’s Office Purchasing Card Program
is notified of that purchase, allowing the State to investigate almost
immediately the potential fraud or misuse.
The purchasing card has also improved relations with the business community,
reversing the negative reputation with vendors, due to the length of time
required to process payments. Prior to implementation of the program, the
average wait for a vendor to receive payment was 70 days.
The purchasing card has allowed vendors to receive
payment in 2-3 days. This prompt and efficient method of payment has allowed
the State to be more selective in its business partners as well as allowing the
State to negotiate better discounts on the cost of goods and services.
With the assistance of WVU's Financial Services Training Division, the
Purchasing Card Program has implemented a web-based
training program making refresher training and new cardholder training
available through the internet. Web-based training
eliminates the cost of traveling and overnight stays associated with training
seminars. This program is being used by all state agencies, colleges and
universities to complete the training requirements of the program. Auditor
Gainer's vision is now saving taxpayers dollars everyday.
Contact Information
Amy Lewis, Executive Director
of PCard
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