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Title 1, Chapter 3

Financial Procedures Act of 1983

Section 1. Repeal TISL Bill 16-79-027, "The Financial Procedures Act of 1979."

Section 2. This act shall be known as "Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature Financial Procedures Act of 1983."

Section 3. There shall be no deficit spending by the TISL. In no year shall TISL incur expenses or debts greater than the income it reasonably expects to receive from fees, the endowment and donations.

Section 4. The TISL shall contract with a Certified Public Accountant who maintains an office in Nashville, Tennessee. The Executive Council shall choose the Certified Public Accountant, and may change firms by a majority vote of the members to which the Executive Council is entitled at two consecutive sessions of the Executive Council. The Executive Council may change the accounting firm by a two-thirds vote of the members to which it is entitled at one meeting if an emergency is declared by a majority vote of the Executive Council of the TISL.

Section 5. The Certified Public Accounting firm shall be responsible for supplying:

(1) An Annual Financial Report.

(2) A Quarterly Financial Report.

Section 6. The TISL shall be required to maintain one federally insured checking account which shall be held by a bank or savings and loan institution in Nashville, Tennessee. The TISL may maintain one federally insured savings account, the account shall be held by the same bank or savings and loan institution where the TISL checking account is held.

Section 7. All checks drawn on the TISL checking and/or savings account(s) in excess of fifty ($50) dollars must be co-signed by the Governor and Treasurer of the TISL. All checks drawn on the TISL checking and/or savings account(s) for under fifty ($50) dollars may be signed by the Governor or Treasurer of the TISL.

Section 8. The Executive Council shall adopt a budget no later than January 31 following the adjournment of the General Assembly at which they were elected. No officer of the TISL shall authorize any expenditure over what has been adopted in the budget for that item. The budget shall be binding. The budget shall be adopted by a majority vote of the members to which the Executive Council is entitled. Any budget overages not approved by a majority vote of the Executive Council shall become the personal liability of the incurring party.

Section 9. The Executive Council shall set institutional and delegate fees no later than January 31 following the adjournment of the General Assembly at which they were elected. The Executive Council shall adopt these fees by a majority vote of the members to which the Executive Council is entitled.

Section 10. No delegate from any member school of the TISL shall be seated at a General Assembly if that school has outstanding debts to the TISL. The Executive Council may by a vote of two-thirds of the members to which it is entitled waive this stipulation and allow an indebted delegation to be seated with the proviso that the matter of indebtedness shall be settled by the Executive Council no later than at the adjournment of the General Assembly in question.

Section 11. It shall be the responsibility of the Treasurer of the TISL to bring to the attention of the Executive Council on a monthly basis a report of unpaid accounts receivable, accounts payable, a report on reimbursement, and the yearly budget of the TISL.

Section 12. No officer or member of the Executive Council shall be paid a salary or stipend or scholarship or receive any remuneration for his/her services to TISL, except in the form of reimbursement for out of pocket expenses incurred in direct relationship to the performance of his/her duty to the TISL.

Section 13. The Treasurer of the TISL shall be required to submit to his/her successor a report of accounts payable and accounts receivable within sixty days following the adjournment of the General Assembly for which he/she served.

Section 14. All payments made by the TISL for any purpose shall be supported by an invoice or receipt.

Section 15. Reimbursement of out of pocket expenses to the Executive Council or any member school to the TISL, or any person, or any delegate to the TISL shall be by check only.

Section 16. Reimbursement shall only be granted after a request for reimbursement has been filed with the Treasurer and the request has been approved by the Treasurer and the Governor of the TISL. The request for reimbursement must be accompanied by, but not limited to, cash tickets, mileage records, vouchers or receipts to support the claims for reimbursement. All claims for reimbursement shall be supported by documentation of expenditures. In no case shall reimbursement be made for alcoholic beverages.

Section 17. The Executive Council shall by a majority vote of the members to which it is entitled adopt standard forms for reimbursement requests, such as, but not limited to, postage expenses, mileage expenses, meal expenses, lodging expenses. The Executive Council shall adopt this standard form no later than January 31 following the General Assembly at which it was elected.

Section 18. The Executive Council shall establish maximum limits for reimbursement of each type of expenses by a majority vote of the members to which it is entitled. The Executive Council shall establish these maximum limits by January 31 following the General Assembly at which it was elected.

Section 19. The Executive Council shall enter into no contract or agreement on behalf of the TISL which requires indebtedness for longer than one year.

Section 20. The fiscal year shall begin on November 15 of each year and shall end on the following November 14 of each year.

Section 21. It is at all times, the absolute responsibility of the TISL Executive Council and its appointees to conduct the financial affairs of the TISL in a reasonable, responsible, customary, and prudent manner.