• Students under the age of 18 must lodge with their parent / legal guardian .
EFSC is exempt from Florida sales tax . The travel sponsor must obtain a copy of the Consumer ’ s Certificate of Exemption from Accounting to present at check-in . If the vendor will not waive the sales tax , the lodging provider should write “ Tax Exemption Refused ” on the receipt ( s ) along with a signature . Please check with the hotel in advance to determine requirements .
Incidentals such as room service , in-room movies , phone calls , etc ., will not be reimbursed . Internet usage fees and resort fees may be paid if they are on the initial travel request .
Effective July 1 , 2022 , there are two ( 2 ) changes to the State Travel Florida Statutes . They are listed below .
1 . Pursuant to s . 112.061 , Florida Statute , regarding State employee travel , the 2022-2023 Florida Law 2022-157 section 88 states : “ Funds may not be used for travel by state employees to foreign countries , other states , conferences , staff training activities , or other administrative functions unless the agency head has approved , in writing , that such activities are critical to the agency ’ s mission . The agency head shall consider using teleconferencing and other forms of electronic communication to meet the needs of the proposed activity before approving mission-critical travel .”
This means that effective immediately all employee administrative travel requests * must be approved by the appropriate Vice President before travel occurs . Additionally , if a conference / meeting has an online or remote option , employees are required to participate in the online / remote option . Employees who wish to attend in person must provide detailed justification to support the need to attend the meeting / conference in person .
The information will be added to the travel system as soon as possible , until then , the “ Travel Authorization Request Addendum ” form is required . Please complete the attached Travel Authorization Request Addendum form and forward this email with the completed form to your Vice President for approval and cc Tamra Reeves on the email . The Vice President will review the request and reply to all with the approval or disapproval for the trip . Employees traveling without receiving prior approval may be personally responsible for charges related to the trip . The online travel request form is being revised to incorporate the requirements of this statute for future requests .
The “ Travel Authorization Request Addendum ” form can be found in the Document Center under Accounting .
* Administrative travel does not include travel for instruction , research , academic , student activity , or athletic purposes .
2 . Pursuant to s . 112.061 , Florida Statute , regarding State employee travel , the 2022-2023 Florida Law 2022-157 section 89 states : “ Costs for lodging associated with a meeting , conference , or convention organized or sponsored in whole or part by a state agency or judicial branch may not exceed $ 175 per day . An employee may expend his or her own funds for any lodging expenses in excess of the $ 175 per day .”
This means that any State agency sponsored meeting / conference / convention hotel costs cannot exceed $ 175 per night . Any amount over that will be the responsibility of the employee . Please be mindful of this rule when making your reservations .
303.9 Travel Etiquette All members traveling , including students and sponsors , should exchange cell phone numbers and save the hotel phone number in case of emergency .
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