Vehicle Mileage Recharge
Vehicle mileage recharge is when a grant pays the department for mileage use of a department owned vehicle.
University-owned vehicles managed by an individual or department must use a cost allocation method to expense to sponsored projects, as described below.
A mileage log must be kept in the vehicle to record the date range during which the vehicle was used, the project index for each use, and the starting and ending mileage for each trip.
Each month, the completed mileage log must be submitted to the departmental accounting office.
The DRA or other designated departmental staff must:
- Compile the mileage log information into a spreadsheet to calculate the amount to be charged to each sponsored project (miles driven × IRS standard mileage rate)
- Process a journal voucher (JV) via U-Approve to transfer the calculated amount from each grant to the Sales and Service index, attaching the spreadsheet (or an actual invoice) as supporting documentation. The PI must be included as an approver on the JV.
The department must retain both the spreadsheet and the mileage log in accordance with record retention requirements.
All vehicle expenses (fuel, insurance, maintenance, etc.) are paid from the Sales and Service index. Sponsored projects reimburse their share of vehicle usage costs based on the IRS standard mileage rate.