Colleagues,
We are reaching out in follow-up to the email that we sent to some of you on March 25 about lab equipment purchases and reimbursement. We regret any confusion that the original message may have caused, and are writing to provide clarity and next steps.
The purpose of that email was not to convey a policy change, but rather to serve as a reminder that when purchasing high-cost equipment or high-risk goods and services, employees should follow the existing Supply Chain Management (SCM) purchasing processes rather than purchasing out-of-pocket. Under existing UC policies, the items listed below are specifically prohibited from being purchased out-of-pocket because they present potentially serious environmental, health, legal, audit, or regulatory risks. These restricted items include:
- Inventorial equipment above $5,000, inclusive of tax (follow the hyperlink for qualifying criteria)
- Any chemicals used for research, including but not limited to, poisonous or toxic chemicals
- Biological agents
- Radioactive materials
- Any other item or service listed on the SCM “Restricted Purchases” page
To be clear, the out-of-pocket restrictions do not apply to items such as common, commercially available retail goods, general office or lab supplies, or services.
While this is not a new policy, we recognize that to date, it has not been strictly enforced. To give the campus community time to plan for this adjustment, enforcement of the policy on reimbursing the items listed above will begin on July 1, 2025.
In the meantime, we will partner with campus stakeholders to clarify optimum purchasing processes and develop clear guidelines for reimbursement, including an exceptions process and an FAQ.
If you have questions for our team, please contact us at travel@berkeley.edu.
Thank you,
Supply Chain Management
Controller's Office