SUNY Potsdam

Due to a mandate by the Office of Government Relations, airfare purchased using State, IFR or Dorm funds must be arranged through a New York State Contract vendor and billed to the College for payment.   Airfare purchased through any travel agency other than our State contract vendors will NOT be reimbursed to the traveler.  

Travel Agent Services Contract can be viewed at: 

http://www.ogs.state.ny.us/purchase/snt/awardnotes/7900520958can.pdf

Before completing the following steps, please make sure your travel requisition (estimate of total expenses) with proper funding and signatures has been received by Purchasing and Payables. You must have state account funding to arrange your flight through our contract vendor and have the charges billed to the College.

1. Call the NYS Contract Travel Agency and ask for the NYS Reservations Department.  If flying internationally, ask for an “International” travel counselor.
2. Your travel counselor will quote the State contract price through Syracuse for your destination, if available.  This price should be documented on the Airfare Requisition form attached.  If you choose to fly out of another airport in NYS, ask for the State contract rate from that airport and document it on the Airfare Requisition.
3. If there is no State contract flight available for your destination, the travel agency will arrange a flight at the lowest price available. This price should be documented on the Airfare Requisition form attached.
4. After making your arrangements with the travel counselor, ask to have a fax or e-mail of the itinerary sent to you as soon as possible.  Inspect the itinerary carefully to make sure the arrangements are perfect before you give your final approval.  Once a non-contract flight is booked, it cannot be changed without paying a change fee (currently $100.00—subject to increase).
5. Fill out the airfare requisition form, attach your approved itinerary and bring or fax (X3111) it over to the Purchasing & Payables Office for final approval.  We will fax the approval to the travel agency.  Your flight will then be charged to the College’s account and your electronic ticket will be issued.  It is imperative that you get your airfare requisition to our office within 24-hours of booking your flight.  While doing so does not guarantee the quoted price, it does provide the greatest protection from the airline raising the price.  You will be notified by Purchasing and Payables' staff if the price of your ticket has changed.
   
6. Electronic tickets will be issued whenever possible.  Electronic ticket receipts will be E-mailed to the traveler and to Purchasing and Payables.   Please print out your copy to bring with you to the airport for check-in at the ticket counter with your picture ID and Passport (if applicable).  If paper tickets are required, they will be provided per the "Travel Document Delivery" terms detailed on page 10 of the contract.  There are several advantages to using State contract pricing and State contract vendors to book flights.  They are:
   
   • Tickets are fully refundable & changeable on State contract flights should the traveler need to cancel or change their flight arrangements due to emergencies, schedule changes, meeting cancellations, etc. which could amount to considerable cost savings to the State.
   • Arrangements for trips do not require a Saturday overnight to obtain the best rate for State contract flights.  No minimum stay requirements on State Contract flights.
   • No advance purchase requirements for booking State contract flights.
   • Ticket costs will be direct billed to the College to avoid charging to personal credit cards.
   • Contract travel agencies will assist you in any way necessary throughout the course of your trip.
   • Contract agencies have access to discounted lodging directories.
   • Contract agencies will provide services for hotels, rental car, etc. at no additional cost.