FAQ's
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Listed below are the most common question received by the Property Office. Should you require more detail, please feel free to contact us.
Q. How does the Property Office determine what is tagged and what is not?
A. The Property Office tags items that fall into one of three categories.
1. Equipment: Any property that costs $5,000.00 or more, has a life expectancy of more than one year and is free-standing (account code 730101).
2. Computers and Servers: Desktop, laptop and tablet computers AND servers that cost $1,000 to $4,999.99 (account code 720022).
3. Vehicles, Trailers and ATVs: All vehicles, trailers and ATVs that are required by state law to have title, registration and license, and cost from $1 to $4,999.99 (account code 720023).
Q. What does PCN stand for?
A. PCN stands for Property Control Number. A PCN barcode tag is affixed to all inventoriable property and equipment by the Property Office. PCNs can be seven characters long. A PCN that begins with a "D" is used for donated inventoriable property and equipment. A PCN that begins with "R" indicates the item was acquired through a sponsored research award. A PCN that begins with "R" and ends with the letter "C" indicates the item was acquired through a sponsor contract. All other PCNs consist of six digits, usually beginning with 7 or 8.
Q. Do I need to notify the Property Office when I purchase inventoriable property or equipment?
A. Generally, you do not need to notify the Property Office when new inventoriable property or equipment are purchased. A Property Office representative works with Accounts Payable on a daily basis. Newly acquired items are not tagged until after payment has been rendered. Exceptions are made for items that will immediately leave campus. However, if the Property Office has not attempted to tag the item within a month of payment being rendered, do call to make sure that the item is properly tagged and recorded in the Fixed Assets database.
Q. Why do I need to complete an Annual Off Campus Receipt before I take tagged assets off campus?
A. Annual Off Campus Receipts are required by New Mexico Tech policy before any tagged items are removed from campus. The receipts provide proof of authorization, an audit trail and may be required by the insurance company if the item is damaged or stolen.
Q. Why do I need to complete a Calibration and Repair Receipt before sending an item away for maintenance?
A. Calibration and Repair Receipts must be completed before items are sent away to provide an audit trail, maintenance trail, and contact information should another member of the NMT community need to check on the status of the asset.
Q. What do I have to do for the annual inventory?
A. The annual inventory requires that a department representative other than the primary custodian locate each item. Once the item has been located, the inventory report should updated, if necessary to add the PCN, model number, serial number, location and custodian. A current year inventory sticker should then be placed on the asset. For detailed instruction, please read the Annual Inventory Instructions located on the Policies & Regulations page.
Q. What is the biennial review purpose and what do I have to do for it?
A. The biennial review is used to monitor the accuracy of the departments' physical inventories and provide departments with valuable feedback concerning their property management. Twenty percent of each department’s inventoriable property and equipment are randomly selected. A date is arranged for the review and the department is provided with a list of the selected items in advance. The Property Office recommends that each item on the list is found and marked so that it can be easily located on the day of the review, and requests that at least one escort is provided to guide the reviewer from item to item. A results letter is sent based on the Property Office findings, recommendations and observations.
Q. I have many obsolete and broken items. Can I throw them away?
A. No, obsolete, broken or unwanted items should not be thrown away. Tagged items need to be properly removed from inventory. Additionally, obsolete or broken items may have scrap value. Finally, many items pose potential health or environmental hazards. As such, NMT must prove that the items were disposed of lawfully and safely. All items should be disposed of through the Property Office.
Q. How do I submit assets to the Property Office for disposition?
A. Items may be delivered to the Property Office or an appointment can be scheduled for a Property Office Representative to pick up the items. Either way, the surplusing department must complete a Pickup & Disposal Request before any items will be accepted.
Q. Can other departments purchase items from the Property Yard?
A. All property received at the Property Yard for disposal, whether tagged or not tagged, is available for reutilization by any other New Mexico Tech department at no charge. Tagged property is held for a minimum of 30 days, and posted on the Property website's reutilization bulletin board; untagged property is held for a minimum of 15 days. The bulletin board is updated weekly. When items are claimed for reutilization, a Surplus Reutilization form must be completed
Q. Can individuals purchase items from the Property Yard?
A. New Mexico Tech has only two approved methods for disposing of surplus. The first is through public auction and the second is through sealed bid. No items may be sold outside of these two methods.
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