Conference Facilities
Conference facilities, whether consisting of a single room for a few hours or an agreement with a resort for conference rooms and hotel rooms, must follow the procurement process. Many times because Clemson may not actually be making a payment to the hotel (we are just guaranteeing attendees will reserve so many rooms), people do not consider it a procurement, but it is. Hotels have many hard to understand clauses in their agreements that potentially put Clemson at risk for paying large bills if we sign.
Unless you are positive that Clemson will in no way be responsible for paying no more than $2500 (after taking into account any cancellation, attrition, damage clauses), all hotel and conference agreements should be reviewed and signed by the Procurement Director.
When planning conferences there are one of two exemptions that may be potentially used: 1) Exemption #15 (purchase for resale) would apply if attendees are paying registration dues that cover 100% of the costs; or 2) Exemption #40 (conference site selection), which can be used for a conference at any location but this exemption requires a form to be completed justifying the site chosen and some additional restrictions:
a. Must have someone designated as the conference planner.
b. Whenever possible, the site should be changed from sites used in previous years.
c. SC State Park should be considered whenever they meet conference requirements.
d. A minimum of two hotels must be contacted in two difference cities (if not being held in Clemson) or two different hotels within the city (if being held in Clemson).
e. Site Selection form must be completed for any conference using this exemption (Site Selection Form).
Ordering and Additional Information below:
Use a Clemson University P-Card or buyWays to order.
Helpful Links:
- Decision Tree — flowchart designed to help you choose which purchasing method should be used.
- Disbursement Grid — grid used as an aid to assess availability of the type of University funds prior to making commitments.
- P-Card Policies and Procedures
- Policies, Procedures and Guidelines
- Clemson Travel Guidelines
- Exemption List — may be applicable to your purchase
- 15 - Purchases for commercial resale such as food (Campus Dining Services), books (University Book Store), drugs and pharmaceutical supplies (Student Health Center), arts and crafts supplies (Youth Learning Institute), and other items which are sold in the retail market.
- 40. Conference facilities when accompanied by a completed "Justification for In State Conference Site Selection" form.