P-card Progress

On April 30, 2025, Mayor Danny Avula announced a p-card reset. The total number of p-cards (purchasing cards) held by City employees was reduced from 320 to 67, and the Department of Procurement Services began a ground-up overhaul of the program intended to produce a replacement that is firmly rooted in industry best practices and which focuses on fiscal accountability and maintaining public trust.

See below for progress updates on the City of Richmond’s p-card program..

Updated June 17, 2025.

Updates

• June 17, City launches new progress tracker for p-card rebuild
• May 9, City of Richmond P-card Reset Begins
• April 30, City of Richmond Resets P-card Program

Tracker

 Done!
Staffing: Hired p-card supervisor. Start date: Dec. 2, 2024.

 Done!
P-card Reset: Planning & preparation.

 Done!
Restrictions: New Merchant Category Code (MCC) restrictions created with Bank of America.

 Done!
P-card Reset Announcement: CardHolders and Approvers notified.

 Done!
Department Directors Announcement: Realignment of department director responsibilities.

 Done!
P-card Reduction: On May 9, 2025, the number of City p-cards were reduced from 320 to 67.

 Done!
AI/Audit Assistance: Evaluate and select third-party AI/Audit solution provider.

 Done!
MCC Restrictions: Create new spend profiles with newly created MCC restrictions for food and travel.

 Done!
Transaction Approvers: The Department of Procurement Services will no longer act as "Approver" for other departments.

 In progress
P-card Program Strengthening Activities: On-going efforts to evaluate and identify weaknesses and gaps, then implement corrective actions and improvements to the p-card program.

 In progress
Card Provider: Evaluate and consider moving the City p-card program to an alternate provider.

 In progress
P-card Team Recruitment: P-card Management Analyst position posted May 13, 2025. Closed May 27, 2025.

 In progress
P-card Program Assessment: P-card program assessment conducted by National Institute of Government Purchasing (NIGP). Following the assessment, the Department of Procurement Services will incorporate program and policy recommendations that align with program goals.

 In progress
Internal controls assessment: Conducted by Brown and Edwards.  Following the assessment, the Department of Procurement Services will incorporate recommendations that align with program goals.

 In progress
Travel Policy: An updated p-card travel policy is under review by the Department of Finance policy advisor.

 In progress
Updated Discretionary Spend Policy: An updated discretionary spend policy is under review by the Department of Human Resources policy advisor.

 In progress
Rebate: Create an internal Department of Procurement Services process for leveraging revenue opportunities for p-card program and rebate structure.

 In progress
Monitoring: Reviewing incoming transactions for adherence to P-card Reset guidance.

 Not yet started
P-card Policy No. 15: Strengthening policy to include Office of the City Auditor’s recommendations.

 Not yet started
Training: Update p-card training materials to reflect updated Policy No. 15. Updated training is required for all new cardholders and approvers and annually for all participants.

 Not yet started
Violation Tracker: Create and implement methods of tracking violations, notifications, and corrective actions.

 Not yet started
Contract Spend: Research options for capturing p-card spend against contracts.