Entertainment Approvals

This page provides an overview of the required entertainment expense approvals, as well as guidelines for entertainment expense approvers.


Secure Pre-Approval Before Initiating Expenses

When planning an entertainment event, obtain advance approval. By policy, the following approvals are required for entertainment:

  • Campus, including Agriculture and Natural Resources (ANR): Department heads are authorized to approve entertainment expenditures.
  • School of Medicine: Department chairs, directors of institutes and organized research units, associate vice chancellors for health sciences and administration, and the associate Dean of Administration have approval authority for entertainment expenses.
  • UC Davis Health: The director of the UC Davis Medical Center has approval authority.

Entertainment best practices recommend obtaining prior approval to ensure payment will be approved, and to verify funds are available to cover entertainment expenses before purchases are made.


Guidelines for Approving Entertainment

When determining whether an entertainment expense is appropriate, the approving authority must evaluate:

  • How the event supports teaching, research, public service, or patient care.
  • The importance of the event in terms of the costs that will be incurred.
  • The benefits to employees & guests from such an expense.
  • The availability of funds.
  • Any alternatives that would be equally effective in accomplishing the desired objectives.

Department heads are responsible for ensuring that entertainment conforms to policy and that claims submitted for payment include the appropriate supporting documentation.

If an approver wishes to delegate their approval authority to another employee, that delegation must be documented appropriately, as described in section V. A. of Travel Policy BFB-G-28

Individuals with delegated approval authority cannot approve entertainment for someone to whom they directly report. The approving authority should be the supervisor, or higher, of the official host.  Individuals with delegated approval authority shall not approve their own entertainment.

Post-Entertainment Reconciliation

The approver is certifying that the expenses were allowable and in keeping with accepted standards of the educational community and compatible with the university's status as a publicly supported institution. In addition, approval of entertainment expenses indicates that the conditions for approval specified in UCOP BUS-79 were met.

Entertainment expenses should not exceed the per-person maximum allowance for the meal type. The maximum includes tax and tip but does not include facility or room rental fees. These fees can be claimed as an additional expense.


Signature Requirements

If using AggieExpense, the appropriate approvals will automatically be acquired through electronic routing. If processing an entertainment expense outside of AggieExpense, make sure the necessary approval signatures are on the Entertainment Expense Form:

  • Host's signature: The signature of the person who is responsible for the business purpose of the event, the selection of the invitees, and hosting guests at the event per UCOP BUS-79, Appendix B, Approval of Expenditures.
  • Approval for payment signature: The signature of the person who has been delegated signature authority on the fund source.
  • Approval for authorization signature:  The signature of the person who has been delegated the authority to authorize entertainment.