FAQ - Asset Disposal and Surplus | Property Accounting Services

Do I need approval to dispose of property?

YES! All items purchased with state funds are considered state property and any items with an original value of $5,000 or more require written approval prior to disposal.

To request permission for disposal, departments are responsible for electronically submitting a DA-110 form to Central Property Accounting. The form and form instructions are available online.

I have a researcher leaving KU for another position and he/she wants to take with them the equipment they've been using…is that allowed?

Researchers leaving KU for another position are allowed to take the equipment that they’ve been using on a limited basis. Equipment transfer requests are handled on a case-by-case basis based upon the following criteria.

The equipment is not needed at KU by other faculty and/or staff.
Grant funded equipment and/or supplies may be transferred at no cost as long as the grant is also transferring with the researcher.
Non-grant funded equipment and/or supplies may be “sold” to the new organization based upon a negotiated value.
- The minimum value that the University will accept for equipment is:
  - Net Book Value (Original Cost less Accumulated Depreciation) – Central Property Accounting will provide this value for all centrally tracked assets and will assist in calculating this value for non-centrally tracked assets.
  - 5% of Original Cost – For fully depreciated assets.
The Department Chair must negotiate and approve all transfer requests.
All negotiated transfers must be documented via written agreements between KU and the new organization. Central Property Accounting can assist with draft written agreement.
Central Property Accounting must receive the written agreement signed by all parties before any equipment is removed from campus.

REMINDER – These types of transactions take a significant amount of time to coordinate. We highly recommend that departments with this issue contact Central Property Accounting as soon as they become aware of the request.

If I have an old or obsolete item that my department no longer needs, can I take it home or give it to someone in my department for their personal use?

Absolutely NO! Old and/or obsolete items are still considered state property and must be handled appropriately. Instructions for how to dispose of state property are available under Transfers and Dispositions.

What are my disposal options?

Disposal options available to departments include

KU Surplus
eWaste recycling
trade-in

REMINDER – Donations to employees or other individuals are strictly prohibited.

Why don't you automatically dispose of items that have exceeded their useful lives?

The University has numerous assets that continue to be functional well beyond their depreciable useful lives used for financial reporting purposes (i.e. 8 years for most equipment; 5 years for vehicles). Thus there is no way for Central Property Accounting to automatically know when an asset has become obsolete and is ready for disposal. It is the department's responsibility to have internal controls in place to dispose of assets once they have become obsolete and/or are no longer needed or used by the department.

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