Modernizing Operations With an Electronic Voucher System

The client is an independent federal agency based in Washington, DC that provides conflict resolution services to industry, government agencies, and communities from ten regional offices and over 60 field offices. Its travel and miscellaneous expense vouchers moved entirely on paper: invoices could only be submitted by mail, receipts were handled by mail, and payment went out as paper checks through the postal service. i3solutions built an electronic voucher system to replace it, a secure cloud-based custom web application in which staff submit a voucher with its staff information, transportation costs, expenses, comments, and attachments, and reviewers then authorize, audit, and pay it without any of it going through the mail. i3solutions reviewed the existing process before building and applied Business Process Management (BPM) principles, so this was process automation and not a paper form moved on screen: a one-voucher-at-a-time rule prevents multiple unsubmitted vouchers, a search feature retrieves previous vouchers, administrators control users, departments, roles, and per diem rates, and accountants control fiscal year budgets, field budget allocations, fund numbers, and the lookup values vouchers are built from. CONUS and OCONUS per diem rates for lodging and meals published by the Defense Travel Management Office load in XML format and update automatically each year, and the accounting lookup values update automatically each month. The system is an ASP.NET and C# application over Microsoft SQL Server, with pay.gov handling payment electronically, SQL Server Reporting Services handling reports on voucher processing and user activity, and SMTP notifying users when a voucher is submitted, approved, and paid.

The client is an independent federal agency, based in Washington, DC, dedicated to preserving and promoting labor- management peace and cooperation. With a vast network of ten regional offices and over 60 field offices, the agency provides essential conflict resolution services to various sectors, including industry, government agencies, and communities.

The agency faced a significant challenge with their outdated manual paper process for processing travel and miscellaneous expense vouchers. Invoices could only be submitted by mail, with paper checks then issued and sent via traditional postal services. Even receipts were managed through the mail. This outdated and cumbersome process urgently required a transformation to a more efficient and modern system.

The goal was to develop and maintain a secure, cloud-based electronic voucher system that allows users to submit travel or miscellaneous expense vouchers. Each voucher contains essential details, including staff information, voucher specifics, transportation costs, expenses, comments, and attachments. i3solutions was tasked with replacing the outdated paper-based system with a streamlined electronic process, to enhance both efficiency and accuracy in voucher processing.

What did the agency use before the electronic voucher system?

A manual paper process. Travel and miscellaneous expense vouchers could only be submitted by mail, receipts were managed through the mail, and paper checks were issued and sent by traditional postal services. In the new system the same vouchers are reviewed, authorized, audited, and paid inside the digital platform, with no dependence on postal services.

How does the system keep federal per diem rates current?

CONUS and OCONUS per diem rates for lodging and meals are provided by the Defense Travel Management Office and integrated in XML format, so they update automatically each year rather than being entered by hand. That keeps rate data consistent and removes error-prone manual calculation from voucher processing.

Can the agency’s accountants change budgets and codes without a developer?

Yes. Accountants manage fiscal year budgets, field budget allocations, and fund numbers, and they control the lookup values used to create and update vouchers: block 1l codes, budget object classes, departments, expense accounting relationships, mileage rates, organizations, payment forms, and projects. Those lookup values are configured to update automatically each month, which supports tracking and auditing. Administrators separately handle user management, departmental oversight, role assignments, and per diem rates.

What is the electronic voucher system built on?

ASP.NET with C# is the foundation, and Microsoft SQL Server with T-SQL is the database, accessed through Entity Framework. jQuery and JavaScript handle dynamic updates, form validation, and real-time status tracking; Bootstrap and CSS handle responsive layout; AJAX exchanges data asynchronously; and Telerik supplies UI components. SQL Server Reporting Services generates reports on voucher processing and user activity, Word and ActivePDF produce printable vouchers and documents, SMTP sends notifications for submission, approval, and payment, and pay.gov processes payment electronically. i3solutions built it in Visual Studio.

If your travel and expense vouchers still move by mail, or a spreadsheet and an email thread are standing in for a system, the cost of that is spread thin across every person who submits, reviews, audits, and pays one. A first conversation covers how a voucher moves through your organization today, who has to authorize and audit it, which rates and codes have to stay current on their own, and what a system would have to connect to for payment, per diem, and reporting. You leave with a written picture of the current process and the specific pieces a replacement would have to own, which is what a committee asks for before it funds anything. Start the conversation