Hi Jesse,

Sorry - just noticed your post. (I have been away from the forums for awhile.)

Chatham has.  Our program, in a nutshell, is pasted below.  We instated the program this April.  So far we have about 7 or 8 people signed up, and hope for a few more in the new school year.  We have never expected it to be a huge program, but it is part of the Bike Support program initiated by our Campus Climate Committee.

Mary

********

In our continued effort to promote health and wellness with the “Fit for the Future Program” and to model ways to eliminate global warming emissions as part of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, Chatham University will now offer full-time employees the opportunity to participate in a bicycle commuter benefit. This benefit will reimburse full-time employees who commute to work by bicycle for reasonable expenses up to $20 a month. The reimbursements will be excludable from an employee’s gross income and not subject to federal income tax. According to IRS guidelines, employees who sign up for this benefit will not be permitted to have a campus parking permit as they are required to certify that cycling is their primary mode of transportation to and from work during the time frame in which they receive the reimbursement. Below are answers to frequently asked questions about this new benefit.

What Expenses May Be Reimbursed?

An employee may be reimbursed on a tax-free basis for reasonable expenses incurred during the calendar year for the purchase of a bicycle, improvements, repair and equipment (i.e. helmet) provided that the bicycle is used regularly to travel between the employee’s residence and the three University campuses. This benefit does not cover bike clothing.

What Is The Process for Reimbursement?

Employees can be reimbursed on a quarterly basis (April, July, October, January) for expenses incurred over three months by submitting a check request form and attaching proper receipts. The maximum reimbursement is $20 per month or $240 over a calendar year.

How Do You Sign Up For This Benefit?

An employee can sign up for this benefit by completing the Employee Commuter Benefit Form available in the Human Resources Department. On this form, the employee confirms that he\she is committed to using their bicycle as a main source of transportation to campus.
 

At the University of California,  Santa Barbara we have been advised that we could only use this law if we wanted to give away money pre-tax. IF this law was set up like the Section 125 Cafeteria Plans for Health Care Reimbursement (HCRA) and Dependent Care Reimbursement  Accounts(DCRA) we could take the money from paychecks pre-tax and then redistribute as bicycle commuters turned in receipts. The law in its current iteration is half baked so we have not utilized it to give away money tax free.