Deadlines

September 15—request exception to re-appropriation limit; report on net deficits over $1,000

Summary

The re-appropriation policy of the College of Letters and Science applies to 19900 and 20397 (Concurrent Enrollment) funds and defines the year-end balances in those funds that a department can retain in the following fiscal year. It is intended to give department chairs and managers maximum flexibility within the budgets under their control while providing incentives for good budget management, eliminating wasteful year-end spending, and facilitating the process of fiscal close. The policy also identifies actions to be taken in the event of a deficit. Refer any questions to your division's budget officer.

Policy

Positive Balances (Surpluses)

Year-end operating budget surplus balances in 19900 and 20397 funds can be retained by a unit when they are within the limits specified in the following table with the exception of balances related to increments to the Temporary Academic Staff budget.

The limit test for a department's budgetary surplus will be applied annually to ensure that reinstated funds do not accumulate without the review of the Dean. It is the College's intention that the annual reinstatement of unexpended funds within the specified limits will be routine. However, the Deans retain the ability to adjust limits, particularly in the event of a fiscal emergency. Departments are cautioned to treat a reappropriated surplus as temporary funding rather than an augmentation that is likely to reoccur annually.

Exceptions: Net Positive Balances (Surpluses) in Excess of re-appropriation Limit

The Dean may grant exceptions to the limits shown in the chart. Requests should be submitted by September 15th each year and should include the following information:

• Identify the full balance, the re-appropriation limit, and the amount over the re-appropriation limit.

• Summarize the significant causes for the full 19900 balance, not only the portion that exceeds the limit. If you have been saving funds for a particular purpose, identify the amount, the intended use, and the amount specifically saved from prior years for this purpose. Departments may wish, for example, to save funds from one year to the next for an equipment purchase, a one-time or multiple-year project, the offering of a course or the salary of a special teaching visitor. These reserved funds may provide a valid justification for an exception.

• Temporary Academic Staff budget balances: Report the TAS initial allocation, any supplements, total expense, and balance, either positive or negative. When a department has received a TAS increment and also has a positive year-end TAS balance, under most circumstances funding up to the amount of the increment will be returned to the Division. (The re-appropriation limit is then applied to the remaining balance.)

• Exemptions: If your balance includes 19900 funds received from a source other than your department or Dean, you may request an exemption. Please identify the unit that provided the funds, the purpose of the allocation, the amount of the initial allocation, and the amount remaining at fiscal close. Describe any circumstances that may have prevented you from expending the funds. In most circumstances you may request an exemption only in the fiscal year in which the funds were received.

• Describe your plan for using the full balance, including details about the portion over the limit.

Net Negative Balances (Deficits)

Deficits will remain with the unit in full. Departments are expected to meet operating needs within the available budget, and significant deficits are serious matters for which Deans and Chairs are accountable. Deans are required to report annually to the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost on deficits in fund-organization-program BFS chart field combinations that involve central campus funds (including 19900, 07427, 20000, and a few others). If you have an overdraft over $1,000, discuss the situation with your Division’s Budget Officer. The department is required to send a report to the Dean by September 15th. Identify the primary causes of the overdraft and present a deficit elimination plan.

Guidelines

1. How is the re-appropriation limit calculated?
   L&S re-appropriation limits are based on the size of a unit's 19900 fund general operating budget. To determine the operating budget:

   1. Add the initial Temporary Academic Staff budget allocation received from your dean and the July 1 permanently_budgeted 19900 funds located in a unit's program codes 40 and 43. Use only these two components. You may have received a TAS supplement, or faculty replacement funding from another dean, but do not include these.
   2. Subtract the permanent budget for BFS account 50010, Ladder-rank Faculty.
   3. If your department receives consolidated staffing support (e.g., "cluster") add the dollars in the administrative unit's permanent budget. Please note that the administrative unit has its own limit.

   After calculating the operating budget, refer to the re-appropriation Limits table above to determine your re-appropriation limit.

2. What portions of a department's year-end balances are subject to this policy?
   This policy applies to the year-end 19900 fund balances in all of a department's orgs in program codes 40 and 43. Excluded are balances in BFS ladder-rank faculty account 50010 and faculty start-up and retention balances when identified with management project codes. Also included are concurrent enrollment funds, 20397, which are provided by University Extension to offset administrative and instructional expenses incurred on 19900 funds. This fund’s balance is included regardless of its location in a department’s chart of accounts.

3. How is the balance calculated?
   In the context of this policy, the June 30 balance is calculated by subtracting expenses and encumbrances from the amount of funding available in the temporary budget (appropriations). The calculation is not affected by pre-encumbrances, project codes or flex-fields.

4. Why is ladder-rank faculty account 50010 normally excluded from the re-appropriation policy?
   Credit balances in this ladder-rank faculty account are under the jurisdiction of the Dean. Since the balance at year-end should be zero, both positive and negative balances have to be examined by departments to determine the cause(s). It is College policy that a department's operating budget will be charged to cover any unexplained year-end deficits in the permanent faculty salary account 50010. Consult your Division's Budget Officer regarding any balance. Note that miscoding of academic salary appointments can affect balances in the general operating budget and the permanent academic salary accounts, and correcting adjustments may affect the amount of funding retained by the unit.

5. Why are unused Temporary Academic Staff increments returned to the Dean?
   Increments are usually granted when a department indicates that its initial allocation is insufficient. A year-end balance indicates that the funds were not needed and normally will be returned to the Dean.

6. Are Temporary Academic Staff funds restricted as to their use?
   While departments in general are able to use their operating funds as they choose, academic salary funds provided by the Dean in the Temporary Academic Staff budget are intended specifically for temporary teaching costs and should not normally be used for other purposes. If a department is considering a significant diversion, the Chair should contact the Dean in advance.