Budgeting by Fund

The General Fund is a portion of current operations using net tuition, state appropriation, and other unrestricted general income as revenue in support of academic, administrative, and departmental operations. The General Fund makes up about 55% of UVM's total operating budget and is the only component of the budget over which we have any appreciable discretion. This Fund is unrestricted, meaning there are no restrictions on how the money may be used created by an external entity or contract: any business expense appropriate to the unit and in compliance with UVM policy may be charged to general funds.

• Budget Transfers vs. Actuals Journals (PDF)
• Universal Course Scholarship for Non-Degree Students Form (Excel)

Fund 108 is used for General Fund reserves that have been transferred from unit operating budgets (Fund 100) to cover future departmental equipment, operating, or renovation expense. At the end of each fiscal year, following the confirmation of the audited financial statements, and the creation of that year’s results of operations, unexpended funds from Fund 100 will be evaluated for all units. Recognized balances, or some portion thereof, may be transferred (using Source 105905 General Reappropriation) into Unit Fund 108 accounts. Decisions on transfer amounts are communicated to units in the fall following the fiscal year close.

• Fund 108 Guidelines (PDF)
• Request for the Use of Fund 108 Balance Form (Excel)

Fund 130-Student Fees is used to allocate activity fee revenue to student clubs. Fund 131-Student Fund Raising is used for student club funds that they have raised themselves. Each student club has a unique Source chartfield value. Club budgets are determined by the SGA Senate and budgets are entered by Student Life staff.

An income/expense activity is a self-supporting activity that is designed to generate sufficient revenue from the sale of specific goods and/or services to recover expenses associated with providing those goods or services. These activities are sometimes called “auxiliary enterprises.”

Budget Materials

• FY27 Income/Expense Guidelines (PDF)
• FY27 Income/Expense Budget Template (Excel)
• FY27 MOU & Rate Certification Form (Word)

References

• Income/Expense Matrix (PDF)
• Income/Expense Manual (PDF)
• Cost Principles

Forms

• Proposal to Establish an Income/Expense Activity (PDF)
• EZ-IE Proposal Form (PDF)
• Memorandum of Understanding Template (Word)
• An income/expense activity may undergo a minor operational change. Such changes may not require a new MOU, and instead may need to be codified through an Income/Expense Activity MOU Addendum. Units should contact their FAB analyst to discuss the activity’s changes, and to receive a copy of this form.

Unrestricted plant funds are used for capital projects, capital reserves, and equipment reserves.

• Fund 200 Guidelines (PDF)
• Fund 200 Equipment/Reserve Transfer Form (Excel)

These funds are used to identify grants, contracts, or commitment funds awarded to UVM.

Contact Sponsored Project Administration

Annual gift and endowment budgets are established within PeopleSoft based on annual income (for endowments), any carryover of net assets from the prior year, and new gift or other revenue received during the year.

Contact Financial Accounting, Costing, and Treasury Services

Agency funds are funds held by UVM in its role as fiscal agent for an external organization such as a sorority, fraternity or scholarly journal. They are not UVM’s money and UVM has little or no say in how they are spent.

Agency funds are set up with “associated revenue” so that as deposits are made, the budget balance available is increased. Agency fund budgets are established at the beginning of each fiscal year in an amount equal to the beginning net assets.

Contact Financial Accounting, Costing, and Treasury Services

UVM's multi-year budget planning process enables colleges, schools, and administrative divisions to develop high-level, five-year budget plans. Multi-year budget planning is performed in Axiom for funds 100, 108, 150, 305, 900, and restricted gifts and endowments. Planning opens to end-users in August. Responsibility Centers' plans are due to the Budget Office in March, along with RC multi-year salary budget plans. Support Centers may take advantage of the multi-year planning functionality but are not required to submit their plans to the Budget Office. The planning cycle ends at the end of March, when annual budget building and salary-setting begins.

Multi-year salary planning is performed in Axiom. Planning opens to end-users in August. Support Centers' salary plans are due to the FAB office in late November, in advance of annual budget meetings in December. Responsibility Centers' plans are due to the Budget Office in March, along with RC multi-year budget plans. The planning cycle ends at the end of March, when annual budget building and salary-setting begins.

• Multi-Year Salary Planning User Guide (PDF)

UVM's multi-year salary planning has four major goals:

• Enable colleges, schools, and administrative divisions to manage position and personnel changes within their current-year salary budget
• Enable colleges, schools, and administrative divisions to budget plan for salary commitments in future years
• Support planning/communication across or between units for commitments that are shared
• Inform Budget Office of the position/salary details supporting the salary/benefits lines of units’ multi-year budget plans