FI0110 – Budgets

FI0110 – Budgets

Topics:

The University Budget	Budgeting Capital Funds
Budgeting Current Unrestricted Funds	Procedures
Budgeting Current Restricted Funds	Contact

Objective:

To provide policies and procedures relating to budgets and budgetary control.

Policy:

The University Budget

1. Budgeting enables the university to allocate resources according to established plans and priorities and is a means of controlling expenses based on anticipated funding. The university develops budgets for three types of funds: Current Unrestricted Funds, Current Restricted Funds, and Capital Funds.

The university shall develop budgets for each major fund group to:

1. Ensure that authorized spending levels and anticipated financial commitments are within available resources.
2. Implement Board of Trustee bylaws and actions related to budgets; and
3. Comply with legal, regulatory and contractual requirements governing the proper use, budgetary control and financial reporting of university funds

Budgeting Current Unrestricted Funds

2. Current Unrestricted Funds support basic operations of the core mission of the university. The budget for these funds is the approved formal plan for financing the university’s academic and support programs for the fiscal year beginning July 1 and ending June 30 of each year.

Current Unrestricted Fund budgets are subject to state policies and procedures that govern appropriations requests, reporting requirements, state budget hearings, and appropriations legislation. Policies and procedures for Current Unrestricted Fund budgets can be found in FI0112 – Budgeting Current Unrestricted Funds.

Budgeting Current Restricted Funds

3. Current Restricted Funds include revenues from grants and contracts, gifts, and student aid that are restricted by donors and external sponsors. They are typically unavailable to fund general operations. Most gifts, grants, and contracts have beginning and ending dates that do not correspond to the university’s fiscal year. While projected revenues and expenses for current restricted funds are provided as an information item in the university’s annual operating budget, official budgets exist only for sponsored grants and contracts and are managed at the project level. Policies and procedures for managing these can be found in FI0205 – Sponsored Projects

Budgeting Capital Funds

4. Capital Funds are nonrecurring funds that support the development and maintenance of university facilities. They include Capital Outlay and Capital Maintenance. These funds are governed by state policies and procedures that are unrelated to the state’s process for Unrestricted Current Funds. The university develops a formal approved annual plan for these funds, but budgets are developed and managed at the project level. Policies and procedures for managing Capital Funds can be found in FI0620 – Capital Outlay.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Ron Loewen (865) 974-2243  ron.loewen@tennessee.edu