COMPLETING AND SUBMITTING THE BUDZERO
FOR FUND 11
OVERVIEW
Fund 11 supports the University’s day-to-day operations that include administrative and general operating
expenses. Each unit with Fund 11 programs is responsible for submitting an operating budget to the
University Budget Office that reflects the proposed financial plan for the upcoming fiscal year. For the
FY2017 budget cycle, all non-academic areas will be presenting and requesting budgeted funds based
upon a zero-based budget approach. As opposed to prior years when only incremental requests for new or
expanded funds were needed, this approach requires each division to present a justification for their total
annual budget.
To aid in the preparation of your FY2017 zero budget proposal, you will receive updated salary sheets
and will run two reports, the BUDZERO and the Division Budget Summary. Instructions on how to run
both reports are provided here: Budget Office. The former BUDMEMO will be replaced with the
BUDZERO, which will be used to determine and submit a Fund 11 operating budget for the upcoming
fiscal year for each org. The Division Budget Summary will be used by each Vice President to
consolidate the BUDZERO, or individual budget request for each org, into a total budget for their area.
The Division Budget Summary will also be used to present the Vice President’s total budget request to
the Budget Committee.
BUDZERO OVERVIEW
The BUDZERO utilizes the zero-based budget methodology where all departments need to justify their
expenses and the budget as if they are starting with a budget of $0. The BUDZERO provides current and
historical expenses to assist in determining the budget, and it should be run for every fund 11 org.
The BUDZERO provides the following information to assist in determining the upcoming fiscal year
budget:
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3 Years of Historical Expenses
Current Budget
Current Expended
Projected Year-End Expended
New Budget Expenses (Fixed)
New Budget Expenses (Variable)
Projected Total Budget (Fixed + Variable)
Dollar Budget Change
Percentage Budget Change
Notes
DIVISION BUDGET SUMMARY OVERVIEW
The Division Budget Summary provides the Vice Presidents an overall view of historical and current
expenses for each of their respective departments. The summary also provides proposed budget changes,
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populated by the BUDZEROs for the upcoming fiscal year in order to meet the final budget targets. Each
Vice President will present their Division Budget Summary to the Budget Committee.
I. SALARY BUDGET SPREADSHEETS
Before determining the budget for the upcoming fiscal, it is critical for each department to reconcile the
salary spreadsheet to the approved staffing level for your program area. By doing so, this will ensure the
compensation budget for your department is sufficient to cover the annual salary expenditures that will be
charged to each individual ORG within a program area. Please ensure the salary budget spreadsheets
reconcile back to the BUDZERO.
Directions for reconciling the Salary Budget Spreadsheets:
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The individual department salary budgets have been prepared for you based on your current
employees and salaries as of September 30, 2015
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Managers should review and reconcile the salary spreadsheet for each ORG to ensure there is a
budget for each employee, which in most cases is the annual salary. Please contact your Budget
Office representative if you have any questions or issues with your salary spreadsheets.
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An employee identification number or EMPLID is listed for each employee. If this is a new
position, there is a column for you to input this information on this attachment.
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The Salary Budget Spreadsheets were prepared using the current FY 2016 salary budgets as well
as the salary amounts for account codes such as student (0220) and overtime (0500). This will
enable you to easily reconcile the total salary budget for the ORG.
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If an employee is split funded (charged to more than one ORG), the salary must be allocated
according to the approved distribution for each ORG to which his or her salary is charged.
Additionally, the Salary Budget Spreadsheets to which she or he is charged should indicate the
details of the split. Current employees who are split funded have been prepared for you. If you
need assistance with adding newly, split funded employees or with completing the information
for current split funded employees, please contact the Budget Office for assistance.
II. DETERMINING THE BUDGET
To submit the BUDZERO to the Budget Office, the yellow highlighted columns and “Notes” tab must be
completed. Incomplete submissions will be returned back to the respective VP division. Please keep in
mind that the change in budget process is due to the need to reallocate expenses strategically, reducing
expenses in some areas so that we can provide additional resources in others to move the University
forward. Therefore, historical spending should be the primary source for completing the FY2017 budget
request.
The following sections must be completed:
A.
B.
C.
D.
PROJECTED YEAR-END (YE) EXPENSE
NEW BUDGET EXPENSES (FIXED)
NEW BUDGET EXPENSES (VARIABLE)
NOTES
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A. PROJECTED YEAR-END EXPENSE
Please enter the projected year-end expense that will be spent for each account. This includes
expenses not reflected in the current expenses due to the product or service being spent at a future
date within the fiscal year. This does not mean the projected year amount equals the account’s
budget. The projected year-end expense can be greater or lesser than the budgeted amount but will
always be greater than the current expense total. The purpose of the projection is to determine the
actual amount being spent in each account so funding can be reallocated to support greater spending
accounts. This will also assist to properly determine funding for future fiscal years.
For example:
The department’s manager is attending a conference in March. The conference registration and
airfare have been paid and reflected in the respective accounts. However, hotel accommodation
expenses are not reflected until the trip is complete which will show up as an expense in April.
The department must determine the projected cost and reflect it as an expense. This will also assist
in identifying unused funding that can be reallocated to other accounts.
Account
1901 - Airfare
1902 - Accommodations
1920 – Conference Fees
Totals
Current Budget
$1,000
$1,500
$800
$3,300
Current Expended
$1,000
$$800
$1,800
Unused Funds*
Projected YE Expense
$1,000
$1,350
$800
$3,150
$150
* Calculation for Unused Funds
Current Budget – Projected YE Expense = Unused Funds
B. NEW BUDGET EXPENSES (FIXED)
What is a FIXED expense?
Fixed expenses are a definite amount, costs that are constant, regardless of the level of the activity of
the department. Fixed costs are usually contractually based. These expenses cannot be easily
changed or adjusted, regardless of the departments’ various use of service or product.
The following are examples of FIXED expenses, but not limited:
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1511 – Telephone Expenses
1608 – Other Professional Services (some)
2600 – Rentals
2601 – Leases
2800 - Memberships
8230 - Taxes
Fixed expenses must be budgeted for the ENTIRE fiscal year (May to April) in order to be properly
funded. If expenses are paid on a monthly basis, the monthly costs must be multiplied by 12 months
to equal one fiscal year.
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For example:
Account # & Account Description
1511 – Telephone Expenses
Number of telephone lines
Total Monthly Cost
Fiscal Year
Total Fiscal Year Cost
Budget
$50/month per telephone line
10
$500
12
$6,000
To ensure telephones expenses are properly funded, the department will need to budget $6,000 for
entire fiscal year.
Some fixed costs are not paid on a monthly basis. There are some expenses that are paid once or
twice during the fiscal year. These expenses will still need to be budgeted. For example, licenses
(account 8231) can be considered fixed and a one-time expense.
For example:
Account # & Account Description
8231 – Licenses
Number of professional staff required to be licensed
Total Budget
Budget
$200/license
5
$1,000
To ensure licenses are fully paid for the fiscal year, the department will need to budget $1,000 for 5
professional staff members.
To obtain the amount of fixed expenses, each department should carefully examine their drilldown of
expenses for the past couple of years. They should also inventory current contracts for future year
obligations. All fixed expenses should be included in the New Budget Expenses (Fixed) column of
the BUDZERO. The department must also include a note explaining and justifying each fixed
expense (see Section D).
C. NEW BUDGET EXPENSES (VARIABLE)
What is a VARIABLE expense?
Most departmental expenses are variable. Variable expenses change depending on the departments’
use of products or services. A variable expense is a cost that changes from period to period, such as
week-to-week or year-to-year, based upon level of activity or another variable cost driver. These costs
can be easily changed or adjusted and are subject to a greater level of control by the department.
For example, travel and materials and supplies are costs that can change over a period time dependent
on departmental activity and available resources.
The following are examples of VARIABLE expenses, but not limited:
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All salary and fringe benefit accounts
1900 – Travel
1920 – Conference Fees
2000 – Materials and Supplies
2900 – Entertainment
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6200 – Professional Development
2005 – Furniture & Equipment < $5,000
8800 – Furniture & Equipment > $5,000
0200 – Wages – Temp Staff No Benefits
1500 – Postage and Freight
2040 – Copier Supplies
Variable expenses must be budgeted for the entire fiscal year (May to April) in order to be properly
funded. One method for calculating a FY2017 budgeted variable expense is to take the 3-year total of
expenses and divide by 3.
For example:
Account # & Account Description
0200 – Wages – Temp Staff No Benefits
Fiscal Year 1
Fiscal Year 2
Fiscal Year 3
3-Year Average:
Fiscal Year 4 (Based on 3-Year
Average)
Actuals
$15,100
$12,500
$19,045
$15,548
Budget
$15,548 or $1,296/mon
To ensure there is enough funding for temporary staff wages, the department will need to budget
approximately $1,296 per month or $15,548 for the entire fiscal year. Please keep in mind, staff
members who qualify for benefits, the department will need to budget for fringe benefits. Also, any
requests for new non-temporary staff in fund 11 orgs will still require Budget Committee approval.
Such approvals will be rare due to limited resources.
Another method is to look at the most recent year’s activity in detail and adjust it for projected
activity the next year.
For example:
Account # & Account Description
2000 – Materials and Supplies
FY2014 total actual expense
You know that the FY2014 expense
included materials for a special one-time
mailing that cost $500. All other
variables in FY2017 are expected to be
similar to FY2015.
Total FY2017 budget
Budget
$10,215
($500)
$9,715
Any increase in an account must be justified in the Notes. (See section D.)
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D. NOTES
The key point for zero-based budgeting is providing the best possible projection of fixed and variable
costs necessary to maintain operations for the entire fiscal year, rather than relying on prior resource
budgets. The notes provide the Budget Committee a clear understanding regarding the expense
request. Please provide a brief note describing and justifying the importance of each expense
with particular emphasis on the following:
o
o
FY2017 Fixed Expenses
Any account showing an increase in the Change column.
To provide a brief detail, enter a footnote starting with 1 and continue numbering for each account
with a note. Then click over to the “NOTES” tab and enter the first footnote. Once the footnote # is
entered, the associated account, account description, $ Change, and % Change will automatically
populate. Enter the brief detail description and justification.
For example:
Footnote
Account
Account Descr
$ Change
% Change
Notes
1
0200
Wages – Temp
Staff No Benefits
100
10.00%
Every year, the
department hires 1 parttime staff member to
cover the night shifts
allowing students to use
study space in Caldwell
Hall until 11 PM. The
department anticipates
continuing the service for
the students.
The staff member will be
paid $10/hr for 27/hr per
week for 56 weeks. The
total fiscal year expense
is $15,120. The
remaining $428 is for
unscheduled/overtime
hours.
III. SAVE THE BUDZERO
Once the BUDZERO is completed, please save the file.
IV. PREPARE THE DIVISION BUDGET SUMMARY (WHEN ALL BUDMEMOS ARE
COMPLETE)
Please see the instructions on how to run a Division Budget Summary, which will summarize the amounts
entered for each BUDZERO, Budget Office.
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IV. BUDGET STAFF AND DEPARTMENT ASSIGNMENTS
During this annual process, the Budget Office is available to answer questions or provide informal
training to new employees. If you have any questions, below is the contact information for the Budget
Office:
CONTACT
DEPARTMENTS
Rita Kovach,
Director
Email: kovachr@law.edu;
Phone: x6300
Non-academic
President’s Office (includes General Counsel and Office of
Compliance, Alumni Relations, University Relations, and
Public Affairs)
Finance (includes HR, Technology Services, and Facilities)
Institutional Advancement
Student Life (includes Athletics)
Enrollment Management (includes Auxiliary Services)
Joe Miranda
Assistant Director, Financial
Planning
Email: miranda@cua.edu
Phone: x6108
Performance-based budgeting
Zero-based budgeting
Income Cost Model
Provost and Academic Departments (includes Columbus
School of Law)
Paula Blackwell,
SME: Enterprise Budget Systems
Email: Blackwell@law.edu
Phone: x6283
Non-academic
President’s Office (includes General Counsel and Office of
Compliance, Alumni Relations, University Relations, and
Public Affairs)
Finance (includes HR, Technology Services, and Facilities)
Institutional Advancement
Student Life (includes Athletics)
Enrollment Management
Tom Peters
Senior Budget Analyst
Email: petert@cua.edu
Phone: x6356
Provost and Academic Departments (includes Columbus
School of Law)
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