Fund Accounting
Jim Corkill
Accounting Services & Controls
November 2011
Agenda
 Goals/Objectives
 Definitions
 Fund Groups
 Budgeting
 Financial Statements
Goals
 Concepts of fund accounting
 Understanding the various fund groups
 How are we different than a profit
organization?
What is Fund Accounting?
A method of segregating resources into
categories (i.e., funds), to identify both the
source of funds and the use of funds.
Objectives of Fund Accounting
 Demonstrating accountability and
stewardship
 Determining financial condition
 Planning and budgeting
Objectives of Fund Accounting
 Evaluating organizational and
managerial performance
 Determining/forecasting cash flow
 Communication
Definitions
Fund: A fund is a segregation of resources
established to control and monitor resources
and to help ensure and demonstrate
compliance with legal/administrative
requirements.
Definitions
 Fund Balance: Equity within a fund.
Assets = Liabilities + Fund Equity
Fund Assets – Fund Liabilities = Fund Balance
Assets – Claims Against Assets = Fund Balance
 The fund balance may also be known as
Net Assets, Capital, or Net Worth.
Chart of Accounts
 How do we track the sources and uses
of funds?
Definitions
Fund Group: A separate entity with a selfbalancing set of accounts consisting of
assets, liabilities, fund balance, and, where
appropriate, revenue and expenditure
accounts.
Fund Groups
Six basic fund groups:
 Current Fund
 Plant Fund
 Endowment & Similar Funds Group
 Annuity & Life Income Group
 Loan Fund
 Agency Fund
Current Fund
Group of funds expendable for operating purposes
in support of the institution’s mission; expected to
be expended in the near term.
 Unrestricted
 Restricted
 Designated Funds
Current Fund
Unrestricted Funds: Includes all funds received in
which a donor or other external agency has not
specified the purpose(s) for which the funds should
be expended.
Examples:
 General funds
 Reg. Fee funds
 Unrestricted gifts (“RARE”)
Current Fund
Restricted Current Funds: Includes funds
available for financing operations, but that are
limited to specific purposes, programs, or
departments specified by donors or external
agencies.
Examples:
 Federal funds for contracts & grants
 Work Study funds
 Endowment income
Current Fund
Designated Current Funds: Unrestricted
funds the governing body designated for a
special purpose.
Examples:
 Special State Appropriations
 Tobacco Research
 Breast Cancer Research
Scenario #1
 For each of the fund numbers and titles
listed, mark the fund either:
a) Restricted
b) Unrestricted
c) Designated
 For each transaction, assign the
appropriate fund number.
Plant Fund
The plant fund group is used to record
acquisition of assets, replacement of assets,
pay off debt, and record the investment in
assets (equity). There are four subgroups of
plant funds:
 Unexpended Plant Funds
 Renewal and Replacement
 Retirement of Indebtedness
 Investment in Plant
Plant Fund
Unexpended Plant Fund: Used for
recording construction or acquisition of
long-lived assets. This includes items such
as:
 Land and building acquisition
 Construction of new facilities
 Renovation
 Remodeling
Plant Fund
Renewal and Replacement: Used for
extraordinary repairs and maintenance or
equipment replacement.
Retirement of Indebtedness: Used to
record the accumulation of funds and
disbursement for repayment of long term
debt for assets.
Plant Fund
Investment in Plant: Used to record the
equity of campus assets. This subgroup in
plant should reflect the total amount of
resources expended for additions to
assets.
Discussion #1
For each transaction or situation, name the
correct fund (Current or Plant) where it
should be recorded.
Endowment & Similar Funds
This fund group is used to record
donations to the University which require
that the principal is invested and only the
interest income is expendable. Interest
income earned on these funds is returned
to the campus and expended in the current
funds group.
Endowment & Similar Funds
There are four types of endowments:
1)True Endowments (or Permanent
Endowments):
Donors have stipulated that the principal
of the gift is to remain in perpetuity and
is to be invested for the purpose of
producing present and future income.
Endowment & Similar Funds
Four types of endowments, cont’d:
2)Funds Functioning as Endowments:
The governing board of the institution,
rather than the donor or other external
agency, has determined that funds
(usually a gift) are to be retained and
invested as an endowment.
Large amounts - usually $50,000.
Endowment & Similar Funds
Four types of endowments cont’d:
3)Funds Held in Trust by Others:
These are funds derived from private
gifts and bequests that are held in trust
for investment by outside trustees, and
the University is designated as the
income beneficiary.
Endowment & Similar Funds
Four types of endowments cont’d:
4)Living Trusts, Annuity Trusts, and
Unitrusts:
These are donations where the terms stipulate
that income must be paid to a designated
beneficiary for a specified period, which in most
cases is the duration of the beneficiary’s life. At
the end of the specified payment period,
income from these funds reverts to the
University.
Annuity & Life Income Funds
Annuity: Institution is obligated to pay
stipulated amounts periodically to the
donor’s beneficiary. When the agreement
terminates, the remaining funds become
property of the institution.
Annuity & Life Income Funds
Life Income: Established when a college/
university is the trustee and remainder for
a charitable remainder trust. Income and
expenses are paid to beneficiary for life.
Principal returns to the institution when
beneficiary dies.
Scenario #2
Your department has received a $150,000
gift to be used for operating expenses for
the Biology department. The chair asks
you to make a recommendation about
turning it into an endowment. What do you
need to consider to make the
recommendation?
Loan Fund
Used to record activity on funds available
for loans to students, faculty, and staff.
Examples include:
Student Financial Aid Loan Fund
Faculty Home Mortgage Loan
Staff Emergency Loan Fund
Agency Fund
Used to record funds held by the University
for outside groups who have a close
relationship with the University.
Funds in the Agency Fund group do not
belong to the Regents and are not reported
in the UC Financial Statements.
Agency Fund
Examples:
 Scholarship funds
 Fraternities and sororities
 The UCSB Foundation
 UCSB Alumni Association
Agency Fund
Accounting for Agency Accounts
 Transactions are recorded as a balance
sheet item, not as income and expense.
 To keep their accounting activity
separate, a special account series is
used.
Agency Fund
Accounting for Agency Accounts
 During fiscal closing, any balances in
these agency accounts are transferred to
a balance sheet payable account.
 Agency accounts affect the campus’
STIP earnings. Therefore, the accounts
should have a positive or zero balance at
all times.
Financial Transfers Between
Fund Groups
 Mandatory
 Non-Mandatory
 Temporary
 Permanent
Budgeting
Budgets are the most widely used method
for control in colleges & universities.
Fund accounting assists in budget control
by providing information that enables:
 Managers to review their expenditures to
ensure they are within their allocations. This is
also a Department Key Control for SAS 112.
 Demonstration of compliance with funding
sources.
Budgeting
Budget entries are the reverse of financial
entries:
 Revenue entries are budgetary debits.
 Appropriations to expenditure accounts
are budgetary credits.
Encumbrances
 In managing available resources in a
non-profit organization, we need to
recognize future commitments of
resources prior to an actual expenditure.
 Encumbrances (or liens) are used to
reflect these commitments in the
accounting system and attempt to
prevent overspending.
Encumbrances
 When the order/services are received
and the University is invoiced, the
original encumbrance entry is cancelled,
and the expense and related cash
payment is recorded.
Financial Statements
Purpose: To communicate financial
condition and operating results.
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Internal Users
Managers
Analysts/Internal Auditors
Executive Campus Mgmt.
Office of the President
Regents
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External Users
External Auditors
Creditors/Lenders
State Government
Other Colleges
Granting Agencies
Financial Statements
What do users want to know?
 Is the institution financially healthy?
 Is the institution financially better off or not at
the end of the year than it was at the
beginning?
 How does the institution compare with
others?
 Can the institution repay debt it may be
taking on?
Questions