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NSU home | Office of Business Affairs | Accounts

NSU Accounting System

Account Numbers	Budget Preparation
Establishing New Accounts	Budget Management
Changing/Closing Accounts	Deficit Policy

 

Account Numbers

Account Numbers are used for administration and management of identifiable activities. An account number consists of six (6) numbers. These numbers are codes that indicate the class, sub-class, type, and source of accounts. All six digits are necessary to complete transactions.

The first 2 digits indicate the class of funds - ( 00 ).

Number	Type of Account	Description
01	Clearing	Used only by the Office of Business Affairs for accounting functions.
02	Institutional	All cash received for tuition, fees, etc. is deposited in these accounts.
03, 70	Educational & General Operating Budget	Normally called E & G Part 1, these accounts are approved by the State Regents and operated under the constraints of a budget. Overspending the budget is not allowed.
04	Auxiliary	These accounts are self-supporting enterprises such as Food Service, the Bookstore, etc.
05	Petty Cash	Small order system.
06, 07	Student Activity	-----
11, 12, 13, 14	Scholarship and Student Aid	-----
20	Restricted Funds	Grants and Contracts funds are received from local, state, and federal sources and monitored by the Grants and Contracts Administration Office.
40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48	Loan Funds	-----
80	Plant Funds	These are accounts for construction and renovation projects. The funds come from public and private sources.
90	Employee Benefit Clearing	-----
	Agency	Custodial accounts for campus organizations.

The 3rd, 4th, and 5th digits indicate the sub-class or departmental unit.

The 6th digit indicates the current fiscal year for Education & General Accounts - ( 02 ) and Student Activity Accounts - ( 05 ); the year the account was established for 11, 12, 40, 41 and 90 accounts; and remains "7" for all other accounts.

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Establishing New Accounts

Criteria for Opening an Account

1. There must be adequate justification for having the account (e.g., need to separate these funds from other funds). Normally requests for new accounts are submitted at the same time as annual budget requests.
2. There must be cash or budgeted funds available for operation, and a proposed budget of income and expenditures must be provided, indicating the source of income. In the area of Grants and Contracts, a copy of the contract must be provided.
3. The Account Sponsor is responsible for all income and expenses of the account. The Account Sponsor may appoint a full-time faculty member or administrative professional employee to also authorize transactions.
4. The Account Signature Authorization Form will be typed with the account name, the account number, and the names of the Account Sponsor and authorized designees. The card must be signed by the sponsor and dated. Only one of the signatures on the card is required for processing charges.
5. The Account Sponsor signs the authorization form at the time the account is assigned in the Office of Business Affairs. Temporary arrangements regarding signing privileges (e.g., signing in the absence of the sponsor) should be made within the department and provided to the Business Office in writing.
6. The sponsor will begin to receive monthly Account Sponsor's Summary and Detail Report starting the month in which the account is opened.
7. All purchases and forms (including Personnel Action forms, Payroll Time Sheets, Travel forms) which result in a charge against the account must be signed by an authorized professional employee. Stamped or mechanically produced signatures are not acceptable.
8. The appropriate administrative supervisor's authorization is required when signatures are required and all authorized personnel are not available.
9. Approvals established in the Purchasing System must match the approvals on the authorized signature cards.

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Changing or Closing Accounts

Temporary Absence of Account Sponsor

It is the responsibility of the Account Sponsor to authorize by written notice to the Office of Business Affairs a full-time faculty or administrative professional staff member to sign in the absence of the account sponsor. The temporary sponsor's signature also must be on file in the Business Office. Obtain additional Account Signature Authorization Forms from the Business Office and specify on the form the dates the temporary sponsor will be signing invoices and other documents.

Change in Account Sponsor

1. The Office of Business Affairs must be officially notified of any changes in Account Sponsor.
2. The department head should prepare a memorandum setting forth the reason for the change. The memorandum must state the resignation of the old Account Sponsor (with signature) and provide the name of the new sponsor.
3. The new Account Sponsor and designees must sign the Account Signature Authorization Form.

Closing an Existing Account

1. A memorandum bearing the signature of the Account Sponsor must be forwarded to the Business Office in order to close an account.
2. For the account to be made inactive, the following conditions are required:
   1. The cash/allotment balances must be ".00."
   2. Audit entries must be completed for the last transaction year.
3. The following guidelines apply for the various types of accounts:
   1. Educational and General: Accounts are available to Account Sponsors for two years after the last transaction.
   2. Auxiliary: Accounts are continued annually and are made inactive by Account Sponsor request.
   3. Contracts/Grants and Capital Improvement: Accounts are available until contracts/projects are completed and final reports accepted by approving agencies. They are made inactive by sponsor request.
   4. Agency Accounts: Accounts are continued annually and are made inactive by sponsor request.

All payments for goods and services received during fiscal year 1999/00 should be paid by July 31, 2000. An extra effort should be made to see that these invoices are forwarded quickly to the Office of Business Affairs so payment can be made prior to the end of July.

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Budget Preparation

General

Each department of the University operates within an approved annual budget. The Educational and General budget (02-xxxx accounts) for the subsequent year is developed in the spring of each year, finalized when fund allocation is made by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (OSRHE), and implemented upon approval from the Board of Regents for Oklahoma Colleges (BROC) and the OSRHE. The budget year is July 1 through June 30.

Budget Preparation Procedure

1. Preliminary planning is done within each college/department in the process of scheduling classes/programs for the following year.
2. The Vice President for Business and Development and the Budget Director will meet with account sponsors and distribute the following information for preparing budget requests:
   1. Budget calendar/deadlines
   2. Budget forms with detailed instructions. The forms are subject to change based on information required.
   3. Guidelines for requests, e.g., percentage increases, special requests.
   4. Current Position listings. Detailed information of FTE and teaching assignments for the following year are requested as indicated on the forms.
   5. Price increases, regulations, etc., that may impact the budget such as minimum wage increases, travel reimbursement changes, change in College Work-Study ratio.
      Personnel requests and requests that are atypical must have a narrative of description and justification submitted with the budget request.
3. Proposed budget requests are submitted to the respective vice presidents, who may meet with the account sponsors to review requests and establish priorities. However, this must be done within a time frame that meets the deadlines set in 2-a.
4. The Budget Director collects and analyzes budget requests. Items that need clarification are reviewed through the respective vice presidents.
5. Final allocation requests are determined by the vice presidents, with final approval from the president.
6. The total University budget is then submitted for approval to the BROC and to the OSRHE.
7. Once the budget has been approved, the Budget Director will distribute the following items to each account sponsor:
   1. Approved department budget by line item. This budget reflects the operational amounts for:
      • Institutional Wages
      • Matching College Work-Study Wages *
      • Professional Services
      • Operating Expense
      • Travel
      • Equipment
   2. Approved position listing that includes the names of employees currently filling those positions and their approved salaries for the budget year. Salary money and fringe benefit money will be transferred into the account as positions are filled. Money for unfilled positions will not be reflected in the month-end reports.
   3. Cover letter stating budget transfer policy and blank form, and any information pertinent to an individual department.

   * Note: Matching College Work-Study wages includes only the State matching funds at a current ratio of 30%. The Federal portion of 70% is held in a separate grant account. The account sponsor may assume that the State share is matched with the Federal portion even though it does not show in the budget.

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Budget Management

General

The Account Sponsor is responsible for insuring that expenditures do not exceed the allocations for the departmental fiscal year budget. Account Sponsors should periodically review account balances.

Budget Management Procedure

1. The approved budget for the department is maintained in the University accounting system.
2. All encumbrances entered by the department are checked by the system for sufficient allotment by the line items on the approved budget. An encumbrance that overdraws the allotment cannot be completed.
3. At the end of each month, a statement of activity is sent to the Account Sponsor for each account reflecting the following information:
   • Budget
   • Expenditures
   • Outstanding Encumbrances
   • Unencumbered Budget Balance
     For those accounts that operate on a cash income/expense basis, an additional report of unexpended cash is provided. Account Sponsors should reconcile the information on these reports. Questions or errors should be directed to:
     • Budget: Budget Director
     • Other Information: Office of Business Affairs
4. Transfers between line items may be made by using a Budget Transfer Request Form as follows:
   1. Salary money and fringe benefit money is transferred into the department as positions are filled. Salary money for unfilled positions is not available in departmental budgets and, therefore, cannot be transferred.
   2. Funds for Wages cannot be transferred to other areas of the budget. However, funds from other areas can be transferred into Wages.
   3. Transfers are subject to justification and detailed explanation.
   4. Transfers of $500 or more must have the approval of the respective vice president.
   5. The last possible date for a transfer is March 31 of the current budget year.
      The transfer is forwarded to the Budget Director. When it is completed, a printout of the current budget status is sent to the Account Sponsor.
5. At the end of the fiscal year (June 30), the following policy will apply:
   1. Ninety percent (90%) of any surplus (unencumbered balance) in the operating budget will be restored to the subsequent year's budget during the first quarter of the year. This policy applies to the following line items:
      • Professional Services
      • Operating Expense
      • Travel
   2. Any deficits in the account will be charged against the budget of the subsequent year.

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Deficit Policy

Policy Statement

Deficits in University accounts are not permitted. Accounts should be reviewed each month by Account Sponsors to insure that deficits do not occur. Deficits arise from overspending budgeted amounts in 02, 05, 11, 12, 40 and 42 accounts and overspending cash balances in 03, 06, 07 and 90 accounts. In all cases, Account Sponsors are ultimately responsible for the financial management of their accounts. If a deficit is projected or indicated, immediate action should be taken to prevent or correct the problem.

NOTE: Budget transfers must be made by March 31 of the current fiscal year. See Budget Instructions concerning year-end account balances in E & G accounts. (90% of any surplus left in account(s) at June 30 may be carried over into the next budget year; deficits in account(s) at June 30 will be charged against the next year's budget.)

Requisitions and purchase orders that will place an account in a deficit position will not be processed by the Purchasing System. Invoices presented to the Office of Business Affairs that will result in a deficit if paid will also be returned to the Account Sponsor. Purchases of products or services from internal University departments (such as Print Shop, Bookstore, Motor Pool, etc.) will not be allowed from accounts with deficit balances.

If any account reflects a deficit without proper documentation, the Account Sponsor and the respective Vice President will immediately be notified. Unless the deficit is cleared or written approval for a temporary deficit is provided within 30 days of notification, all financial activities within the account will be suspended. This will include wage payrolls and all internal billings.

Documentation

A written request with documentation for authorization of an account deficit must be provided to the Director of Business Affairs. Verbal requests will not be accepted.

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