Hello all,
Below are some tips on the Appropriations process. How to plan a perfect budget, and a timeline of the whole process.
First things first, the timeline.
1) Submission: Submit a budget on time! To keep updated on the dates, please refer to the dates here. Budgets are due at 5:00 PM of the date outlined. Late budgets won’t be accepted! For a walk through on how to submit a budget, there’s a youtube video I’ve uploaded here.
2) Hearings: After submitting a budget, you have to sign up for a hearing on www.timecenter.com/uvastudentcouncil. Remember to sign up for a hearing, the new system doesn’t generate an automatic email. Sign up for a hearing, and now because our committee reviews the budgets before the hearings, you MIGHT get an email saying you don’t need to sign up for a hearing. This is a huge MIGHT, and only happens if you have a budget less than $200, or if everything in your budget is completely explanatory, and no further questions exist. Remember to sign up for a hearing no matter what. You can always go back and cancel the hearing if you get the email saying no need for a hearing.
3) Allocations: Allocations amounts are emailed one week after the hearings take place. You should receive an auto-generated e-mail from the atuva.net system. If you don’t receive the email, check on atuva.net and see the status of your application a week after. If I’ve submitted a budget for you, because you’ve had trouble with atuva.net, the auto-generated email goes to my inbox, as opposed to yours. So, always check atuva.net.
4) Allocation Amounts: Many CIOs email me asking why the approved amount in the spreadsheet differs from the actual amount that they receive. So here’s why: your approved amount, in SAF Funds, is inputted in the formula, upon which you receive a fraction of the original approved amount. That percentage is normally reported to you in the allocation email.
5) Reimbursements: The reimbursement piece is confusing to many CIOs. It’s done through Business Services, which is located on 4th floor Newcomb. So, at this point, you’ve submitted a budget using atuva.net. Now you have to click “Create Purchase Request” which is right by the funding request that you’ve seen in the YouTube video. Once you click the purchase request tab, fill out the information, and then Business Services will approve the purchase request. Once they’ve approved it, print the purchase request page, attach it to your ORIGINAL receipts, and bring it in to 4th floor Business Service, by the deadline, available at the calendar. The calendar is your best friend during the Approps process.
And now how to plan the perfect budget:
1) Be Aware: Be aware of your expected expenses and the way your CIO spends. Think of any conference, tournament, or anything that you will be going to, and plan that out in the allocation request. Look up the prices for the tournaments, and report the exact value. An independent board, the Board of Audit and Management looks into any suspect amounts. Be completely honest!
2) Expect a portion: Only CIOs that are requesting fees under $100.00 ever potentially get funded 100%. Never expect 100%, funding varies from around 40%-70% depending on the Rolling Round, or Semi-Annual. Plan around this; what other funding sources are there available to you? Make sure to look into venues like the Cultural Programming Board, or the Parent’s Committee.
3) SAF Guidelines: Read and understand the SAF Guidelines- especially the pages about what is fundable and what isn’t fundable. Print those three pages out (pages 7-10), and keep them alongside you as you actually fill out the form for your budget.
Alright, hope this helps, and as always, feel free to contact the Appropriations co-chairs, Mariana and Ashish, at cio-appropriations@virginia.edu or me at AneeshaRao@virginia.edu. I welcome questions. But before you email us/me and ask any questions, check out the FAQ page, or the Treasurer’s Presentations found on the same website.
Sincerely,
Aneesha Rao
