Periodic Review Report to the Commission on Higher Education Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools June 1, 2005 Bernard M
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Budgeting for FY 2005-06In FY 2004, the Provost and Vice President formed and charged an Ad Hoc Committee on Budget and Planning to help guide the College leadership in its decision-making regarding the budget. The committee consisted of the Deans, Vice Presidents and other senior staff of the College. Specifically, the committee was charged with producing a report that recommends prioritized tax-levy budget expense reductions that will result in a budget that aligns expenditures with anticipated state resources. Proposed reductions and programmatic recommendations were set forth in the April 26, 2004 report of the Ad Hoc Committee. While policy implications were being absorbed, certain portions of the plan proposed by the committee were immediately implemented. On April 28, 2004, a four-step budget development process for FY 2005 was announced: (1) The base was recalibrated to make permanent vacancy savings and mandated increases, (2) committee expenditure reductions were established and departments were requested to identify how they would be absorbed by category and by activity, (3) a plan for communication of the budget to the College community was established as well as a (4) plan for monitoring expenses and making further adjustments to ensure the budget was balanced. The budget process is a long and complicated affair due to our varied sources of funding and dependency upon Albany. After extensive conversations with CUNY regarding the magnitude and type of relief they could provide, the remainder of the budget deficit was resolved through permanent cuts to departments and other one-time measures. Further actions will be required in FY 2006 to resolve our budget challenges. We will need to make additional cuts or identify additional recurring revenue offsets to put the College tax-levy budget on firm ground. Work on the FY 2006 budget timeline and process has begun and it is expected that the process will allow for efficient, effective, and creative use of our limited resources. Budget planning for FY2006 began with a Cabinet retreat on December 12, 2004. The goals set forth by the President were achieved: an understanding of resource deployment for all funds sources was begun with greater fiscal accountability at the unit level, a common understanding of the base budget for tax-levy expenditures was clarified, and a new program for leveraging resources and reducing costs was initiated. As we enter into a new era to improve financial management and planning at Baruch College, it is a commitment of the President to provide more information about how financial and resource allocation decisions are made. Throughout Fall 2004, reports about the budgeting process and about enrollment management were made. An all funds budget was shared with the Faculty Senate on November 4 and the report is available on the Faculty Senate website. Formerly what was one administrative department, Finance, was split into two departments: Finance and Planning and Budget. The Assistant Vice President for Planning and Budget started on September 1 with responsibilities to provide collaborative leadership and analytical budgeting and planning for all funds sources and uses at Baruch College. The Cabinet recently approved the creation of five permanent committees to advise the President and Cabinet. The Finance Advisory Committee will guide Baruch College’s leaders in the development of resource allocation, fiscal policy, and budgetary decision-making for the College. The Committee shall make fiscal policy and budget allocation recommendations aligned with the College’s mission and strategic plan and replaces the Ad Hoc Budget Committee. The Finance Advisory Committee is charged with: Understanding Baruch’s revenues and expenditures in every source of funding available to the College. Developing operating and capital budget policies that promote effective use of resources while minimizing costs to the College. Recommending resource allocations to align with strategic program priorities. Evaluating and recommending new revenue enhancement strategies. Recommending strategies for development and stewardship of purpose-specific reserves. The Finance Advisory Committee will report to the President’s Cabinet, and is established as a standing, permanent committee. The Committee shall report to the Cabinet on its activities and recommendations at least twice each year. While the 2005-2010 Strategic Planning Process is being implemented, an interim budgeting process will be used to guide our activities during the coming fiscal year. The budget planning process provides an opportunity to focus on planning and resource management; to help administrative leaders better understand the full context of College activities; and to seek input from and inform campus stakeholders about academic and administrative operations. In March budget proposals were solicited from all Vice Presidents and Deans. Components of the FY 2006 Budget Call were as follows: 1. A brief (maximum 5 pages) description of what each unit accomplished (will accomplish) during FY2005 and plans to accomplish during FY2006 was provided in narrative form. 2. All Funds Budget: Each unit was asked to identify all sources of funds projected to be available for FY2006 with a narrative of how they will be spent. a. Tax-Levy Budget: In the absence of more concrete information regarding the New York State budget it was assumed that the tax-levy expenditure budget for FY2006 would be held flat at the FY2005 funding level. The FY2005 base budget was defined to be the budget distributed in November 2004 net of the reductions submitted in January 2005. Units were asked to identify any reallocation(s) proposed for this budget. Budgetary Guidelines: Units were told that they must live within their budget. The level of funding among PS Regular lines and between budget categories (PS Regular, Adjuncts, Temporary Services, and OTPS) could be adjusted in consultation with the Office of Planning and Budget subject to University and College constraints. Vacancies could be kept within a unit for reallocation. Adjustments for mandatory increases to the tax-levy budget were to be made by the Office of Planning and Budget. The unit was responsible for funding, through reallocation, any incremental costs associated with reclassifications, replacements, and new hires. However, if the unit expected to receive additional funding from CUNY through a special allocation, this could also be included. b. Baruch College Fund Budget: Units were told to assume that their BCF budget for FY2006 would be held flat at the FY2005 funding level. c. All Other Non-Tax Levy Funds: Units were asked to identify all revenue sources and projected uses. All other funds included, but were not limited to: Income Fund Reimbursables (CAPS, Executive Education, Student Technology Fee), Designated Funds, Bernard Baruch Endowment, Auxiliary Enterprises, Bernard Baruch College Association, Early Learning Center, and Research Foundation Awards. 3. Special Projects or Needs: Units were invited to submit funding requests for special projects (including capital projects) or needs that were reviewed in line with the strategic priorities of the College and available funding. Submissions and ProcessThe time line for the FY 2006 budget planning process was as follows: March 10, 2005 Budget Call sent to units. April 8, 2005 Units submitted preliminary budgets April 22-27 Vice President and Deans convene as a group for budget presentations according to the following schedule, shown in Table 19.
By May 16, 2005 preliminary decisions were to be made by President Waldron subject to final CUNY and Baruch College Fund budget allocations and consideration of other funding resources. It now appears that the final CUNY budget information will not be made available until early summer. List of Appendices
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