FAQs

In FY24, 19.2% of the University's total budget, 30.6% of the total Educational and General program budget, and 25.0% of the University Division Educational and General Program budget came from the Commonwealth of Virginia's General Fund. (Source: FY24 Operating Budget, Consolidated Budget Summary)

The transfer of fringe benefits budget (account code 1110) is limited to central university staff. For E&G departments (non self-supporting), the fringe benefit budget is set equal to the fringe benefit actual cost after the semimonthly payroll posts. Since the fringe budget will always equal the actual cost, there should be no reason to transfer fringe benefit budget. If you think you have a need to transfer a budget for fringe benefits, please contact the Budget Office staff for assistance.

Any increase in salary costs results in a corresponding increase in the cost of fringe benefits. In the University's Educational and General Program, the cost of fringe benefits is managed centrally (for non-self-supporting departments). Therefore, when departmental salary costs increase, a proportionate obligation is made against the central fringe benefit budget. To maintain the structural balance of the budget, authorized increases in salary budgets must be matched with a corresponding increase in the budget for fringe benefits. Since increased salary budgets also have implications on the funding of future raises, operating budget to salary budget transfers should not be made without approval. Therefore, please contact the Budget Office prior to making such transfers. Departments should confirm the need for such a transfer with their college or VP area fiscal officer before contacting the Budget Office.

If an operating budget to the salary budget transfer is authorized, a corresponding transfer is needed to address the cost of fringe benefits. The rates will vary from one fiscal year to the next based on current approved fringe benefit rates. The specific circumstances of the situation may also impact which factors apply. The Budget Office will provide assistance by calculating the appropriate fringe benefit amount and completing the budget transfer to the central fringe benefit pool.

The cost of fringe benefits is comprised of two components: a fixed portion and a variable amount. The variable portion is a percentage of salary cost to cover retirement contributions, Medicare, Social Security, long-term disability, retiree medical insurance, and group life insurance. The fixed amount is for health insurance and the deferred compensation cash match. The fixed costs are flat amounts charged for each FTE. The fixed costs are based on the average cost of health insurance and the maximum employer match for the deferred compensation program. For FY24, the fixed amount per FTE is $14,314 for health and $480 for the deferred compensation cash match. The variable portion is 25.18% of salary cost.

Fund attributes ensure that financial activity is recorded in the proper organization, fund source, and program. New funds are established by several different areas on campus depending upon the nature of the activity. The following table outlines the area responsible for establishing various fund types.

Expenditure Funds

*local funds include: agency activities, local auxiliaries, and the graduate tuition remission program

Revenue Funds

The department or unit requesting that the fund be established should review its current fund structure and determine the need for a new fund. Once the unit determines there is a need for an expenditure fund, the fiscal contact or department head should submit a request to the appropriate department (see table above). The request should provide a fund Title, the six-digit organization number responsible for the fund, the source of money that the fund will hold, and a brief description of the activity for which the funds will be used (e.g., academic instruction, research, etc.). The person requesting the fund should have fiscal responsibility for the organization and fund type requested. The Office of Budget and Financial Planning can be reached at 1-6419.

The Controller's Office establishes new departments. Please contact the Controller's Office for more details.

The current overhead distribution rates are:

The Commonwealth of Virginia appropriates position allocations to the University for GTA's and GRA's for teaching and research activities. Consistent with this, the University allocated these positions (0.25 FTE each) to the colleges. GA positions are not currently limited in number by the Commonwealth. As a result, GA positions are not included in position allocations nor filled position counts.