SGA Finance - Budget Training Workshop SGA Committee on Financial Affairs February 2015 Brian Nowak, SGA VP of Financial Affairs

Intro & Agenda Who I am SORC Intro Resources The Student Activities Fee Normal Funding Process Budget Walkthrough Emergency Funding SORC / University Accounts Feedback / Contact Me Questions

SORC – Student Involvement Suite - Stamp Assists with groups applying to become a new organization Provides assistance and support to existing organizations. Assists student groups in spending their SGA allocated funds. Can also visit SORC for help/advice before you’re allocated SGA funds

Resources Your #1 Resource: The Website – umdsgafinance.weebly.comumdsgafinance.weebly.com SGA Funding Guide SGA Finance Manual & Discretionary Guidelines [SGAFINANCIALAFFAIRS] Listserv Created from your group’s Orgsync profile, so make sure that your profile is up to date Orgsync Account Management SORC STARS

The Student Activities Fee (SAF) $74 a school year for full time students, less for part time The SGA Finance Committee allocates the SAF to recognized student groups’ programs SGA Recognition Group must not be exclusionary in any way Group must have at least 25 members & a constitution Group must not charge dues Contact the Director of Student Groups, Katherine Swanson, at

The Student Activities Fee (SAF) The SGA’s Committee on Financial Affairs (COFA) is charged with fairly and equitably distributing the SAF Every decision we make is meant to fall in line with that mission It is also on student groups to be using SAF funding honestly and appropriately Committee on Audit & Review Random Audits

The Finance Process The SAF is split into 12 monthly pots i.e. we have roughly $10,000 left to disperse for programs in the month of March, and will need to make cuts if student groups are able to be awarded more than that amount (more than $10k worth of funds approved) 3 main deadlines per semester, 6 per school year September, October, November, February, March, April COFA accepts, reviews, and makes decisions on budgets for the 6 deadlines

Main Restrictions 30 day rule: A program will not be funded unless it occurs at least 30 days after the budget deadline 60 day rule: A program of $1, or more will not be funded if it is less than 60 days after the budget deadline 5 month rule: A program may not be funded if it is further than 5 months away from the date of the deadline, unless the group provides sufficient reasoning for needing to apply more than 5 months in advance

Other Main Restrictions Student groups cannot ever be reimbursed for money they’ve already spent Date of Payment / Date of Program: use whichever comes first as your main date on the application, and always just let COFA know the full story Always visit SORC before applying if you are unsure about a purchase or contract agreement

The Budget Application 1 application per program your group is planning, no limit on the number of applications you can submit in an allocation period Always consult the Finance Manual & Discretionary Guidelines while preparing a budget All numbers, dates, and math on the form must be exact and correct All line items must have documentation that proves the exact costs and cost breakdown

The Budget Application - Certification By being here, you’re in the process of being certified for the remainder of the school year Again, always check the Finance website, , and the Manual and Discretionary Guidelines. Rules may change from now to April The actual application – must be filled out using the Orgsync login of a certified President or Treasurer: On to the application -

Submitting Your Application Form must be submitted online by Monday, February 2 nd at 5:00pm 1 printed copy must be turned in in-person in the SGA Office, 0209J Student Involvement Suite, Stamp Student Union during Finance committee office hours February Office Hours: Weds Jan 28 th : 5-6pm Thurs Jan 29 th : 4-6pm Mon Feb 2 nd (deadline): 10am-5pm Once it is 5:00pm on Monday February 2nd, your submission is considered final and is not able to be edited, so double and triple check your work!

After the Deadline COFA will spend the next week and a half or so reviewing and voting on budgets You will receive a decision of Fully Funded, Partially Funded, or Not Funded You may then choose to sign up for an appeal with the Finance Committee We explain in further detail why your application was Partially or Not funded, you make your case New information, such as additional documentation, is not allowed, as the purpose of these appeals is more to determine if the Committee made a mistake in reviewing the budget Decisions of the Committee appeals are announced, and if you are still unhappy with the decision, you may appeal to the SGA Legislature, and will receive further instructions informing you how to do so

Spending of Funds - SORC, STARS Funds will be available in STARS roughly 2 business days after legislative approval of the finance bill Must also complete the mandatory SORC officer online training and quiz before any SGA funds can be spent You should have already received an about the training, and it is recommended that you complete it as soon as possible Different from this workshop in that it will teach you about the spending of funds, rather than applying for funds Spending Guide document to be made available closer to the deadline Remember, if you ever have a spending question just go to SORC!

Emergency Funding The Group Help fund is meant to serve as a last resort to groups who cannot fund their event through traditional means Applications are considered ONLY if the time constraint on receiving the funding is sooner than the upcoming regular Funding Allocation period (if you cannot apply for the next available budget deadline) Applications are considered ONLY if submitted more than 10 business days prior to the Date of Program* Each group is limited to $1000 in total funds awarded per semester *If there is an off-campus contractual agreement, the committee reserves the right to deny the application if SORC is unable to process the contract in time (DG )

Emergency Funding Co-Sponsorship Grant Similar to Group Help, but meant for co-sponsored and collaboratively planned events While the applying group must be SGA-recognized, not all co-sponsors need to be SGA-recognized Applications are considered ONLY more than 10 business days prior to the Date of Program* *If there is an off-campus contractual agreement, the committee reserves the right to deny the application if SORC is unable to process the contract in time (DG )

Closing Points Next Budget Deadline: February 2nd First date we can fund from that is March 2nd (under $1500) Application is live now Constantly check Finance website for all updates To any publications and policies, such as the Manual For an announcement about Finance office hours to collect budgets Update your group’s Orgsync profile to make sure you receive important s

Questions / Feedback? Anonymous ‘Contact Us / Feedback’ form on Finance website If you have a specific question that the website, the Manual, and Orgsync (incl. the SORC training) can’t answer, me at: