Administrative Memorandum #43 - Gift and Endowment Accounts
The Dean of Libraries is responsible for monitoring all fiscal activities to ensure: a) that resources are used in a manner consistent with the priorities of the Libraries and University, b) compliance with University, State and Federal policies and procedures, and c) that data is readily accessible for internal and external reporting. Sufficient management oversight must be exercised so that the Libraries can reasonably account for, document, and in some cases, justify the use of its resources.
This memo establishes the policy for management and oversight of gift accounts. Consistent with the handling of other library financial accounts, the Dean of Libraries, Director of Planning & Administrative Services, and the Head of the Libraries Budget and Business Services Office will have disbursement authority for all Foundation accounts. Foundation account agreements will be written listing only these three individuals as having signing authority on disbursement requests. The purpose of this signatory policy is the orderly maintenance of fiduciary responsibility.
Designated administrators will continue to be responsible for initiating purchases, for monitoring/reconciling accounts, for ensuring the appropriateness of deposits and expenditures, and for reporting gifts to the Libraries’ Office for External Relations. They will have primary responsibility for the proper stewardship of funds entrusted to the Libraries’ care and for maintaining internal records to support donor reporting requirements/expectations. This stewardship responsibility ensures that the purpose and intent for which the funds were donated are honored.
Libraries Budget and Business Services Office (LBBSO) will provide administrative support, management oversight and advice on matters relating to library State and Foundation gift accounts. These responsibilities will include processing all deposits, establishing new accounts, creating and updating account agreements, distributing monthly account statements, facilitating online access to account information, assisting account administrators with fiscal and procurement problems, monitoring account balances, closing accounts, and maintaining audit worthy deposit and disbursement files. In its oversight role, LBBSO will provide upper level management information and will monitor gift accounts to ensure compliance with Library, University, and Foundation policies and procedures.
With due consideration to donor intent, LBBSO will help manage the proliferation of small accounts by encouraging the consolidation of gifts of similar purpose into one account and by promoting more general accounts that can host a broader array of related activities. A significant level of funding, wide variety of transactions and a narrowly defined purpose will be required to warrant the establishment of a new account as a separate entity.
The LBBSO will be designated as the official recipient of account statements from the various Foundations and will be the designated repository of the Libraries’ current account agreements. In situations where online access or multiple mailings from the Foundations are not available, the LBBSO will distribute copies of financial statements to account administrators and other interested parties.
ADMINISTRATIVE MEMO # 43
Effective January 2006Supersedes none
Suggested revisions to any Administrative Memo should be addressed to the Assistant Dean for Administrative Services.
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