Self-Supporting Funds

As outlined within the Banner Fund Codes webpage, the fund code is an important segment of the Banner accounting string which helps properly classify the University of Illinois System’s financial resources for financial reporting purposes. Classifying these financial resources into separate fund types also helps monitor compliance with applicable guidelines and restrictions to ensure proper stewardship of these funds.

Self-supporting funds are a common type of fund used across the University of Illinois System. See the following sections for answers to commonly asked questions regarding self-supporting funds, as well as tips for properly managing your self-supporting fund C-FOPs.

If you have any further questions not answered below, feel free to reach out to the applicable subject matter experts listed in the Self-Supporting Funds section of Who to Ask list.

What Are Self-Supporting Funds?

Self-supporting funds (which primarily reside in fund types 3E, 3J, 3M, and 3Q) are funds which account for financial resources generated primarily from the sale of goods and/or services. SSF activities are typically managed as a business-like operation and sell to a variety of customer bases (such as system units, grant funds, students, faculty, staff, the public, and external entities).

Common examples of self-supporting activities include (but are not limited to): sale of meals or tangible goods; registration fees received for a conference owned and operated by the system; advertising revenue; professional services, such as consulting, technical testing, or event coordination; certain types of student fee assessments, such as course fees, study abroad fees, service fees, or general fees; auxiliary revenue such as housing, parking, or recreational gym fees; and rental income, such as space or equipment rentals.

How Are Self-Supporting Funds Identified in Banner?

Self-supporting funds can be identified by examining the fund code segment of the Banner C-FOP, along with the assigned fund type.

The self-supporting fund codes reside in the 300000 – 399999 numerical range within Banner. However, there are also other fund types that reside within this numerical range (such as 3A clearing and suspense funds), so it’s always important to look at the fund type in addition to the numerical range before determining whether a fund is a self-supporting fund.

What is the Difference Between the Various Fund Types Used for Self-Supporting Activities?

As mentioned earlier, self-supporting funds are assigned a fund type of 3E, 3J, 3M, or 3Q. See below for a brief summary of the self-supporting activity each fund type was designed to account for:

• 3E, Service and Storeroom Activities: Goods and/or services sold primarily to other university units and grant funds.
• 3J, Auxiliary Enterprises Not Under Indenture: Goods and/or services sold primarily to students, faculty, and staff of the University of Illinois System. This fund type would not include self-supporting activities which involve bond financing (see 3M).
• 3M, Auxiliary Enterprises Under Indenture: Goods and/or services sold primarily to students, faculty, and staff of the University of Illinois System when bond financing is involved in the self-supporting activities (such as housing operations, university bookstores, parking services, campus recreation, and student unions).
• 3Q, Departmental Activities: Goods and/or services sold primarily to members of the general public and/or external entities.

Where Do I Look in Banner to Identify the Fund Type Assigned to a Self-Supporting Fund?

You can find a self-supporting fund’s assigned fund type by going to Banner pages FZMFUND or FTVFUND.

To find the fund type within these pages, simply filter by chart and fund code number (you can filter by pressing the Filter button within Banner or by pressing the F7 key on your keyboard), and then execute the query (by pressing the Go button in Banner or by pressing the F8 key on your keyboard). You can then locate the fund type within the Fund Type field.

Is It Required to Use an Accrual Basis of Accounting for Self-Supporting Funds?

While most self-supporting funds operate on a cash basis throughout the fiscal year, the activities within these self-supporting funds must be accounted for on an accrual basis at the end of the fiscal year to ensure compliance with financial reporting requirements.

This means that any accounts receivable, inventory for resale, prepaid expenses, accounts payable, and/or unearned revenue must be properly accounted for within Banner at fiscal year-end.

The most efficient and effective way of making these accrual adjustments at year-end is to use the Year-End Fact Sheet to report these adjustments, accruals, and deferrals to UAFR during July of the fiscal year-end close each year. See the Year-End Fact Sheets webpage for further details on this important process.

Note: In addition, regarding accounts receivable, keep in mind that policy requires the use of the Banner Accounts Receivable (AR) system for managing your accounts receivable activity unless an approved exemption is granted.

For further details on this process, refer to Section 5 – Receivables in the Business and Financial Policies and Procedures.

What Types of Transactions Are Allowed on Self-Supporting Funds?

Any expenses posting to self-supporting funds must be related to supporting the revenue generation within the self-supporting fund. In other words, there must be a way to explain how each and every expense within the self-supporting fund is tied to supporting the fund’s revenue generation.

For example, if a self-supporting fund was established to account for an upcoming conference, then all expenses posting to that fund should have some relation to the planning and operations of the conference itself (such as catering expenses, personnel expenses for employees working at the conference, printing expenses for conference materials, etc.).

Why Is It Important to Use Accurate Account Codes on Self-Supporting Funds?

To ensure compliance with financial reporting requirements, as well as to prevent state compliance audit findings, it is very important to use accurate account codes when posting financial transactions to self-supporting funds. The account code should accurately reflect the goods, services, or personnel expenses which are being paid for or which are being sold.

Are All Revenue-Generating Events Accounted for in a Self-Supporting Fund?

There are many intricacies to consider when determining what type of fund to use to account for an upcoming revenue-generating event. For further details, refer to Section 13.6, Revenue-Generating Events within the Business and Financial Policies and Procedures.

When Are Self-Supporting Funds Used to Account for Sponsorship Revenue?

There are many intricacies to consider when accounting for sponsorship revenue. If a sponsor is receiving no substantial return benefits in exchange for their sponsorship payment (other than the use or acknowledgment of their business name, logo, or their company’s product lines), then the payment is a qualified sponsorship and should be accounted for in a gift fund.

However, if the sponsor is receiving substantial return benefits (such as advertising, tickets to a university event, etc.) of approximately equal value in exchange for the sponsorship payment, then the payment is a non-qualified sponsorship and should be accounted for in a self-supporting fund, crediting revenue account code 303590, Non-Qualified Sponsorship Revenue.

Note: Be aware that non-qualified sponsorships may generate unrelated business income which you would need to report to UAFR. See Section 18.13, Unrelated Business Income Tax for further details, and feel free to reach out to UAFR for guidance if needed.

For further details and guidance on how to navigate sponsorship payments, refer to the following policies:

Section 11.13 – Accounting for Qualified Sponsorships

Section 13.6 - Revenue-Generating Events

Are There Any Sales Tax Reporting Requirements for Self-Supporting Funds?

• Units who manage self-supporting activities are responsible for collecting and reporting any applicable sales taxes when making taxable sales from a self-supporting fund.
• Taxable sales are typically sales of tangible personal property to an external party (including students/faculty/staff).

For further guidance related to collecting and reporting sales tax, refer to Section 22 – Sales and Use Tax within the Business and Financial Policies and Procedures manual.

Are There Any UBIT Reporting Requirements for Self-Supporting Funds?

While most income generated by the University of Illinois System is tax-exempt, there are some self-supporting fund activities that are not related to the system’s tax-exempt purpose and are required to pay Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT) on their activities.

Examples of activities that could lead to UBIT assessments include activities such as the following:

• Selling advertisements or non-qualified sponsorships to customers external to the U of I System.
• Renting equipment or personal property to customers external to the U of I System.
• Renting space and providing services to customers external to the U of I System (such as space rentals and services sold to an external customer for their wedding).
• Selling tickets to commercial theater and entertainment events.
• Selling access to campus recreational facilities to unrelated individuals (such as alumni).
• Selling routine testing services.

For further details and examples of unrelated business income activities and UBIT requirements, refer to Section 18.13 of the Business and Financial Policies and Procedures.

How Do I Create a New Self-Supporting Fund in Banner?

1. To create a new Banner self-supporting fund, you must first complete a Banner Fund, Program, Index (FPI) Code Request Form which is located on UAFR’s Forms webpage. When completing this form, be sure to complete the following sections from the FPI Code Request tab with as much detail as possible:
   The General Information section
   The Request a New Fund Code section
   The Submitted By section
2. In addition, you will have to complete the Self-Supporting Funding (SSF) Supplemental Info tab and the SSF Attestation Statement tab. These tabs collect specific information needed for self-supporting funds.
3. Once these steps are complete, submit the form to uas@uillinois.edu for review. The applicable subject matter experts within UAFR will then review your request and will reach out to you if questions arise.

Are Self-Supporting Funds Required to Have Default Organization and Program Codes Assigned?

Many self-supporting funds have a default organization and unit-specific program code assigned to them when they are initially created. Many units like to assign default organization and program code to their self-supporting fund as they feel it helps prevent misclassified transactions that arise due to keying errors when processing journal vouchers and other sorts of transactions (as the organization and program codes will automatically populate when the fund code is entered when defaults are assigned).

However, some units choose not to assign a default program code to their self-supporting fund, as they may have multiple program codes that they use for different activities taking place within the fund. For example, if a unit has a self-supporting fund established to account for various conferences that they hold throughout the year, they may have one fund used with multiple program codes, where each program code is dedicated to a separate, unique conference that they hold during the year.

In order to see whether a self-supporting fund has a default organization and/or program code assigned to it, you can query the fund within Banner page FZMFUND and look to see if a default organization and/or program code is assigned to those specific fields within this Banner page.

Filter by chart and fund code number (you can filter by pressing the Filter button within Banner or by pressing the F7 key on your keyboard), and then execute the query (by pressing the Go button in Banner or by pressing the F8 key on your keyboard). You can then locate the default organization code in the Default Organization field and the default program code in the Default Program field.

How Do I Submit a Maintenance Request to Edit an Existing Self-Supporting Fund?

To request an edit to an existing self-supporting fund (such as to request a title change or to request a change to the default organization code assigned to the self-supporting fund), simply email UAFR at uas@uillinois.edu detailing your request.

What Rule Code Should I Use When Posting Journal Vouchers Involving Self-Supporting Funds?

When processing journal vouchers (JVs) involving self-supporting funds (e.g., for expense reclassifications), you are required to use either a 100 or 125 rule code (also referred to as a Journal Type within Banner) on the JV sequence which contains the self-supporting fund. See below for a breakdown of which rule codes to use when posting JVs with self-supporting funds:

• If your JV includes only one debit and one credit, then you would use the 100 rule code on the JV sequence which contains the self-supporting fund.
• If your JV includes one debit and multiple credits (or vice versa), then you would use the 100 rule code on the JV sequences which contain the self-supporting fund.
• However, if you are completing a JV which has multiple debits and multiple credits, then you would be required to use the 125 rule code on any of the sequences containing the self-supporting fund.

However, if your intentions are to complete a funds transfer (e.g., transferring funds from one self-supporting fund to another using the 417001 transfer account code), then you would be required to use a 104 rule code on each sequence of the journal voucher.

How Do I Find the Cash and Fund Balances for My Self-Supporting Fund?

1. In order to find the cash and fund balances for a self-supporting fund, go to Banner page FGITBSR and enter the applicable chart and fund code along with the applicable fiscal year and press the Go button in the upper right-hand corner of the Banner page.
2. The self-supporting fund’s available cash balance will appear on the Claim on Cash line and the calculated fund balance will appear in the Current Fund Balance field in the lower right-hand corner of the Banner page.

For further details, refer to the Finding Your C-FOP Balance webpage.

Do Unspent Funds Within a Self-Supporting Fund Carry Forward to the Following Fiscal Year?

Yes – any unspent funds within your Banner gift fund simply carry forward to the following fiscal year. This unspent balance from the prior fiscal year can be found within the Claim on Cash balance within Banner page FGITBSR.

How Do I Terminate a Self-Supporting Fund Which is No Longer Need?

If you have a self-supporting fund that is no longer needed, email UAFR at uas@uillinois.edu asking to terminate the fund.

Once UAFR reviews the request and ensures that there are no further issues that need addressed (such as open jobs, payroll positions, or index codes which are still tied to the fund), they will then proceed with terminating the fund in Banner.

Keep in mind that the self-supporting fund cannot be in a deficit when the termination request is submitted. If the fund is in a deficit, the deficit will first need to be cleared before the fund can be terminated.

Note: If the fund has a surplus balance, you are allowed to submit a termination request. The surplus balance will simply be lapsed to the miscellaneous income fund, and we will put you in touch with the applicable campus budget office to coordinate the return of temporary state budget to your unit for the amount lapsed.

For further details on the termination process, visit UAFR’s Terminating Banner Code Segments webpage.