2023/24 Mid-Year Budget Review

MEMORANDUM

 

Ref.	:	FO23-016
To	:	Heads of Departments/ Units Directors of Offices/ Centres/ Institutes Dean of Faculty/ Institute Programme Directors/ Coordinators/ Budget Controllers and All Staff Members
From	:	Ian Woo Director of Finance
Date	:	18 October 2023

 

1. As the 2023/24 admission numbers have been stabilized, it is now a good time to update the income figures as well as to review the estimated expenditure in the original budget for all funding.
2. It is planned that the Deans, the Vice President and the President will hold $6 million in aggregate in their Discretionary Funds in 2023/24 for meeting the ad hoc demands of departments/offices/units, including but not limited to hiring of part-time/temporary/visiting staff.
3. Budget controllers are required to follow the steps listed below before raising their additional budget requests:
   1. You are required to review departments’/offices’/unit’s activities carefully included in the original budget and consider redeploying the budget under your control to meet the funding needs of new activities and/or return the expected unspent balance to the University Central for further redeployment;
   2. If (a) is not possible, you may raise additional budget request to the Director of Finance who will study your request carefully and make recommendation to the relevant authorities accordingly;
   3. For teaching departments/centres/units, Heads should try to re-configure their staff mix to fulfill their teaching needs. Subject to budget availability and approval by the Deans, Heads are free to employ Lecturer/Senior Lecturer to meet their teaching needs. However, approval from the UAPC is still required for employing regular Tenure‐track positions/conversion from Tenure‐track positions to other positions; and
   4. If the shortfall in teaching hours is going to be covered by part-time/temporary/visiting staff, it should be financed by the Discretionary Funds held by the Deans.
4. Submission of additional budget request(s) in this budget review shall be the last resort.  In order to facilitate data compilation, a reply proforma in Excel format is attached or the form can be downloaded from the FO’s intranet under the bullet point of “2023/24 Mid-Year Budget Review”. You will receive formal notification of your allocations after the University budget is approved by the Council in February 2024.
5. If you require any assistance in preparing your budget, please contact Mr. Norris Vong at ext. 8814 ([email protected]) or Ms. Fion Li at ext. 8031 ([email protected]).
6. Last but not least, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you in advance for your contribution and co-operation in this exercise.

 

UGC Fund - Reply Proforma

TPg Prog - Reply Proforma

 

Schedule for the 2023/24 Mid-Year Budget Review

 

Fund	Parties / Action (The reply proforma in Excel format for self-financed programmes and UGC Fund are attached or can be downloaded from the FO’s intranet.)	Latest Date to Reach FO
Request for regular Tenure-track positions/conversion from Tenure‐track positions to other positions under the UGC Fund	Approval from the UAPC is required.  The next two UAPC meetings have been scheduled for 27 November 2023 and 29 January 2024. No submission is required for Lecturer/Senior Lecturer/part-time/temporary/visiting staff request.	n/a
Self-financed programmes and LIFE	Relevant Departments/Units to prepare their income and expenditure estimations for 2023/24 in light of the latest enrollment data and spending pattern. If the expenditure is not expected to change significantly, departments/units are advised to keep the original estimations.	15 November 2023
UGC Fund Departmental Budget Institutional Budget	Departments/Offices/Units to review their expenditure needs for 2023/24 and raise additional budget request or return anticipated surplus to the University central, if any. A “Nil” return is required.	15 November 2023
	FO to notify Budget Controllers of the 2023/24 approved budgets.	Late February 2024