Archives West Finding Aid

The Budget Office administers the university budget and prepares the Operating Budget Request that is submitted to the Governor each biennium through the Office of Financial Management in Olympia. In preparing this document, the Budget Office assembles data to be sent with request forms to academic deans and area budget administrators. After the forms are returned, the requests are made up into books for use at university budget hearings. Following the hearings, the requests are reworked in line with administrative budgeting policies and decisions made as a result of the hearings. A budget package is assembled and submitted to Olympia. A related task is preparing supplemental budget requests to be sent to Olympia. This is done during the first year of a biennium to request additional funds for the second year. The procedure is similar to the preparation of the original biennial budget request.

As well as preparing budgets, the Budget Office notifies the units of their allocations. The office monitors compliance with the allocated budget and works with the dean or administrative head when discrepancies are detected. The office also works with departments in transferring funds between accounts and helps administer any changes in funding due to Executive Orders from the Governor.

In the 1960's and early 1970's, the Budget Office reported to the Vice President-Business. By 1976, the office reported to the Vice President-Academic.