Capital Budgeting
Building & Construction Fund
Source of Funds
The sources of funds expended in the Building & Construction Fund include the 3 mill property tax receipts, bond proceeds, Washburn Endowment Association (WEA) fundraising proceeds, and transfers of operating funds.
Budget Process
The administration seems to go through methodical processes prior to spending these funds by creating a 7 year capital plan, developing 5 year estimates of major maintenance funding requirements, and holding numerous meetings throughout the year of the Electronic Technology Committee. Sometimes it is still unclear to faculty and staff who it is that determines the make-up of the planning committees and who is ultimately identifying the needs and setting the priorities for these capital funds.
In August, 2003, President Farley presented a list of potential future capital projects to the Washburn University Board of Regents. The list included a science hall, WEA, the library, weight training, Yager Field surface, the Law School, Henderson renovation, and the phone system. Who was involved in developing that list? At that meeting, there was a "consensus of the Board that the President should refine the list, prioritize the projects and present a long range plan, along with possible financing alternatives to the Board." Subsequent to that meeting, the Board has approved a $1.3 million WEA renovation project, the appointment of an architect for the Stoffer Hall $10 million renovation project, and a feasibility study for a $1.5-$2.0 million weight room. Perhaps a refined list might have indicated why the WEA renovation project was more important to Washburn University than the phone system even though the WEA project was not included in the 7 year capital plan.
Public Budget? No.
Although Washburn University is a public institution, not all of its financial transactions are fully disclosed in the public budgeting process. Although the 3 mill property tax receipts are included in the public budget, the funds are actually transferred to and then expended from the Building Construction Fund, which is not included in the public budget. So, expenditures from this fund are not disclosed to the public, in spite of the significant activity that takes place in this fund. This makes it difficult for interested persons to assess the reasonableness of the budget appropriations, such as the $15,500 budgeted in FY04 and the $20,000 budgeted in FY05 for ADA accessibility at the President's residence.
Budgeted or Not?
Each May, the Board of Regents approves the capital improvement requests. 
These include capital equipment (pdf) purchases, capital improvements (pdf), and the Electronic Technology Committee budgets. Oftentimes the actual projects and purchases are changed or even canceled. Rather than going to a list of prioritized projects, these unused funds are utilized by the administration to award funds for what could only be considered "pet" projects. If the project or purchase requires less than $25,000, even the Board may not be aware of the expenditure.
Capital or Operating Expenditures
In addition to debt retirement, the 3 mill fund is assessed on property in Shawnee County to provide funds for buildings (pdf), building equipment, security and physical plant vehicles, and equipment directly related to the operation of a specific building. It may be time to review the appropriateness of using these funds to replace copiers, buy easels, microscopes, office furniture, file cabinets, football uniforms, laptop computers, software licenses, and flat screen monitors. These operating expenditures are competing with the repair and maintenance of the buildings, the primary purpose of the 3 mill fund.