Budget Transfer Displaying Incorrect Funds Available

[zacharyjameswalden]

I’m a Ward Financial Clerk trying to make a budget transfer between several budget subcategories. When I add any budget as a line item in the transfer screen, LCR shows the exact same amount under “Funds Available” for every category, regardless of which budget I select. The amount shown does not match the balance shown for the individual budget under the Budget tab.

Because LCR is showing this amount as unavailable/negative, I receive an “insufficient balance” error when trying to complete the transfer.

Has anyone encountered this before or know what might cause the Transfer screen’s “Funds Available” amount to differ from the Budget tab?

[jdlessley]

When I add any budget as a line item in the transfer screen, LCR shows the exact same amount under “Funds Available” for every category, regardless of which budget I select.

The amount you are seeing as 'funds available' are the current funds available for the unit budget. This is the budget allowance allocated to the unit to date. It does not include the total annual estimated unit budget. This amount will be displayed for every budget category and subcategory. This is because the unit budget categories and subcategories are part of the entire unit budget.

The amount shown does not match the balance shown for the individual budget under the Budget tab.

What you describe as an "individual budget" is a unit budget category/subcategory. While the transfer tool can see the unit budget categories and subcategories it does not have access to the method your unit is using to track category and subcategory amounts. Each unit can track their budget as received each quarter or estimate the annual budget. Many units will estimate the annual budget and track categories and subcategories as an allocation against this estimate. The tracking tool only 'knows' the current funds the unit has received.

Because LCR is showing this amount as unavailable/negative, I receive an “insufficient balance” error when trying to complete the transfer.

If the amount you are trying to transfer is greater than the current amount available for the entire unit allowance allocation received to date, then the 'insufficient balance' message would be correct.

Rather than use the transfer tool to adjust the unit budget allocations to categories and subcategories I recommend adjusting allocated amounts at the LCR > Finance > Budget/Prepare Annual Budget tab. Scroll down to the 'Budget Assigned by Unit' section. Transfers/Moves can then be made from one category to another by reducing the funds allocated to that category by the amount you need to transfer/move to another category. Then increase the funds in the category you need to transfer/move funds into by the amount removed from the previous category.

[zacharyjameswalden]

Thank you for the reply.

I understand now that the total I see under "funds available" is the YTD budget allocations vs expenses in the income and expenses summary. Of which we are currently running a slight deficit until our Q4 allocation hits on 10/8.

Your recommendation on the prepare annual budget tab does not seem to alleviate the "funds available" because the shifting in the prep budget does not affect the Budget income allocations to date. How does the "Additional allowance" under the "Estimated/Actual Annual budget" drop down on that same page affect the allocation?

I'm trying to shift YM and YW budgets into a Camp budget where we currently have a deficit, then a donation will cover the remaining Camp budget.

[jdlessley]

How does the "Additional allowance" under the "Estimated/Actual Annual budget" drop down on that same page affect the allocation?

The Additional Allowance line item in the Annual Budget Estimated/Actual section of the Prepare Annual Budget tab is for planning purposes. It will increase the Estimated/Actual Annual budget amount. But it is not funds actually received and can give a false sense that the unit annual budget is larger/more. However, if you were expecting an allowance adjustment from either Church headquarters or from your stake you can enter that amount there to help allocations planning until the funds are actually received. Then when the allowance adjustment comes in it will be shown on the next line item, Allowance Adjustments. When that happens the amount on the Additional Allowance should be removed.

I'm trying to shift YM and YW budgets into a Camp budget where we currently have a deficit, then a donation will cover the remaining Camp budget.

That is a simple task of reducing each of the YM and YW categories by appropriate amounts to cover the deficit in the Camp category. For example, if the Camp category is short $500, then reduce the YM category by $250 and the YW category by $250 and increase the Camp category by $500.