Subject:

Date Passed by Council:

Last Date Revised:
Expiration Date:
Committee:

Financial Policy of the Dalhousie Student Union

August, 2012

Note - All terms will hold the same definition as outlined in the Dalhousie Student
Union Constitution
FINANCIAL POLICY
1. This policy shall be referred to as the "Financial Policy".
a) Council must be notified at the next meeting if any member of the Executive or Fulltime Staff violates the Financial Policy.
1. Signing Authority and Guidelines
a. The signing officers of the Union are (in order of authority):
i. Vice President (Finance and Operations);
ii. President;
iii. Vice President (Internal); and
iv. General Manager of the Unionor other staff designate selected by the Officers.
b) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) must perform a yearly update of the Vice
President (Finance and Operations)'s handbook.
cb) . A signing officer is considered absent if:
i.) the signing officer is away from the Halifax vicinity for a period of greater than 24
hours;
ii.) the signing officer confirms, in writing, his or hertheir willingness to yield the
signing authority order to the remaining signing officers; or
iii.) the signing officer becomes unable to sign due to medical or other reasons.
dc.) The Board must not attempt to overturn or question the intent of expenditures less
than $ 10,000, unless the expense explicitly violates financial policy.
2. Authorization

a. 3.a) Every cheque must have the signature of two (2) signing officers.
b. The Vice President (Finance and Operations) must sign all cheques unless the cheque
is being issued to the Vice President (Finance and Operations).
c. In the absence of the Vice President (Finance and Operations), only the President or
Vice President (Internal) shall sign on the Vice President (Finance and Operations)'s
behalf.
d. The President shall have the option to sign all cheques on a regular basis or appoint the
Vice President (Internal) or staff designate to sign on his or her behalf.
B) The order of signing authority is as follows:
i) Vice President (Finance and Operations)
ii) President
iii) Vice President (Internal)
iv) staff designate (selected by Officers) e.
c) Any cheque issued to a signing officer, personal signing officer or the personal or
company credit card for purchases made by a signing officer, or company credit card,
which they have charged expenditures must have the signature of two (2) of the the four
(4) remaining signing officers in the outlined order.
f. All purchases over $100 require a purchase order. The
g. purchase Purchase orders for amounts under $10,000 may shall be requested by the
appropriate department head and then authorized by the Vice President (Finance and
Operations), if it is a purchase order in the amount of $10,000 or less, or where the Vice
President (Finance and Operations) is absent, the next available signing officer may
authorize.
h. Purchase orders for amounts over $10,000 that are not a part of regular operations
must be approved by the Board of Operations.
e)i. Petty cash issued in excess of $1050.00 must be authorized by the Vice President
(Finance and Operations) or the next designated signing authority in the absence of the
Vice President (Finance and Operations).
f) Every cheque requires a supporting invoice and PO (if required, see 3d). The invoice
must be signed off by the appropriate department head and then either authorized by the
Vice President (Finance and Operations) , or attached to an approved Purchase Order for
all purchases under $10,000, or where the VPFO is absent, the next available signing
officer may authorize. Purchases for amounts over $10,000 must be approved by the
Board of Operations.
g) All purchases require the signature of the VPFO. Where the purchase is made by the
VPFO, the next available signing officer may sign
h) Every cheque must be accompanied by a corresponding receipt or invoice for the
same amount.
3. Budget

ia.) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) must submit a budget to Council
before
April 1, of each year.
j)b. The Vice President (Finance and Operations) must ensure the budget is submitted to
the Board for feedback before it is submitted to Council.
kc. ) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) must ensure the budget is submitted
to
members of Council (2) weeks before it is discussed.
d. A revised Union budget must be submitted to Council before December 15, of each
year.
e. In any given year where the Union incurs a net operating income and the equity as a
percentage of qualified expenses at the end of the fiscal year is 50 per cent or above, the
net operating income will be distributed as follows:
i. 25% will be used to fund the DSU grants fund.
ii. 25% of the net income will be transferred to DSUs Emergency Bursary
Program.
iii. 25% will be transferred to the Facility Improvement Fund.
iv. 25% will be held in retained earnings through the unrestricted assets account.
The holding of the retained earnings will ensure that the DSU has adequate
resources to continue its operations through times of uncertainty.
f. Qualifying expenses shall include all expenses from the financial statements excluding
Facility Improvement expenses, Renovation expenses and Health Plan expenditures and
any other internally restricted expenses.
g. Net income shall refer to the net operating income amount as stated in the annual
audited financial statements. This excludes all internally restricted funds.
4. General Financial Management
a. Every cheque must be accompanied by a corresponding receipt or invoice for the same
amount.
b. 4. a) The Union will have a cheque run at least every three (3) weeks.
b) Cheque run dates will be developed by the Vice President (Finance and Operations)
in consultation with the Accounting Staff and communicated to Council and staff in
writing by June 1, of each year.
c) In order to provide the Vice President (Finance and Operations) with a clear
understanding of previous activity, established depreciation must be run through all
accounts on a monthly basis.

d)c. Council The Board shallmust appoint an independent external auditor for a term of
up to three (3) years before March 30, of the final year of the current auditors term.
e. ) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) must publish the audited financial
statements in the campus mediaonline before October 31, of each year.
f) A revised Union budget must be submitted to Council before December 15, of each
year.
g) The Board may review the Unions month end statements and may, at its discretion,
review copies of any individual cheques or transactions. Photocopies of actual cheques
are acceptable.
h) Any manual cheque issued by the Union must be photocopied and filed so as to be
available to the Board.
i) The Union does not refund student fees under any circumstances unless the error is
committed by the University, which they acknowledge in writing to the Vice President
(Finance and Operations). In such a case, only fees not appropriated to external groups
will be returned.
j) The monthly internal financial statements should be produced by the tenth working
day of each month. Any delays must be noted in the Vice Presidents (Finance and
Operations) report to Council.
jk.) To ensure the accuracy of staff record keeping the Vice President (Finance and
Operations) will perform a monthly review of balance sheet figures to ensure that these
figures agree with the supporting sub ledgers or detail listings. Any unusual items are to
be discussed with the controllerstaff and if they are not rectified must be reported to the
Board.
k. The Board shall be notified if any member of the Executive or Full-time Staff violates
the Financial Policy.
l) The Officers must initiate a random departmental review by independent external
auditors by January 31, of each year. This review is intended to give first indication of
problems and potential problems. It should also review the efficiency of the department
being reviewed.
5. m) The Executive must have a meeting with the independent external auditors to
discuss the details of the audit without the presence of any full time staff.
n) The Executive must have a meeting with the full time staff to discuss the performance
of the independent external auditors.

Contracts
5. a)a. All three (3) Officers signatures are required when entering into or renewing a
contractual agreement.
b.) If all three (3) Officers can not agree under clause (a), Council must vote on the
contract upon receipt of a report from the Board.
c.) Any project undertaken by the Union must be detailed in a contract between the Union
and supplier.
d.) Any project work completed by the University for the Union must have a work order
indicating ,
which indicates the final estimate and completion date.
6. University Restricted Account
a. 6. a) Any transaction involving the a university restricted account must be copied in
writing to the DSU Account Manager.VP (Finance and Operations) or their designate.
b. Any transaction involving the university-restricted account that is for an amount over
$10,000 and is not a part of regular operations must be approved by the Board of
Operations
c.b) If the university restricted account exceeds the value of the investment portfolio,
both
amounts and the difference must be detailed by the Officers in a written report to Council
and the BoardThe Vice-President (Finance and Operations) will report annually to the
Board on the state of the university-restricted account.
7. Investments
7. a)a. The investment fund is intended to be safety net for the Union. In particular, the
fund is designed for short-term gain but long-term stable growth. The Union may from
time to time make short term investments when the balance in the cash amount so
permits.
b) Every investment fund transaction must be documented, in writing to the Account
Manager.
b.c) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) shall report Any any significant loss or
profit activity in the investment fund must be highlighted by the Vice President (Finance
and Operations) in his or her report to Council. This matter shall also be brought to the
attention of the Board.to Council and the Board.
d) Every investment transaction must have the signature of all three (3) Officers.

e) Details of the investment transaction must be brought to the attention of the Board via
a written report that must include but is not limited to the following:
(i) sale or purchase price;
(ii) expected return;
(iii) maturation date of investment (if applicable); and
(iv) amount of broker's commission.
f) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) will seek out the best investment plan or
manager and will monitor actions and trades within this plan. All investments must be
approved by the board no later than October 31, of each academic year. The board must
be given a minimum of two weeks to review investment plans prior to making a decision.
cg.) The Officers are prohibited from direct trading in individual stocks and other
holdings,
8. Corporate Credit Cards
a.8. a) The Union will have one (1) corporate credit card for each member of the
Executive, the balance of which must not exceed $1,000.00, and one (1) corporate credit
card for . Tthe General Manager, shall have a corporate credit card with a limit not to
exceed the balance of which must not exceed $1,500. The Officers may also from time to
time authorize credit cards for other staff.
b.) Under no circumstances will personal purchases be made on the corporate credit
cards. All transactions are limited to business related activities.
c. Any purchases deemed to be non-business related by the VPFO will result in the loss
of the credit cards usage at the VPFOs discretion.
d. The VPFO will report the alleged misuse to Council prior to the next scheduled
Council Meeting. CouncilThe Board will have the authority to reinstate the cardholders
privileges upon hearing and reviewing the VPFOs and cardholders reasoning. Council
must hold a vote to determine if the card will be reinstated.
e.c) All purchases made with a credit card require both a receipt and corresponding visa
slip. It must be properly coded and submitted to the accounting department within 5
business days of purchase. If receipts are not received within this time then the purchase
will be added to the cardholders accounts receivable. If the purchase is made outside of
HRM the receipts must be submitted within 5 days of the cardholders return to HRM.D
) If an Officer objects to another member of the Executive using his or her corporate
credit card, it cannot be used until Council has had an opportunity to vote on the
objection.
E) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) shall be responsible for reconciling all
corporate credit card transactions.
9. Pay Advances
9.a. a) With the exception of Clauses (c) and (d) below, the The Union will not issue pay
advances to any fFull-time or pPart-time sStaff.

b) If there is an error on the part of the Union with processing an employees pay cheque,
a replacement cheque will be awarded from Accounts. The replacement cheque will not
be issued unless a cheque is received from the employee for the same amount.
b.c) Any membersMembers of the Executive may only receive a pay advance during his
or hertheir first month in office.
d) If a member of the Executive is issued an advance under 'c', clause 'b'c. Executive pay
advances will apply and the advance must shall not exceed $500.00.
10. Reimbursement for Expenses Incurred
10. a. ) Any employee or designate representative of the DSU acting on behalf of the
Union at a conference or on external business is entitled to a daily per-diem.
b.) The per diem rate for the DSU is $10.00 for breakfast, $10.00 for lunch, $15.00 for
dinner, and $10.00 for incidentals. If any meals are provided, the per-diem will be
deducted based on the aforementioned figures. A per diem rate of
c) $15.00 per day will apply if per diem will be issued if all meals are provided.
d)c. While using his or hertheir own vehicle for DSU business, an employee or student
representative is entitled to a reimbursement of $0.46 per kilometre.
d. Starting April 1, 2015, the per diem rate and kilometre reimbursement shall increase
each year with the annual rate of change in the Canadian Price Index.
e.) Every reimbursement, beyond the daily per diem,Reimbursements not including per
diems and mileage, must be accompanied by a
corresponding receipt. Receipts must be submitted to the Vice-President (Finance and
Operations) or their designateVPFO within 5 business days of the claimant returning to
HRM.
f) . Every cheque requisition should shall be accompanied by a receipt or, motion, or
invoice equal to the amount of the cheque.
g) Any employee or designate of the Union acting on behalf of the Union at a conference
or on external business and who has received reimbursement for expenses incurred,
should submit a report to the Executive within two (2) weeks of completion of the
conference or business.
h) Members of the Executive and members of Council must submit reports within one of
the following two Council meetings, sharing the benefit of the information from
conferences with Council. Other information reports, as deemed by the Executive, shall
be presented to Council.
11. Cash Floats
11. a) a. Cash floats must be authorized by the Vice President (Finance and Operations).
In the absence of the Vice President (Finance and Operations) the aforementioned signing
order precedence will apply.
b.b) Cash floats must be signed out from the appropriate Full-time Staff member in
writing.
c.) Two (2) days notice is required.

d) . The person requesting and receiving the float is responsible for the safety and the
return of all monies to the same Full-time Staff member.
e) . It is not the responsibility of the Full-time Staff member to replace stolen monies or
refill shortages but that of the person who signed the funds out.
12. Full Time Salary Adjustment
12. a)a. All Full-time Staff salary increase under 5% per fiscal year and which falls within
the salary ranges approved by the Board must be approved by all three (3) Officers.
b. Any Full-time Staff salary increase in excess of 5% in any one (1) fiscal year or any
Full-time Staff salary increase in excess of approved salary ranges must be approved by
the Board.
b)c. No bonus may be awarded to any Full- or Part-time Staff member unless written
authorization is received from all three (3) Officers.
c)d. Every monetary bonus or cash must be Any monetary bonus over $500 must be
processed through the payroll system to allow for appropriate deductions.
13. Honoraria
13. a) a. The President, Vice President (Internal), and the Vice President (Finance and
Operations) of the Union shall each receive $26,000.00 per annum as honoraria, paid out
in twelve (12) equal monthly instalments unless the term is not completed.
b. ) The Vice President (Academic and External) and Vice President (Student Life) shall
each receive $24,500.00 per annum as honoraria paid in twelve (12) equal monthly
instalments unless the term is not completed.
c) . All other honoraria amounts will be detailed in the annual budget.
d) . Each Executive honoraria amount detailed in Clause (a) and (b) should shall be
increased according to the rate of change in the Statistics Canada CPICanadian Price
Index (CPI), as calculated by Statistics Canada, at the beginning of the new fiscal year. If
the rate of change in CPI is a negative, the honoraria shall remain constant. The figures
set in Clauses (a) and (b)this policy are for fiscal year 2003-2004.
e) The Union must withhold the vacation pay of each member of the Executive until a
minimum one thousand (1000) word final report has been submitted to his or her
successor and a note of receipt has been given to Council.
f) The Officers are responsible for ensuring each new employee signs a contract of
employment which includes a confidentiality clause.
g) All approved budget and salary honoraria amounts must be outlined in a contract
between the Union and the honoraria employeeperson receiving the honoraria, including
members of the Executive.
h) The date the employee can expect to receive his or hertheir honoraria must be noted in
the contract.
i) If a member of the Executive does not exhaust all of his or hertheir available vacation
time the Union will purchase the time proportional to his or hertheir salary.
14. Student Levies

14. a) When a student levy is enacted by a referendum, the purpose and spirit of the levy
may not change without another referendum.
b) The Vice President (Finance and Operations) shall review all levies annually with the
Board and make recommendations to Council on whether or not a levy
should be sent back to referendum.
15. Societies Receiving Direct Levies
15. a)a. The Union shall issue society membership fees in two (2) instalments of
approximately equal value. The first instalment will be issued before October
30December 15, and the second instalment before February 28April 15, of each regular
academic sessionyear. provided Clauses (b) and (c) below are met
b) . Each year, the Vice President (Finance and Operations) must audit the accounts of
every society receiving a direct levy before issuing any society feesthe levy. The audit
process must be substantiated with formal written communication which should indicate
areas for improvement.
c. All societies collecting a direct student levy must submit their financial records to the
Vice President (Finance and Operations) before November 15, in fall term and March 15,
in winter term. Including but not limited to: receipts, ledger, cancelled cheques, and bank
statements.
dc) . If there are any significant accounting discrepancies with a society, the problem may
shall be brought to the attention of Council and the funds may be withheld from said
society.
d) All societies collecting a direct student levy must submit their financial records to the
Vice President (Finance and Operations) before December 3, in fall term and April 9, in
winter term. Including but not limited to: receipts, ledger, cancelled cheques, and bank
statements.
e) . Financial records of all societies that collect a direct student levy can only be released
upon authorization from the DSU Vice President (Finance and Operations) or Council.
f) To increase an Academic society fee, the society must follow the procedure outlined in
By-law VI, Council shall refer the increase to the Board of Governors and require the
final approval of the Board of Governors before taking effect.
g) All academic and DSU referendum mandated societies must be ratified by the Union
before receiving any society fees.
h) All academic and DSU referendum mandated societies must also provide a copy of
minutes in which the said society has approved a budget before receiving any society
fees.
Grants for societies not receiving a direct levy
16. a) The Vice President (Internal) must notify each grant applicant of the Grants
Committee recommendations two (2) days before taking the information to Council) The
Vice President (Internal) must archive a record of all grant allotments issued in a given
year.

c) Each archived grant record must be accompanied by the original application or a

photocopy.
d) Every society which receives a grant must submit a report detailing the activity for
which they received the grant by April 30 of the year they received the grant.
e) Any society that receives a grant, shall advertise or mention the Dalhousie Student
Union's support and sponsorship for the grant.
f) Any society which does not submit a final report, or acknowledge the Union grant
funding will have a Union funding cap equal to 50% of the previous years grant total
imposed for a period of one (1) year.