Upcoming Deadlines
- Friday, 11/14 - Submit completed and approved Org Tree change requests
- Monday, 11/17 - Submit your FY2025-26 Fall Forecast
- Friday, 12/5 - Submit DeptIDs for planned inactivation and CF1 changes in CalPlan and HCP
- Friday, 12/5 - Submit a list of DeptIDs for inactivation in BFS
- Friday, 12/12 - Submit 2026-27 SSGPDP fee proposals
Federal Updates
Please be aware of two resources regarding the evolving federal policy shifts: the UCOP Federal Updates page and the UC Berkeley Federal Updates page.
FY2025-26 Fall Forecast
Submit your FY2025-26 Fall Forecast by Monday, November 17
The FY2025-26 fall forecast process is officially underway. This is an important exercise that will allow you to reassess and enhance financial projections for the year and evaluate how closely they align with the goals established in your original budget. In addition, as outlined in this year's budget allocation letter, the fall forecast will enable us to assess progress toward your FY2025-26 EGM target and inform the development of divisional EGM targets for FY2026-27. Because of this, all campus divisions are expected to review and update their FY2025-26 forecasts. Complete the FY26 Fall Forecast template and submit it by EOD on Monday, November 17. Once finalized, please send your completed template to the DFL Concierge at dflconcierge@berkeley.edu.
CalPlanning Update
The CalPlan and HCP planning applications are available with the FY26 beginning balance and July through August Actuals (this data is already available in CalRptg). The FY2026-27 Operating Budget has been seeded with preliminary numbers to assist planning activities, but remember that these are subject to change. FY2025-26 Forecast Working version will be updated with September actual data on Monday morning, October 13.
Action Items
Submit completed and approved Org Tree change requests by Friday, November 14
To submit an Org Change request, please access the Organizational Tree Change Request Portal. For Org Tree changes to be processed in November, please complete your org change request form in the portal as early as possible to allow time for the Org Tree Change Committee to review and route for all required approvals by the November 14 deadline. Please review the Org Tree Change Request Portal Job Aid for more information on how to get started, and note that the last opportunity for any DeptID or Org Node moves to be processed this fiscal year is in November. Any Org Node or DeptID move requests submitted after the November deadline will be processed in August, after the Fiscal Close activities are completed. Contact dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu with questions.
Submit DeptIDs for planned inactivation in CalPlan and CF1 changes by Friday, December 5
If you have DeptIDs that you would like inactivated in CalPlan or Chartfield1 (CF1) members you would like removed from or added to CalPlan and HCP, please submit requests by the end of the day on Monday, December 5. For DeptIDs, please complete the DeptID Inactivation Form in the Organizational Tree Change Request Portal. For CF1 members, please submit a simple list in Excel in the format “C1_xxxxxx” and indicate if you want to Add or Remove the CF1. The Chart1 changes will be implemented in CalPlan and HCP by mid-January. Please email completed forms to dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu and include “Chart1 Updates” as the subject line.
Submit DeptIDs for inactivation in BFS by Friday, December 5
DeptID inactivation in the Berkeley Financial System (BFS) is an annual process for DeptIDs already planned for inactivation and restricted for planning in CalPlanning, but not cleared in BFS. Follow the instructions on completing the BFS DeptID inactivation process on the Planning DeptID Inactivation webpage and submit the list of DeptIDs to be inactivated in BFS using a simple Excel file created to include columns for DeptID, DeptID Description, L6 Unit Code, and L6 Description. Email the list to dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu and include “DeptID Inactivation in BFS” as the submit line.
Submit 2026-27 SSGPDP fee proposals by Friday, December 12
UCOP has released the call for Self-Supporting Graduate Professional Degree Program (SSGPDP) fee proposals for the 2026-27 academic year. All new and existing approved SSGPDPs are required to submit an annual fee proposal for review and approval by the UC President. Submissions are due to studentfees@berkeley.edu by Friday, December 12, 2025, for initial review. All materials – including the instructions, required templates, guidance, and list of programs required to conduct student and faculty feedback – are available in the Call for Proposals bDrive folder and on the Make Annual Fee Submission for Existing SSGPDPs web page.
Note: There have been several key changes to the various templates you are expected to complete this year. We ask that you review the instructions carefully and refer to the web page for additional notes on the new expectations for 2026-27 proposals. Please do not hesitate to reach out to studentfees@berkeley.edu with questions or to schedule a meeting – preferably as early as possible before the submission deadline.
Informational Updates
Improving new hire relocation reimbursement process
We’re improving the process for reimbursing new hires who receive relocation benefits to make it simpler and reduce confusion or impact to their paycheck. The current process uses the legacy reimbursement system, with payment issued from BFS. The process requires subsequent reporting of the transaction to UCPath to impute income, resulting in tax withholding deducted from the new hire's paycheck. Under the new process, reimbursements will be paid directly through the UCPath Payroll system. This means applicable taxes will be withheld from the reimbursement payment itself, rather than from a future paycheck, making the process smoother and more transparent for employees. The process for Relocation payments made directly to a UC Preferred moving company is not changing.
Effective Monday, November 10, the reimbursement preparer will simply continue to submit their relocation reimbursement requests through the legacy reimbursement system, but instead of the reimbursement happening through BFS as it does today, it will be paid through UCPath which generates payments on a semi-monthly production schedule. Once we’ve completed our final review, we’ll notify the reimbursement report preparer that we’re sending the transaction to UCPath for payment. Meanwhile, we’ve already begun developing a simplified routing and approval process for use in 2026. If you have questions, please contact us at disburse@berkeley.edu.
Finance Job Opportunity
The UC Berkeley School of Journalism is hiring a new Director of Finance. This crucial role will serve as the Divisional Finance Leader and will oversee the finance team. Please share this job opening with potential candidates who may be a good fit.
Position: Director of Finance (7710U), School of Journalism - #81730
Salary: $120,000.00 - $145,000.00
Review the job description. Current employees, please use this job application portal.
The first review date is November 17, 2025.
Review STAR/SPOT Award funding allocation
The FY26 Staff Appreciation and Recognition program (STAR) has been allocated. Review the STAR Allocation FY2026 spreadsheet to identify the funding for your unit. The amount available to spend is in the last column called “2026 Beg. Bal + Distribution.” Please share this information with the person responsible for allocating funds for STAR awards within your unit. We recommend VCs and Deans consider funding awards from a centralized pool to maximize flexibility in managing these resources. It is important to use the proper chartstring when submitting an award. More information is available on the CFO website. If you have questions about the allocation, please contact the Budget and Financial Operations team at centralresourcemanagement@berkeley.edu.
Cal Answers training
The Cal Answers website hosts self-service learning resources, including a complete course on basic navigation, short videos, job aids, wiki documentation, and a list of frequently asked questions. Enrollment is now open for the two-hour instructor-led class that builds on the basic navigation skills covered in the self-study. There are separate courses focusing on financial dashboards and student data dashboards. In the class, a subject matter expert guides a deep dive into the reports and data available in the dashboards and answers specific questions.
CalPlanning and Smart View training
The curriculum uses a blended learning model. Courses begin with self-study using online books divided into chapters supplemented with practice exercises and short videos. Courses culminate with a group session using Zoom in which participants work on case studies in small teams to apply the material covered in the self-study. The self-study materials are available on the website for everyone to use; they can be a helpful resource for those who have already completed the training and are looking for a refresher. Review the CalPlanning training page for schedules, links to enroll, and to access the self-study materials.
Changes to the DFL in your division?
If the DFL role in your division is changing, email fpa@berkeley.edu to ensure our website, communications, and training plans are updated.
DFL Weekly Updates Page
As a reminder, these updates are regularly posted to the DFL Weekly Updates page so you can reference past updates at any time. Additionally, the Operational Deadlines page provides an overview of deliverables by quarter.
Thank you,
Office of the Vice Chancellor of Finance