Upcoming Deadlines
- 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, 12/5 - Queue commitments for Q2 requests
- Friday, 12/12 - Complete External Audit Activity Report for Q2
- Friday, 12/12 - Submit 2026-27 SSGPDP fee proposals
- Friday, 1/16/2026 - Submit completed and approved Org Tree change requests
- Monday, 1/19/2026 - Review and submit the BEAR grant report updates
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.
Action Items
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.
Queue commitments for Q2 requests by Friday, December 5
Please complete the commitment queue form by December 5 for commitments to be funded in the second quarter of FY2025-26. Note that the following commitments do not need to be queued: Budget Decisions; EVCP TAS; STAR Awards; Bear Grants; both Productivity Suite and Campus Data Network assessments, and endowment payouts for rotating chairs. You only need to use one commitment queue Google form to submit your commitment requests for both faculty and non-faculty funding commitments. Faculty commitments are defined for this purpose as Start-up, Retention, ASMD, and Chancellor's Professorships. Chancellor’s Professorships are those that are offered via start-up or retention in lieu of an actual chair, until one can be found, and are funded by central resources. For more information about queueing commitments and the required documentation, please visit the Commitments page. Please note that if you are working remotely, you must log in through VPN for these forms to work. Please email dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu with questions.
Complete External Audit Certification for Q2 by Friday, December 12
To ensure the completeness and accuracy of the quarterly Controller's report on the campus’ external audit activities, please help us identify those activities. The Controller's Office is sending a separate email with additional information to DFLs with known external audit activity. By Friday, December 12, please submit the materials below to gao@berkeley.edu:
- All DFLs need to complete the External Audit Confirmation Form. You must return the completed External Audit Confirmation Form even if you do not have any external audit activities so that we can certify campus responses.
- DFLs with external audit activities need to complete the External Audit Confirmation Template. Include any related documentation with the template, i.e., notification of the commencement of the audit, audit report, etc.
If you have questions, please contact gao@berkeley.edu.
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.
Submit completed and approved Org Tree change requests by Friday, January 16
To submit an Org Change request, please access the Organizational Tree Change Request Portal. For Org Tree changes to be processed in January, 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 January 16 deadline. Please review the Org Tree Change Request Portal Job Aid for more information on how to get started.
Note that the last opportunity for any DeptID or Org Node moves to be processed this fiscal year was 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. Please also note that the tree is closed to all changes in December. Contact dfl_concierge@berkeley.edu with questions.
Review and submit the BEAR grant report updates by Friday, January 19, 2026
The Berkeley Excellence Accounts for Research Grants (or BEAR Grants) support Berkeley's ladder faculty as they advance their research, scholarship, and creative accomplishments. The Budget and Financial Operations team sent the eligibility list, separation list and the carry-forward balances report to the academic divisions for the FY25-26 BEAR Grant program. Please review and return it to us by Monday, January 19, 2026. Please note that the appeal deadline to APO is January 15, 2026. The BEAR Grant program fact sheet and frequently asked questions are available on the BEAR website for your reference. If you have questions regarding using BEAR funds, please contact the Budget and Financial Operations team at: centralresourcemanagement@berkeley.edu. For questions regarding eligibility, please contact the APO office at appolicy@berkeley.edu.
Informational Updates
CalPlanning unavailable this weekend, November 22 and 23
The CalPlanning system will not be available starting today, Friday, November 21 at 5:00 p.m. to Monday, November 24, at 8:00 a.m. due to a planned system upgrade. Please note: There are several actions users need to take when they first log back into CalPlanning, including allowing browser pop-ups. Please review the CalPlanning Upgrade Job Aid for details. Please check the CalPlanning website for details and updates or contact the help desk at calplanhelp@berkeley.edu with any questions you may have.
CalPlanning Update
The CalPlan and HCP planning applications are available with the FY26 beginning balance and July through September Actuals. CalPlan and HCP are unavailable until VC Finance completes its review of the Fall Forecast submission in December.
Contracts & Grants funds to use alphanumeric characters
Contracts & Grants Accounting is introducing alpha characters into the C&G fund number structure. Historically, the fund segment of the contract and grant chart string is composed of numeric codes only. Because we are running out of numeric-only combinations, any new fund value will be created using alphanumeric combinations, as soon as the numeric combinations become fully depleted in each fund range. The first alphanumeric funds were assigned this month to two private contracts in the federal flow-through group of funds. Based on our projections some fund range groupings will retain their numerical values for the next few years.
The following letters have been assigned to each fund range:
- C = Federal Contracts
- F = Federal Grants
- L = Local and State Contracts and Grants
- R = Private Contracts
- P = Private Grants
No change is necessary in the Berkeley Financial System because it already allows for alphanumeric combinations. We expect this will have minimal impact on any inbound or outbound systems because we already use alphanumeric code combinations for the fund value chart segment in the FAU for endowment and gift funds. Please direct your C&G fund setup questions to cgaawards@berkeley.edu.
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