Division of Financial Services
Accounting
Many institutions have an "other" category to reflect any exchange revenues not considered elsewhere. Examples are miscellaneous rentals and sales, miscellaneous fees, and items that are not material enough to warrant separate disclosure.
| Fees/Dues | Membership dues are often collected by associations, and have the following characteristics:
Fee income includes miscellaneous charges to customers, other than fees for conference registrations, which do not fit any other category. Examples include application fees, cancellation fees, late fees, wire transfer fees, monthly service charges, etc. Generally, fees do not involve an exchange of goods or direct services, though they may provide access to a good or service (e.g., fees for certain physical education classes that require access to specialized equipment or facilities). |
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| Required Documentation | Not applicable. |
| Procedural Notes | Permitted Ithaca object codes:
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| Commissions | Payments made by external parties, generally based on sales price of property sold or gross receipts from sales or events. Some examples are brokerage commissions for sale of real property; commissions paid on sales of certain products, etc. |
|---|---|
| Required Documentation | Contract or agreement (consult with University Counsel). |
| Procedural Notes | Permitted Ithaca object code:
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| Corporate Sponsorship (Ithaca Only) | Financial backing by external parties of an event or program in which the corporate sponsor receives “substantial benefit” in return. These benefits may include some, but not necessarily all, of the following characteristics:
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|---|---|
| Required Documentation | Sponsorship agreement (consult with University Counsel). |
| Procedural Notes | Payments from a corporate sponsor can actually be a mixture of charitable contributions and corporate sponsorship. For example, a corporation's support for a conference or special event might be acknowledged with a banner and a public “thank you” from the podium, but if the agreement also requires inclusion of a full-page ad in the conference brochure or text written by the corporation that promotes its products and services to attendees at the conference, then a determination may need to be made on how much of the payment constitutes corporate sponsorship vs contribution revenue. Questions related to classification of revenue as a corporate sponsorship or a contribution should be directed to AA&D. Corporate sponsorship income also has unrelated business income tax implications for the university. Permitted Ithaca object code:
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| Rental Income | Rents paid by external customers for use of rooms, facilities, university-owned housing, etc. |
|---|---|
| Required Documentation | Lease or rental contract. |
| Procedural Notes | Cornell's Real Estate Department/WCMC Real Estate Committee must be involved in long-term rental of any university-owned or university-leased real estate. Permitted Ithaca object code:
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| Student Insurance Premiums | Premium payments from students for participation in the university’s Student Health Plan. |
|---|---|
| Required Documentation | Not applicable. |
| Procedural Notes | Permitted Ithaca object code (limited to Gannett Health Services):
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| Other Revenue | Payments by external customers for transactions not otherwise described in this document. This category should be used sparingly. |
|---|---|
| Required Documentation | Dependent of the nature of the transaction. |
| Procedural Notes | Permitted Ithaca object code:
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| Sale of Assets | Proceeds from the sale of a university-owned asset (either capital or non-capital). |
|---|---|
| Required Documentation | Bill of sale/WCMC email approval. |
| Procedural Notes | Permitted Ithaca object code:
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