The Governing Board gives the green light to the project, submitted to the Social Council, and also approves the regulation on the electronic closure of the academic records.
The Governing Council of the University of Oviedo has passed the Budget Project of the Asturian academic institution for 2015, which amounts to 193.526.338 euros and has been submitted to the Social Council for final approval. The document has obtained 36 votes in favor, one vote against and three abstentions.
The Rector, Vicente Gotor, and the Vice-rector for Economic Planning, Agreements and Contracts, Santiago Álvarez, explained after the meeting the most relevant figures. The budgets include a section which contains the budgetary information of the University of Oviedo Foundation. However, as opposed to the Budget of 2014, the statement of income and expenditure of the present budget does not include the costs related to the contracts expected under this regulation, although the statement of income does include the canon the University gets as indirect costs.
In order to compare 2015 and 2014 in homogenous terms, taking into account that the budget for 2014 was 195.051.189 euros, it is necessary to exclude from last year´s budget, the provision of income and expenditure relating to the management of research contracts on the part of University of Oviedo Foundation. In this case, the budget for 2014 would rise to 189.912.189 euros, so we would have an increase of 1, 9% with regard to the budget that year.
Concerning the expenditure budget, as in other years, the most important section is the one corresponding to personnel costs, which totals 130.750.490 euros, which means an increase of 0,77% compared to the previous year. This budget item aims to provide the right coverage for the personnel costs expected in 2015, including the necessary loans to pay 25% of the pay that was removed affecting all civil servants in December 2012, as approved by the Government. This refund means a cost of 1.547.000 euros for the University. The increase of personnel costs, which are approximately 68% of the total costs budgeted, implies a strong effort to contain expenditure in other budgetary sections. Due to the high volume of expenditure, nearly 13% with earmarked funding, only the remaining 19% may be allocated to cover the rest of the overall expenditure, sometimes unavoidable structural expenses.
As regards income, there is a significant increase in the capital transfers, due to a wider estimation of income coming from different national and regional research calls. Some other measures have also been approved, aimed at increasing our own revenues strengthening the relation of the University with the business sector, increasing the percentage of income resulting from indirect costs in research contracts, certificate courses or university extension courses, and also increasing income resulting from renting classrooms and university premises.
The Governing Council also approved the regulation on the procedures to close academic records of the University of Oviedo online which will be implemented in 2015-2016.
