Campus Organizations Officer Tools

1. If your RCO Trustee account had a positive balance: 
   • Annual account maintenance fees have already been assessed.
   • At the beginning of week 5 of spring, RCO leaders as listed on Shoreline, will be notified via email and/or Shoreline about their account balance. 
   • RCO leaders can submit requests via Shoreline (RCO Accounting Request Form) to initiate the closing process beginning week 7 of spring
   • SEAL will continue to maintain the account until the balance has reached zero, until it has been closed by the RCO leaders, or until the end of spring quarter - whichever comes first. 
   • There will be no change to RCO financial operations until one of the above deadlines is reached.
2. If your RCO Trustee account has a zero balance:
   • You will not receive a notice from SEAL,
   • No further action is needed; however, if a deposit is made, all steps from #1 will be followed.
3. If your RCO Trustee account has a negative balance:
   • You will be notified beginning week 5 of spring quarter if you have started the registration process,
   • No account maintenance fee will be assessed,
   • The total deficit must be paid prior to completing the RCO registration process or a payment plan must be submitted and approved by SEAL.

1.  Fill out an Accounting Request form and select “Closing Account,”
   • For balances under $250, a personal check can be written to one of the approved RCO officers on Shoreline* or to an organization account name off-site.
   • *Note: Checks cannot be made out to yourself.
   • For balances over $250, the check must be written out to an organization (i.e. organization account name, regional/national parent organization, or campus-affiliated department if applicable).
2.  After the Accounting Request has been submitted, it will enter our workflow, once the workflow has been completed, a DocuSign form (sample below) will be sent out via email to the submitter and an additional approved RCO officer as listed on Shoreline for approval.
   • Both will agree that the funds are organizational funds and should be used accordingly. 
   • The DocuSign form must be completed within 5 business days upon receipt or the request will be canceled. 
3.  The check will be processed and the RCO account will be formally closed. Checks will be distributed via the method selected on the request form. *Note: If a printed check request indicates a large sum (i.e. $1000+) we ask that you be prepared to pick up the check in person.

Registered Campus Organizations (RCO) are NOT legally authorized to use the University’s name (UCSB), TAX ID, or other information to accept external donations. Donations should not be sent to be processed through the University and should be accepted directly by the RCO. 

Your organization may consider working with a financial institution of your choice off-campus. Work with a banker (not a teller) directly to explore your options and find the option that best suits your organizational operation's needs. Your organization is responsible for all the tax filings and liability and can become a registered entity with the IRS (https://www.irs.gov/). 

UC Santa Barbara, Student Engagement & Leadership cannot legally provide fiscal advising. Please use the information above to explore your financial planning.

Here is a brief step-by-step example of what one RCO did to open an off-campus account. 

1.  The RCO obtained an EIN with the IRS to open an account with a national bank. This had to be done about 4 weeks in advance in order to get the physical IRS letter to give to the bank. (Note: When making the “legal name” for the organization, no RCO can use “UCSB” in the name (ex. Vietnamese Student Association at Santa Barbara).
2.  A set of bylaws for the organization is required by the bank. This must be titled as “Bylaws of _______” for the bank to accept it and also must have the signatures of 4 cabinet members, typically the President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. 
3.  The secretary of the organization must be the person to open and remain as the main person on the account. The treasurer can be added as an account manager that has full acting functions on the account. A government-issued ID and social security number were required to open the account. 
4.  Once the secretary opens the account, it must be funded with a certain amount of money depending on the account type that was opened. For example, this business checking account requires a minimum daily balance of $2,000 to not incur account maintenance fees. 

During the 2022-2023 fiscal year, Student Engagement & Leadership (formerly Office of Student Life) will no longer accept sponsorship checks or transfers for RCOs. The responsibility of these funding allocations will stay within the sponsoring department to use the university processes (i.e. Concur, Direct Payment Form). *Some exceptions will be made*

Prior to agreeing to support a campus organization, we recommend that you use Shoreline to confirm that the organization has completed annual registration requirements with SEAL. If they have completed these requirements, they will prepopulate in the group search bar and have an active relationship with our university advisors. We also recommend that you have a conversation internally with your business officer to develop a workflow process to support RCO events. We can provide recommendations, but the ultimate decision will remain with the department as to what this will entail. 

Once a process has been determined and the department is ready to move forward and receive the funds, we can help facilitate moving the relevant funds to your department. Checks will be made out to the applicable payee (UC Regents) for your business team to deposit. 

If this process has already been accomplished and the department is ready to move forward, SEAL can issue the check and have them sent inter-departmental mail.

If after reviewing the details provided, there remain pending questions, you can contact our Director at danielleortega@ucsb.edu. 

Allow 5-7 business days for a response.

I, _____________________ and _____________________, Registered Campus Organization (RCO) officers as listed on Shoreline for _____________________,  understand the following:

• I am aware that I am personally liable for the organization's finances. As an officer, I will be billed personally through BA/RC for any shortages or delinquent funds that may be incurred after funds are moved out of my RCO Trustee Account. 
• I do not believe that there are any outstanding bills that need to be paid from my RCO Trustee Account, and if bills are assessed then I will be billed personally.
• I must use university-granted funds as intended by the department in line with university procedures.  
• In order to close my RCO Trustee Account one of the following conditions must be met: 
• For account balances under $250, a check can be written to one of the approved RCO officers on Shoreline* or to an organization account name. *Note: Checks cannot be made out to yourself and legal names must be used for the payee information.
• Account balances over $250, and the check must be written out to an organization (i.e. organization account name, regional/national parent organization, or campus-affiliated department if applicable). *Note: The Organization Name must match what is one the bank account (or banks will not accept the check)
• Documentation of a bank account in the name of the RCO/regional/national organization may be requested for balances over $250 if it was not previously supplied in the Accounting Request Form on Shoreline.
• Funds in your RCO Trustee Account are restricted to the organization's use only and may not be used for personal benefit.
• The processing time for completing this transaction is dependent upon both individuals completing the DocuSign form. 
• Student Engagement & Leadership is not responsible or liable for lost checks or the misuse of organizational funds. 
• I understand I must be logged in and a verified UCSB affiliate to complete this form.

I certify that I am an officer for this RCO, I understand my responsibility as outlined above and I authorize this account closure. 

Name: _______________    Signature: ____________________    Date: __________________

Name: _______________    Signature: ____________________    Date: __________________

You will receive a notification once your accounting request has been processed via Shoreline.

Processing Time: 14 business days
Mailing Time: 7-14 business days