Rulesets

Some organizations require that a budget definition include more than one set of the following rules:

• Key ChartFields required for budget journals and source transactions.

• Translation tree and level at which you budget for the key ChartFields.

• Budget period calendar, which specifies valid budget periods.

You can, for example, budget at a higher translation level for a few of the budgets in your budget definition. You can also have some budgets in a budget definition that require an additional key ChartField, such as program ID or project ID, for tracking purposes.

For this reason, budget definitions include subsets, called rulesets. Each ruleset defines a different set of keys, translations, and budget period calendar.

Each budget definition has a Ruleset ChartField, the values of which are used by the Budget Processor to determine which Ruleset each source transaction line should reference. You define the Ruleset ChartField values that apply to each ruleset. The system automatically creates a default ruleset, which is used for any Ruleset ChartField values that you do not explicitly assign to a ruleset.

The following example illustrates the use of rulesets:

The appropriation budget definition in the preceding Using rulesets example requires two rulesets, because departments 2000 to 6999 require program codes on budget journals and source transactions for tracking purposes, whereas departments 1000 to 1999 and 7000 to 9999 do not require program codes. In all other respects, the appropriation budgets for these departments use the same processing rules (except for the attributes that you can override below the ruleset level).

If you have only one set of budget keys, translation rules, and budget calendar for a budget definition, use the default ruleset as your single ruleset, with the control ChartField as the Ruleset ChartField. You need, in that case, to enter any data onto the Ruleset page. If Budget Processor cannot find a ruleset with the values matching the transaction, the default ruleset is used, provided the transaction is subject to control in that ledger.

Note:

Rulesets must be mutually exclusive and complete so that no multiple or missing setup parameters exist for a single ChartField value. When you save the Keys and Translations page, the Ruleset ChartField list is edited to ensure that no overlaps exist. When the Ruleset ChartField itself is translated, the system ensures that no node is split across two different rulesets.