Under the quarterly phased plan, whom does the Financial Management Office distribute funds to first?

• A. Cost Center Managers
• B. Responsibility Center Managers
• C. Funding Authorities
• D. Resource Owners

Answer: (B)

In this setup, funds are allocated first to those who have both responsibility for and authority over a set of resources—the Responsibility Center Managers. They own the budgeting and resource use for their centers, so giving them the funds upfront lets them allocate and manage the money within their domain, ensuring accountability and proper control from the start of each quarterly phase. After the RCMs allocate as needed within their centers, funds flow down to the next levels (cost centers or resource owners) through the established governance and approval processes. Cost Center Managers oversee costs within a unit but don’t have the overarching budgeting authority that a Responsibility Center Manager holds. Funding Authorities are the source of the funds and set the overall framework, not the initial recipients. Resource Owners hold assets or responsibilities but typically don’t manage the budgeting flow directly.