Revenue from NIU’s logo, trademark and design was allocated to NIU’s Foundation, but the royalties should have gone back to the university.

Lyle Monock, audit manager for the Office of the Auditor General, said revenue from the logo should have been allocated to NIU and not the Foundation.

The State Finance Act states all revenues of NIU should be relayed back to the state treasury with certain exceptions, Manock said. NIU does not have the prerogative to allocate funds to the foundation, he said.

Thomas Loobey, a representative for the Auditor General’s office, said as a licensing agent NIU received cash for its logo, trademark and design and recorded it as revenue.

In November 1985, NIU requested the foundation to contract with International Collegiate, Inc., to protect and market the logo and trademark, the Auditor General’s March 9 report stated.

“Since the Foundation did not remit this revenue to the university, the university did not receive all the revenue to which it was entitled,” the report stated. “The university should have received all the revenue from the contract, as required by the State Finance Act and the 1982 University Guidelines.”

The report stated, “Although the guidelines provide for NIU to contract with a University Related Organization to provide services, the consideration to the URO is not to exceed the cost of providing the service or include an allowance for risk or profit.”

NIU Foundation President Richard Ubl said it’s the auditor general’s contention that the revenue from the logo should be allocated to NIU. If the money is given to the university, the state will have control of the funds and would be able to filter it to other schools, he said.

If the foundation controls the revenue, it will go back to faculty and students, Ubl said.

Manock said the state might allocate the revenue to different areas of the university than the foundation might.

Ubl said, “It (the funds) all goes back to the university one way or another.”

The foundation recently was remitted $657 in revenue from NIU’s logo, trademark and design, Ubl said.

The report stated the money that was collected in fiscal year 1987 should be allocated to NIU.

Manock said the Legislative Audit Committee has the power to hold a public hearing to discuss if revenues from logos should go to the foundation or NIU.

He said either the committee will instruct the auditor general to request a change in the allocation of the revenue or to leave the revenue with the foundation. “The Foundation generally goes along with the decision,” Manock said.

Ubl said he expects the foundation will collect between $10,000 and $15,000 each year from logo revenues.

Money collected by the foundation, including royalties from logos, trademarks and designs, will benefit students and faculty through scholarships and department support, Ubl said.