This article reviews categorization models and the outcomes of a virtual university funding survey. Although categorization of types of funding mechanisms is a necessary analytical tool, it often hides the many and varied political decisions that created them. In commenting on the implications of the type of funding model, political forces behind the choice of a particular model are discussed in select cases. How a political organization (legislatures, state or provincial systems, and institutions) distributes its funding is often the most obvious evidence of its priorities. (Contains 4 tables.)