1. Effectively Managing Your Grants and Contracts Office of Sponsored Programs Office of Research and Graduate Studies Jeanne WicksDon Holdegraver Director of Post-AwardDirector of Operations Analysis 472-1825472-6285 jwicks2@unl.edu dholdegraver2@unlnotes.unl.edu

2. 10-year UNL Research Awards

3. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts We’re here to help you!  Proposal Development  Animal and Human Subjects Compliance  Technology Development  Office of Sponsored Programs  Pre-Award  Post-Award Office of Research and Graduate Studies services:

4. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Proposal Development and Submission Idea Development Funding Source Identification Proposal Preparation Proposal Submission, Approval, Routing and Mailing Timeliness is critical. Avoid excess or voluntary cost share. Award Decline

5. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Project Management WBS Establishment (Award Cost Center) Project Management Project Closeout Audit

6. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Why is financial compliance so important?

7. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Northwestern Harvard South Florida John Hopkins Minnesota Cornell Florida International University Audit Findings

8. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Awards are granted to UNL Risk to Principal Investigator Risk to Department Risk to UNL Federal Awards covered by federal, state, and university policies and regulations Awards covered by specific funding agency regulations Awards covered by specific award requirements

9. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Cost Share (Equals Increased Documentation – PARs) Burdensome requirements: Special reports or reporting dates Ensure any sub-awardees are working with their OSP commitment letter (and prepare a budget and work statement for each). Proposal Considerations Sub-awards to end 30 days before the prime agreement.

10. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Needed to set up WBS: Official award document Routing form – all signatures/cost share documented Compliance – IRB, IACUC, Ionizing Radiation, Hazardous Materials, Biosafety approval Conflict of Interest Subaward information – Contact information, budget, Work Statement Proposal – electronic or paper

11. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Pre-Award Costs Institutional Prior Approval to Spend (IPAS) Form Not allowed on “24” grants–State Single LOC May not be available on all grants At the risk of the department No more than 90 days prior to the effective date of the award - must obtain written permission from the granting authority to exceed 90 days

12. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Primary Principle - All costs must: be reasonable – ‘prudent person’ be allocable be treated consistently across the institution conform to any limitations or exclusions set forth in these principles or in the sponsored agreement for types or amounts of cost items The cost is unallowable if these are not all met.

13. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Direct versus Indirect (F & A) Costs: Facilities & Administrative costs are those that are incurred for common or joint objectives and, therefore, can’t be identified readily and specifically with a particular sponsored project, an instructional activity or any other institutional activity. These can include items such as building costs (depreciation and use, operational and maintenance costs), library costs, departmental administration, sponsored projects administration, student administration and services. The F & A Rate is a rate that is negotiated with our cognizant federal agency. A copy of our most recently approved rate agreement can be found at our web site. http://www.unl.edu/osp/indirect.html

14. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Direct versus Indirect Costs Direct Costs can be identified specifically with a particular sponsored project activity with a high degree of accuracy PI salary, lab supplies, scientific equipment

15. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Direct versus Indirect Costs Indirect costs are incurred for common or joint objectives and cannot be readily and specifically associated with a particular sponsored project. utilities, administration, depreciation, interest, maintenance, office supplies

16. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Specific Costs: Unallowable:  Advertisement (except for grant specific positions*)  Alcohol  Entertainment, alumni activities  Charitable donations and contributions  Lobbying  Fines and penalties  Fund raising costs  To cover losses on other sponsored agreements or contracts  Travel beyond lowest commercial fare – Fly America Act  Goods and services for personal use  Telephone  Computers for offices or labs * Requires specific (written) grant authority

17. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Personal Services (Salaries/Wages/Fringe Benefits) Personal Services are allowable charges to the award provided that the charges are documented adequately. OMB Circular A-21 requires educational institutions to document 100% of the distribution of charges for personal services paid from federal funds. The system chosen will reflect activity applicable to each sponsored agreement. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has chosen the After-the-fact Activity Records method for documenting payroll distribution, which under Section J.10.c.(2)(c) of Circular A-21 requires reports to reasonably reflect the activities for which employees are compensated by the institution.

18. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts PAR = Invoice for personal services

19. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Personal Services (Salaries/Wages/Fringe Benefits) “To confirm that the distribution of activity represents a reasonable estimate of the work performed by the employee during the period, the reports will be signed by the employee, principal investigator, or responsible official(s) using suitable means of verification that the work was performed.” This is performed on a Personnel Activity Report (PAR) and is required for any direct charges as well as cost share for an award. PARs and payroll charges should support each other Retro payroll adjustments should also prompt a review of the PAR’s for that time period

20. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts “Costs allocable to a particular sponsored agreement may not be shifted to other sponsored agreements in order to meet deficiencies caused by overruns or other fund considerations, to avoid restrictions imposed by law or by terms of the sponsored agreement, or for other reasons of convenience.” (Source: A-21)

21. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Cost Transfers Red flags to auditors:  Multiple transfers – “Don’t you guys know what you are doing?”  Late transfers – “Aren’t you guys checking your reports?  Incomplete or poor explanations – “Why aren’t you telling us the whole story? What are you hiding?”

22. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Extensions Determine if an extension will be needed. “No cost” extensions available on some, but not all awards. Document the need for an extension Describe progress toward timeline Define time needed to complete project. Describe challenges to complete project. “I still have money to spend is not a good reason to extend.”

23. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Overspending an Award Costs must be removed from the grant Additional budget available? Use Commitments to avoid deficits Special Issues Changing a PI during the grant Leave of absence (3 months or more) Changing the effort promised Sub-awarding part of the grant Transferring Award to another institution Timing of expenditures – last 30 – 90 days “replacing what I used”

24. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Cost Share If you quantified cost share in your proposal, you must document that you provided it. Cost share provided by effort (salary) will be documented via a Personal Activity Report (PAR). Cost share provided by other forms of expenses will be documented and substantiated in files maintained by the department and, in some cases, by PAA. The original invoice and payment document should have a notation that the cost is used as cost share for grant “XYZ.”

25. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that expenditures are in compliance with the terms and conditions of the award. Post-Award can delay payment to a third party until adequate documentation is received. Sub-awards

26. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Documentation PARs Invoices Financial reports Copy of or evidence of submission of final technical or progress report (final payment may depend on this!) Cost Share (outside of PARs) Retention 3 years after the final report is filed Multi-year awards Keep documentation centrally located. Keep project notes with documentation.

27. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Use Proposal Development – Marla Rohrke Communicate with Pre-Award early and often. Provide budgets early if available. Communicate with your financial personnel.

28. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Modular budgets – Expand them and use as a tool to make sure you don’t overspend. Communicate with Post-Award. Document costs appropriately Obtain authorization in writing. Provide copy to your financial personnel.

29. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts File final reports on time. Funding can be withheld or refunds can be requested. Retain evidence that final reports were completed and submitted.

30. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Contact Post-Award, UNL Accounting or Operations Analysis if notified of an audit.

31. Effectively Managing your Grants and Contracts Call us! We’re here to help!