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Award Receipt and Administration When a proposal results in a grant or contract award, OCG reviews the award document and arranges for its official acceptance by the University. OCG conducts or coordinates any additional required negotiations before acceptance of a grant or contract award. The University, through its corporate name, The Regents of the University of Colorado, is the legal recipient of the award. The project director or principal investigator is the person who conducts the project and is responsible for the scientific progress and expenditure of funds. Assistance to the project director or principal investigator can be obtained from both OCG and Sponsored Projects Accounting. OCG provides assistance in the following ways:
OCG is the office to contact for answers to any questions involving grants and contracts. For information about whom to contact, click here. Review and Negotiation of Awards OCG reviews all award terms and conditions. Those award terms relating to the technical aspects of the project must be reviewed by the principal investigator. Award terms relating to cost principles, payment, property, intellectual property, legal issues, etc. are reviewed either solely by OCG or in conjunction with other individuals (e.g., Legal Counsel, Tech Transfer, SPA, etc.) OCG negotiates the award terms with an agency whenever the award language requires clarification or is either unacceptable or undesirable. Examples of generally unacceptable award terms include:
Examples of undesirable award terms include:
Referring Awards to Legal Counsel OCG normally is able to perform all necessary reviews of award terms. Occasionally, OCG may determine that it is necessary to refer an award or certain language in an award to University Legal Counsel for advice. Examples of situations when it is advisable to refer an award to Legal Counsel include:
Referring Awards to Tech Transfer OCG normally is able to perform all necessary reviews of award terms. Occasionally, OCG may determine that it is necessary to refer an award or certain language in an award to the Boulder Campus' Office of Technology Transfer and Industry Outreach for advice. Examples of situations when an award must be referred to Tech Transfer include:
"Pending" Awards and Authorization for Account Set-Up After an award is reviewed and accepted by OCG and the proper signatures of both the University and the funding agency are obtained, OCG authorizes Sponsored Projects Accounting to establish an account number (or account numbers, if applicable) for the award. Normally, this is done through "routing" an award document accompanied by an OCG/SPA award routing sheet to SPA. SPA assigns an account number(s) and returns the file to OCG for later routing throughout the OCG and SPA personnel, as appropriate. In the event of an award that is expected but not yet received, it is possible to authorize SPA to assign an account number(s) in the absence of the actual award. The following summarizes the normal procedures and policies:
In analyzing the information and risks, OCG takes into consideration some or all of the following:
In addition, as a part of the evaluation of "pending" requests, OCG and all of the interested campus personnel must be fully aware of the monetary cost to the campus related to incurring project costs for which the campus is unable to obtain reimbursement. Sponsored Projects Accounting (SPA) Sponsored Projects Accounting is located in the Administrative and Research Center (3100 Marine St., 4th Floor), sharing space and files with OCG. Sponsored Projects Accounting is a separate office which reports to Accounting and Budget Services, reporting to the Executive Director of Budget and Finance. Some of Sponsored Projects Accounting's activities closely involve OCG and many of those activities involve "behind-the-scenes" support services that are not readily apparent to sponsored project investigators. Sponsored Projects Accounting's responsibilities include:
Project Management The project director or principal investigator (usually called the "PI") of a sponsored project is the most crucial individual involved in both the technical and fiscal management of the project. This is a summary of some of the sponsoring agency requirements that the PI should be aware of as he or she carries out the responsibilities as project manager. First, comments about federal awards: All federal awards or subawards contain: 1) general rules that apply to all federal awards, and 2) other rules that are specific to the particular funding agency. The most important general rules come from an Office of Management and Budget circular called A-21 (entitled "Cost Principles for Educational Institutions"). A-21 defines an allowable cost as a cost directly benefiting the sponsored project and a cost that can reasonably and consistently be directly charged to the project (as opposed to indirect cost items). Most categories of cost items are clearly either 1) allowed (e.g., salaries, fringe benefits, laboratory supplies, travel, etc.); 2) not allowed (e.g., entertainment, alcohol, etc.); or 3) provided for as part of the indirect cost rate (e.g., heat, lights, etc.). In 1994, OMB issued clarifications of the A-21 rules stating that certain costs such as clerical and administrative salaries, office supplies, and other similar "administrative" costs should normally be considered as indirect costs and not charged directly to sponsored projects. OMB gave examples of situations under which direct charging of these costs might be appropriate, subject to approval by the awarding agency. A copy of the most recent memorandum regarding this follows. In 1996, A-21 was again revised to place additional constraints on allowable direct costs through a set of rules, called the Cost Accounting Standards, that require even more consistent treatment (i.e., direct costing versus indirect costing) of sponsored project costs. January 22, 1998 To: Principal Investigators of Grants and Contracts From: Larry Nelson, Director Office of Contracts and Grants Subject: Administrative and Clerical Costs on Federally-Funded Projects This is a reminder of a very important restriction on the use of federal grant and contract funds. About four years ago, principal investigators, chairs, and administrators were first advised of a change in the federal rules in a previous memorandum from OCG. A reminder of these rules was similarly distributed about two years ago. Inappropriate charges to contracts and grants creates a potential financial liability for the University. Virtually all federally-funded contracts and grants are subject to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-21, which defines the costs allowable to be charged to contract and grant accounts. OMB Circular A-21 was revised about four years ago to state that certain administrative, clerical, and "general purpose" expenses may not be allowable costs. The Circular states that: "The salaries of administrative and clerical staff should normally be treated as indirect costs. Direct charging of these costs may be appropriate where a major project or activity explicitly budgets for administrative or clerical services and individuals involved can be specifically identified with the project or activity. Items such as office supplies, postage, local telephone costs, and memberships shall normally be treated as indirect costs." OMB subsequently provided some clarification of these new rules by identifying some specific examples considered to be "illustrative of circumstances where direct charging the salaries of administrative or clerical staff may be appropriate." These are the following:
OMB also states that, "these examples are not exhaustive nor are they intended to imply that direct charging of administrative or clerical salaries would always be appropriate for the situations illustrated in the examples." In order to minimize the difficulty in interpreting all of this, we offer the following guidance and comment:
A second set of general rules, an OMB circular called A-110 (entitled "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education"), describes the various management systems and standards required of recipients of federal grants. Most of those management systems relate to financial, property, purchasing, cash management, and other systems that the University would have in place even if federal grants did not exist. However, some of the requirements in A-110 are directly relevant to the PI's role as project manager. Attached is a brief summary of relevant sections from A-110. Each sponsored project award also includes terms and conditions specific to the particular awarding agency. Because these federal rules vary agency to agency, OCG has created a matrix of the normal rules for the most frequent types of budget deviation situations. It must be remembered that every award also has the potential to include restrictions that are in addition to either the general rules of A-21 or the agency-specific rules described in the matrix. Therefore, both OCG and the PI need to carefully review all of the award documents and their terms and conditions. As project manager, the PI should also pay particular attention to all of the technical and management reports that are required by the terms of the contract or grant award. Finally, the University itself has a variety of policies and procedures applicable to sponsored project managers and their departments or units. Many of the University's systems are required by the State of Colorado (e.g., the State personnel system, the State purchasing rules, the State fiscal rules, etc.). Many policies and procedures are issued by the University or the campus and apply to all personnel (e.g., travel approval, conflict of interest, intellectual policy, the right to publish, secret research, additional remuneration, use of human subjects or animals, etc.). Some policies and procedures are relevant solely to sponsored projects (e.g., policies on sponsored project deficits, budget deviation approval through the Organizational Prior Approval System or "OPAS", proposal processing and approval, equipment purchase approval, etc.). Second, comments for non-federal awards: Many non-federal awards are actually subcontracts or subawards to the University that involve federal funds. Therefore, typically the federal terms and conditions are passed on to the University as "flow-down" terms and conditions. These "non-federal" awards involving federal funds often include other terms and conditions specific to the non-federal funding agency. For non-federal awards that do not involve federal funds, the award will contain terms and conditions specific to that award and to that funding agency. Budget Deviations and
Other Project Changes ORGANIZATIONAL PRIOR
APPROVAL SYSTEM (OPAS) All requests under OPAS for budget or other project changes (except for no-cost time extensions) MUST be co-signed by the Principal Investigator's/Project Director's unit head or other appropriate person who would have adequate technical knowledge to understand and endorse the request. OPAS requests are to be addressed to the Director of the Office of Contracts and Grants (OCG) Important Note: other requests that must be sent to funding agencies for approval of budget or other project changes MUST be co-signed by OCG. OPAS is designed to be a PRIOR approval system. Any requests that contemplate approval of a project change after the fact MUST include a complete explanation of the reasons for the lateness of the request. The following budget or other project changes always require the approval of the funding agency.
The following budget or other project changes require the approval of UCB and may also require the approval of the funding agency. Approval is required whenever such items are not included in the previously approved proposal budget as funded by the funding agency. Because each funding agency has its own set of rules, it may be necessary for OCG to write to or co-sign letters to funding agencies requesting approval of changes. Some agencies allow approval of such changes to made by UCB without additional agency approval. Questions should be directed to OCG.
For grants only (not contracts), OMB Circular provides for allowing funding agencies to authorize UCB to approve (through OPAS) the allowing of expenditures up to 90 days before the official award start date and a single no-cost extension of the award end date. The award must be reviewed because, in certain circumstances, an agency may not authorize pre-award costs or no-cost extensions and any such approvals must be obtained instead from the funding agency. Pre-award Costs UCB may allow expenditures to be incurred on a project during the
period of 90 days prior to the effective date (start date) of the award.
This approval can be given only when it is shown that an early start of
the project is necessary for the effective and economical conduct of the
project. Until the actual award is received, all such early expenditures
are made at the University's risk. Also, the University is not able to
receive any payment for reimbursement for such early expenditures until
the actual award is received. Therefore, spending before receipt of an
award will only be allowed when convincing information exists that an
award is imminent. The following agencies typically allow 90-day pre-award
costs: No-cost Extensions For most grants (but not contracts) UCB may approve a single (once during the life of a grant) no-cost extension of the termination date of a grant for a period of up to 12 additional months for typical grants made by the funding agencies listed above. Requests for such no-cost extensions should provide the following information:
IMPORTANT: no cost extensions MUST be approved under OPAS before the grant termination date. In other words, prior approval is required in all cases. UCB must send notice to the funding agency of the no-cost extension being approved within 10 days of such approval. After-the-fact (i.e., after the termination date) extensions must be approved by the funding agency. Travel Authorization OCG approves all travel authorization forms (TAP electronic forms) for sponsored project travel. All applicable State of Colorado fiscal rules, University policies and regulations, and sponsoring agency rules and regulations must be followed. OCG APPROVAL OF TRAVEL (TRAVEL REQUEST AND AUTHORIZATION FORM) Purpose: To check that the purpose of the travel is appropriate and an allowed expenditure
Procedure:
Considerations: Federal funds:
Non-federal funds: both foreign and domestic travel are subject to the individual terms of each non-federal award. Federal funds subcontracted to UCB by a non-federal source (e.g., JPL or other universities): if the non-federal award is actually a subcontract under a prime federal award, the applicable federal rules are usually included in the subcontract.
Equipment Purchase Approval OCG approves all capital equipment purchase requisitions prior to actual purchase. The Boulder Campus must recognize and comply with all funding agency requirements regarding capital equipment, including those requirements that involve a different definition of capital equipment. The Boulder Campus' definition of capital equipment is an item with a unit acquisition cost of $5,000 or more and an expected useful life of one year or more. However, for many funding agencies other definitions may apply.
FOR THOSE ITEMS REQUIRING ADDITIONAL APPROVAL UNDER OPAS Most federal grants include terms and conditions that either waive the prior approval requirements of OMB Circular A-21 or allow the University to approve certain budget deviations through the use of an internal approval system. CU-Boulder has in place an Organizational Prior Approval System (OPAS) whereby the principal investigator may request a significant budget deviation by completing the OPAS form, cosigned by his department chair or other appropriate academic official, and submitting it to OCG.
General purpose equipment is equipment that is multi-purpose in nature and not used solely for research (research equipment is called "special purpose equipment"). Federal rules state that general purpose items are generally regarded as items to be provided by the University and are allowable costs on grants and contracts only when specifically included in the proposed and approved budget, otherwise specifically approved by the sponsoring agency, or allowed under sponsoring agency award terms and conditions. ACCOUNTING EXPENSE CODES (ACCOUNTS) FOR EQUIPMENT (old FRS codes in parenthesis)
Government-Owned Property All federally funded grants and contracts contain provisions requiring that the University properly care for and manage all government-owned property either purchased with grant or contract funds or provided by the government to the University for use on the sponsored project. However, not all grants and contracts involve government property. Nearly all grants stipulate that title to equipment purchased with grant funds vests with the University upon acquisition. In most cases, the government retains certain rights to the equipment (e.g., the right to direct disposition of the equipment at the end of the project or the right to have the equipment transferred to another institution when the principal investigator leaves the University). Most contracts similarly stipulate that title vests with the University. However, every contract has the potential to contain specific language about title to equipment and the contract language must be carefully reviewed by OCG. Accountability for all government-owned property is documented through an OCG data base (internal to OCG) and through inclusion in the Campus' Property Accounting System (PAS). OCG inputs into the PAS all necessary information about government-owned items. Government property remains accountable as government property until the property is returned to the government or the government takes action to either give the University title to the property or abandon the property to the University. Purchase requests to purchase government property with grant or contract funds are coded with the appropriate account code 810200 (or 810800 for fabricated items). Government approval is required for all purchases of government-owned equipment. The terms of the grant or contract will determine any dollar thresholds applicable, the specific requirements for approval, possibly specific approval for specific items of equipment, and the requirements for the approval process. Other Non-University Owned Property Certain unusual non-federally funded grants and contracts contain provisions requiring that the University properly care for and manage property either purchased with grant or contract funds or provided by the sponsor to the University for use on the project. Normally, non-federal grants and contracts stipulate that title to equipment purchased with project funds vests with the University upon acquisition. In some cases, the sponsor may retain certain rights to the equipment (e.g., the right to direct disposition of the equipment at the end of the project or the right to have the equipment transferred to another institution when the principal investigator leaves the University). In some cases, the award language states that title to the equipment vests with the sponsor until the end of the project and then transfers automatically to the University. Accountability for all non-federally owned property is documented through an OCG data base (internal to OCG) and through inclusion in the Campus' Property Accounting System (PAS). OCG inputs into the PAS all necessary information about sponsor-owned items. Sponsor-owned property remains accountable as sponsor-owned property until the property is returned to the sponsor or the sponsor takes action to give the University title to the property. Purchase requests to purchase government property with grant or contract funds are coded with the appropriate account code 810200. It is not unusual that sponsor approval is required for all purchases of sponsor-owned equipment. The terms of the grant or contract will determine any dollar thresholds applicable, the specific requirements for approval, possibly specific approval for specific items of equipment, and the requirements for the approval process. Inventions and Patents The Technology Transfer website and links to University policies on intellectual property can be found at: http://www.cu.edu/techtransfer The Regents' Policy on Discovery and Patents states that "intellectual property created by employees of the university and related to their university responsibilities will belong to the university." The right of an employer to intellectual property created by its employees is a common practice in universities and companies throughout the country. Although the university owns intellectual property created by its faculty, staff, and other employees, any revenues derived from it are shared with the inventor or author, as described below. In addition, university ownership means that the university, not the inventor or author, pays for protecting the intellectual property through patents or other means. In keeping with long-standing tradition and consistent with academic freedom, the university does not claim rights to textbooks by faculty authors. Nor does the university claim rights to inventions by its employees unrelated to their university responsibilities and invented without use of university facilities. But employee inventions related to university responsibilities do fall under the Regents' policy, even if those inventions were made or perfected off-campus. Disclosure is required. Employees at CU are bound by University of Colorado Policy on Patents and Inventions, which requires disclosure of discoveries and inventions. The following language is considered to be standard language that would be proposed by and/or accepted by the Boulder Campus as part of a contractual agreement with another party:
University intellectual property policy requires that University employees disclose all inventions. It also provides for the following sharing of any net royalty revenues:
Transfer of the Principal Investigator to Another Institution It is UCB's policy and practice to allow investigators to take their grants and contracts with them if they move to a new institution. All grant and contract awards are issued to the University (usually to the official name of the institution which is The Regents of the University of Colorado). Accordingly, the University must submit an official relinquishment letter to the sponsoring agency in order for an award to be relinquished by UCB and to be transferred to the principal investigator's new institution. The funding agencies each have their own forms and procedures for accomplishing this transfer. In any event, the funding agency must approve any such transfer of an award. Therefore, it is imperative that the principal investigator quickly make contact with his or her program director at the sponsoring agency to discuss the transfer and any specific needs that the sponsoring agency may have. It is also imperative that the principal investigator make contact with the new institution's counterpart to OCG in order to submit any required proposal or other information to the funding agency and in order to maximize the possibility that the award transfer will occur in a timely manner. It is also imperative that the principal investigator fully understand the amount of time it may take to determine the actual amount of funds remaining in an award account that are to be transferred. Also, issues relating to equipment and other property must be discussed between the principal investigator and his or her department. It is especially important early in the process for the principal investigator to discuss his or her relocation with the academic unit, OCG, the new institution, and the funding agency when it is contemplated that some of the award funds will be spent at both institutions because some of the work will still be carried on at UCB. Such subcontracting implications can often be complicating factors in the smooth transfer of the award. Internally at UCB, there must be documentation that the academic unit has no objection to the relinquishment of the grant or contract award. In order to facilitate this, OCG offers a "model" memorandum for use by the units and the investigators as follows:
Federal sponsoring agencies stipulate that the agencies retain certain rights to all equipment purchased with federal funds. This includes the right to require that items of equipment purchased with federal funds be transferred to a principal investigator's new institution. This is not meant to imply that UCB is a hindrance in allowing investigators to take equipment with them when they leave UCB. It is UCB's policy and practice to allow investigators to take equipment items with them when they move. However, this applies only to those items purchased with non-University funds and not to those items purchased with University funds, including a faculty member's "start-up" funds. It is possible, however, for a principal investigator to negotiate with his or her department chair with regard to a "trade" whereby some grant-funded items are left at UCB and the investigator is allowed to take other "equivalent" items to the new institution. It is also possible for arrangements to be made with the principal investigator's new institution for the sale of the UCB items. Normally, this policy applies only when the principal investigator is moving to another university and the University will not allow equipment to be transferred to a for-profit entity (e.g., a company). Again, in order to facilitate this, OCG offers a "model" memorandum for use by the units and the investigators as follows:
Agreement between OCG and the CU Foundation (Grants vs. Gifts) In 1994, a Memorandum of Understanding Between the Office of Contracts and Grants, Boulder and the CU Foundation on the Administration of Proposals and Awards was implemented. The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is to state the respective roles of OCG and the CU Foundation in handling contract and grant awards (OCG) and gifts (CU Foundation). The MOU provides some general guidelines to be used in interpreting whether a particular award is a gift or not. The MOU also states that the individual designated as authorized to make that determination is the Director of the Office of Contracts and Grants. In order to facilitate the handling of situations that potentially could involve the CU Foundation, OCG uses the following procedure:
The Laws of the Regents and the Regent Policies are available on the
Web at the following address: OMB Circular A-21 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-21 is available on the
Web at the following address: OMB Circular A-110 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-110 is available on
the Web at the following address:
Responsibilities for Sponsored Programs Grant and Contract Administration University of Colorado at Boulder (UCB) GENERAL Sponsored Programs are research, instructional, or public service activities that are related to the mission of UCB and sponsored by external agencies or entities. "Facilities and administrative" (indirect) cost recovery is not a factor in determining whether funding is a sponsored program. Application/award issues that require administration by the Office of Contracts and Grants (OCG) include any one of the following:
OCG is the coordinating office for externally funded activities at the University of Colorado at Boulder and serves UCB faculty and staff by assisting in the preparation and submission of applications and proposals (including budgets), negotiation and execution of mutually binding agreements as well as the administration of UCB's funded projects. OCG also assists the campus in the review and negotiation of various non-funded agreements including, for example, property loan agreements, material transfer agreements, and "master" agreements for the support of funded projects to be determined at a later date. Sponsored Projects Accounting (SPA), a division of Accounting Services, is the coordinating office for fiscal (invoicing, reporting, expenditure control/compliance) and other related post-award aspects of sponsored programs. The following is provided to clarify the responsibilities of OCG, SPA, and principal investigators and their departments in both pre-award and post-award activities. PRE-AWARD RESPONSIBILITIES: Sponsored projects are funded by a wide array of sponsors including Federal, state and local governments; other universities; federally-funded laboratories; non-profit associations and organizations; foundations; and for-profit corporate entities. The application process varies with the sponsor, and each one will have unique requirements. The pre-award process requires OCG, the principal investigator, and the department that is pursuing sponsored program funding to be responsible for various activities in the process. Responsibilities of OCG: Provide advice to faculty on the potential sources of grant and contract support; maintain a library on funding information (to the extent resources permit); and assure continued service from and function as the liaison with the Community of Science. Provide pre-submission assistance and review of applications/proposals to insure that all institutional issues have been addressed and granting agency rules and regulations have been observed. Provide institutional approval of submittal. Review award documents for comprehensiveness, appropriate language and compliance with guidelines set by the sponsoring agencies as well as the UCB and State requirements. Negotiate terms and conditions and budgets for all UCB extramural awards. Execute sponsored project and related agreements on behalf of UCB. Act as primary administrative contact point for all Federal and non-federal sponsoring agencies. Interpret and disseminate the major sponsor policies and forms within UCB. Facilitate the transfer of a principal investigator's proposals, grants or contracts from other grantee/contractor organizations. Prepare, publish, and maintain manual of administrative and costing information necessary for the proper preparation of an application/proposal for extramural funding. Obtain information from sponsor regarding continuation proposal due dates, notify principal investigators when non-competing and competing grant applications are required and provide the necessary application materials. Prepare routine and ad-hoc reports. Provide appropriate training to departmental research administrative personnel. Responsibilities of principal investigator(s) and their departments/divisions: Contact Dean's Office or OCG to inquire about funding opportunities. Contact sponsor for appropriate application forms if not available in OCG or on the OCG website. Prepare proposal to sponsor which includes the budget and technical portion of proposal and all appropriate assurances. Submit copy of special program guidelines for OCG review process. Communicate with OCG if there is a question regarding the appropriate facilities and administrative (indirect) cost rate, e.g., on or off-campus rate. Obtain all appropriate approvals, e.g., all signatures required on the application/proposal approval form and any special approvals for human subjects, lab animals, hazardous materials, radioactive materials, or biosafety agents. At the time of submission, the proposal should be complete administratively and scientifically for the final review and signature. Answer project-specific questions of sponsor. POST-AWARD RESPONSIBILITIES: Post-award administration is a joint effort on the part of the Principal Investigator, departmental administration, OCG, and SPA. Each area has specific responsibilities to ensure that the UCB complies with Federal, State and sponsor guidelines. Failure to comply with any of the required guidelines or regulations may jeopardize UCB's ability to qualify for future funding. Sponsored project grants and contracts are legally and mutually binding agreements between the sponsoring agency and the Regents of the University of Colorado. While the agreement is with the institution, the Principal Investigator has primary responsibility for achieving the technical success of the project, while also complying with the financial and administrative policies and regulations associated with the award. Although Principal Investigators may have administrative staff to assist them with the management of project funds, the ultimate responsibility for the management of the sponsored project work and funds rests with the Principal Investigator. With this responsibility comes the obligation to adhere to all terms and conditions of the award and to adequately document all expenditures in accordance with the sponsor regulations. Responsibilities of SPA: Review awards to set up new project and chartfield in the PeopleSoft general ledger system and establishes the appropriate budget for the chartfield that is in accordance with the sponsor's award notice. Monitor and approve expenditures in a timely manner on the campus accounting system, including post-audit review, within established parameters, as to allowability, allocability, and appropriateness. Review the award notice to assure that invoicing procedures are met as required by the sponsor. Manage billing and cash collection activities and performs appropriate follow-up when payments are past due, including tracking and aging of receivables. Prepare interim and final financial reports as required by sponsors. Assures that expenditures reflected in the financial reports are in accordance with sponsor terms and conditions. Performs forecasting of expenditures, often in collaboration with the principal investigators or other appropriate personnel. Accounts for all cost sharing and/or matching expenditures to be reported to the sponsors. Administer the Personnel Effort Report (PER) system - a system of monthly, after-the-fact confirmation reports that document the percentage distribution of effort for the period reported and substantiate salary charges to sponsored project grants, contracts, and agreements. Complete all necessary procedures to close and retire sponsored accounts in PeopleSoft. Reconcile COFRS (State of Colorado accounting system) to PeopleSoft. Prepare campus year-end accounting reports for restricted funds. Coordinate, in partnership with OCG, all financial audit matters relative to sponsored projects. Provide, every two months, to OCG a list of accounts that are in deficit by $10,000 or more. Responsibilities of OCG: Review the grant or contract award notice for special terms and conditions, including prior approval requirements, matching funds, and cost sharing. Research, analyze, and clarify for UCB faculty and staff various UCB and sponsor policies, procedures, and regulations. Write all subcontract agreements; approves all purchase requests for subcontracts. Obtain approvals for equipment purchase, travel, no-cost extensions, or other items that may require sponsor approval. Approve equipment purchase requests and travel authorizations. Prepare interim and final invention and property reports as required by sponsors. Process and sign all close-out documents for contract awards (other than fiscal reports and final invoices). Coordinate, in partnership with SPA, all financial audit matters relative to sponsored projects. Prepare routine and ad-hoc reports. Review and annotate every two months a list from SPA of accounts in deficit and forward that list to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Research, the Vice Chancellor for Budget and Planning, and the Chair of the BFA Budget and Planning Committee. The annotated list will include determinations of those accounts that should be considered to be unauthorized deficits and that may be subject to being assessed interest charges if they are not resolved within 60 days. Responsibilities of principal investigator(s) and their departments/divisions: Execute the technical aspects of the project. Adhere to UCB requirements for human subjects, animal care, hazardous materials, biosafety, and any other regulatory requirements. Carry out the project's financial plan as presented in the funded proposal, or make changes to the plan following sponsor policies and procedures; this includes obtaining any approvals from the sponsor or from OCG that may be necessary. Initiate employment and payroll actions and supervise project personnel. Maintain fiscal stewardship over the sponsored account, ensuring the reasonable and prudent use of the sponsor's funds, in accordance with all sponsor and University policies and procedures. Authorize only those requisitions, Personnel Action Forms (PAFs), and other spending actions necessary for the conduct of the sponsored project. Review the monthly accounting statements to determine that all charges and credits are appropriate. Assure that any errors involving the allocation of an expense are corrected in a timely manner. Prepare and submit all technical reports, project reports, and deliverables required by the sponsor. Advise OCG and/or SPA of any proposed sponsor audits, financial reviews, or any other financial or administrative inquiry from sponsors. Receive appropriate training in these responsibilities and the means to meet them. Ensure that administrative personnel working with the project receive appropriate training.
Policy to Recover Costs Due to Deficit Spending
The following policy was implemented on February 24, 2000 as a result
of a motion approved by the Boulder Faculty Assembly (BFA). The intention
of this policy is to discourage unauthorized and flagrant overspending of
sponsored projects and to assess a financial penalty (the imposition of an
interest charge) to the relevant campus department, center, or
institute. The Boulder Campus will proceed with the following policy to recover
costs from flagrant deficit spending:
Policies and Procedures for the Reimbursement of Costs Incurred by Departments and Institutes in Support of Research
TO: Deans, Department Chairs and Directors Introduction Since 1983 the DA-ICR program (Departmental Administration Indirect
Cost Recovery) has provided general fund support in proportion to indirect
cost recovery generated from a unit's sponsored programs. The purpose of
this memorandum is to update and clarify the policies and procedures of
the program. The policies are stated first and the detailed procedures are
listed at the end of the policy statement. POLICY STATEMENT 1. Indirect cost recovery (ICR) or facilities & administrative
costs (F&A) is revenue deposited to the general fund that comes from
charging an indirect cost to agencies sponsoring research. A portion of
the revenue from these indirect cost charges is returned to the
departments in the budget process, and is called Departmental
Administration ICR (DA-ICR). The portion of campus ICR that becomes DA-ICR
is calculated from the campus indirect cost rate (see Procedure 1 for more
information). Twenty-nine percent of campus ICR is returned to the units
at present, after certain deductions are made. The remainder is allocated
to other campus activities and costs that support research
activities. 2. The purpose of the DA-ICR program is to provide budget adjustments
that reflect the changes of sponsored research and other sponsored
programs. A unit receives budget allocations that are based, in part, on
the amount of ICR received from its sponsored project expenditures. A
unit's DA-ICR allocation will increase if the unit's ICR has increased
over the last year relative to other units, assuming that other factors
remain the same. This is a continuing support budget increase. See
Procedures 2 and 3 for more information on DA-ICR allocation
algorithms. 3. The DA-ICR is the amount budgeted for the support of sponsored research and other sponsored programs. The DA-ICR allocations represent the amount allocated solely for support of sponsored projects. Annual increases in support budgets are made for staff cost of living and merit increases. Therefore, an assessment against the DA-ICR allocation is made for a share of these annual increases (sometimes called "central pots"). This assessment is calculated by finding the ratio in each unit of its ICR allocation to the total support budget. This ratio is called the "percent ICR-funded", and it is applied to the total central pots of the unit to determine the assessment to the DA-ICR allocation. The new revised policy places a cap of 69% on the percent of central pots funded from ICR. See Procedure 2.d for more information.
6. DA-ICR allocations will be made directly to the applicable
department, institute, or college/school accounts (in the last case where
departments do not exist). If the college/school/Institute department
chairs/directors agree to a centralized distribution plan, the dean may
reallocate DA-ICR allocations among the departments and retain some
portion. Arrangements of this type must have the approval of the Vice
Chancellor for Research. Centers that report to department chairs may make
agreements for sharing DA-ICR allocations at the discretion of the
department chair. In cases where the centers host research carried out by
faculty from several units, the responsibility for distribution between
two or more units lies with the administrator who has authority for those
units. 7. The first priority for distribution of DA-ICR is to cover the
research support needs of the unit. The DA-ICR is reimbursement for
indirect costs of the department, and should first be applied to these
costs. Any excess ICR allocations may then be distributed by the unit
within the range of appropriate expenditures as described next. See
Procedures 4 and 5 for more information. 8. DA-ICR budgets should be distributed within the unit so that there
is a reinvestment in the support of research and other sponsored programs.
The budget should add to the departmental administration indirect costs,
thereby increasing future allocations of ICR to research. See Procedure 5
for examples of appropriate types of expense. PROCEDURES 1. Accounting and Budget Services will calculate the DA-ICR percentage
of campus ICR using the most recently negotiated indirect cost rate. The
portion of campus budgeted ICR that becomes the DA-ICR is calculated by
finding the ratio of departmental administration costs to all campus
indirect costs. This ratio is converted to a percentage and applied to the
total sponsored research ICR budget to determine the total DA-ICR to be
distributed to the departments. This is the current "29%". The following
is an explanation of indirect costs that comprise the indirect cost rate
and how the rate relates to the DA-ICR. Departmental Administration costs (DA) are defined as those costs
incurred in the academic departments (including deans' offices)
representing administrative or support activities that have some benefit
to the research function. The ICR that results from DA costs is returned
to the units that incur the costs. The percentage of the total indirect
costs that are calculated to be DA costs defines the percentage of the
campus indirect cost recovery that is returned to departments through the
DA-ICR. 2. Accounting and Budget Services will calculate the ICR for each unit.
Any shared ICR between units as reported by OCG is also included in the
calculations. The Budget Office will then apply the following algorithms
and allocate the DA-ICR to each unit. DA-ICR budgets are adjusted each
fiscal year based on the percent generated (unit ICR/campus ICR) by each
unit during the twelve-month period ending the preceding March 31st. The
campus ICR budget for sponsored research for the new year is estimated by
Accounting and Budget Services. 3. The adjustment in the ICR allocation is made in two parts, as
follows: 4. The department heads/directors/deans will distribute the net ICR
adjustment. Note that the demands on the department support functions must
be taken into consideration first. These may include increased staff or
technical support, promotions, office or lab supplies, equipment repairs
or purchases and faculty travel. Principal investigators may share in
DA-ICR distributions only if the research support indirect costs of the
unit are maintained. DA-ICR distributions are made to the unit(s) sponsoring the research
work. Each unit may develop its own policy with respect to sharing these
resources with the principal investigators. Before sharing is undertaken,
however, the unit administration must ensure that all unit accounts will
remain within budget even if it is necessary to use some of the DA-ICR
funds to accomplish this goal. The unit administration must retain the
right to retrieve unused DA-ICR funds from principal investigators if the
unitÕs budgets are not in balance or to tax future DA-ICR allocations in
order to clear any deficits in any unit account. Moreover, the University
reserves the right to apply DA-ICR funds to cover any departmental
deficits. 5. Accounting and Budget Services will review annually the support
account expenditures to determine if they are allowable and can be
included in the indirect cost rate. In contrast, the following types of expenditures will dilute the DA
cost category and serve to decrease the allocations to research. These transactions are not advisable for DA-ICR funds: Classified/Propriety Projects A section of the Laws of the Regents of the University states
that: Academic freedom is defined as the freedom to inquire, discover,
publish and teach truth as the faculty member sees it, subject to no
control or authority save the control and authority of the rational
methods by which truth is established . . . . . . Members of the faculty
must have complete freedom to study, to learn, to do research, and to
communicate the results of these pursuits to others. The University has a policy and procedure that must be followed for any
proposal or project that involves either a federal government classified
material or classified contract issue or an industrial entity's
requirement for restriction or prohibition of publishing the results of
the project (i.e., proprietary research). This policy is also interpreted
to apply to any delay of publication by a sponsor that exceeds six months.
The University policy provides that only the CU President is authorized to
approve "secret research" which means either classified or proprietary
research. At issue is the University's ability to publish or disclose the
results of the project or, sometimes, even the existence of the project.
In order to be endorsed by the Campus, such projects must clearly not
involve any aspect that is detrimental to the Campus' ability to meet its
mission as a public university and as a State of Colorado institution.
Also, it must be clear that academic freedom, the right to publish, and
students' theses are not adversely affected. The Boulder Campus has a protocol required for endorsing a request to
the President of the University for granting an exception to the
policy: OCG keeps track of all exceptions approved by the President and submits
an annual report (usually in August) to the Vice President for Academic
Affairs listing all awards still in existence that have been
approved. The University of Colorado policy on classified research is available
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