This A to Z glossary contains common research administration terminology, including terms and phrases specific to CU Boulder and the University of Colorado system.
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| Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
| 1/6th Rule | Board of Regents Policy that permits faculty consulting work outside the University as long as it does not interfere with teaching and other University commitments, normally not more than 1/6 their time during any academic period |
| 1800 Grant Street | Location in downtown Denver where University offices are located, ie, President's Office, Payroll and Employee Services, Office of University Controller, Office of Policy and Efficiency, Board of Regents, Internal Audit, University Systems Office, etc. |
| A-21 | Office of Management & Budget (OMB) Circular A-21 -- Cost Principles for Educational Institutions (superseded by CFR Title 2, Part 200) |
| A-110 | Office of Management & Budget (OMB) Circular A-110 -- Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements With Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations (superseded by CFR Title 2, Part 200) |
| A-122 | A-122 OMB Circular A-122 -- Cost Principles for Nonprofit Organizations |
| A-133 | Office of Management & Budget (OMB) Circular A-133 -- Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations (superseded by CFR Title 2, Part 200) |
| AAALAC | American Association of Animal Laboratory Accreditation Council |
| AAAS | American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| AAMC | Association of American Medical Colleges |
| AAU | Association of American Universities |
| ABRF | Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities |
| ACO | Administrative Contracting Officer |
| Account Code | a/c. A ChartField used to identify the nature and financial type of a financial transaction |
| ADA | Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 |
| AFAA | Air Force Audit Agency |
| AFARS | Army Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement |
| AFOSR | Air Force Office of Scientific Research |
| AFRL | Air Force Research Laboratory |
| AHRQ | Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality |
| Allocable | A cost that benefits both a sponsored agreement and other work of the institution, in proportions that can be approximated through use of reasonable methods |
| Allowable | A cost that is reasonable and allocable to sponsored agreements under the principles and methods provided for sponsored projects |
| AMC | Anschutz Medical Campus |
| Amendment | Same as modification |
| ANPRM | Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking |
| AOR | Authorized Official Representative |
| AP | Accounts Payable |
| APPE | Association of Practical & Professional Ethics |
| APS | Administrative Policy Statement -- policy statements issued by the System Office and are applicable to all University campuses |
| ARL | Army Research Lab |
| ARO | Army Research Office |
| ARDA | Advanced Research & Development Activity |
| ARPA | Advanced Research Projects Agency |
| ASAP | Department of Treasury's Automated Standard Application for Payment system which allows web based funds withdrawal from grant accounts |
| ATP | Advanced Technology Program |
| Audit | An inspection of accounting records and procedures by a trained accountant for the purpose of verifying the accuracy and completeness of the records, and may also include examination of compliance with applicable terms, laws, and regulations |
| Award | Funds that have been obligated by a funding agency for a particular project; an award may have multiple project numbers |
| AWOF or AWF | Agreement Without Funds -- a non-monetary service or research contract, under the authority of the Office of Contracts and Grants, between CU and another external entity or entities |
| AY | Academic Year |
| B2B | Business to Business |
| BA | Business Analyst |
| BAA | Broad Agency Announcement |
| BPN | Business Partner Network |
| Budget | A detailed statement outlining estimated project costs to support work under a grant or contract |
| Budget Deviation | Significant change from the sponsor-approved budget which may or may not require OCG or CCO approval (contact your Grant Officer or Area Accountant) |
| Capital Expenditure | Expenditure on an asset costing $5,000 or more that has a life of more than one year, used interchangeably with fixed asset or equipment. Individual sponsors may have different dollar limitations defining "capital equipment" |
| Carry Forward / Carry Over |
The process by which unobligated funds remaining at the end of a budget period may be carried forward (carried over) to the next budget period. |
| CAS | Federally mandated Cost Accounting Standards intended to ensure uniformity in budgeting and spending funds |
| CAS 501 | Cost Accounting Standards 501 -- Consistency in estimating, accumulating and reporting costs by educational institutions |
| CAS 502 | Cost Accounting Standards 502 -- Consistency in allocating costs incurred for the same purpose by educational institutions |
| CAS 505 | Cost Accounting Standards 505 -- Unallowable costs must be identified and excluded from all claims for reimbursement |
| CAS 506 | Cost Accounting Standards 506 -- Institutions must consistently use the same cost accounting period for estimating, accumulating, and reporting costs |
| CAS Exceptions (3 criteria) | Contracts & Subcontracts exempt from all CAS requirements are those whose work will be executed and performed entirely outside the United States, its territories, and its possessions |
| CASB | Cost Accounting Standards Board |
| CBD | Commerce Business Daily |
| CBO | Congressional Budget Office |
| CCH | Commerce Clearing House |
| CCO | Campus Controller's Office |
| CCR | Central Contractor Registration |
| CFDA# | Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance -- a unique number assigned to federal agency programs |
| CFO | Chief Financial Officer |
| CFR | Code of Federal Regulations -- the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations (sometimes called administrative law) published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States |
| CFR Title 2, Part 200 | Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards -- supersedes OMB Circulars A-21, A-110 and A-133 and becomes effective for universities on 12/26/14 |
| CFS | Committee on Fundamental Science |
| Chart of Accounts | COA -- a list of accounts in the general ledger that are systematically classified by title & number |
| CICA | Competition in Contracting Act |
| CIW | Central Information Warehouse, Data tables from PeopleSoft Finance and HR modules maintained on-line and available for writing BrioQuery or Access reports. |
| Classified Salary | Salaries of administrative and clerical staff that should normally be treated as F&A 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. "Major project" is defined as a project requiring an extensive amount of administrative or clerical support, which is significantly greater than the routine level of such services provided by academic departments. |
| CLIN | Contract Line Item Number |
| Close Out | Procedures used after project termination to ensure all required paperwork, reports, and financial clean up has occurred to submit required paperbook to sponsors and retire the project in PeopleSoft. |
| CMIA | Cash Management Improvement Act |
| CMP | Conflict Management Plan |
| CNO | Chief Naval Operations |
| CO | Contracting Officer |
| COGNOS Reporting Tool | Systems tool used to generate m-fin financial reports from PeopleSoft |
| COGR | Council on Government Relations |
| COI | Conflict of Interest |
| Concur | System operated and maintained by PSC that supports University travel (Concur Travel) and is the mechanism by which PCard transactions, employee reimbursements, and travel card expenditures are allocated to the appropriate speedtype (Concur Expense) |
| Consistency | The principle of applying same methodology to similar transactions, events, or circumstances |
| Contract | A mechanism for procurement of a product or service with specific obligations for both sponsor and recipient. Typically, a research topic and the methods for conducting the research are specified in detail by the sponsor. |
| Cooperative Agreement | An award similar to a grant, but in which the sponsor's staff may be actively involved in proposal preparation and anticipate having substantial involvement in research activities once the award has been made |
| Corporate Travel Card | VISA card used by employees for University-related travel expenses; it provides State travelers with insurance coverage, and is required for expenses related to the use and fueling of rental vehicles, lodging, airline tickets and other common carrier tickets (if not purchased through an approved travel agency), and international travel expenses. |
| COS | Committee on Science of the National Science and Technology Council |
| COSEPUP | Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy |
| Cost Accounting Standards | (CAS) Federally mandated accounting standards intended to ensure uniformity in budgeting and spending funds |
| Cost Share | Cost Share is that portion of the costs of research, training, public service or equipment projects that the University or a third party pays for or documents as its portion of a project's costs |
| Cost Share: Statutory/Mandatory | Cost share commitments that are required by the agency for the award |
| Cost Share: Voluntary Committed | Cost share commitments that are not required for the award but are voluntarily committed in the budget and/or in the project proposal |
| Cost Share: Voluntary Uncommitted | Cost share commitments that are neither required for the award nor obligated in the project budget or proposal, but represent University commitment actually spent on the project. This type of cost share doesn't need to be tracked, reported, or included in the F&A base. |
| Cost Share: In Kind | Contributions or assistance in a form other than money-equipment, materials, or services of recognized value that are offered in lieu of cash. |
| Cost Transfer | A cost transfer involves the recording of an expense in a sponsored project speedtype that had previously been charged elsewhere. Cost transfers should be considered “the exception, rather than the rule,” and must be kept to a minimum. They must be allowable, timely, reasonable, consistent, of benefit to the sponsored project that is the recipient of the cost, and adequately documented. |
| COTR | Contract Officer Technical Representative |
| CPSR | Contractor Procurement/Property System Review |
| CRADA | Cooperative Research and Development Agreement |
| CRS | Congressional Research Service |
| CSR | Center for Scientific Review |
| CTSA | Clinical & Translational Science Award |
| DA | Departmental Administrator -- the person in a department (center, institute, etc.) that is responsible for the day-to-day transaction processing of departmental financial events |
| DA | Department Administration Costs |
| DA | Department of the Army |
| DARPA | Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency |
| DCE | Direct Cost Equivalent |
| DCAA | Defense Contract Audit Agency |
| DCASRs | Defense Contract Administration Services Regions |
| DEAR | Department of Energy Acquisition Regulations |
| Deliverable | Specific end product as a result of work performed on a sponsored project. Examples include a final technical report, an evaluation report, technical assistance, training, compiled database, etc., usually with specific deadlines. |
| DEPA | Disclosure of External Professional Activities -- the annual disclosure of information relevant to potential conflicts of interest and/or commitment |
| Depreciation | Allocating the acquisition cost of a fixed asset over its estimated useful life rather than charging its full cost in the year it was acquired |
| DFAR | Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation |
| DFARS | Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement |
| DHEW | Department of Health, Education, and Welfare |
| DHHS | Department of Health and Human Services |
| DIA | Defense Intelligence Agency |
| DIALOG | A computer-based search system using key words |
| DIPEC | Defense Industrial Plant Equipment Council |
| Direct Cost (DC) | Costs identified with the sponsored work that can be identified relatively easily with a high degree of accuracy. General categories of direct costs include but are not limited to salaries and wages, fringe benefits, research supplies, contractual services, travel and communication, equipment, and computer use. |
| DIS | Defense Investigative Service |
| DNA | Defense Nuclear Agency |
| DOC | Department of Commerce |
| DOD | Department of Defense |
| DoD GAR | Department of Defense Grant and Agreement Regulations -- these regulations provide uniform policies and procedures for the award and administration of DoD Grants and Cooperative Agreements (see FAR for contract regulations) |
| DOE | Department of Energy |
| DoED | Department of Education |
| DOL | Department of Labor |
| DOT | Department of Transportation |
| DS-2 | The Boulder Campus Disclosure Statement filed with and approved by our federal cognizant agency (Department of Health and Human Services). The DS-2 formally states our policy for direct charging expenses to sponsored projects. |
| DSMB | Data Safety Monitoring Board |
| DSMP | Data Safety Monitoring Plan |
| EAR | Export Administration Regulations |
| EARS | Electronic Approval and Routing Systems |
| ebXML | Electronic Business Extensible Markup Language |
| EC | Electronic Commerce |
| EDA | Economic Development Administration |
| EDGAR | Education Department General Administration Regulations |
| EDI | Electronic Data Interchange |
| EEOC | Equal Employment Opportunity Commission |
| EFT | Electronic Funds Transfer |
| EHS | Employee Health Services |
| EH&S | Environmental Health & Safety |
| EMTALA | Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act |
| Encumbrance | Costs obligated for expenditure but not yet realized. May be created by PO, SPO, tuition or payroll subsystems. |
| EO | Executive Order |
| EPA | Environmental Protection Agency |
| ePERs | Electronic Personnel Effort Reporting System -- paperless effort reporting forms completed & filed electronically |
| Equipment | (Also called capital equipment or fixed assets) Tangible personal property with a life of more than one year and a cost of $5,000 or more. |
| ERA | Economic Regulatory Administration |
| ERA | Electronic Research Administration. |
| ESCRO | Embryonic Stem Cell Research Oversight |
| ESSCB | Empire State Stem Cell Board |
| ETA | Employment and Training Administration |
| EVS | Equipment Visibility System |
| Exchange-like Transaction | Transaction in which there is an identifiable exchange between the University and a sponsoring agent but the exchange may not be quite equal, or the direct benefits of the exchange may not be exclusively for the parties |
| Expanded Authority | The authority granted to CU that waives the prior approval requirements by a sponsoring agency. Expanded authority is used only for changes that are necessary for the completion of the project within its original scope and original total budget. |
| F&A | Facilities & Administrative Costs (aka Indirect Costs) -- Indirect (F&A) Costs: 2 CFR 200 Uniform Guidance defines indirect (F&A) costs as “those costs incurred for a common or joint purpose benefitting more than one cost objective, and not readily assignable to the cost objectives specifically benefitted, without effort disproportionate to the results achieved.” Indirect costs (also known as IDC, overhead, facilities and administrative costs, or F&A) are real costs to CU Boulder that are not readily or easily assignable to a specific funded project. Indirect costs help promote organized research at CU Boulder by providing funds for research-related expenses such as heat, light, water, electricity and custodial services in offices and laboratory spaces; occupational safety and hazardous waste removal; telecommunications; computers and internet access; and many other support services. |
| FAA | Federal Aviation Administration |
| FAR | Federal Acquisition Regulations -- the primary regulation for use by all Federal Executive agencies in their acquisition of supplies and services with appropriated funds (contracts are subject to the FAR) |
| FARS | Financial Accounting and Reporting System |
| FASA | Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act |
| FASAB | Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board |
| FASEB | Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology |
| FastLane | FastLane is an interactive real-time system used to conduct NSF business over the Internet. Much of the system functionality has been transferred into Research.gov. |
| FBO | Federal Business Opportunities |
| FCC | Federal Communications Commission |
| FCST | Federal Council for Science and Technology |
| FDA | Food and Drug Administration |
| FDP I | Florida Demonstration Project |
| FDP II | Federal Demonstration Project |
| FDP III & IV | Federal Demonstration Partnership |
| FEA | Federal Enterprise Architectures |
| FECAI | Federal Electronic Commerce Acquisition Instructions |
| Federal Cognizant Agency | The federal agency to which we are assigned for purposes of certain administration functions such as F&A rate negotiation and audit resolution |
| Federal Flowthrough | A non-Federal entity that provides a Federal award to a subrecipient or subaward to carry out a Federal program |
| FEDIX | An online federal data base serving most federal agencies for online searches |
| Fellowship | Term applies to a broad range of awarded financial support. Sponsors often use this term loosely to mean any form of support, whether for schooling, academic training, or for research support of any type. Do NOT confuse this term with method of payment, see Stipend for that topic. |
| FEMA | Federal Emergency Management Agency |
| FERPA | Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act |
| FFATA | Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 or "Transparency Act" -- The FFATA Subaward Reporting System tool is used by Federal prime awardees (i.e. prime contractors and prime grants recipients) to capture and report subaward and executive compensation data regarding their first-tier subawards |
| FFMIA | Federal Financial Management Improvement Act |
| FHWA | Federal Highway Administration |
| FICC | Federal Interagency Coordinating Council |
| FileMaker | OCG database that supplies proposal and award information on proposals and awards. This system is no longer used and has been replaced by InfoEd. |
| FIMA | Fiancial Management System |
| FIPSE | Fund for Improvement of Post Secondary Education |
| FISAP | Fiscal Operations Report & Application to Participate |
| Fiscal Manager | (Formerly known as Key Contact) Departmental Administrator who receives monthly project financial reports and is responsible for managing its financials |
| Fixed Asset | Expenditure on an asset costing $5,000 or more that has a life of more than one year, used interchangeably with capital equipment or equipment |
| FP or Fixed Price | A funded agreement in which payment will be made upon a set dollar amount, regardless of how much is expended to complete the agreed upon performance |
| Fly America Act | This requires Federal employees and their dependents, consultants, contractors, grantees, and others performing United States Government financed foreign air travel to travel by U.S. flag air carriers |
| FMC | Federal Management Circular |
| FN | Foreign National |
| FOB | Free On Board |
| FOIA | Freedom of Information Act |
| FPS | Financial Procedure Statement, which provides procedural guidance for University financial activity |
| FR | Federal Register |
| Fringe Benefits | Employee benefits paid by the employer (e.g., FICA, Worker's Compensation, Withholding Tax, Insurance, etc.) |
| FS&T | Federal Science and Technology Budget |
| FTC | Federal Telecommunications System |
| FTE | Full Time Equivalent |
| Funding | Financial resources provided to sponsored projects. |
| Funding: Incremental | A method of funding contracts that provides specific spending limits below the total estimated funding. These limits may be exceeded only at the contractor's own risk. Each increment is, in essence, a funding action. |
| Funding: Modular | Specific to NIH R01, R03, R15, & R21 awards that have direct cost budgets of $250K or less that require no budget detail with the proposal submission. Payments are made in $25K increments. |
| Funding: Advance | Funding paid to the University by the sponsor at the beginning of the project. The terms of this type of payment usually require returning any unused funds to the sponsor at the completion of the project. |
| Funding: Fixed price | A contract/grant for which one party pays the other party a predetermined price, regardless of actual costs, for services rendered. Quite often this is a fee-for-service agreement. |
| Funding: Cost reimbursable | A contract/grant for which the sponsor pays for costs incurred in the conduct of the work up to an agreed-upon amount |
| FWA | Federal Wide Assurance |
| FY | Fiscal Year |
| GA | General Administration (Costs) |
| GAAP | Generally Accepted Accounting Principles |
| GAIR | General Administrative and Infrastructure Recharge is a combination of the General Administrative Recharge (GAR) and the General Infrastructure Recharge (GIR). The two have their own rates and are calculated separately in the Finance System, but are often referred to together as GAIR. |
| GAO | General Accounting Office |
| GAR | General Administrative Recharge -- a percentage rate charged to auxiliary and self-funded funds (20, 26, 28, 29) and their renewal and replacement plant fund (78) and to agency funds (80) calculated monthly on expenditures. |
| GASB | Governmental Accounting Standards Board |
| GATT | General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade |
| General Purpose Equipment | Equipment which is not limited to research, medical, scientific or other technical activities. Examples include office equipment and furnishings, modular offices, telephone networks, information technology equipment and systems, air conditioning equipment. |
| GIR | General Infrastructure Recharge -- a percentage rate charged to auxiliary and self-funded funds (20, 26, 28, 29) and their renewal and replacement plant fund (78) calculated monthly on expenditures. |
| GL | General Ledger -- that part of PeopleSoft Finance that contains the accounting records of all financial data for the University that are used to generate the official financial reports of the university. |
| GMO | Grants Management Office |
| GMRA | Government Management Reform Act |
| GPG | Grant Proposal Guide (NSF) |
| GPO | Government Printing Office |
| GPRA | Government Performance and Results Act |
| GRA | Graduate Research Assistant |
| GSA | General Services Administration |
| Grant | A grant is a legal instrument of financial assistance used to transfer money, property, or anything of value to a recipient in order to accomplish a particular purpose, without substantial involvement from the sponsor, in the direction of the project. |
| Grant/Contract Officer (OCG) | OCG staff member responsible for reviewing and negotiating contract terms, administering the award, and liaising with sponsor representatives during a project's period of performance. |
| Grant/Contract Officer (Sponsor) | A sponsor's designated individual who is officially responsible for the business management aspects of a particular grant, cooperative agreement, or contract. Serving as the counterpart to the business officer of the grantee/contractor organization, the grant/contract officer is responsible for all business management matters associated with the review, negotiation, award, and administration of a grant or contract and interprets the associated administration policies regulations, and provisions. |
| Grants.gov | Portal used to submit all proposals for federal awards, which are then distributed to each appropriate agency. Electronic proposal submission to be required from Feb 1, 2007 onwards. |
| GUIRR | Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable |
| HBCU | Historically Black College and University |
| HCFA | Health Care Financing Administration |
| HCM | Human Capital Management -- this is the PeopleSoft human resources module that stores all personnel data and handles payroll and personnel actions. |
| HEGIS | Higher Education General Information Survey |
| HHS | Department of Health and Human Services |
| HIPAA | Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act |
| HRSA | Health Resources and Services Administration |
| HSARPA | Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency |
| HSC | CU Denver's Health Sciences Center |
| HUD | Department of Housing and Urban Development |
| IACUC | Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee |
| IAEGC | Interagency Electronic Grants Committee |
| IBC | Institutional Biosafety Committee |
| ICC | Interstate Commerce Commission |
| ICR | Indirect Cost Recovery (or Revenue) -- F&A expenses charged to projects generate F&A revenue (recovery) that's booked to the general fund. This helps offset project expenses so a portion of ICR is then reallocated back to departments that generated this revenue and is transferred to a departmental ICR speedtype. |
| IDC | Indirect Costs, also known as overhead or F&A -- Indirect (F&A) Costs: 2 CFR 200 Uniform Guidance defines indirect (F&A) costs as “those costs incurred for a common or joint purpose benefitting more than one cost objective, and not readily assignable to the cost objectives specifically benefitted, without effort disproportionate to the results achieved.” Indirect costs (also known as IDC, overhead, facilities and administrative costs, or F&A) are real costs to CU Boulder that are not readily or easily assignable to a specific funded project. Indirect costs help promote organized research at CU Boulder by providing funds for research-related expenses such as heat, light, water, electricity and custodial services in offices and laboratory spaces; occupational safety and hazardous waste removal; telecommunications; computers and internet access; and many other support services. |
| IDIQ | Indefinite duration indefinite quantity |
| IFB | Invitation for Bid -- a solicitation issued to prospective bidders. An IFB describes what is required and how the bidders will be evaluated. Award is based on the lowest bid. Negotiations are not conducted. |
| IG | Inspector General |
| IN | Interdepartmental Invoice -- issued when one service department performs work or provides supplies for another University department |
| Indirect Cost | Costs that are incurred for common or joint objectives and therefore cannot be identified readily and specifically with a particular sponsored project |
| IP | Intellectual Property |
| IPA | Interagency Personnel Agreement |
| IPASS | Interagency Panel on Advanced Science & Security |
| IPR | Intellectual Property Rights |
| IRB | Institutional Review Board (for human subjects research) |
| IRIS | An online search system for research opportunities developed by the University of Illinois |
| ISC | Internal Services Center is a University center that provides goods and services to other University units, resulting in these units being charged an expense within their speedtype |
| ITAR | International Traffic in Arms Regulations |
| ITMRA | Information Technology Management Reform Act |
| JAG | Judge Advocate General |
| JE | Journal Entry (aka Cost Transfer) |
| JCS | Joint Chiefs of Staff |
| Key Contact | Now known as Fiscal Manager. |
| LoB | Line of Business |
| LOC | For SPA, LOC refers to Letter of Credit (see Payment LOC), but means Limitation of Cost for OCG. Limitation of Cost is a mandatory clause for cost-reimbursement type contracts. Under the clause, the sponsor is not obligated to reimburse the contractor for costs in excess of the stated amount. The contractor, however, is not obligated to continue performance once expenses reach the stated amount. |
| LSA | Labor Surplus Area |
| M&O | Maintenance and Operations or Management and Operations Contractors |
| m-fin reports | On-demand reports delivered via the Cognos Reporting System |
| Marketplace | CU Marketplace is the University's electronic procurement system that creates and approves purchase requisitions, places purchase orders, receives goods and services, and processes invoices through the internet. This system is maintained by an outside vendor. |
| Matching Requirements | A grant that requires a specified portion of the cost of a supported item of equipment or project be obtained from other sources. The required match may be more or less than the amount of the grant. Some matching grants require that the additional funds be obtained from sources outside the recipient organization. Many matching grants are paid in installments, the payments coinciding with the attainment of pre-specified levels of additional funding. Matching grants are very common in the sciences, especially for equipment. They are standard practice in some government agencies. |
| MBDA | Minority Business Development Agency |
| MBE | Minority Business Enterprise |
| MECA | Midwest Conference on College Cost Accounting |
| Modification | An award document that modifies any aspect of an existing award |
| MOU | Memorandum of Understanding |
| MSKCC | Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center |
| MTA | Material Transfer Agreement |
| MTC | Modified Total Costs |
| MTDC | Modified Total Direct Costs -- F&A classification that exempts certain cost categories from F&A expense, such as tuition remission, fixed assets, student aid, and subcontract fees greater than 25,000 |
| NACCA | National Conference on College Cost Accounting |
| NACUBO | National Association of College & University Business Officers |
| NAS | National Academy of Sciences |
| NASA | National Aeronautics and Space Administration |
| NASULGC | National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges |
| NCC | National Coordinating Committee |
| NCE | No-Cost Extension -- a modification to an award that extends the end date without additional funding to allow for more time to complete the programmatic scope of work. |
| NCI | National Cancer Institute |
| NCRR | National Center for Research Resources |
| NCST | National Council of Science and Technology |
| NCURA | National Council of Univcersity Research Administrators |
| NDA |
Allows one party to share confidential information with the other party specifying how the receiving party/parties will protect and use the confidential information. NDAs are sometimes referred to as nondisclosure, proprietary information, or secrecy agreements, emphasizing the recipient's handling of the confidential information. |
| NECA | Northeast Conference on College Cost Accounting |
| NEH | National Endowment for the Humanities |
| NGA | Notice of Grant Award |
| NIAID | National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases |
| NIE | National Institute of Education |
| NIEHS | National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences |
| NIH | National Institutes of Health |
| NIJ | National Institute of Justice |
| NIST | National Institute of Standards and Technology |
| NLRB | National Labor Relations Board |
| NOAA | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |
| Nonexchange Transaction | Transaction in which a sponsoring agent gives value to the University without directly receiving a benefit in exchange |
| NPR | National Performance Review |
| NPRM | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking |
| NPS | National Park Service |
| NRC | National Research Council |
| NRC | Nuclear Regulartory Commission |
| NRL | Naval Research Laboratory |
| NSA | National Security Agency |
| NSABB | National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity |
| NSB | National Science Board |
| NSC | National Security Council |
| NSDD | National Security Decision Directive 189 (issued 1985) |
| NSF | National Science Foundation |
| NSF/STIS | An online search system of the National Science Foundation |
| NSP | Not Separately Priced |
| NSTC | National Science Technology Council |
| NTIS | National Technical Information Service |
| NTSB | National Transportation Safety Board |
| NYSCF | New York Stem Cell Foundation |
| NYSTEM | New York State Stem Cell Science |
| OBBR | Office of Biorepositories and Biospecimen Research (NCI) |
| OCG | Office of Contracts & Grants |
| OCR | Office of Civil Rights |
| OCR | Office of Clinical Research (at MSKCC) |
| OES | Office of Employment Security |
| OET | Office of Employment Training |
| OFAC | Office of Foreign Assets Control |
| OFCC | Office of Federal Contract Compliance |
| OFFM | Office of Federal Financial Management |
| OFM | Office of Financial Management |
| OFR | Office of Federal Register |
| OHRP | Office of Human Research Protection |
| OIA | Office of Industrial Affairs |
| OIG | Office of Inspector General |
| OIRA | Office of Information & Regulatory Affairs (OMB) |
| OLAW | Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare |
| O&M | Operations and Maintenance Costs |
| OMB | Office of Management & Budget -- the federal office that establishes the principles for determining costs applicable to grants, contracts, and other government agreements |
| ONR | Office of Naval Research |
| OPAS | Organizational Prior Approval System -- OPAS is designed to be a PRIOR approval system for budget deviations and other project changes that require OCG approval |
| OPM | Office of Personnel Management |
| OPERA | Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration |
| OPRR | Office of Protection from Research Risks |
| ORA | Office of Research Administration |
| ORI | Office of Research Integrity |
| OSEP | Office of Special Education Programs |
| OSHA | Occupational Safety and Health Administration |
| OSP | Office of Sponsored Projects |
| OSTP | Office of Science and Technology Policy |
| OT | Office of Transportation |
| OTT | Office of Technology Transfer (NIH) |
| Payment | Remuneration per the terms of the award |
| Payment: LOC | Cash requests are made through a Letter of Credit draw process for Federal awards |
| Payment: Invoice | Invoices are mailed according to the requirements of the sponsor, or draws are made via agency web sites |
| Payment: Auto Pay | Agency sends check or makes electronic funds transfer (EFT) to cover the award amount; agency may or may not require an invoice or a final report of expenditures |
| PCARD | CU Purchasing Card -- a VISA, issued to a specific individual through US Bank, used by authorized University staff, faculty, and students, and by designated affiliate fiscal staff to purchase small-dollar items (maximum of $5,000) for university use (previously known as the Acard) |
| PCAST | President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology |
| PCC | Policy Coordination Council |
| PCO | Procuring Contracting Officer |
| Portable Document Format | |
| Pending | This term has a number of meanings & uses in OCG |
| PeopleSoft | PS -- CU Financial System |
| PET | Payroll Expense Transfer -- transaction in PeopleSoft to move payroll charges to another speedtype; the PET process automatically moves the benefits associated with the earnings that are being moved |
| PET: PETC | Correction Payroll Expense Transfer -- this is used to correct a single pay period using Employee ID and Pay Period/Pay Check. A PETC is used to correct a time entry override speedtype/account code error |
| PET: PETP | ePER Payroll Expense Transfer -- a PET automatically generated by the PeopleSoft financial system when a variance has been created by a certified, submitted ePER |
| PET: PETR | Retroactive Funding Change -- this can correct multiple pay periods using specific Begin/End Date by position number. It can also extend into the future. A PETR is used to modify a normal Time Collection transaction. |
| PETA | People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals |
| PHI | Protected Health Information |
| PHS | Public Health Service |
| PI | Principal Investigator, now known as Principal or Fiscal Principal |
| PIE | Pooled Investment Earnings -- used when interest is to be earned on advance payments. This is usually for federal awards, but can also apply to select non-federal awards and to all University speedtype in funds 2x, 7x and 80. |
| PIGABS | Principal Investigator Grant Administration Burden Survey (done by FDP) |
| PII | Personally Identifiable Information |
| PKI | Public Key Infrastructure |
| PMS/DPM | Payment Management System/Division of Payment Management -- HHS web based payment system, aka SmartLink, Electronic 272 |
| PO | Purchase Order (see Procurement web site for directions on requesting an PO via Marketplace) |
| POA | Physician Office Assistant |
| POP | Period of Performance, also known as PP or Project Period |
| Post-Award | That part of OCG that processes, negotiates, and manages grants & contracts |
| PPS | Procurement Service Center Procedural Statements -- guidelines for utilizing PSC tools and for navigating through PSC procedures |
| PRD | Presidential Review Directive |
| Pre-Award | That part of OCG that processes proposals |
| Pre-award Authorization | When expenditures can be incurred on a project during the period of 90 days prior to the effective date (start date) of the award |
|
Pre-award Spending Account |
Establishes sponsored project account for contracts and grants without expanded authority so that work can begin or continue prior to receipt of official award documents. Department must sign a departmental guarantee form and the project must cover work within the anticipated period of performance. |
| PRIM&R | Public Responsibility in Medicine & Research |
| Prime Award | The funding source of subawards or subcontracts to which UCB is subject |
| Prime Awardee | The organization to which an award or contract is issued by a sponsor. |
| Principal | Also known as Fiscal Principal, formerly called PI or Principal Investigator |
| PROG | Peer Review Oversight Group |
| Program | Identifies a specific activity within an organization in the Finance System. Programs are used in funds 10, 11, 20, 28, 29, 34, 72, 73, 74, 78, 80, 99. Budget, revenue, expenses and transfers are tracked for a fiscal year. |
| Program Income | Revenue that is derived directly from the program itself and helps to reduce the net cost of the funding from general revenues. Treatment of program income generated by federally sponsored awards is addressed in OMB A-110. |
| Program/Project Officer | A sponsor's designated individual officially responsible for the technical, scientific, or programmatic aspects of a particular grant, cooperative agreement, or contract. Serving as the counterpart to the principal investigator/project director of the grantee/contractor organization, the program/project officer deals with the grantee/contractor organization staff to assure programmatic progress. |
| Project | Same as "Sponsored Project" |
| Property | Tangible personal property which is not permanently fastened to a building and does not lose its identity; the terms "equipment" and "property" are used interchangeably |
| Proposal | An application for funding that contains all information necessary to describe project plans, staff capabilities, and funds requested. Formal proposals are officially approved and submitted by an organization in the name of a principal investigator. |
| Proposal: New | Proposals that are submitted for the first time or ongoing projects that must recompete for funding prior to expiration of the original award |
| Proposal: Continuation | Applicable to grants and cooperative agreements only. This is for projects approved for multiple-year funding, although funds are typically committed only one year at a time. At the end of the initial budget period, progress on the project is assessed. If satisfactory, an award is made for the next budget period, subject to the availability of funds. Continuation projects do not compete with new project proposals and are not subjected to peer review beyond the initial project approval. |
| Proposal: Renewal | Applicable to grants and cooperative agreements only. A competitively reviewed proposal requesting additional funds extending the scope of work beyond the current project period. |
| Proposal: Supplement | Request to the sponsor for additional funds for an ongoing project during the previously approved performance period. Supplemental proposals may result from increased costs, modifications in design, or a desire to add closely related components to the ongoing project. |
| PRP | Peer Resource Professional -- current team member assigned to assist a new employee when they have general questions and/or to help familiarize them with office logistics and procedures |
| PSC | Procurement Services Center -- the office responsible for travel, general purchases, PCards and travel cards, and accounts payable |
| PSLite | PeopleSoft Lite -- system generating CIW reports and queries geared towards Sponsored Projects |
| PTE | Pass Through Entity |
| PTO | Patent and Trademark Office |
| QA | Quality Assurance |
| RA | Research Administration |
| R&R | Research and Related |
| RAC | Recombinant DNA Committee |
| RARC | Research Animal Resource Center |
| RBM | Research Business Models |
| RCR | Responsible Conduct of Research |
| RCREC | Responsible Conduct of Research Education Committee |
| RDC | Research Data Assistant |
| RDNA | Recombinant DNA Research |
| RDMS | Relational Database Management System |
| RFA | Request for Applications -- announcements that indicate the availability of funds for a topic of specific interest to a sponsor |
| RFP | Request for Proposal -- announcements that specify a topic of research, methods to be used, product to be delivered, and appropriate applicants sought |
| RFQ | Request for Quotation |
| RIO | Research Integrity Officer |
| RISQ | Reporting to Improve Safety & Quality |
| ROI | Return on Investment |
| Routing | The sequential movement of an award through OCG and SPA |
| Route as a Proposal (RASP) | An award is received for which proposal documents were sent directly to the sponsor and did not go through OCG, or, alternatively, when a sponsor adds or increases funding or anticipated value without University input; therefore, a proposal needs to be completed with an OCG Proposal Analyst before the award can be processed. Once the OCG Grant or Contract Officer is notified that an award has been made and identifies that no proposal is in place (minimum statement of work, budget, budget justification and Proposal Submission Request form), an email will be sent to the PI and department contact copying the Proposal Analyst, notifying them that an internal proposal is required. Once the PI, department contact, if applicable, and Proposal Analyst have completed the internal proposal, the Proposal Analyst will notify the Grant or Contract Officer that the award can be processed internally. An internal proposal will be required every time supplemental and additional scope(s) of work or funds are added to any existing proposal and corresponding proposal budget, as required by federal and university policy. |
| RPC | Research Project Coordinator |
| RSA | Research Study Assistant |
| RTM | Research and Technology Management |
| RU | Rockefeller University |
| SA | Session Assistant |
| S&W | Salaries and Wages |
| S&W + B | Salaries and Wages plus Benefits |
| S2S | System to System |
| SAMHSA | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration |
| SBA | Small Business Administration |
| SBU | Sensitive But Unclassified |
| SBIR | Small Business Innovation Research |
| SCC | Starr Cancer Consortium |
| SECA | Southeast Conference on College Cost Accounting |
| SEOG | Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants |
| SEVIS | Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (INS for tracking foreign students) |
| SF | Standard Form |
| SKI | Sloan-Kettering Institute |
| SNAP | Streamline Non-Competing Application Process |
| SOW | Statement of Work or Scope of Work -- submitted as part of the proposal to the sponsor which becomes part of the award. It defines the work that will be completed by the award and how it will be done. |
| SPAS | Sponsored Project Administration System |
| Special Purpose Equipment | Equipment which is used only for research, medical, scientific, or other technical activities. Examples include microscopes, x-ray machines, and spectrometers. |
| Speed Type (ST) | A unique eight-digit number assigned by the PeopleSoft Finance System to each project number that includes the campus code, the fund code (30 or 31), and the number assigned to the project. A subclass is assigned its own unique speedtype. |
| SPIN | An online search system for research opportunities developed by the University of New York (SUNY) System |
| SPO | Standing Purchase Order (see Procurement web site for directions on requesting an Subcontractor SPO) |
| Sponsored Project | A financial award from an external source (sponsor) that is governed by specific terms & conditions established in a written agreement between the sponsor and the University of Colorado for the purpose of research, training, fellowships, purchase of specialized research equipment, or clinical trials. |
| SRA | Society of Research Adminstrators |
| SRO | Sponsored Research Office |
| STEP | Science, Technology, and Economic Policy Board |
| STP | Science and Technology Policy |
| Stipend | Refers to type of payment to be received by awardees. Sponsors often use this term loosely to mean any type of payment to individual recipient but UCB restricts this payment type to those individuals from whom no effort will be supplied to the University or to a sponsored project. See the document entitled, "GUIDANCE ON USE OF FELLOWSHIP JOB CODES" on the CCO website for detailed description of what constitutes positions that do not require effort and would therefore receive a stipend instead of a salary. |
| STTR | Small Business Technology Transfer Program |
| Subcontract | A document written under the authority of, and consistent with the terms and conditions of, a contract that transfers a portion of the research or substantive effort of the prime award to another institution or organization |
| Subaward | A document written under the authority of, and consistent with the terms and conditions of, a grant or cooperative agreement that transfers a portion of the research or substantive effort of the prime award to another institution or organization |
| Subrecipient | The legal entity to which a subaward/subcontract is made and is accountable to the University (prime awardee) for the use of the funds provided in carrying out a portion of the University's scope of work under a sponsored project. |
| T&A | Time and Attendance |
| T&C | Terms and Conditions |
| TBSR | Total Business Systems Review |
| TCN | Tri-Institutional Collaboration Network |
| TDC | Total Direct Costs -- F&A classification in which all cost categories are charged F&A expense, including tuition remission, fixed assets, student aid, and all subcontract fees |
| Tri RCR | Tri-Institutional Responsible Conduct of Research Program: MSKCC, RU, WCMC |
| Tri-SCI | Tri-Institutional Stem Cell Initiatve: SKI, RU, WCMC |
| U.S.C | United States Code |
| UBIT | Unrelated Business Income Tax |
| UCA | Utility Cost Adjustment |
| UCB | University of Colorado Boulder |
| UCCS | University of Colorado Colorado Springs |
| UCD | University of Colorado Denver |
| UCD/AMC | University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus |
| UMS | University Management Systems |
| USA | United States Army |
| USAF | United States Air Force |
| USAID | United States Agency for International Development |
| USCG | United States Coast Guard |
| USDA | United States Department of Agriculture |
| USDE | United States Department of Energy |
| USIA | United States Information Agency |
| USN | United States Navy |
| VA | Department of Veterans Affairs |
| Warrant | Term commonly used for a check issued by PeopleSoft to pay for an outstanding obligation |
| WAWF | Wide Area WorkFlow -- Payment system which allows web based funds withdrawal from grant accounts |
| WCMC | Weill Cornell Medical College |
| WCGSMS | Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences |
| WECA | Western Conference on College Cost Accounting |
| WHO | World Health Organization |
| XML | Extensible Markup Language |
| YCC | Youth Conservation Corp |