ORA Budgeting and More

ORA Mission & Purpose

To provide the best service possible to the VCOM faculty and staff in their pursuit and administration of external funding. ORA provides full service throughout the lifecycle of a project, from preliminary review to award closeout.

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What is a Sponsored Program?• External to VCOM• Funds are awarded for a specific purpose• Restrictions on the use of funds• Specific timeline for completion of project• Deliverable i.e. progress report, services• The entity that is sponsoring the project will be billed

for project costs incurred by VCOM3

General Regulatory FrameworkFederal OMB Circulars

Sponsor’s general guidelines

VCOM’s institutional policies and procedures

Sponsor’s RFP/RFA and award-specific requirements

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Information Needed for BudgetAlways• The RFP/solicitation/application guidelines• Project Start and End dates (period of performance) • VCOM personnel to be included on budget• Provide guidance regarding costs to be included (by

category, by year).

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Information Needed for Budget

If Applicable• Target or ceiling value • Supporting data for subcontractors and or consultants• Sponsor documentation for reduced indirect (must have

written policy)• Cost Sharing % and breakdown between cash and in-kind

contributions• Sponsor’s Cost Exclusions

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Budget – Cautions/Red Flags

• VCOM does not estimate costs, contract for, report progress, or submit invoices based on man-hour rates

• A subcontractor or group of subcontractors should not receive the largest share of funding on a VCOM project – if they do, they should be the prime applicant and VCOM should be the sub

• Subcontractors have to adhere to all RFP requirements including any indirect limitations, costs sharing requirements, and cost exclusions

• Cost sharing should not be “volunteered” above the minimum amount required by RFP

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Budgeting Basics Always have ORA review your budget

Including informal quotes to your sponsor and pre-proposal budgets

Terms to know: Cost Share:

VCOM’s portion of the project cost = REAL COST

Only used if required by sponsor

Indirect (aka: overhead, facilities & administration) Costs that are not project specific

Examples: administrative salaries, office supplies, postage, lab utilities, memory sticks

Extraordinary costs may be approved as direct costs

Calculated from Federal Rate Agreement

To use a lower rate, documentation of sponsor policy is necessary

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Why get ORA approval on your budgets? Ensure that auditable pricing data is

submitted to your sponsors

Ensure compliance with regulations

Prevent under funding or over funding issues

ORA has to approve budgets for a sponsored research fund number to be established

Budget variables change frequently

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Major Categories of Costs

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Personnel (salaries, wages, & fringe benefits)Percentage of effort or months Typically largest costBased on actual payroll records

Equipment $1,000 or greater and useful life of >1 year Equipment should be 100% allocable to the project they are charged

Travel Differentiate between Domestic & International International travel requires advanced sponsor approval

Major Categories of Costs (cont.)

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Materials/Supplies Items needed to conduct the research. Lab supplies, field supplies, etc. Office supplies & administrative items are not included, they are covered by

indirect cost. If exceptions are necessary, please let us know Computers – There are some questions to answer before you request a

computer be listed on your budget.

1. How is the computer necessary to fulfill the project’s scope of work?

2. How does the computer go beyond normal use in day-to-day operations of the laboratory?

3. How is the computer different from similar items provided by VCOM that are

treated as F&A (indirect) costs?

4. How will computer time be systematically allocated between multiple projects or split

between a sponsored fund and an unrestricted department fund?

Major Categories of Costs (cont.)

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Consultants An individual or organization hired to provide services of an advisory nature Can be hired when the necessary expertise is not available within the VCOM

community VCOM employees cannot be paid as consultants on sponsored projects

Subcontractor An individual or organization hired by the University to complete a portion of

the project because the necessary expertise is not available within the VCOM community

Contribute to a deliverable and are vital to the proposed work Funding for a subcontractor is provided by and must be approved by the

sponsor

Salary/Fringe/Overhead RatesSalary* 3% on 7/1

Fringe RatesVCOM charges actual

rates

On-Campus F&A 53.5%

Off Campus F&A 21%

Note that no other costs are automatically escalated

* Salary escalations are only estimates for budget purpose and do not guarantee a salary increase

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Direct Vs. Indirect Costs

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DirectCosts that can be specifically identified with a particular project or program.

IndirectReal costs that are incurred… for common or joint objectives and which therefore cannot be identified with a particular project or program.

Direct Costs

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PrinciplesReasonable and necessaryAllocable and verifiableAllowable under regulations

ExamplesPI salary and fringesTravelEquipment and materials/suppliesContractual services and subcontractors

Cost-Sharing

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Quantified financial support contributed by College to the Sponsored Project-this is a real cost that must be reported to the sponsor

Cost Sharing Form should always be completed if the proposal involves cost sharing/matching

ORA approval required for all cost share not directly required by sponsor

Budget Narrative

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Justify each item (or group of items) in each category

Provide justification for initial year budget and escalation/exceptions for additional budget years (including fringe)

Good idea to establish a budget narrative template It is recommended to address each cost category in

the order they are listed in the proposal budget

Your Budget After the Award

1. Budget revision to match the actual funding Will it affect your proposed Effort?2. Your Budget relative to your Research Plan3. Your Budget Justification4. “Burn Rate”5. Re-budgeting 6. Incremental funding and carry-over

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Award Negotiation• OSP must review for:

• Type of Award (cost reimbursable or fixed price)• Budget Limitations / Restrictions• Invoice Requirements• Technical Reporting Requirements

•Unacceptable Terms that must be negotiated:• Laws of another state or country• Indemnification • Intellectual Property Rights• Publication Rights

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Types of Agreements• Grant

• Financial assistance• For public good – not to be restricted for commercial or internal use• Federal Grants use standard federal assistance terms

• Contract• Procurement of research services• Specific obligations and detailed terms & conditions• Federal Contracts use Federal Acquisition Regulations (FARs)

• Cooperative Agreement• Sponsor and VCOM cooperate on a specific SOW with both parties

assigned specific responsibilities• Specific obligations and usually detailed terms

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Post Award Responsibilities:

Review award set up Sponsor Terms and Conditions Process amendments on grants and contracts Review no-cost time extensions Monitor, review, and approve expenditures Prepare internal budget revisions Submit invoices and financial reports timely Accounts Receivable management Issue and monitor subawards

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PI’s Responsibilities Provide overall project management to ensure

compliance Manage the project budget Request no-cost time extensions through ORA Responsible for all expenditure transactions Certify time & effort Submit technical progress reports timely

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Budget PitfallsForgetting that salary and fringe typically eat up

60 to 80% of total direct costsUnderestimating support time and effortVague and unjustified costs categories; padding

categoriesInappropriate F&A charges

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Major Compliance Issues

•Charging administrative costs to federally funded projects•Research involving human subjects requires approval from IRB•Research involving animals requires IACUC approval

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Office of Research Administration

Proposal AssistanceSearch for FundersFind CollaboratorsProposal

FormattingProposal GuidanceAdministrative

FormsBoiler plate

Information 26

Statistical AssistanceResearch DesignSample Size CalculationOutcome and Predictor VariablesStatistical Analysis PlanReview of Data Collection Forms and Data

Entry KeysSurvey CreationStatistical Analysis and Report Findings

Contact Us

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• Eryn Perry : eperry@vcom.edu • Dawn Bennett : dbennett@vcom.edu • CK Vanover : cvanover@carolinas.vcom.edu• Greg Reaves : greaves@vcom.edu• Dalia Meisha : dmeisha@vcom.edu• ORA main site : www.vcom.edu/ORA