Grant Administration and Finance

Following is a brief outline regarding Grant Administration and Reconciliation. We have summarized some of the more common processes for our area. If you have any questions whatsoever, please feel free to contact one of us for additional information.

Contacts

Grant Application Process

All grant applications must first be approved by LSI Administration and the Division of Research, Development and Administration (DRDA) here at the UM before submitting to the sponsor. DRDA will also mail grants on your behalf. Any sponsored award application must be approved regardless of the sponsor, application type (NIH, fellowship and foundation), or dollar amount. This means a Proposal Approval Form (PAF) must be completed for all externally funded applications. The LSI Grant area completes all PAF forms.

For DRDA approval, preferably one week before the application deadline, the following sections are required for pre-approval also known as the "administrative shell" (science section not needed for pre-approval):

• Sponsor face page

• Abstract or description

• PI Biosketch

• Key personnel

• Budget (and budget justification if required by sponsor)

• Resources

• Checklist

The above documents are typically required for most applications, in particular, NIH grants. Requirements vary and the guidelines set by each sponsor must be strictly followed.

If you would like DRDA to mail your final application to the sponsor, they typically require receiving 2-3 days before the deadline. However, we will check with the appropriate DRDA project representative to see how many applications they are anticipating and what their expectations are at the time.

Beginning February 1, 2007, NIH R01 applications will be accepted electronically only. We will notify faculty about the new NIH deadlines/changes as we get closer and as their requirements become finalized and available. The tentative timeline for receipt of your application by DRDA is:

• Administrative shell - at least 7 days before submission deadline

• Grant application file - upload 4 days before submission deadline

Again, we will notify faculty as the changes become finalized, however, if you would like additional information at this time, please visit the DRDA web site below. The NIH electronic submission timeline is periodically updated and can be found at http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/strategy_timeline.htm

Grant Preparation, Review and Assembly

The LSI Grant area will:

• Review sponsor guidelines to ensure all requirements are met.

• Prepare or review application face page, budget and checklist when requested by faculty member.

• Ensure appropriate signatures are received, by LSI Director or Managing Director, and by the Operations Manager for space approval. From time-to-time signatures are needed from another UM Department or another institution.

• Assure delivery of the administrative shell to DRDA for pre-approval.

• The assistants of senior faculty help with any word processing during the grant application process as needed. The LSI Grant/Finance reps will assist the junior faculty with word processing as needed.

Material Transfer Forms (MTF)

When a PI needs to transfer special materials from another institution to be used in his/her lab, the University enters into an agreement with the provider institution. This requires completion of a Material Transfer Form to be completed by the PI and must accompany two copies of the Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) received from the provider. The MTF form can be found at the DRDA web site: http://www.research.umich.edu/proposals/forms/forms.html#mta, and details about Material Transfer Agreement information can be found at: http://www.research.umich.edu/projects/transfers/materials_transfer.html

Once the form is completed and signed by the PI, it must be signed by the LSI Director or Managing Director, and along with two copies of the MTA, hand delivered to DRDA. DRDA will review the MTF and MTA, approve and mail to the designated institution.

Important Note: if any "sponsored project" funds will be used in connection with the research being conducted using the transferred materials, the Project Grant (P/G) number must be included on the MTF form.

Federal Demonstration Partnership (FDP)

Whenever certain changes are necessary on a federal grant, approval must be requested by completing an FDP form and sending to DRDA. The types of changes which require pre-approval specifically on an FDP form are: no-cost time extensions, equipment purchases (not included in budget), space alteration and/or renovation costs, preaward costs. Please see form for more detailed explanations at http://www.research.umich.edu/proposals/forms/forms.html#mta

Once completed and signed by the PI, the form must be signed by the LSI Director or Managing Director and hand delivered to DRDA. Jim Randolph, Senior Associate Director of DRDA, reviews and approves all FDP requests. He will notify the PI and LSI Grant/Finance Rep if additional information is required or when he has approved. Only certain situations require approval by the NIH program officer such as a significant change to the budget or project objectives. Please see the NIH Policy Statement (12/03) for additional information about changes that may require NIH approval. See http://grants2.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2003/NIHGPS_Part7.htm#Capital_Expenditures

Account Reconciliation and Reporting

The LSI Grant/Finance area prepares monthly financial reports for each P/G and UM account. It is always the goal of this area to prepare reports and deliver to faculty members on a monthly basis. We receive financial statements from the Office of Financial Operations (FinOps). Based on these statements and information faculty and laboratory members provide, we can ensure sponsor and University funds are spent timely and appropriately.

Please note that financial business for a particular month does not close until approximately 6-10 days into the following month. In other words, if January business activity does not close until February 10th, we cannot begin running reports until after that date. An exception is June 30th which is the end of the fiscal year, and business does not usually close until July 15th or later.

We verify all charges on grants and accounts for accuracy. It is imperative that we receive all lab receipts for any and all types of charges. Please see: "Lab/Office Expense Receipts and Other Paperwork" for additional information about receipts and the importance of having these.

Kate and Maggie meet with faculty on a monthly or as needed basis to review accounting reports, learn about staffing changes, and discuss future funding plans.

Annual P/G Expense Reviews: P/Gs are reviewed by FinOps annually. They send the PI and LSI Grant/Finance area a report which identifies expenses that are being questioned as allowable as well as other charges that need to be transferred to a different budget category or possibly a faculty discretionary account. The LSI Grant/Finance area will conduct the expense review and discuss with the PI should it be necessary or if certain charges require their approval.

P/G Close-Out Reports: When a P/G comes to an end, FinOps will send a close out report to the PI and LSI Grant/Finance area. Kate or Maggie will review the close-out statement for accuracy of the unspent or negative balance. Transfers for expenses either going into or out of the project that reflect the period before the end date will be prepared if necessary. Once this review is completed, the PI will be asked to sign the close out letter. If a negative balance still remains, this will be transferred to the PIs discretionary account.

General office supplies cannot be charged to a Federal Grant

General office supplies cannot be charged to a Federal Grant (any short code beginning with "0"). Items such as paper towels, Kleenex/tissue, binders, index cards, sheet protectors, pens, pencils, toner cartridges, copy paper, books, folders, diskettes, etc. If there is an item you are not sure can be charged to a federal grant, please contact us. General office supplies must be charged to a non-federal award that allows them or a faculty discretionary account.

Links

Listed below are additional commonly used web sites pertaining to grant sponsors, applications, forms as well as grant search tools. As always, please let us know if you need assistance:

Sponsor Sites:

Grant Funding Search Aids: