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Effort Reporting: Total Professional Activity vs. Institutional Activity. Salary and Wage Costs What NIH Expects. Charges for salaries and wages will reflect actual effort expended--not necessarily the proposed or budgeted effort
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Effort Reporting:Total Professional Activity vs.Institutional Activity
Salary and Wage CostsWhat NIH Expects • Charges for salaries and wages will reflect actual effort expended--not necessarily the proposed or budgeted effort • Charges for salaries and wages, whether treated as direct costs or indirect costs, will be based on documented payrolls/effort reports approved by a responsible official of the organization • Significant changes in actual effort vs. budgeted effort will be adjusted
What is a Significant Change? • No precise definition • Determination should be made by the employee or the individual who certifies the effort report • Any changes made by the individual or certifying official should be considered significant
Significant Change • General Rule: A change applicable to a given project or activity of 5% or more of an employee’s TOTAL effort would require an adjustment to the effort report
Salary and Wage Costs- Cost Transfers • Used to correct errors or changes in effort certified vs. budgeted effort • Must be well documented • Must be made in a timely manner
Personnel - Prior Approval • Required for change in a key person specified on Notice of Grant Award (NGA) Always Principal Investigator (PI) • Key Person: an individual identified in the application who contributes to the scientific development or execution of the project in a substantive way, whether or not salary is requested
Personnel - Prior Approval • Required if PI or other key personnel named on the NGA will: • Withdraw from the project completely • Be absent 3 months or more • Reduce time devoted to project by 25% or more
Prior Approval • Required for: Change in scope or objective of a project Change in Scope is a change in direction or other area that constitutes a significant change from the aims, objective, or purpose of the originally approved project (significant change in effort by key personnel could indicate potential change in scope)
Institutional Base Salary (IBS) • The annual compensation that the applicant organization pays for an employee’s appointment whether that individual’s time is spent on research, teaching, patient care or other activities. • Excludes any income that an individual may be permitted to earn outside of duties to the applicant organization. • May NOT be increased as a result of replacing institutional salary funds with grant funds
NIH Grants Policy Statement – A Closer Look • Closely related work: • NIH eliminated the option for grantees to pursue prior approval to account for multiple projects under a single cost objective • NIH applies the relatedness provision of A-21 to all NIH recipients, which is consistent with the FDP Terms and Conditions
NIH Grants Policy Statement – A Closer Look Key Personnel: • Expanded definition to: describe contribution of key personnel as “measurable” whether or not salaries are requested. Clinical Practice Plan (IBS): • Clinical practice plan appointments compensation may be considered in the base salary as long as criteria are met.
Revised Grants Policy Statement Clinical Practice Compensation (IBS): Clinical Practice Compensation (CPC) appointments compensation may be considered in the IBS, provided: • CPC must be guaranteed by the university/Institution • Clinical practice effort must be shown on the appointment form and must be paid through the university/institution • Clinical practice effort must be included and accounted for on the university/institution effort report
Total Professional Activities – Other Support • NIH requires complete and up-to-date other support information before an award can be made • Complete means all sources of research support (including outside the applicant organization – Total Professional Activities) • Grantees must report changes in other support as part of the annual progress report NIH Guide, February 13, 2003 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-03-029.html
Total Professional Activities -Career Awards • Most Career Awards require a minimum commitment of total professional effort to research. • Previously defined total professional effort as all sources of research support (including appointments outside the applicant organization, exclusive of consulting activity within institution's limits.) • Effective for all applications submitted after 10/1/04 investigators will meet the required commitment of total professional effort as long as: 1) the individual has a full-time appointment with the applicant organization; and 2) the minimum percentage of the candidate’s commitment required for the proposed Career award experience is covered by that appointment. NIH Guide, August 3, 2004 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-04-056.html
Support/Commitment Overlap • Overlap of support (scientific or budgetary) is unallowable • Over commitment of an individual’s effort is unallowable
Salary Cap • Restricts the amount of direct salary under a grant or contract to Executive Level I of the Federal Executive Pay Scale • Executive Level I increase effective January 1, 2005 $180,100 $175,700 January 7, 2005 NIH Guide Notice http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-05-024.html
Top 10 Issues on Salary Costs to NIH Grants? • Certifying official does not have first-hand knowledge of effort performed • Effort reports not certified and returned in a timely manner • Certifying the budgeted effort vs. actual effort • Salary cap not treated correctly with respect to effort and charging NIH grants/contracts • Corrections for significant changes in budgeted vs. actual effort are not made OR not made in a timely manner
Top 10 Issues on Salary Costs to NIH Grants? • Transferring costs from one project to another to avoid a cost overrun • Failure to get prior approval for change in key personnel, i.e., withdraw from project completely, be absent for 3 months or more or reduces time by 25% or more • Overlap of support (scientific or budgetary) • Overlap of commitment • Use of incorrect IBS, especially when CPC is involved
What’s at Risk? • Audit Findings/Cost Disallowances • Designation as High Risk Organization • Special Terms and Conditions on NGAs • Requirement for Corrective Action Plan • Special Monitoring by NIH • Temporary Withholding of Payments • Withholding of Future Awards
Questions?Joe EllisActing Director, Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration301-435-0938Ellisj1@mail.nih.gov