Post Award Information
Acceptance of the Award
After a proposal has been approved for support and an award is granted, official notification is usually sent from the funding agency to the Chancellor's Office or the designee and the Principal Investigator. In all cases, official acceptance of funds is required. In the case of grants and contracts, the Chancellor or his/her designee provides the official signature of acceptance. When a grant award becomes official, the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities formally acknowledges it and forwards a letter to the post grant award office, (Larry King, king.larr@uwlax.edu, 125 Graff Main Hall, telephone # 608-785-8599), which assigns the UW-L account number and deals with other post-award financial activities.
Administrative Responsibilities
The PI/PD, operating within the policies of UW-L and assisted by appropriate University administrative offices and officials, is responsible for the day-to-day administration and direction of an approved project. The PI/PD will be furnished a copy of the grant or contract document for reference. In order to effectively discharge his/her primary responsibility, the PI/PD should be cognizant of all contract or grant provisions and give special attention to those pertaining to budget limitations, patents/inventions and copyrights, safety and security, and required reports.
It is expected that the PI/PD will maintain close liaison with the cognizant Dean or Director and with the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities and post-award office in order to apprise them of developments requiring deviation from the initial budget or from other terms and conditions of the approved grant or contract. They must be furnished copies of, and in most cases countersign, all administrative correspondence between the PI/PD and the supporting agency.
Records
A separate accounting report established for each UW-L grant or contract account number and all financial transactions such as budget receipts, encumbrances, payments and balances will be recorded on this ledger. The PI/PD is expected to keep sufficient records in his/her own department to control all expenditures, including those budget items (e.g., travel) which may not be exceeded without agency approval. Some grants require supplementary records and these are defined in the grant or contract document or in published agency regulations.
Budget Modification
Supporting agencies have specific requirements for and restrictions on, deviation from the approved project budget. The PI/PD is responsible for complying with such regulations. When prior approval for budget modifications is required, a written request should be routed to the funding agency via the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities. Copies of modification or deviation approvals are generally sent by the supporting agency directly to the PI/PD who is responsible for submitting copies to the Dean or Director, the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities, and the Post-Award Office.
Carryover of Funding
Sponsoring agencies and organizations have different rules regarding funds that are unspent at the end of a budget period in a multi-year grant. PI/PDs should find out what their granting agencies require so as not to jeopardize the use of these funds. For example, NIH requires that un-obligated funds be returned or subtracted from the next year's award unless carryover has been approved. A request to carry forward the funds is usually included in the renewal proposal. If not, a request should be sent through the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities to the sponsor with an explanation of why the residual exists and how it will be used during the next budget period.
No Cost Extension
Requests to extend the award termination date without additional funds (no cost extension) should be sent to the sponsoring agency through the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities. Requests for a no-cost extension should be submitted using the form with an explanation of the need for a time extension and a brief statement of how any residual funds will be used during the requested period of extension.
At the minimum, the request must be received by the sponsor prior to the termination date; however, substantially longer lead time (8 weeks) may be required.
Supplemental Funds
Requests for supplement funds should be treated as a "mini-proposal". A budget showing how the funds will be spent and an explanation of why they are needed and relevant to the research must be included in the request. The appropriate Dean or Director's approval is necessary before the request can be transmitted through the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities and to the sponsor.
Project Changes
Care should be taken to charge the project for all approved expenses incurred. The fact that this may require additional paperwork (e.g., a separate order to Central Stores or a vendor) is no reason to avoid the practice and thus load the regular department budget or other extramural projects with inappropriate or unnecessary charges.
Purchasing Procedures
All regular university purchasing policies must be followed when purchasing with grant monies. If you are unaware of purchasing procedures check with the Dean or Director, Purchasing Dept., your department secretary, or the Post-Award Office (Larry King, king.larr@uwlax.edu, 125 Graff Main Hall, telephone # 608-785-8599).
Reports
The PI/PD is responsible for complying with all technical and scholarly report requirements and filing deadlines as specified by the funding agency and UW-L. When required by the granting/contract agency, auditable financial reports will be prepared by the Business Services, Post-Award Office (Larry King, king.larr@uwlax.edu, 125 Graff Main Hall, telephone # 608-785-8599) in conjunction with the PI/PD.
Salaries
Salaries and wages must be administered in accordance with State and University personnel and compensation rules and regulations. PI/PDs should be familiar with the faculty, academic staff, and classified (including LTE's) rules and regulations, current policies for employees-in-training and student hourly help, and Federal work-study procedures. Contact the Office of Human Resources for details on personnel policies and hiring. Federal grants require compliance with Federal anti-discrimination statutes.
Travel
The State and UW-L Travel Regulations govern reimbursement for travel performed with project funds. International travel and related subsistence should be reimbursed in accordance with the terms of the grant or contract. Some agencies specify maximum dollar limit per day for subsistence (room and board) and care should be taken that project accounts are not charged in excess of such maximums.
Equipment
Permanent equipment purchased from project funds is owned by either UW-L or the sponsoring agency, depending upon the terms of the grant or contract. In either case, the PI/PD is responsible for such equipment and must account for all items periodically and at the close of the project. Equipment purchased with extramural funds must be entered into the UWL inventory system.
Changes in Research Plan
Major changes in the research plan which constitute a redirection of the statement of work included in the original proposal should be discussed in advance with the funding agency's technical representative; a letter should be sent to the agency regarding the proposed change. This type of change should also have the appropriate Dean or Director's approval. If the change in research plan leads to budgetary changes, the PI/PD should consult/inform the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities.
Changes in PI/PD
Whenever an individual is unable to continue serving as a PI/PD on an extramural project, University and agency approval is required before a new project director can be designated. Contact the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities for specific requirements.
Transfer of Grant to Another Institution
When a PI/PD is terminating his or her association with UW-L and requests a transfer of their extramural support to another university, specific approval must be obtained from both UW-L (appropriate Dean or Director and the Vice Chancellor) and the funding agency. Contact the Office of Sponsored Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities.
Program Income
Federal regulations require that UW-L account to the funding agency for program income related to projects funded in whole or in part with Federal funds. It is therefore important that income generated from the sale of goods and/or services be re-deposited to the source of funds paying the costs of the sale. These regulations also require prior agency approval before expending income generated from grant activities. Sales and income is a complex area that should be discussed with UW-L Business Office if extramural funds are involved.
Time and Effort Certification
Under Federal guidelines, appointment letters, payroll records, etc., are not sufficient documentation to certify expended effort on an externally funded project: often a separate document, the Time and Effort Certification form, signed and dated by the individual having first-hand knowledge of 100% of the employee's activities, both sponsored and non-sponsored, is required. These forms are sent to PI/PDs after every payroll period -- monthly for faculty and academic staff and bi-monthly for classified employees.
Restrictions of Publication and Proprietary Information
It is the policy of UW-La Crosse that the results of research shall be fully communicated; accordingly UW-L does not engage in classified research, and will not agree to grant or contract provisions which restrict the right of a UW-L employee to publish, release, or otherwise share findings derived from the sponsored activities. UW-L does recognize that some research may require access to proprietary data. As a consequence, it will permit the sponsor of the research an opportunity to review materials prior to publication and to request changes in order to protect proprietary data. The final decision on whether to publish, however, remains with the researcher; the right of review by the sponsor does not contain a corresponding right of approval. In addition, this review period is not to exceed 90 days.
Although UW-L will agree to receive proprietary information and will exercise best efforts to maintain the confidentiality of this information, it insists such proprietary information be restricted to that which is absolutely necessary for the research. It must be clearly marked as "proprietary" at the time it is received by UW-L. Proposed exceptions to this policy, including the negotiation of contracts or agreements covering classified research in the national interest, must be approved by the cognizant Dean or Director, and the Chancellor or his/her designee.
