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 VCOM
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General Regulatory Framework
 Federal 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 Budget
Always
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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).
Information Needed for Budget
If Applicable
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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
Budget – Cautions/Red Flags
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VCOM does not estimate costs, contract for, report progress, or submit invoices based on
man-hour rates
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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
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Subcontractors have to adhere to all RFP requirements including any indirect limitations,
costs sharing requirements, and cost exclusions
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Cost sharing should not be “volunteered” above the minimum amount required by RFP
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?
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Ensure that auditable pricing data is submitted to your
sponsors
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Ensure compliance with regulations
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Prevent under funding or over funding issues
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ORA has to approve budgets for a sponsored research fund
number to be established
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Budget variables change frequently
Major Categories of Costs
 Personnel (salaries, wages, & fringe benefits)
 Percentage of effort or months
 Typically largest cost
 Based 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
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Major Categories of Costs (cont.)
 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?
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Major Categories of Costs (cont.)
 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
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Salary/Fringe/Overhead Rates
Salary*
3%
Fringe Rates
VCOM charges actual
rates
On-Campus F&A
53.5%
Off Campus F&A
21%
on 7/1
* Salary escalations are only estimates for budget purpose
and do not guarantee a salary increase
Note that no other costs are automatically escalated
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Direct Vs. Indirect Costs
 Direct
Costs that can be specifically identified with a particular
project or program.
 Indirect
Real costs that are incurred… for common or joint
objectives and which therefore cannot be identified with a
particular project or program.
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Direct Costs
 Principles
 Reasonable and necessary
 Allocable and verifiable
 Allowable under regulations
 Examples
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PI salary and fringes
Travel
Equipment and materials/supplies
Contractual services and subcontractors
Cost-Sharing
 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
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Budget Narrative
 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
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Your Budget After the Award
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Budget revision to match the actual funding
Will it affect your proposed Effort?
Your Budget relative to your Research Plan
Your Budget Justification
“Burn Rate”
Re-budgeting
Incremental funding and carry-over
Award Negotiation
• OSP must review for:
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Type of Award (cost reimbursable or fixed price)
Budget Limitations / Restrictions
Invoice Requirements
Technical Reporting Requirements
•Unacceptable Terms that must be negotiated:
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Laws of another state or country
Indemnification
Intellectual Property Rights
Publication Rights
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Grant
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Procurement of research services
Specific obligations and detailed terms & conditions
Federal Contracts use Federal Acquisition Regulations (FARs)
Cooperative Agreement
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Financial assistance
For public good – not to be restricted for commercial or internal use
Federal Grants use standard federal assistance terms
Contract
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Types of Agreements
Sponsor and VCOM cooperate on a specific SOW with both parties
assigned specific responsibilities
Specific obligations and usually detailed terms
Post Award Responsibilities:
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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
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 Pitfalls
 Forgetting that salary and fringe typically eat up 60
to 80% of total direct costs
 Underestimating support time and effort
 Vague and unjustified costs categories; padding
categories
 Inappropriate 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 Assistance
 Search for Funders
 Find Collaborators
 Proposal Formatting
 Proposal Guidance
 Administrative Forms
 Boiler plate Information
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Statistical Assistance
 Research Design
 Sample Size Calculation
 Outcome and Predictor Variables
 Statistical Analysis Plan
 Review of Data Collection Forms and Data Entry Keys
 Survey Creation
 Statistical 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