Linda Mason, EdD
Beth Shumate
OSRHE Summer Grant Writing Institute
BUDGET PREPARATION
WHEN TO BUILD YOUR PROJECT

Before the project narrative?


After the project narrative?


May serve as a guide to your project design.
May not know your budget needs until you’ve mapped
out your activities.
Consult your Grant Accounting Office (Post Award,
Grants Management) for help if this is a
department available to you.
Alongside? It’s up to you!
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES
Structure as reflected in SF – 424, or the Grant RFP
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Also known as classifications, accounts or categories:

Personnel

Salary





Calculate close-to-actual; align with similar organizations or yours.
Include COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment).
Certain % of time for position, or a certain percentage cap for the grant?
Think about how position will be sustained.
Fringe

Explain in detail.

E.g., Fringe explanation: (Full-time employees benefits calculated as much as
49%) to include FICA; Medicare; OK Teachers Retirement System (OTRS); OTRS
Statutory Match; Health Ins.; Dental Ins.; Life Ins.; Long-term disability Ins.
Health insurance and OTRS Employer portion expected to increase 2-3 times
each year. Part-time employees calculated at 9% for FICA.
When funded, you can not move any money back into Personnel
(AT ALL).

BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Travel
 Who
is going?
 How
 How
many?
long will they be gone?
 How
 Where
many nights in a hotel? How much per diem?
are they going?
 Need
 Does
a rental car? Local bus transportation? Taxis?
the grant allow this travel for these people?
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Equipment
 Many
federal agencies define equipment as “any
individual purchase item that costs $5,000 or more
and has a shelf life of more than one year.”
 If your organization has a lower dollar threshold,
you are obligated to use your institution’s definition.
 Many organizations also require you to submit prior
approval requests before you purchase items that
are $5,000 or more. (e.g., US Dept of Labor)
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Supplies
 All
items under $5,000.
 May be consumable.
 Office supplies may or may not be allowable,
depending on agency regulations and the RFP.
 Computers may or may not be allowable, depending
on agency regulations and the RFP.
 Teaching materials are different than office
supplies.
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Contractual
 Evaluation
 Guest
speakers
 Program consultants
 Anything that requires a contract, memorandum of
understanding, agreement, etc.
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Construction (borrowed from Dr. Coggins)
 BE
VERY CAREFUL HERE! This is a “touchy” thing for
most agencies!
 Is this allowable and to what extent?
 If it is allowable, generalize the narrative – don’t
create future problems for yourself.
 Most grants are non-construction grants, meaning
you can’t build a building.
 Many grants will allow for renovation that relates
directly to grant objectives.
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Other
 Not
always a well-defined category, but the RFP will
usually describe what goes here, or ASK??
 Equipment
rental
 Required fees
 Communication costs
 Rental of space
 Utilities
 Custodial services
 Printing
 Student stipends, teacher stipends
BUDGET OBJECT CATEGORIES

Indirect Cost
 Check
your RFP for limits, caps, or bans on use of
indirect cost.
 Find out what your institution’s indirect cost rate is.
 Negotiated with your institution's federal cognizant
agency (usually DHHS).
 Typical
of universities?
 Typical of community colleges?
 Indirect
award.
is not in addition to the total amount of
BUDGET NARRATIVE AND JUSTIFICATION


ALL budget line items MUST be justified (e.g., per diem = 1 day x
$42/day x 1 person = $42)
MOST proposals require actual narrative.

E.g., Budget Summary: Tulsa Community College operates five campus
locations in the city of Tulsa, OK. Since the College's unduplicated
headcount falls just short of 20,000, TCC fits into the category of
institutions of higher education with enrollments between 5,000 and
19,999. Consequently, the target budget for this project is based on the
$500,000 estimate for schools of this size. When considering students
that take courses at multiple campuses and students who attend TCC
for continuing education, yearly enrollment is closer to 30,000 or more
students. Also, the multiple locations of TCC in Tulsa adds to the
complexity of the project. For this reason, the total budget is slightly
higher than $500,000 to account for these factors. TCC will lead and
maintain all fiscal and operational responsibilities for the project. The
budget has been itemized according to Department of Education
categories.
BUDGET PRESENTATION

It varies, but when in doubt:
 Consult
your RFP!!! Ask your Program Director!!!
 No Mistakes!!!
 Be Consistent!!!
 No Padding!!!
 Ensure it is reflective of and reasonable for your
grant objectives and activities!!!