Jef f Warner
Contract and
Grant Of ficer
FEDERAL UPDATE
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
Danielle
VandenBos Esq.
Contract and
Grant Of ficer
F E DE RAL U P DATE AG E NDA :
 NIH Fiscal Policy - FY 201 2
 Impor tant ARRA Information
 NRSA Budgetar y Levels
 E-Verify FAR Clause
 NIH Ef ficient Spending –
Conference Gants
 NSF Senior Project Per sonnel
 Multiple PI Assurance
 NIH Resubmissions
 NIH – LikeThis
 DoD – Enhanced IRB
Requirements
 DHHS – Salar y Limitation
 Sponsor Climate in Washington
 NIH E-Submission Supplement
Requests
 Subaward Proposal Package
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
NIH FISCAL POLICY FOR GRANT AWARDS – FY 2012
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 3 6
 Non-competing awards will be issued without cost of
living/inflationary adjustments in FY 2012 and inflationary
increases for future year commitments will be discontinued
for all competing and non -competing research (SPA
recommends to continue to budget proposals with
these increases).
 However adjustments for special needs (such as equipment
and added personnel) will continue to be accommodated.
 FY 2012 awards that have already been issued will be revised
to adjust the award level and future year commitments in
accordance with these principles.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
R U T H L . K I R S C H S T E I N N AT I O N A L R E S E A R C H S E R V I C E AW A R D ( N R S A )
S T I P E N D S , T U I T I O N / F E E S A N D O T H E R B U D G E TA R Y L E V E L S E F F E C T I V E F O R
F ISCAL YEAR 2 01 2
NOT-OD-12-033
 This Notice establishes new stipend levels for fiscal year (FY)
2012 Kirschstein-NRSA awards for undergraduate,predoctoral,
and postdoctoral trainees and fellows (i.e. issued on or after
October 1 , 2011).
 Tuition, fees and training -related expenses for trainees and
institutional allowances for Fellows remain unchanged.
 All FY 2012 awards issued using FY 2011 stipend levels will be
revised to increase the stipend category to the FY 2012 level. For
institutional training grants already awarded in FY 2012, if
trainees have been appointed to the FY 2012 budget period, the
grantee institution must amend those appointments to reflect
the FY 2012 stipend level once the revised award is received.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N E W N I H P O LI C Y O N E F F IC IENT S P E NDI NG R E LATED TO
G R A N T S S UP P ORTING C ON FERE NCES A N D M E E TING S
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 41
 Ef fective with grant awards issued on/after January 27, 2012,
a new term and condition which prohibits food/meal costs
from being supported or charged to NIH -supported conference
grants will be included: “Direct charges for meals/food and
beverages are unallowable charges to this project .”
 The new policy applies to awards supporting a Conference
and/or Scientific Meeting (i.e. R13s and U13s); however, other
grant mechanisms that are specifically issued to support
conferences will be considered on a case by case basis .
 For conference grants previously awarded with FY2012 funds,
NIH will not revise the award to modify the terms and
conditions of the grants.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
NIH RESUBMISSIONS
 Resubmission– A proposal submitted to make a significant
change (e.g., scope of work, budget, facilities, subawards, etc.)
to a previously submitted proposal not yet funded by the sponsor
and where the sponsor requires submission of a revised full
proposal.
 Please remember to include the previous proposal number in
section 5 of the AA Form.
 Please remember to include the Federal Identifier in the
applicable section of the SF 424 (4A).
 The Federal Identifier is the Institute Code and Serial Number
assigned to the previous submission (ex. CA123456). This
number is available in the eRA Commons.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N I H - L I KE TH IS ( A T H E SAURUS - BASED S E A RCH TO OL )
 LikeThis is a new search tool to aid Principal Investigators in
finding and learning about other research projects that have
similar goals and objectives as their own. By entering specific
scientific terms or accessing their own grant applications or
grants and clicking on LikeThis, investigators will be provided
a listing of similar funded projects and/or publications.
 LikeThis is available from the eRA Commons home page under
the Additional Links section along the right side of the page.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N I H - L I KE TH IS ( A T H E SAURUS - BASED S E A RCH TO OL)
 LikeThis provides a powerful and integrated search tool in a
user friendly interface. With the ability to find similar
projects and publications, Principal Investigators can more
quickly and ef ficiently:
 find out new ideas for research based on what NIH has
awarded in the past;
 see what NIH is doing in his or her area of interest ;
 use the information as a decision tool to determine if they
need to come up with a fresh research idea; and
 figure out in which study section his or her application should
be reviewed.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
SA LA RY L I M I TATION O N G R A NT S, C O OP ERATI VE AG RE EMENT S
A N D C O NTRAC T S F ROM N I H A N D A H RQ
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 3 5 & N OT- H S- 1 2 - 0 07
 The Department of Health and Human Services (“DHHS”) budget
signed on December 23, 2011 includes a reduction in the salary
cap from Executive Level I ($199,700) to Executive Level II
($179,700).
 Budget periods awarded using previous fiscal year funds use the
salary cap that was in effect for that particular fiscal year .
 The salary cap does apply to all subawards and subcontracts.
 Please note that the Executive Level II salary cap will apply to all
DHHS entities, not just NIH and AHRQ. However, NIH and AHRQ
are the only agencies that have issued implementation
guidance. We will forward additional guidance as it becomes
available.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
SA LA RY L I M I TATION O N G R A NT S, C O OP ERATI VE AG RE EMENT S
A N D C O NTRAC T S F ROM N I H A N D A H RQ
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 3 5 & N OT- H S- 1 2 - 0 07
When the
The following will apply:
 issue date of an award is on or
before December 22, 2011
 initial issue date of an award is
on or af ter December 23
 If the award is a non-competing
renewal AND initial issue date is
on or af ter December 23
 The FY 2012 award will remain at the
$199,700 salar y cap and the following
years will be adjusted downward to the
$ 17 9 , 7 0 0 c a p o r t h e c a p i n e f f e c t w h e n
the new non-competing renewal is issued.
 T h e $ 17 9 , 7 0 0 s a l a r y c a p w i l l a p p l y.
If the award is a new or competing award,
NIH will issue a revised Notice of Award,
adjusting the award and the following
years to reflect the new salar y cap.
 The new cap applies but NIH will not
adjust the award. Principal Investigators
may re-budget the “funds freed as a result
of the lower cap” into other budget
c ateg ories. Future non -c ompeting
r e n e w a l s , h o w e v e r, w i l l b e a t t h e s a l a r y
cap of Executive Level II in ef fect at the
issue date of the renewal.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
SA LA RY L I M I TATION O N G R A NT S, C O OP ERATI VE AG RE EMENT S
A N D C O NTRAC T S F ROM N I H A N D A H RQ
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 3 5 & N OT- H S- 1 2 - 0 07
 UCI Implementation:
 Sponsored Projects has modified its awards synopsis so that
the Contract and Grant Of ficers can advise departments on
which salary cap applies to awarded funds from DHHS
agencies. The award synopsis contains a code in the upper
right hand corner that indicates either “Exec LvL I” or “Exec
LvL II.”
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N E W E L E CTRONIC S U BMISSION P ROCE SS N OW AVA I LA BLE
FO R A D M INI STRATIVE S U P PLE MENT R E QUEST S
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 4 3
 Administrative Supplement requests may now be submitted
through either the eRA Commons or Grants.gov, as described
in NOT-OD-12-024 (notification of the availability of the two
pilot processes), or through the existing, paper -based process.
 NIH has published the first administrative supplement FOA
(Funding Opportunity Announcement). This FOA (PA -12-100) is
available for prior approval requests to nearly all active grant
awards.
 NIH will soon also publish FOAs for Research Supplements to
Promote Diversity. Once published, applicants are encouraged
to use one of the two new electronic processes.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N E W E L E CTRONIC S U BMISSION P ROCE SS N OW AVA I LA BLE
FO R A D M INI STRATIVE S U P PLE MENT R E QUEST S
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 4 3
 Pilot System for Forms -Based Submissions through
Grants.gov:
 Applicants choosing this method will need to complete a full
supplement application package using the SF424 (R&R) forms
available on Grants.gov.
 They will need to provide information in all required fields,
and provide additional information justifying the
supplemental dollars.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N E W E L E CTRONIC S U BMISSION P ROCE SS N OW AVA I LA BLE
FO R A D M INI STRATIVE S U P PLE MENT R E QUEST S
N OT- OD - 1 2 - 0 4 3
 Pilot System for Streamlined Supplement Requests through
eRA Commons:
 PDs/PIs and AORs will login to the eRA Commons, identify the
parent award that a supplement is being requested for, and
prepare an administrative supplement request.
 The system will utilize data from the previous award and pre populate as much of the request as possible .
 Applicants only need to provide information justifying the
supplement.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
I M P ORTA NT I N FORMATION R E G AR D I NG A R R A AWAR D S
 On September 15, 2011 , the Of fice of Management and
Budget (OMB) issued Memorandum M -11-34, “Accelerating
Spending of Remaining Funds from the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act.”
 The memo directed Federal agencies to accelerate the
spending of ARRA funds as a way to support the President's
ongoing ef forts to "drive the economy forward and create
jobs” and to take steps to complete Recovery Act projects by
September 30, 2013.
 The National Institutes for Health ( NIH) and the National
Science Foundation (NSF) have provided separate guidance on
meeting the accelerated spending goal.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
I M P ORTA NT I N FORMATION R E G ARDI NG A R R A AWARDS – N I H
G U I DA NCE
For awards sc heduled to end on or
BEFORE September 30, 2013
For awards t hat are sc heduled to
end AFTER September 30, 201 3
 I f a n o - c o s t ex te n s i o n i s n e c e s s a r y, i t
m u s t b e r e q u e s te d b y J U N E 1 , 2 01 2 ,
r e g a r d l e s s o f t h e e n d d a te o f t h e
aw a r d .
 If a no-cost extension is
necessar y, it must be requested
by June 2, 201 2 .
 G r a n te e s m ay s t i l l ex e r c i s e t h e i r o n e t i m e , g r a n te e - a p p rov e d n o - c o s t
ex te n s i o n a s l o n g a s t h e p e r i o d o f
p e r fo r m a n c e w i t h t h e ex te n s i o n d o e s
n o t ex te n d b eyo n d S e p te m b e r 3 0 ,
2 01 3 .
 The NIH Grants Management
Of ficer for the award must be
notified in writing via the
appropriate Contract and Grant
Of ficer in Sponsored Projects of
the request for an extension.
 H o w ev er, i f a P r i n c i p al I nv e s t i g a to r
r e q u i r e s a n ex te n s i o n b eyo n d
S e p te m b e r 3 0 , 2 01 3 , h e / s h e m u s t
f o l l ow t h e g u i da nc e f o r “ aw a r d s t h a t
a r e s c h e d ule d to e n d a f te r S e p te m b e r
3 0 , 2 01 3 .”
 The request for extension must
explain why an extension of the
project is vital for its
completion.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
I M P ORTA NT I N FORMATION R E G ARDI NG A R R A AWARDS – N SF
G U I DA NCE
 If a no-cost extension is necessar y, it must be requested by Ju ne 2, 201 2 ,
regardless of the end date of the award.
 Grantees may still exercise their one -time, grantee -approved no-cost
extension as long as the period of per formance with the extension does not
extend beyond September 30, 2013.
 The deadline for an extension past September 30, 2013 was March 2 nd .
 Awards that are scheduled to end AFTER September 30, 2013, were
required to submit their plan to accelerate completion was due to the
Program Of ficial on March 2 nd .
 NSF will amend awards to ensure that the period of per formance does not
extend beyond September 30, 2013 in order to comply with the OMB
memorandum
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
I M P ORTA NT I N FORMATION R E G AR D I NG A R R A AWAR D S
Sponsored Projects strongly encourages
Principal Investigators to responsibly
accelerate spending on their ARRA awards to
the greatest extent possible because waivers
are not guaranteed.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
FA R C L AUSE: E - VE RI FY R E QUI REMENT
5 2 .2 2 2 - 5 4
 Ef fective September 8, 2009, all employers who receive
specific federal contracts are required to comply with E -Verify,
an Internet-based system operated by the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social
Security Administration (SSA).
 The E-Verify program provides an Internet -based means of
verifying employment eligibility of workers employed in the
United States.
 E-Verify electronically compares information contained on the
Form I-9 with records contained in the Social Security
Administration (SSA) and DHS databases to verify the identity
and employment eligibility of employees.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
FA R C L AUSE: E - VE RI FY R E QUI REMENT
5 2 .2 2 2 - 5 4
 UC, as a federal contractor, must verify qualifying new and
existing employees, including employees who may be
assigned through a transfer to a qualified federal
contract/subcontract.
 Grants are not subject to the federal rule, only qualified
federal contracts/subcontracts. The E -Verify process must be
done in a nondiscriminatory manner and, in the case of new
hires, only after the individual has accepted an of fer of
employment and completed the Form I-9.
 Please see all UC E -Verify Guidelines here:
http://snap.uci.edu/viewXmlFile.jsp?resourceID=4365
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
N SF - S E N I OR P ROJ EC T P E RSONNE L SA LA RI ES & WAG ES
P O LI C Y
 NSF limits salary compensation for senior project personnel to
no more than two months of their regular salary in any one
year.
 This limit includes salary compensation received from all NSFfunded grants.
 If anticipated, any compensation for such personnel in excess
of two months must be disclosed in the proposal budget,
justified in the budget justification, and must be specifically
approved by NSF in the award.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
M U LTIP LE P I A S SURA NCE
 The Administrative Approval (“AA”) form contains the NIH PI
assurance. Thus, all UCI Principal Investigators on a Multiple
Principal Investigator NIH application must sign the
Administrative Approval (“AA”) form. Only the
Chair/Dean/Director signatures are required from the
Lead/Contact PIs administering unit.
 For NIH’s 2590 progress report, the PI assurance statement
must be retained for all named PI’s on the project.
 For all prior approval requests, each PI on project must
endorse the request.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
D O D – E N H A NC ED I R B R E QUIREME NT S
 In 2006, the Department of the Defense (DoD) enhanced its
human subject protection requirements, including the
application of those requirements to extramural performers. UCI
has signed an assurance with the DoD which requires that UCI
apply DoD regulations and policies for the protection of human
research participants when conducting, reviewing, approving,
overseeing, supporting or managing DoD supported human
subject research.
 Sponsored Projects conducts a protocol match prior to issuing
synopses; if it is found these extra requirements are not met,
SPA will hold the award.
 Please see guidance concerning these requirements here:
http://www.research.uci.edu/ora/hrpp/deptOfDefense.htm
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
S P ONSOR C L I MATE I N WA SH INGTON
 Please ensure all prior approval requests are routed through
Sponsored Projects prior to submission. All Federal Agencies are
under new scrutiny to focus on all areas of non -compliance and
unallowable costs.
 NIH is pushing for more timely submissions of Just -in-Time
requests. As there are fewer funds available to support NIH
administrative staff, the JIT review process is taking more time
which results in longer delays in receiving funds.
 The Air Force Office of Scientific Research recently published a
memo clarifying their No Cost Extension policy. Their policy
allows for extensions; however, they are only issued in situations
where they are both properly documented and truly warranted.
These requests are considered on a case -by -case basis.
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
SUBAWARD PROPOSAL PACKAGE
 Subrecipient Commitment Form: All Subrecipients must
complete this form when submitting a proposal to UCI .
 Detailed Scope of Work
 Detailed Budget and Justification
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012
CONTRACT AND GRANT OFFICERS
 Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact
your Contract and Grant Of ficer.
 Jonathan Lew: 949-824-3029 or jlew@uci.edu
 Alison Yeung: 949-824-2644 or alison.yeung@research.uci.edu
 Danielle VadenBos Esq.: 949-824-7109 or vandenbd@uci.edu
 Leighsa Washington: 949 -824-2460 or lrwashin@uci.edu
 Jef f Warner: 949-824-4781 or warnerj@uci.edu
Spring QRAM - Monday, March 14, 2012