\nPost Award Fiscal Compliance Cost Allocation<\/a> and Cost Allocation Examples<\/a>.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/a>Budgeting Direct Costs<\/h2>\nDirect costs are expenses specifically associated with a particular sponsored project or activity or that can be directly assigned to that project or activity with a high degree of accuracy (e.g. supplies\u00a0allocation).<\/p>\n
<\/a>Salaries and Salary Considerations<\/h2>\nPersonnel Salaries and Benefits are typically the largest categories of expenses. Review UW Human Resources compensation information<\/a>.<\/p>\nInclude:<\/p>\n
\n- Names and titles of personnel committing effort to this project.<\/li>\n
- Effort each will devote to the sponsored activity, expressed as a percentage or calendar\/academic months<\/li>\n
- Institutional Base Salary<\/a> (IBS)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Salary costs must be:<\/h3>\n\n- Appropriate for the effort expended<\/li>\n
- Consistent with the appointment of the individual<\/li>\n
- Supported by documentation of the expense<\/li>\n
- Included in the proposal and approved by the sponsor or within re-budgeting authority<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Review examples of unallowable direct salary costs on a sponsored program<\/h2>\n
Compensation for teaching costs unless the sponsored program activity type is for Instruction or Research training, consultation or other non-University activity, excess compensation charges not included in Institutional Base Salary (IBS), and administrative or clerical salaries, unless justified and approved by the sponsor. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/a>Salary Limitations<\/h3>\nSome sponsors impose salary limitations, also sometimes known as salary caps e.g.: National Institutes of Health (NIH) salary caps<\/a>.<\/p>\nReview guidance for Documenting Salary Caps on Proposal Budgets<\/a>.<\/p>\nSummer Salaries<\/h3>\n
Faculty with 9-month appointments<\/p>\n
\n- Review UW Summer salary guidance\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n
- When allowed by sponsors, summer salary should be budgeted as separate line items from academic year salary.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Supplements<\/h3>\n
Approved supplements are available in the payroll system and reflected in the Institutional Base Salary<\/a>.<\/p>\nAnticipated Salary Increases<\/h3>\n
When allowed by the sponsor, these increases should be included in the budget calculation. Increases must be reasonable and justified in the proposal.<\/p>\n
\n- Promotions<\/li>\n
- Cost of Living Allowances (COLA) are not set in UW policy. Some sponsors do not allow or impose limits on COLA.<\/li>\n
- Classified staff mandatory step increases according to HR compensation guidance<\/a>.<\/li>\n
- \u201cTo Be Determined\u201d Staff: Budget for individuals not yet identified at the middle range for that job title.\n
\n- Classified staff<\/a><\/li>\n
- Professional staff<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/a>Administrative and Clerical Salaries<\/h3>\nSalaries of administrative and clerical staff<\/a> are normally treated as F&A costs.<\/p>\nAdministrative and clerical costs may<\/i> be proposed as direct costs if all four of these criteria exist:<\/p>\n\n- Integral to the project or activity,<\/li>\n
- Identified specifically with the project or activity,<\/li>\n
- Explicitly <\/b>included in the budget or have prior written approval of Federal awarding agency and,<\/li>\n
- Not also recovered as indirect costs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
If these costs are budgeted as direct costs, you must provide justification<\/a> in the proposal.<\/p>\nExamples of potentially <\/b>allowable direct charged administrative and clerical staff costs:<\/p>\n\n- Organizing a conference as a component of a larger project<\/li>\n
- Managing travel for a large number of participants<\/li>\n
- Organizing large datasets<\/li>\n
- Managing complex projects with multiple sites, especially if there are multiple subawards.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
If questioned, PI must justify expenses to the sponsor and auditors and will be responsible for paying back any unallowable expenses, if required.<\/p>\n
\nFeatured Resource:<\/strong>
\nRequirements to Direct Bill F&A Costs<\/a> from the Post Award Fiscal Compliance Office<\/div>\n<\/div>\nFaculty with Veteran Affairs (VA) Appointments<\/h3>\n
For faculty who have a VA appointment (up to 40 hours or \u201c8\/8th\u201d) and up to a full-time appointment with the UW, use the UW IBS to calculate effort and salary compensation.<\/p>\n
Example:<\/h4>\n
Dr. Y has a full-time salary rate of $100,000 has a 50% UW appointment and is requesting 10% salary support. The commitment on the proposal represents 10% of the 50% appointment.<\/p>\n
\n- Salary:\u200310% of the 50% salary, $5,000 ($100,000 x 50% x 10%)<\/li>\n
- Person Months:\u200310% of 50% time = 0.6 person months.<\/li>\n
- Percent Effort:\u200310% of 50% time, or 5%<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/a>Graduate Student Compensation<\/h3>\nGraduate student appointments (GSA) are considered full-time at 50% FTE during the academic year and 100% during summer. When including Graduate assistants, budget for salaries, fringe benefits and tuition remission.<\/p>\n
\nReview:<\/strong>
\nGSA: definition, limitations, budgeting, and re-budgeting<\/a> from Post Award Fiscal Compliance
\nUW Graduate School Assistantships<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nUse the average first-year postdoc compensation level in the respective school\/college, or in the absence of a policy, consult the UW Academic Resources salary rates and minimums schedule<\/a>. Budget for full actual costs.<\/p>\nNIH Awards: The maximum amount awarded by NIH for graduate students supported on research grants or cooperative agreements is tied to the zero level National Research Service Award (NRSA) postdoctoral stipend<\/a> in effect at the time the grant award is issued.<\/p>\n<\/a>Employee Benefits<\/h2>\nEmployee Benefits<\/a> (i.e., fringe) are a direct cost charged as a percentage of salary. The rates are reviewed and approved\u00a0by the federal government and apply to all sponsored projects.<\/p>\nUse the active rates for the applicable time period, and use the preliminary\/proposed rates (if available) for all future years.<\/p>\n
Current and Preliminary Benefit Rates<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>Other Direct Costs<\/h2>\nApplied Physics Laboratory (APL) Costs<\/h3>\n
Before including APL personnel or locations in your budget, contact the appropriate APL department administrator<\/a>. They will help ensure all applicable APL Prorated Direct Costs, APL Fixed Fee and budget justifications are included in your proposal budget.<\/p>\nAPL\u2019s sole purpose is research, and its operating expenses are an allowable direct cost (2 CFR Part \u00a7200.413) on projects where APL personnel or locations are involved. APL operating expenses are recovered through the application of the APL Prorated Direct Costs (PDC) rate.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Personal Service Contracts<\/h3>\nIndividual people or entities participating in a sponsored program as a non-employee.<\/p>\n
Examples include:<\/p>\n
\n- Participation of persons as research subjects<\/a><\/li>\n
- Implementation of computer systems<\/li>\n
- Contracts to conduct and provide survey results, environmental studies, and assessments<\/li>\n
- POD training<\/li>\n
- Professional consultants<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Review a full list of UW personal service categories<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/a>Professional Consultants<\/h3>\nConsult sponsor guidance for including consultants in your budget, requirements vary.<\/p>\n
Independent contractors, who are:<\/p>\n
\n- Typically experts in the field<\/li>\n
- Not UW employees and,<\/li>\n
- Don\u2019t have a faculty appointment (e.g. VA, Children\u2019s, etc.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Include a letter of collaboration with dates of service, rate of pay, other miscellaneous expenses, and deliverables.<\/p>\n
Collaborators at other higher education institutions who plan to use institutional resources are considered subrecipients and will need a formal subaward set up.<\/p>\n
Review guidance for determining Subrecipient, Vendor, or Consultant?<\/a><\/p>\nParticipant Support Costs<\/h3>\n
Direct costs for stipends or subsistence allowances, travel allowances, and registration fees paid to or on behalf of participants or trainees (but not employees) in connection with conferences or training projects.<\/p>\n
Participant support costs are allowable if the project includes an education or outreach component, the costs are separately budgeted, and the agency approves the cost. Include the following in budget justification: \u201cThe inclusion of the participant support costs in the budget and the subsequent award by the agency will be considered prior agency approval.\u201d<\/p>\n
More information from Post Award Fiscal Compliance on Participant Support<\/a>.<\/p>\nOther Contractual Services<\/h3>\n
Vendors or Suppliers who provide routine services for a fee<\/a>, (e.g. Consultant Travel, Advertising, Shipping, Rent, Inpatient and outpatient hospital charges, Laboratory Fees).<\/p>\nIs it a Sponsored Program or a Service?<\/a><\/p>\nSubawards\/Subcontracts<\/h4>\n
Review guidance for preparing proposals with subawards<\/a> and the UW policy for Sponsored Program Subaward Administration<\/a>.\u00a0List each subaward separately, using the appropriate subaward object class\/spend category. Calculate F&A on subawards following GIM 13<\/a> guidelines.<\/p>\nReview subaward budget development and F&A calculations<\/a>.<\/p>\nReview guidance for determining Subrecipient, Vendor, or Consultant?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat if subrecipient doesn\u2019t have a negotiated rate?<\/h2>\n
If a prime sponsor has a published F&A rate policy, the subrecipient should propose its F&A in accordance with this policy.<\/p>\n
For example, the NIH limits F&A on Grants to Foreign and International Organizations<\/a> to 8% with a few exceptions.<\/p>\nIf the originating sponsor is silent on F&A, the F&A rate subrecipient should use is 15% Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC). See GIM 7<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nTravel<\/h4>\n
Include estimated travel costs<\/a> according to UW travel policies<\/a> for:<\/p>\n\n- \n
\n- itemized transportation costs (e.g. airfare, ground transportation, etc.),<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\n- number of days per diem,<\/li>\n
- number and estimated cost of trips<\/li>\n
- number of individuals on each trip\n
\n- on federal awards, justify how each person\u2019s travel is necessary to the award.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- destination of each trip\n
\n- If the exact location is not known, include the general location.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Most sponsors require that you justify and retain documentation for travel expenses including how they benefit the project.<\/p>\n
Review Post Award Fiscal Compliance travel guidance<\/a>.<\/p>\nInternational Travel<\/h5>\n\n- Global Operations Support<\/a> Essential information for travel planning and risk awareness<\/li>\n
- Global Travel<\/a> Information for UW travelers<\/li>\n
- Global Research Single Points of Contact<\/a><\/li>\n
- Review\u00a0Export Compliance Measures<\/a><\/li>\n
- Global Support: Student International Travel Policy<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Supplies and Materials<\/h3>\n
List supplies by major type<\/a>, (e.g., publication costs, glassware, chemicals). Include the estimated cost of each type and how estimates were calculated, e.g. publications costs: list number of pages and cost per page.<\/p>\nDescribe the allocation rationale for supplies and materials<\/a> between different proposals\/awards in your budget justification.<\/p>\nPrior year accounting records or other documentation may be used to support estimates. Retain documentation in your award file.<\/p>\n
Considerations for Supplies and Materials<\/h3>\n\n- Food, meals, and refreshments: Awards must<\/b> specify and allow food purchases if they are included in the budget. Review UW food purchase<\/a> guidance.<\/li>\n
- Office Supplies: generally unallowable as a direct cost under federal awards.<\/li>\n
- Salaries of administrative and clerical staff are normally treated as F&A costs.\n
\n- Review Administrative and Clerical Staff Salary budget preparation guidance<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Avoid \u201cMiscellaneous\u201d and \u201cContingency\u201d categories.<\/li>\n
- Sponsor supplies and materials budget requirements e.g. NIH Genomic assays are supplies but the F&A calculations are different.\n
\n- Genomic Assays (GA) are budgeted as supply costs, however, NIH only pays F&A on the first $50,000 of GA costs each year.<\/li>\n
- NIH Policy Statement \u2013 F&A Costs<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Equipment<\/h3>\n
Review your sponsor guidelines on equipment fabrication, rental or purchases. Review Equipment Inventory Office guidance on Government Furnished Equipment<\/a>.<\/p>\nThe UW Equipment capitalization threshold is $5000. Equipment is excluded from F&A.<\/p>\n
Purchasing Equipment<\/h4>\n\n- List each item by type, model number, and manufacturer.\n
\n- If equipment needs are not definite, probable choices may be listed on a separate sheet and an estimated total shown on the budget page.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Include related costs like shipping and insurance in the equipment costs if allowed by your sponsor.<\/li>\n
- Sales Tax Exemption \u2013 Equipment purchased may qualify for the Machinery and Equipment Tax Exemption<\/a> or \u201cM&E Exemption\u201d.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Review more information from the Equipment Inventory Office on Acquisitions<\/a>.<\/p>\nEquipment Fabrication<\/h4>\n
Describe the equipment that will be fabricated along with a list of items that go into fabrication (e.g. materials, cost center services, salary, etc.). Review Equipment Inventory Office information on Fabrication<\/a>. F&A is not applied on costs involved in fabricating equipment unless the equipment will be transferred to the sponsor or external entity for use at the end of the project.<\/p>\nEquipment Rental<\/h4>\n
Each piece of rented equipment should be listed by type, model number, and manufacturer along with the current rental rate of each item. Equipment rental is considered a \u201cservice\u201d charge and F&A should be calculated.<\/p>\n
Tuition<\/h3>\n
Include associated tuition charges for graduate students employed in a 50% FTE appointment<\/a> for full payroll quarters. Review Current Tuition and Fees<\/a> from the Office of Planning and Budgeting. Tuition costs are exempt from F&A.<\/p>\nFacilities and Administrative Costs (F&A)<\/h2>\n
F&A costs are expenses that cannot be specifically identified with a particular project or activity. Also known as “indirect costs” or “overhead,” these costs are for buildings, utilities, services of administrative offices such as purchasing, accounting, payroll, and personnel offices, and other expenses necessary for operations of the institution. Review GIM 13<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\nWhat you need to know to select the correct F&A rate:<\/p>\n
Personnel Salaries and Benefits are typically the largest categories of expenses. Review UW Human Resources compensation information<\/a>.<\/p>\n Include:<\/p>\n Compensation for teaching costs unless the sponsored program activity type is for Instruction or Research training, consultation or other non-University activity, excess compensation charges not included in Institutional Base Salary (IBS), and administrative or clerical salaries, unless justified and approved by the sponsor. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Some sponsors impose salary limitations, also sometimes known as salary caps e.g.: National Institutes of Health (NIH) salary caps<\/a>.<\/p>\n Review guidance for Documenting Salary Caps on Proposal Budgets<\/a>.<\/p>\n Faculty with 9-month appointments<\/p>\n Approved supplements are available in the payroll system and reflected in the Institutional Base Salary<\/a>.<\/p>\n When allowed by the sponsor, these increases should be included in the budget calculation. Increases must be reasonable and justified in the proposal.<\/p>\n Salaries of administrative and clerical staff<\/a> are normally treated as F&A costs.<\/p>\n Administrative and clerical costs may<\/i> be proposed as direct costs if all four of these criteria exist:<\/p>\n If these costs are budgeted as direct costs, you must provide justification<\/a> in the proposal.<\/p>\n Examples of potentially <\/b>allowable direct charged administrative and clerical staff costs:<\/p>\n If questioned, PI must justify expenses to the sponsor and auditors and will be responsible for paying back any unallowable expenses, if required.<\/p>\n For faculty who have a VA appointment (up to 40 hours or \u201c8\/8th\u201d) and up to a full-time appointment with the UW, use the UW IBS to calculate effort and salary compensation.<\/p>\n Dr. Y has a full-time salary rate of $100,000 has a 50% UW appointment and is requesting 10% salary support. The commitment on the proposal represents 10% of the 50% appointment.<\/p>\n Graduate student appointments (GSA) are considered full-time at 50% FTE during the academic year and 100% during summer. When including Graduate assistants, budget for salaries, fringe benefits and tuition remission.<\/p>\n Use the average first-year postdoc compensation level in the respective school\/college, or in the absence of a policy, consult the UW Academic Resources salary rates and minimums schedule<\/a>. Budget for full actual costs.<\/p>\n NIH Awards: The maximum amount awarded by NIH for graduate students supported on research grants or cooperative agreements is tied to the zero level National Research Service Award (NRSA) postdoctoral stipend<\/a> in effect at the time the grant award is issued.<\/p>\n Employee Benefits<\/a> (i.e., fringe) are a direct cost charged as a percentage of salary. The rates are reviewed and approved\u00a0by the federal government and apply to all sponsored projects.<\/p>\n Use the active rates for the applicable time period, and use the preliminary\/proposed rates (if available) for all future years.<\/p>\n Current and Preliminary Benefit Rates<\/a><\/p>\n Before including APL personnel or locations in your budget, contact the appropriate APL department administrator<\/a>. They will help ensure all applicable APL Prorated Direct Costs, APL Fixed Fee and budget justifications are included in your proposal budget.<\/p>\n APL\u2019s sole purpose is research, and its operating expenses are an allowable direct cost (2 CFR Part \u00a7200.413) on projects where APL personnel or locations are involved. APL operating expenses are recovered through the application of the APL Prorated Direct Costs (PDC) rate.<\/p>\n Individual people or entities participating in a sponsored program as a non-employee.<\/p>\n Examples include:<\/p>\n Review a full list of UW personal service categories<\/a>.<\/p>\n Consult sponsor guidance for including consultants in your budget, requirements vary.<\/p>\n Independent contractors, who are:<\/p>\n Include a letter of collaboration with dates of service, rate of pay, other miscellaneous expenses, and deliverables.<\/p>\n Collaborators at other higher education institutions who plan to use institutional resources are considered subrecipients and will need a formal subaward set up.<\/p>\n Review guidance for determining Subrecipient, Vendor, or Consultant?<\/a><\/p>\n Direct costs for stipends or subsistence allowances, travel allowances, and registration fees paid to or on behalf of participants or trainees (but not employees) in connection with conferences or training projects.<\/p>\n Participant support costs are allowable if the project includes an education or outreach component, the costs are separately budgeted, and the agency approves the cost. Include the following in budget justification: \u201cThe inclusion of the participant support costs in the budget and the subsequent award by the agency will be considered prior agency approval.\u201d<\/p>\n More information from Post Award Fiscal Compliance on Participant Support<\/a>.<\/p>\n Vendors or Suppliers who provide routine services for a fee<\/a>, (e.g. Consultant Travel, Advertising, Shipping, Rent, Inpatient and outpatient hospital charges, Laboratory Fees).<\/p>\n Is it a Sponsored Program or a Service?<\/a><\/p>\n Review guidance for preparing proposals with subawards<\/a> and the UW policy for Sponsored Program Subaward Administration<\/a>.\u00a0List each subaward separately, using the appropriate subaward object class\/spend category. Calculate F&A on subawards following GIM 13<\/a> guidelines.<\/p>\n Review subaward budget development and F&A calculations<\/a>.<\/p>\n Review guidance for determining Subrecipient, Vendor, or Consultant?<\/a><\/p>\n If a prime sponsor has a published F&A rate policy, the subrecipient should propose its F&A in accordance with this policy.<\/p>\n For example, the NIH limits F&A on Grants to Foreign and International Organizations<\/a> to 8% with a few exceptions.<\/p>\n If the originating sponsor is silent on F&A, the F&A rate subrecipient should use is 15% Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC). See GIM 7<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Include estimated travel costs<\/a> according to UW travel policies<\/a> for:<\/p>\n Most sponsors require that you justify and retain documentation for travel expenses including how they benefit the project.<\/p>\n Review Post Award Fiscal Compliance travel guidance<\/a>.<\/p>\n List supplies by major type<\/a>, (e.g., publication costs, glassware, chemicals). Include the estimated cost of each type and how estimates were calculated, e.g. publications costs: list number of pages and cost per page.<\/p>\n Describe the allocation rationale for supplies and materials<\/a> between different proposals\/awards in your budget justification.<\/p>\n Prior year accounting records or other documentation may be used to support estimates. Retain documentation in your award file.<\/p>\n Review your sponsor guidelines on equipment fabrication, rental or purchases. Review Equipment Inventory Office guidance on Government Furnished Equipment<\/a>.<\/p>\n The UW Equipment capitalization threshold is $5000. Equipment is excluded from F&A.<\/p>\n Review more information from the Equipment Inventory Office on Acquisitions<\/a>.<\/p>\n Describe the equipment that will be fabricated along with a list of items that go into fabrication (e.g. materials, cost center services, salary, etc.). Review Equipment Inventory Office information on Fabrication<\/a>. F&A is not applied on costs involved in fabricating equipment unless the equipment will be transferred to the sponsor or external entity for use at the end of the project.<\/p>\n Each piece of rented equipment should be listed by type, model number, and manufacturer along with the current rental rate of each item. Equipment rental is considered a \u201cservice\u201d charge and F&A should be calculated.<\/p>\n Include associated tuition charges for graduate students employed in a 50% FTE appointment<\/a> for full payroll quarters. Review Current Tuition and Fees<\/a> from the Office of Planning and Budgeting. Tuition costs are exempt from F&A.<\/p>\n F&A costs are expenses that cannot be specifically identified with a particular project or activity. Also known as “indirect costs” or “overhead,” these costs are for buildings, utilities, services of administrative offices such as purchasing, accounting, payroll, and personnel offices, and other expenses necessary for operations of the institution. Review GIM 13<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n What you need to know to select the correct F&A rate:<\/p>\n\n
Salary costs must be:<\/h3>\n
\n
Review examples of unallowable direct salary costs on a sponsored program<\/h2>\n
<\/a>Salary Limitations<\/h3>\n
Summer Salaries<\/h3>\n
\n
Supplements<\/h3>\n
Anticipated Salary Increases<\/h3>\n
\n
\n
<\/a>Administrative and Clerical Salaries<\/h3>\n
\n
\n
\nRequirements to Direct Bill F&A Costs<\/a> from the Post Award Fiscal Compliance Office<\/div>\n<\/div>\nFaculty with Veteran Affairs (VA) Appointments<\/h3>\n
Example:<\/h4>\n
\n
<\/a>Graduate Student Compensation<\/h3>\n
\nGSA: definition, limitations, budgeting, and re-budgeting<\/a> from Post Award Fiscal Compliance
\nUW Graduate School Assistantships<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/a>Employee Benefits<\/h2>\n
<\/a>Other Direct Costs<\/h2>\n
Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) Costs<\/h3>\n
<\/a>Personal Service Contracts<\/h3>\n
\n
<\/a>Professional Consultants<\/h3>\n
\n
Participant Support Costs<\/h3>\n
Other Contractual Services<\/h3>\n
Subawards\/Subcontracts<\/h4>\n
What if subrecipient doesn\u2019t have a negotiated rate?<\/h2>\n
Travel<\/h4>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
International Travel<\/h5>\n
\n
Supplies and Materials<\/h3>\n
Considerations for Supplies and Materials<\/h3>\n
\n
\n
\n
Equipment<\/h3>\n
Purchasing Equipment<\/h4>\n
\n
\n
Equipment Fabrication<\/h4>\n
Equipment Rental<\/h4>\n
Tuition<\/h3>\n
Facilities and Administrative Costs (F&A)<\/h2>\n