Budget development

Budget tools & resources

• System to Administer Grants Electronically (SAGE): The SAGE Budget Tool helps you create an accurate budget for your grant proposal. It auto-populates data from the payroll and financial systems, helps you select proper rates, and calculate totals automatically. Typically, the Office of Sponsored Research will start this process for you based on your budget justification. Our office supports PIs by having expert knowledge in UW systems required to carry out the proposed work.
• UW Seattle Office of Research Budget Development Page: Provides more information on how to build out and plan your project budget.
• The Office of Sponsored Research team:
  • Cindy Shirley (cindys00@uw.edu) helps PIs develop their budgets prior to submission.
  • Leena Perera (leena@uw.edu) can answer questions on fiscal compliance – whether an expense can be added to a grant or not.
  • Kelsey Bolinger (kelsboli@uw.edu) supports the pre-award process and budget modifications.

Personnel

A good starting place for your budget justification is personnel. All budgets must address staffing.

Here are few common questions to get you started:

1. Who will work on the project?
   • Faculty, staff, students (grad and undergrad), and post docs. “Key personnel” will include the most important people for a successful project. This normally excludes post docs and students.
2. What are each person’s tasks?
   • Each person should have a reason to be considered a member of the project. Make sure these roles are clearly defined in the budget or justification.
3. How much time should each person need to complete assigned tasks?
   • This can be an average yearly percent, number of person months or number of hours depending on the type of assignment.
4. Does each person work for the UW?
   • If no, the individual(s) will be included under subcontracts, consultant or service.
5. Are students included?
   • Grad and undergraduate students can be budgeted with salaries and fringe benefits based on their position. For grad students, tuition may be included.

Effort is a very important piece of a grant and of work at an academic institution. Grant effort is recorded and scrutinized closely due to federal regulations. Always be sure that the amount of effort proposed is accurate. If awarded, the effort that is proposed is the effort that will need to be worked on the grant. Deviations of up to 25% are allowable for key personnel without sponsor approval (on most awards), but anything more will need to go back to the sponsor.

Personnel is also the largest category in most budgets. Therefore, accuracy is important to limit over-expenditures.

Fringe benefits

The University of Washington has negotiated benefit rates:

• UW Fringe Benefit Rates and Sponsored Projects Page (GIM 03)
• UW Benefit Rates

Supplies

Define what supplies are needed for the project. Items can range from beakers to survey instruments and books. Contact companies for price quotes to assist in estimating costs.

Publications

Funds should be budgeted for Publications. Open-Source requirements now cost more money.

Travel

Travel to a research site or to a conference to disseminate your research can be included in your budget.

Here are a few things to consider:

1. Is travel required by the sponsor?
   • NSF normally requires one trip to Washington DC each year of the project for the PI to meet with the program officer. Mileage, airfare, hotel, subsistence, etc.
2. Is travel required for completing the tasks?
   • Data may need to be gathered in the field. Account for the number of people traveling, cost of mileage and other travel items.
3. Will the research be presented at a conference?
   • Account for number of people attending the conference, mileage, airfare, conference registration costs, hotel, subsistence, etc.

The UW Seattle Travel Office is a good source of information for budgeting trips.

Equipment

Normally, the UW considers items that cost over $5,000 and have an expected life of at least one year to be considered equipment. Contact companies and manufacturers to obtain price estimates for equipment. Occasionally, sponsors will require quotes to be included in the proposal.

Subcontracts, consultants & services

Are individuals outside the UW necessary for completion of the project? Please review the following options.

Subaward

• Work completed by an institution, company, or agency. Not a single individual.
• The lead individual would have PI status.
• The work is part of the design, implementation, outcome and reporting.
• Documents required for subaward:
  • Letter of intent
    • Uses same project title as the prime
    • Uses same dates as prime (if applicable – a subaward cannot begin prior to or end after the prime’s award)
    • Includes award amount
    • Signed by authorized official
  • Scope of work: This should be only the subaward’s work. This is not the full proposal narrative. The document needs to be detailed enough that if there is a question on billing or work completed, one could reference the SOW.
  • Budget
    • Detailed budget that includes all the costs for the subaward’s work
    • Should include effort, fringe benefit rates and indirect costs rate and basis calculation
  • Budget Justification: explanation of all the project costs
  • Senior personnel documents (based on sponsor)

Consultant

• Not part of the methodology and are simply offering advice
• May be a single individual
• Scope for work and a total cost with the price broken down accordingly ($/hr, $/sample, $/day).

Service

• Business that completes a task
• Examples: transcription, data from lab samples (but no review)

For more information, please check out this information from the Office of Sponsored Programs.

Cost share

Cost share are costs not borne by the sponsor. The university does not allow cost sharing when it is not a requirement of the proposal as it negatively impacts the future indirect rate, increases the administrative burden and redirects university resources from other university activities When cost share is submitted in a proposal and accepted by the sponsor, that is a binding commitment. Please contact OSR to discuss cost share.

Participant support costs

Participant support costs are allowable when a project includes education or outreach. This includes direct costs for stipends, travel, allowances, and other related costs. These costs are budgeted separately and require sponsor approval.

More information from Post Award Fiscal Compliance can be found on the Participant Support website.

Tuition

If graduate students are going to work on a project, then tuition should be included in the budget (unless not allowed by the sponsor). For tuition costs:

• Visit UW Student Fiscal Services page
• Visit UW Bothell Tuition page

Indirect costs

These are for covering costs that are necessary but cannot be directly related to the project (electricity, administrative costs, etc). These costs are figured by taking the total direct costs (all the costs discussed above) and subtracting tuition, equipment and subcontract amounts over $25,000 (for the entire contract period, not each year) and then multiplying by our current F&A rate (55.5%). This line item in the grant is not for the PI to spend. The university accumulates these costs and then has a method for returning a portion to the different areas involved.

Unallowable costs

According to 2 CRF 200, Supbart E, there are costs that are normally not allowable for research grants. Items such as office supplies, cell phones, basic computers, banquet meals above per diem limit, and non-technical software are just a few commonly found.

If items fall within this category that may be necessary for project completion, an explanation as to how the item contributes to the specific aims is required within the proposal.