Sponsored agreements funded with public money (federal, state, and local government awards; subcontracts under government prime grants and contracts) are subject to full review of all award activity (program and financial) by auditors. All activities must comply with sponsor terms and conditions and with all applicable regulations.
The PI Portal helps investigators manage awards by providing timely information on grant expenditures. A list of pertinent sponsor requirements is provided in the Award Overview tab of the PI Portal and the entire award document is usually available on the Documents tab. Investigators are strongly encouraged to review the fiscal information about grants on a regular basis and to inform department and the Office of Sponsored Programs personnel as quickly as possible if problems are detected.
Requirements Review and Responsibilities
The Office of Sponsored Programs is familiar with sponsor requirements and review:
- transactions according to the appropriate guidelines
- requests for items such as “after-the-fact” cost transfers and late appointments, and approve the items request with acceptable documentation
Primary responsibility for adherence to sponsored agreement requirements rests with the principal investigator and department. The principal investigator is responsible for ensuring that:
- appropriate personnel are appointed to the grant at the correct level of effort
- project purchases and travel are in accordance with the budget and are necessary for award performance
Records Retention
Since all sponsored projects are subject to audit after they are completed, the university and investigators are required to retain financial records and supporting documentation for 10 years from the date of the submission of the final federal financial report (FFR), or when any final action is taken to resolve any claim, audit, or investigation involving the grant.