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Federal Demonstration Partnership-Phase IV/Expanded Authorities
(FDP/EA)
In 1986, five federal agencies began a demonstration project to eliminate
unnecessary administrative burdens on sponsored research awards. The result of
the project was an implementation of "expanded authorities" for selected
institutions.
Our participation in the Federal Demonstration Partnership-Phase IV has
reduced the number of situations demanding prior approval from the sponsoring
institutions. The primary objective of the Federal Demonstration
Partnership-Phase IV is to allow researchers to focus on research as opposed to
administrative duties. The Office of Sponsored Projects can internally approve
many changes that previously required the prior approval of the Sponsor, such
as no-cost time extensions, pre-award costs of up to 90 days, rebudgeting to
travel or equipment, rebudgeting Facilities and Administration Costs to direct
costs, and automatic carryover of unobligated balances. In addition, many of
the requirements for the non-competitive or continuation funding process were
reduced significantly.
It should be noted that not all Federal sponsored research awards are
covered by the terms of the FDP. For example, training sponsored research
awards funded by Health and Human Services (HHS) are not covered by the FDP.
Neither the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) nor the National
Endowment for the Arts (NEA) participates in the FDP. Most federal agencies
will state "Federal Demonstration Partnership-Phase IV" on the award notice, if
the specific sponsored research award is included in the FDP. Also, each agency
has exceptions to the general FDP terms and conditions and may have additional
requirements. The following pages provide a summary of the general terms and
conditions of the FDP and an agency-by-agency description of specific
requirements. These summaries are intended as an easy reference. Please contact
the Office of Sponsored Projects for additional information.
FEDERAL DEMONSTRATION PARTNERSHIP-PHASE IV
General Terms and Conditions
Allowable Costs and Prior Approvals: Costs charged to a
sponsored research award under the FDP must meet the same standards as all
other Federal sponsored research awards for allowability, allocability and
reasonableness. The allowability of costs shall be determined in accordance
with the requirements of the award and the applicable Federal Cost Principles.
Cost transfer forms with documentation are still required to transfer charges
between accounts. Please contact the Office of Sponsored Projects for questions
on the allowability of a specific cost.
Project Relatedness: When the same person serves as
Principal Investigator on two or more Federal awards or when two or more awards
with different Principal Investigators involve interrelated theoretical
approaches or study the same phenomena, the Principal Investigators may request
that "relatedness" be established. If two or more awards are determined to be
"related" then they may be treated as a program for purposes of allocating
costs. A cost that is allocable to the program may be charged to any one of the
awards that make up the program, in any proportion. To establish "relatedness,"
a written request must be sent to the Federal agency. Please contact the Office
of Sponsored Projects for additional information on the procedure for
establishing "relatedness."
Changes in Objectives or Scope: The written approval of the
awarding agency is required for any changes in the phenomenon under study or
changes in the objectives of the project. Actions that may be considered a
change of scope include substitution of one animal model for another, any
change from the approved use of animals or human subjects, applying new
technology, transferring the performance of substantive programmatic work to a
third party and change of key personnel whose expertise is critical to the
approved project. The principal investigator should submit a letter to the
agency official detailing the proposed change. The letter should be
countersigned by the Office of Sponsored Projects.
Absence or Change of Principal Investigator: The prior
approval of the awarding agency is required for any absence of the Principal
Investigator for a period of 3 months or more. A substitute Principal
Investigator may be named or the award will be relinquished.
Preaward Costs: The Office of Sponsored Projects has the
authority to approve preaward costs of up to 90 days prior to the effective
date of an award. Please submit the "Request for Account Number/Preaward Cost"
form to the Office of Sponsored Projects. Prior written approval is required
for any preaward expenditure prior to 90 days of the effective date.
Extensions without Additional Funds: Upon request from the
Principal Investigator and at least 60 days prior to the end date, the Office
of Sponsored Projects can extend the expiration date of the sponsored research
award for a period of up to 12 months. A sponsored research award may be
no-cost extended only one time by the Office of Sponsored Projects. Additional
extension would need prior approval from the sponsor. Please send a brief memo
or blitzmail to the OSP, Sponsored Research Manager for your department
requesting the extension. The awarding agency will be notified by the Office of
Sponsored Projects.
Equipment: The principal investigator may approve the
acquisition of equipment not listed in approved sponsored research award
budget, provided the cost of each item is less than $25,000. Any items over
$25,000 necessitate the prior approval of the awarding agency. For items that
don't require prior agency approval, please send a brief memo specifying the
amounts to be rebudgeted to the OSP, Sponsored Research Manager. In addition,
any "excess" Facilities and Administration Cost generated by the rebudgeting
may be rebudgeted to direct cost categories. For items over $25,000, please
contact OSP, Sponsored Research Manager for assistance in requesting agency
approval. No equipment can be purchased during the last six months on a
sponsored research PTAEO account.
Foreign Travel: The principal investigator may approve
foreign travel not requested in the approved budget. All travel must occur on
U.S. Flag Air Carriers unless such service is unavailable.
Unobligated Balances/Carryover Funds (if awarded under
FDP): The Office of Sponsored Projects will automatically carryover
any unobligated balance remaining at the end of the current budget period. The
Office of Sponsored Projects shall notify the awarding agency by means of the
required Financial Status Report. The ability to carryover any unexpended
balance at the end of a competitive segment depends on the agency
guidelines.
FEDERAL DEMONSTRATION PARTNERSHIP
Quick Reference
- OSP can approve a one time no cost extension up to 12 months (Principal
Investigator request of OSP manager 60 days prior to current end date)
additional extensions will require prior approval by the sponsor
- OSP sends no-cost extension notifications on National Institutes of Health
funded awards to National Institutes of Health's Commons via email
- Other agencies notified according to their guidelines
- 90 Day preaward
- Rebudgeting within agency guidelines without prior approval
- Automatic carryover – refer to agency for thresholds or Notice of Award for
restrictions
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