Frequently Asked Questions

A sponsored program award line is in deficit when the total allowable expenditures exceed the amount awarded for the project or the cash received. Award lines in deficit cannot be closed in Workday until the deficit is resolved.

To resolve a deficit, identify an allowable worktag that the deficit can be transferred to. Then create an Award Portal ticket using the topic “Deficit Transfer Request” to provide the worktag. GCA will then prepare the journal in Workday to transfer the deficit from the grant worktag and proceed with the closing process.

An accounting adjustment must be used if an expense posted to the grant worktag is unallowable per the terms of the award agreement. GIM 15 outlines the policy for accounting adjustments on sponsored program awards.

A deficit transfer is appropriate when all expenses are allowable and total expenses exceed the award amount or the amount of cash received from the sponsor.

Deficit transfers and accounting adjustments both pose audit risks to the University of Washington:

• Deficit transfers can indicate that an award may have been mis-managed when overspending occurs
• Accounting adjustments can represent an audit risk for the University
• Multiple transfers indicate continuous errors
• Transfers of expenses after 90 days from posting indicate reconciliation issues and potential internal control weaknesses

It depends on the sponsor and the award. Please review your award agreement and/or sponsor policies for more information. If they are silent on carryforward, GCA will require written sponsor authorization to carry a balance or deficit forward.

A deficit can be transferred from a sponsored program award to any of the following worktags:

• Cost Center (prefix: "CC")
• Gift (prefix: "GF")
• Program (prefix: "PG")
• Activity (prefix: "AC")
• Stand-alone grants (prefix: "GR") including Startup, Retention, CoMotion-Royalty, Departmental Research Support, Residual Balance

Visit GCA's deficit webpage for more information about the process.