PAFC Hot Topic
Implementing FY22 Increased NRSA Stipend Levels
Q: For T32, what rates do you use when someone graduates and you use remaining obligated funds from the previous year to start a new appointment?
A: The trainee should be appointed using the stipend level in effect at the start of the budget period in which the appointment beings, even if the trainee’s appointment will continue into the next budget period. NIH funds training grants based on the federal fiscal year in which the budget period begins. The trainee will be eligible for the new, higher rates upon re-appointment in the continuation budget period since that period begins during the next federal fiscal year.
eRA Commons: RPPR Form Updates
Q: We have been working on our RPPR for 3 months now with the intent to submit on June 22. If we wait until that date, we will need to redo all of our documentation and submit in the new forms. Otherwise, it sounds like we can submit by this coming Monday, June 14, and will be able to use the current forms and avoid a redo?
A: If you are working on a non-SNAP RPPR currently, you would need to have it submitted to NIH (by OSP) by June 22, otherwise you would have to re-do the budget forms because they will have been replaced with the new formset on June 23. To have OSP submit the RPPR by June 22, it should be received by OSP before 5 pm on Tuesday, June 14th.
SAGE Award Budget
UWFT for the Research Community
Q1: Is it correct that SAGE budget will not be required at application time but it will be required for award? If this is correct how will this be operationalized?
A1: That is correct. SAGE Budget is encouraged, but not required at time of proposal. At time of award SAGE Budget will be required, with Workday implementation, in order to facilitate that integration between SAGE and Workday.
Q2: Can you demonstrate a use of SAGE budget? Or is there a navigation/demonstration tool/tutorial available?
A2: We recommend attending a SAGE Budget class if you are new to using SAGE Budget or need a refresher. Classes are offered quarterly through CORE.
Register to attend our next class on August 25. We are also in the process of developing new on-demand SAGE Budget eLearning resources that will help users get up to speed on creating and managing budgets in SAGE. Stay tuned as we will share additional class dates and on-demand resources via email and post to the UWFT for the Research Community webpage as they become available!
Q3:Is there going to be recorded session from SAGE classes, to watch beyond scheduled date of the class?
A3: We don’t currently record SAGE Budget classes. However, we are in the process of developing new on-demand SAGE Budget eLearning resources that will help users get up to speed on creating and managing budgets in SAGE. The SAGE Budget user guide, job aid, and training site are also great resources as you get started using SAGE Budget. If you have questions or need help getting started, reach out to us at sagehelp@uw.edu.
Additional SAGE Budget Resources:
- SAGE Budget User Guide: In-depth documentation on all aspects of SAGE Budget.
- SAGE Budget Job Aid: A step-by-step guide on creating and managing budgets in SAGE.
- SAGE Budget Training Site: The SAGE Budget training site offers a “sandbox” for you to explore and experiment with SAGE Budget without affecting production data. Once you are ready to create a real SAGE Budget for routing, visit the production site.
Q4: If we create a SAGE Budget in Feb 2023, for example, and it gets awarded after go live, will we need to recreate the budget with the new object codes, or will the Feb 2023 budget be automatically updated with the new object codes?
A4: Existing SAGE Budgets will be converted to the new Workday Object Class, Spend Categories and Ledger codes. Snapshots will reference the former coding. If that budget is already connected to an eGC1 (proposal), you will copy the SAGE budget and use that copy as your “award budget”, updating as needed to align with your awarded funding, periods, and desired budget setup.
Q5: Some very complex projects (I'm thinking U54s, or projects with multiple F&A rates) as well as some per-patient clinical trials that don't have a set final amount are difficult to input in SAGE budgets. Do you have a plan to make that easier prior to this requirement change?
A5: The clinical trials that use CTMS for budgeting will be excluded from this requirements. If there are complex budgets that have special sponsor requirements that cannot be met by SAGE Budget, we will identify a way to bridge that gap.
Q6: What about award budgets with multiple UW departments, different IDC rates and multiple sub-budgets needed?
A6: SAGE Budget handles this scenario now quite well. There are "worksheets" that are created in SAGE Budget, to collect costs distinctly for each sub budget desired. Those can be internal sub budgets, subawards, or special fabrication budgets. Distinct F&A rates per worksheet are able to be set up, as well as differing organization codes.
Q7: Will OSP and GCA still make sure that the budget entered into Workday matches the one that the sponsor included in the award document? Does this process have a way to prevent re-budgeting at the time of award that the sponsor didn't approve?
A7: If the sponsor has included a budget within the award document, it will still be verified against the SAGE budget. If the SAGE Budget total and the awarded total entered on the award setup request form don’t match, that will be highlighted for you on screen and you will need to correct that before submitting to OSP. Both OSP and GCA will also review the connected SAGE Budget against the sponsor award document, and if there is anything about the SAGE budget setup that does not comply with sponsor terms or UW requirements, they would return the request to you for adjustments or reach out to discuss it further. This would happen prior to any integration with Workday.
Q8: What happens if the sponsor award is different than the budget we requested? For example, they reduced it overall or changed the amount in the consortium line? Will the department re-budget or adjust the SAGE Budget? What will the process be?
A8: At time of award, if you used SAGE Budget for the proposal, you could copy that budget, make the changes, and then connect that updated budget to your award setup request. This becomes your “award budget” going forward, and will be where you continue to make changes throughout the life of the award, as funding changes or when re-allocations are needed. You can also choose to create the award budget "from scratch" if copying is not efficient.
Q9: How will we be able to update a live budget?
A9: If by “live budget” you mean awarded budgets setup in Workday, and modifications needed thereafter, the future state process will be as follows: Your SAGE award budget would be updated to reflect the change in funding or the re-allocation, and a subsequent award modification request would be completed in order to communicate to OSP & GCA that the updated SAGE Budget details for the appropriate period are ready for review and eventual update in Workday. There will be more details on the modifications process at a later date. For clinical trials using CTMS, there would be an alternate process.
Q10: Can you please make sure that you think about how this will impact administrative/diversity supplements? Right now, they get just "added" to the parent budget and a TRANSPASU is needed, but the funds aren't allowed to be mingled.
A10: GCA will continue to identify administrative/diversity supplements and set them up as new award lines if required. Currently, we do that when the F&A rate/schedule is different from the parent or if the carryover terms are different from the parent. If we notice the requirement at time of award setup and do not see a separate budget worksheet, GCA will have the ability to return directly to campus and clarify before integration into Workday. Supplemental funding will be handled through the award modification process. More to come on that process in the future.
Q11: Are other aspects of award setup changing beyond using SAGE Budget when receiving an award for a Funding Action? Will departments be providing other details to inform the Funding Action?
A11: Yes! At time of award, instead of exchanging award setup details by email with OSP, campus will instead initiate an “Award Setup Request” in SAGE. As part of the request, you will select/associate the appropriate proposal eGC1, and much of the detail will be pre-populated from the eGC1. You will be able to update the information, as appropriate, connect your SAGE award budget to communicate your desired budget setup for Workday, and review your compliance information for accuracy. The request will then be submitted to OSP via SAGE. Both OSP and GCA will have the ability to return the request to you if more details or changes are needed, similar to the eGC1 review process.
Q12: If we don't use SAGE budget for proposals, can we input a summary SAGE budget by object class and spend category vs. a detailed line item budget?
A12: SAGE Budget would still be required, but yes, you can set your budget up at a high level, as long as that meets the sponsor reporting requirements. In current state, SAGE Budget personnel entry is not setup to accept a lump sum salary & benefit amount, but a feature is targeted to add this capability for Workday go-live or shortly thereafter.
Q13: Do SAGE budgets auto-populate for salary cap, and is it automatically updated each year?
A13: SAGE Budget does have a salary cap calculation feature. It will change slightly with the FT work, but mostly will function the same. The user will need to specify the salary cap amount in the budget setup, and the SAGE Budget will then automatically calculate personnel costs in accordance with the cap.
Q14: Will we be able to modify UW IDC on subawards? EX: U grant with multiple Cores/Projects going to one subaward site.
A14: Currently in SAGE Budget, the UW IDC on subawards is calculated based on the primary budget's rate. We have a requirement that this needs to be more flexible to allow for an alternate rate, or threshold, and will be making that change for FT go live.