September 27, 2016

Grant Connections - September 2016

Wednesday, September 28, 2016
11:00 a.m. – noon
Room 572 of the Bond Life Sciences Center

Agenda
  • Hot Topics
  • FDP Update: Jamie Szabo and Brenda Leuenberger attended FDP 9/21-9/23 and will share updates with the group
  • Awards Dashboard: OSPA Preaward will do a demonstration of the new Awards Dashboard
  • Sponsor Spotlight: OSPA Preaward will present on American Heart Association and US Department of Education
Mark your calendars! Meetings are scheduled for the following dates:
  • Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Grant Connections Organizational Crew
Send your suggestions for future topics and questions to this group.

Please share with anyone else associated with research who you think might be interested in attending.

September 19, 2016

Keeping up with the FLSA Final Rule - Impact on Grants - Update as of 09/17/2016

MU Grants Community,

As we are nearing the effective date (December 1) for the FLSA final overtime rule, below is a summary of what we know at this time:

How NSF will handle new regulations (please see NSF FLSA FAQs):
  • NSF released a FAQ on 8/10 describing the rules and how they would impact current and future awards. NSF awards typically allow for rebudgeting without sponsor approval, provided the rebudgeting action does not change the scope of the project.
  • NSF will not be unilaterally supplementing awards with additional funds; however, if you determine rebudgeting would result in a change of scope or that supplemental funding is needed to comply with the new regulations, we are encouraged to contact your NSF Program Officer to discuss the issue. We cannot guarantee there will be funds available, but there are specific policies that address requesting supplemental funding, and we would be happy to walk you through this process should you desire to do so.

How NIH will handle new regulations:
  • Released on 8/10, NIH has provided us with updated FY2017 stipend levels for postdoctoral trainees and fellows on NRSA awards. These stipend levels are in line with the new FLSA regulations. This guidance does not address how NIH will handle postdocs working on non-NRSA awards, particularly as it relates to supplemental funding to cover this extra expense for institutions. In a blog posted 8/30, the NIH’s Deputy Director indicated the NIH would be releasing more guidance and FAQs in the coming months. Please note that the typical rules for rebudgeting NIH awards are similar to those of the NSF; we would typically be able to rebudget to account for the new FLSA guidelines without sponsor approval, provided it did not change the scope of work. We have not received any indication that additional funds would be available to NIH awardees.

How the University is handling new regulations:
  • The University’s overview, FAQs and timelines as it relates to the new FLSA regulations can be found here. Although there is no official guidance online that we are aware of, we have been told there is no fund at MU to cover the salary increases, and those increases will need to come from grant, department or divisional funds. Postdocs and other salaried employees who were under the new FLSA salary floor will receive their salary increases on 12/1/16.

Guidance from OSPA on how to handle the regulations moving forward:
  • Effective immediately when filling out proposals, OSPA would encourage PIs to budget postdocs at the new floor of $47,476 plus the correct fringe rate regardless of their current salary. If you have concerns about current awards and how to make up the budget shortfall caused by the new regulations, please don’t hesitate to contact your OSPA pre-award/post-award liaison directly and we can discuss your options for potentially requesting additional funds from the sponsor, if available.

September 7, 2016

Grant Connections | August 2016 Notes

Notes from the August Grant Connections meeting are included below. Thank you to all who attended. We hope to see you at the next meeting on Wednesday, September 28th.