Sponsored Projects Definitions:

A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H I  K  L  M  N  O  P  R  S  U

A

Acceptance Before an offer can become a binding promise and result in a contract, it must be accepted. Acceptance can be made in oral or written form or by commencing performance on the contract. The acceptance must be identical with the offer and unconditional. This means that the acceptance must be positive and unambiguous and cannot change, add to or qualify the terms of the offer. Any alterations or conditions imposed on an offer create a counter-offer, which is basically a rejection of the original offer.

Activity Distribution Report (ADR) See Effort Report (ER).

Advantage This centralized computer system processes on-line purchasing documents, provides instant financial status updates and produces monthly accounting reports. Advantage is maintained by the ASU Financial Services, which reports to the Office of the Vice President for Administrative Services.

Agency/Org Also known as an account number, this code identifies each award within the university financial system.

Allowable Costs Determined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the sponsor's requirements and/or university policy. OMB Circular A-21 defines allowable costs as those that are: 1. Reasonable 2. Allocable to the project 3. Given consistent treatment by use of generally accepted accounting principles 4. Conform to any limitations or exclusions set forth by the sponsored agreement or OMB Circular A-21. Contact the appropriate ORSPA site officer for advice on questions regarding the allowability of expenditures.

Amendment See Modification

Assurances See Certifications.

Award Funds provided from an external sponsor for support of a project at ASU. This term is used for both original award and supplements; it can mean monies or equipment.

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B

Broad Agency Announcement An announcement that is general in nature and that identifies areas of research interest, including criteria for selecting proposals, and soliciting the participation of all offerers capable of satisfying the government's needs.

Budget An estimate of expenditures proposed to be incurred in the performance of a proposed statement of work.

Budget Category A portion of the budget designated for certain kinds of expenditures, e.g., salaries, operations, travel, equipment.

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C

Capital Equipment An article of property that is not permanently attached to buildings or grounds and that has an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more (exclusive of sales and/or use tax, freight, and installation) and a life expectancy of one year or more.

Certifications Conflict of Interest (Disclosure of Financial Interest) - For NSF and PHS a certification requires an institutional representative to certify that the institution has implemented and is enforcing a written policy on conflicts of interest consistent with federal regulations, all financial disclosures required by the conflict of interest policy were made; and that conflicts of interests, if any, were, or prior to the institution's expenditure of any funds under the award, will be satisfactorily managed, reduced or eliminated in accordance with the institution's conflict of interest policy and/or disclosed to the agency (as required by the agency). Debarment and Suspension - A certification assuring the federal agency that the research personnel and the institution are not presently declared ineligible for receiving federal support, have not been convicted of fraud or a criminal offense in the performance of a federal award, are not in violation of federal or state statutes, are not presently indicted for criminal or civil charges and have not within a three-year period preceding the application had one or more federal, state or local transactions terminated for cause or default. Delinquent Federal Debt - A certification provided to the federal awarding agency that the applicant organization is not delinquent on the repayment of any federal debt. Drug-Free Workplace- A certification assuring the federal agency that the institution does and will continue to provide a drug-free workplace as required by the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988. Lobbying - A certification assuring the federal agency that no federal appropriated funds or any other non-federal funds have been paid or will be paid for influencing any federal official or employee in connection with the awarding of any contract, grant or agreement. Misconduct in Science - A certification that the institution has established administrative policies dealing with and reporting possible misconduct in science, and that it will comply with the policies and requirements as published in the federal agency's regulations.

Classified Information Research sponsored by a federal government entity that involves restrictions imposed by agreement or otherwise on the distribution or publication of the research findings or results following completion, for a specified period or for indefinite duration.

Coeus A computer system maintained in a centralized database that allows users to perform many aspects of the research administration process. Coeus is used mainly by ORSPA staff to track all proposal, award, sponsor, and recognition information, etc., but is being made available to department administrators.

Cognizant Audit Agency The office or staff that is designated to perform audits on behalf of the federal government for sponsored projects at a university. The cognizant audit agency for ASU is the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).

Collaborators Individuals, external to ASU, whose expertise is required by the Principal Investigator to perform the sponsored project scope of work.

Collaborator Roles

• Consultant: Collaboration provided by independent contractors that provides professional services to the university as paid contributors.
• External Investigator: Collaboration provided by researchers from other organizations that provides expertise as unpaid contributors.
• Subrecipient: Collaboration provided by individuals of a legal entity to which a subaward is made and which is accountable to ASU for the use of the funds provided.
• Partner: Collaboration provided by others external to ASU through a formal partnership agreement that splits the shared responsibility of the project and cooperative effort with ASU.
• Joint Appointment with ASU: Collaboration provided through an appointment based on a formal Memorandum of Understanding that is agreed to between an external organization and one of their employees and ASU to establish a dual appointment of that individual as an ASU adjunct faculty member.
• Other: Collaboration provided through means not defined above.

Commingling The act of mixing the funds belonging to one party with those of another party, especially when one party has responsibility to keep the funds separate for the other party.

Companion Account Advantage uses specific local agency/organizations referred to as companion accounts to account for university funded direct cost project expenditures. The exclusive use of companion accounts for these expenditures permits the University to meet federal accounting requirements regarding sponsored project accounting.

Competent Parties The parties to a contract must be legally able to commit to the agreement. This means that each party to the contract must have the authority to sign the contract (e.g., authorized to commit the agency or organization that he/she represents), be eighteen years of age or older, and be of sound mind at the time of the agreement. For ASU, the Director of the Office for Research and Sponsored Projects Administration and/or the Assistant Director, is legally authorized by the Arizona Board of Regents to make offers and accept contracts on behalf of the University.

Conflict of Interest (Disclosure of Financial Interest) Certification See Certifications.

Consideration Consideration is anything of value that changes hands between the two parties of contract. Although we usually think of consideration as an exchange of money and goods (or services), consideration may take other forms as well. For example, the waiver of a legal right has been found to be adequate consideration.

Consortium A consortium is two or more institutions working on the same research project, either funded directly by the supporting agency or one prime institution subcontracting out the funds to the other members of the consortium.

Consultant An individual whose expertise is required by the Principal Investigator to perform the research. (A consultant may be a paid or unpaid contributor.)

Continuation Proposal/Renewal Proposal Additional funding increments for projects beyond the original grant period. See specific sponsor guidelines for submission requirements.

Contract A contract is an agreement to acquire services that primarily benefit the sponsor. For an award to be considered a contract, it normally must contain all of the following elements:

1. Detailed financial and legal requirements must be included with a specific statement of work to be performed.
2. A specific set of deliverables and/or reports to the sponsor is required.
3. Separate accounting procedures are required.
4. Legally binding contract clauses must be included.
5. Benefits of the project accrue first to the sponsor, then to the university, then to the nation.

Contractor One who enters into a binding agreement to perform a certain service or provide a certain product in exchange for money, goods, or services.

Contractor Purchasing Systems Review (CPSR) A complete and in-depth review and evaluation by the U.S. government of ASU's purchasing system. This evaluation includes the Purchasing Department's system and ORSPA's system established for procurements issued under sponsored projects.

Contributed Effort Effort expended on a sponsored project that the sponsor does not compensate for; a form of cost sharing.

Cooperative Agreement A funding mechanism which can be used by federal agencies when a program requires more agency involvement and restrictions than a grant but requires less agency supervision than a contract.

Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) One investigator sharing equal responsibility for the direction of a research program. (PHS/NIH does not recognize the concept of co-principal investigator.)

Cost Reimbursement (CR) A type of agreement whereby the sponsor agrees to reimburse ASU based on actual project expenditures incurred during the performance period.

Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA): A CRADA provides an opportunity for governmental investigators to join with their colleagues from industry and academia in the joint pursuit of common research goals. The purpose of a CRADA is to make government facilities, intellectual property, and expertise available for collaborative interactions to further the development of scientific and technological knowledge into useful, marketable products.

Cost Sharing The portion of project costs not borne by the sponsor. Cost sharing should not be confused with other commitments of university resources to the project director's program, staff, equipment or facilities that are not specifically or solely related to a specific project. Acceptable cost sharing contributions must meet the following criteria:

1. The contributions to be cost shared are verifiable by ASU records.
2. The contributions to be cost shared are allowable, allocable, reasonable, and necessary for proper and efficient accomplishment of specific project or program objectives.
3. Federal funds, directly or indirectly, are not used for cost sharing on other federally funded projects, except where authorized by federal statute to be used for cost sharing or matching.
4. The contributions to be cost shared are not included as contributions for any other project.
5. The contributions to be cost shared are directly identifiable with the sponsored project as outlined in the proposal budget and/or budget justification, and thus incorporated in the award notice.

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D

Debarment and Suspension Certification See Certifications.

Delinquent Federal Debt Certification See Certifications.

Direct Costs Direct costs charged to sponsored agreements must be allowable, allocable, and reasonable. Those costs that can be identified specifically with a particular sponsored project, an instructional activity, or any other institutional activity, or that can be directly assigned to such activities relatively easily with a high degree of accuracy. Examples:

1. compensation of employees for performance of work under the sponsored agreement, including related fringe benefit cost;
2. the costs of materials consumed or expended in the performance of the work;
3. other items of expense incurred for the sponsored agreement, provided such costs are consistently treated in like circumstances.

Donated Property Property provided by an outside party for specific activities related to sponsored project and/or research activities of the university; title to the property passes to the university at essentially no cost.

Drug-Free Workplace Certification See Certifications.

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E

Effort The amount of time, usually expressed as a percentage of the total, that a faculty member or other employee spends on a project. Effort is certified and documented through the sponsored project Effort Reporting system in PeopleSoft.

Effort Report (ER) Effort reporting and certification form required for compliance with federal regulation.

Equipment Generally, articles of non-expendable tangible personal property having a useful life and an acquisition cost which meet or exceed the established thresholds for defining equipment. Equipment is not a replacement part or component returning a piece of equipment to its original condition. If a component increases the capability of the original equipment and has an acquisition cost that meets or exceeds the established equipment cost thresholds, it is considered a capital item.

Employee Related Expenses (ERE) Employee related expenses (ERE), also known as fringe benefits, is a normal and required direct cost category for most educational institutions. These costs need to be estimated for all employees proposed to work on a project. (Do not be confused by some agency budget forms that call ERE/fringe benefits “overhead.”) ERE comprises the ASU or employer-paid portion of FICA; health, dental, and life insurance; unemployment and worker’s compensation; and retirement costs. ERE represents costs paid by ASU (not the employee).

Expanded Authorities Policy implemented by some federal granting agencies which delegates certain prior approval authorities to grantee institutions. This delegation allows for internal university approval of administrative and spending actions, thus avoiding delays in project progress.

Extramural Support Funding for research, training or public service programs provided by federal or private sources outside the university.

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F

Fabrication Equipment that is constructed by combining or assembling modular components and/or materials into one identifiable unit. Procurement of the components and/or materials may preclude open competition and will require the cooperation of the project director, ORSPA, and Purchasing.

Facilities and Administrative (FAC or F&A) Costs Also referred to as indirect costs, overhead, overhead costs, or administrative costs. Facilities and administrative costs are actual costs incurred to conduct the normal business activities of an organization that cannot be readily identified with or directly charged to a specific project or activity. The normal activities of the university include instruction and departmental research, organized research, public service, and other institutional activities. F&A costs are real, auditable costs incurred by the university each time it accepts an award for a sponsored project. If the university does not collect full reimbursement for these costs, other university resources must be used to subsidize them. Negotiated, approved rates are to be used for all agreements, as allowable. Information on current F&A cost rates are available from the Office for Research and Sponsored Projects Administration. See the Off-Campus definition.

Faculty Member An employee of the board in teaching, research, or service whose notice of appointment is as lecturer, senior lecturer, instructor, assistant professor, associate professor, professor, or Regents Professor, or whose notice of appointment otherwise expressly designates a faculty position. Graduate students who serve as assistants, associates, or otherwise are academic appointees as well as graduate students but are not faculty members.

Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) The Federal Acquisition Regulations System is established for the codification and publication of uniform policies and procedures for acquisition by all executive agencies. It consists of rules and regulations governing business with Federal Government. These regulations govern all aspects of federal procurement.

Firm Fixed-Price (FFP) A type of agreement whereby payment is not based on actual costs expended but upon a mutually agreed upon price.

Fixed Price (FP) A type of agreement whereby payment is not based on actual costs expended but upon a mutually agreed upon price.

Foreign Travel Foreign travel includes travel outside of the United States and its territories and possessions (Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Canal Zone) and Canada. A trip is considered foreign travel for all legs of the itinerary if the traveler does not return to his or her post prior to departure for a foreign destination.

Fringe Benefits See Employee Related Expenses

Full and Open Competition The solicitation of bids from prospective suppliers which is used to assure that all responsible bidders are permitted to compete for the procurement.

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G

General Purpose Equipment Equipment that is not limited to research, scientific, or other technical activities. Examples of general purpose equipment include office equipment and furnishing, air conditioning equipment, reproduction and printing equipment, motor vehicles, and automatic data processing equipment.

Gift A unilateral transfer of money, property, or other assets from a donor to the recipient, for the recipient’s ownership and use, without restrictions on the recipient in connection with the gift. Unrestrictive gifts and grants normally have the following characteristics:

1. The statement of work allows the project director significant freedom to manage the project and determine how the assets will be utilized.
2. These awards do not require deliverables or detailed technical reports.
3. These awards do not require separate accounting procedures or detailed financial reports.
4. These awards do not include provisions for audit by or on behalf of the sponsor.
5. These awards do not require regulatory oversight in areas such as animal care, human subjects, bio-safety, or financial conflict of interest.
6. These awards do not utilize background intellectual property nor stipulate the ownership rights for foreground intellectual property.

Governmental Donated Property Property donated or transferred to the institution by a municipality, county, state agency, or the federal government.

Government-Furnished Equipment (GFE) Equipment provided to the university by the federal government or government contractor; title may or may not remain with the government.

Grant An agreement to transfer money, property, services, or anything of value to accomplish a purpose, such as support or assistance in an area of interest to the grantor. For an award to be considered a grant, it normally will contain the following elements:

1. The statement of work allows the project director significant freedom to change emphasis within the general area of work as the project progresses.
2. Deliverables are minimal, usually consisting of reports only.
3. Separate accounting procedures are required.

Grant and Contract Accounting (GCA) The Grant and Contract Accounting (GCA) section of the Office for Research & Sponsored Projects (ORSPA) provides oversight and interpretation of agency and other federal regulations for determining if adequate systems are in place for proper charging, documentation, reporting and reimbursement of expenditures to sponsored accounts.

Grantee A grantee is the recipient of a grant. When the university accepts a grant award, on behalf of an individual, it becomes the grantee.

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H

Human Subjects A living individual about whom an investigator conducting research obtains: 1. Data through intervention or interaction with the individual. 2. Identifiable private information.

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I

Identifiable Information Information from which the identity of the subject is or may be readily ascertained or associated.

Indirect Costs See Facilities and Administrative (FAC or F&A) Costs.

Informed Consent The voluntary agreement obtained from a subject (or the subject's legally authorized representative) to participate in research or related activity, before participating in that activity. The consent must permit the individual (or legally authorized representative) to exercise free power of choice without undue inducement or any element or deceit, fraud, force, duress, or other form of coercion or constraint.

Infrastructure Support As a requirement for accepting federal funding for research, the university must negotiate Facility and Administration Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services. Facility and administration expenditures as defined by this agreement are referred to as infrastructure support.

In-Kind Contribution A non-cash commitment (such as contributed effort, facilities use, or supplies) to share the costs of a sponsored project.

In-State Travel Travel within the borders of Arizona.

Institutional Authorized Officials Individuals authorized by the Board of Regents to sign grants, contracts, and agreements on behalf of ASU.

Institutional Review Board A board or committee organized at the university to provide review at the institutional level for ethical concerns in research, such as laboratory animal care and the use of human subjects in research.

Intellectual Property (IP) Intellectual property is a broad term that encompasses the various intangible products of the intellect of inventors. These include patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, know-how, and other proprietary concepts, including an invention, scientific or technological development, and even computer software and genetically engineered microorganisms.

Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) An agreement whereby two or more public agencies of the state may contract with each other provided that such contracts are authorized by the governing bodies of each agency and that the contracts are executed in accordance with Arizona law (Arizona Revised Statutes 11-951).

Investigator Incentive Award (IIA) Investigator Incentive Awards (IIAs) are granted by the OVPREA on awards containing indirect costs if ORSPA has been furnished the proposal in a timely manner (some restrictions apply).

Invitation to Bid Written documents soliciting pricing and/or technical proposals to supply goods or services as specified in the requesting document. Correct use of Invitations to Bid constitutes full and open competition. See Request for Proposal (RFP).

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K

Key Professional Personnel Key professional personnel (or key personnel) are all individuals who participate in the scientific development or execution of the project. Typically, key personnel have a Ph.D. Ed.D., or M.D., but may also include the master's or baccalaureate level, provided they contribute in a substantive way to the research.

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L

Legal Purpose A contract must have a lawful purpose in order to be enforceable. For example, a contract to manufacture or sell whiskey would not have been enforceable during Prohibition.

Letter of Inquiry A letter of inquiry is initiated by an applicant to determine if a proposed project is within a private agency's fundable program areas and to request agency policy and program information, as well as instructions and forms.

Letter of Intent A letter of intent advises a funding agency that an application will be submitted in response to their solicitation. The letter may contain general program information, unofficial cost estimates, and a request for specific application guidelines, instructions and forms.

Limited Submission Programs restricted by sponsors in terms of the number of proposals that may be submitted by a single institution.

Loaned Equipment Property provided by an outside party for use by the institution for sponsored project or research related activities; title to the property does not pass to the university.

Lobbying Certification See Certifications.

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M

Major Project A large, complex project that entails assembling and managing teams of investigators. They also require a significant amount of administrative effort to complete specifically identified requirements of the project. Examples per OMB Circular A-21 are:

1. Large, complex programs such as General Clinical Research Centers, Primate Centers, Program Projects, environmental research centers, engineering research centers, and other grants and contracts that entail assembling and managing teams of investigators from a number of institutions.
2. Projects which involve extensive data accumulation, analysis and entry, surveying, tabulation, cataloging, searching literature, and reporting (such as epidemiological studies, clinical trials, and retrospective clinical records studies).
3. Projects that require making travel and meeting arrangements for large numbers of participants, such as conferences and seminars.
4. Projects whose principal focus is the preparation and production of manuals and large reports, books and monographs (excluding routine progress and technical reports).
5. Projects that are geographically inaccessible to normal departmental administrative services, such as research vessels, radio astronomy projects, and other research fields sites that are remote from campus.
6. Individual projects requiring project-specific database management; individualized graphics or manuscript preparation; human or animal protocols; and multiple project-related investigator coordination and communications.

Matching Funds A cash commitment to share the costs of a sponsored project. See also Cost Share.

Misconduct in Science Certification See Certifications.

Modification Any change made to an existing sponsored agreement.

Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC) The portion of direct costs on which the indirect costs are based, namely: salaries and wages, fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to $25,000 on each subgrant and subcontract.

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N

No-Cost Extension (NCE) Provides for an additional period of performance to accomplish project goals. May be handled internally via UPAS in certain circumstances or sought externally from the sponsor.

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O

Off-Campus Facilities & Administrative Cost Rate An off-campus rate is applicable to those projects conducted in facilities not owned or operated by the university, which include charges for facility rental as a direct expenditure, and for which more than 50% of the project salaries and wages are for effort conducted in the rental facility. See the Facilities & Administrative Costs definition. Also refer to the Facilities & Administrative Rate Application Guidelines for On/Off Campus, Proposal Budgeting Information Sheet and Facilities and Administrative Costs procedure for more information.

Offer An offer is a proposal, by one party to another, of intent to enter into a contract on the terms specified in the offer. In Government procurements, and Invitation for Bids (IFB), or Request for Proposals (RFP) constitutes a request by the Government for offers of a certain nature. The bid or proposal submitted in the response to the solicitation is in fact an offer.

Office for Research & Sponsored Projects Administration (ORSPA) The Office for Research and Sponsored Projects Administration (ORSPA) is the division of the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Affairs (OVPREA) that provides oversight to ensure that the University meets the terms of awards and all legal and regulatory requirements and that all fiscal matters related to sponsored grants and contracts are properly addressed (including the negotiation of the University's facilities & administrative cost rates). The OVPREA has designated ORSPA as the final institutional signature required for proposal submission and award acceptance.

Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Affairs (OVPREA) The Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Affairs (OVPREA) is responsible for the research programs and other sponsored activities of the university. This office provides leadership in the development of policies and procedures that will enhance the research mission while protecting programs and interests of the university.

Overhead See Facilities and Administrative (FAC or F&A) Costs.

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P

Participant A participant is an individual who receives services from a project or program funded by an award. Participants perform no work or services for the project or program other than for their own benefit. University employees may not be participants.

Participant Costs Program Participants are the recipients of service or training provided at a workshop, conference, seminar, symposia or other short-term instructional or information sharing activity funded by an external grant or award or the training beneficiaries of the project or program funded by an external grant or award. A participant is not involved in providing any deliverable to the university or a third party, or would not be terminated or replaced for failure to perform. Participant Payments are costs used to pay program participant small stipends and possibly reimbursement of travel costs or other out-of-pocket costs incurred to support attendance at a workshop, conference, seminar, symposia or other short-term training or information sharing activity. For more information refer to the Financial Services Site at http://www.asu.edu/fs/advantage/ExpCodes2.html.

Personnel Action Form (PAF) The document used to authorize effort for an individual to be charged to a specific project.

Peer Review A process utilized by some federal and private agencies, whereby committees of research investigators in the same area of research or with the necessary expertise (from other institutions) review and recommend applications to the funding agency.

Principal Investigator (PI) Typically, a faculty member who submitted a proposal that was accepted and funded by an external sponsor, also referred to as the project director. The PI has primary responsibility for technical compliance, completion of programmatic work, and fiscal stewardship of sponsor funds.

Program Income Program income is gross income earned by the recipient that is directly generated by a supported activity or earned as a result of the award. Program income includes, but is not limited to, income from fees for services performed, the use or rental of real or personal property acquired under federally funded projects, the sale of commodities or items fabricated under an award, license fees and royalties on patents and copyrights, and interest on loans made with award funds. For federal awards, program income is to be identified by the recipient and handled in one of three ways: 1. Additive Method: added to available funds and used for program objectives 2. Cost Share Method: used to finance the cost shared portion of the project 3. Deductive Method: deducted from the allowable federal costs of the program Except for research awards, the Deductive Method applies unless the awarding agency specifies to the contrary in its regulations or in the award. The Additive Method applies to research awards by default unless the awarding agency specifies another alternative. Interest earned on advances of federal funds is not program income. Except as otherwise provided in federal awarding agency regulations or the terms and conditions of the award, program income does not include the receipt of principal on loans, rebates, credits, discounts, etc., or interest earned on any of them. For more details on program income, please refer to OMB Circular A-110. For non-federal awards, stipulations around program income should be addressed in the sponsor's terms and conditions or by contacting the sponsor through your sponsored project officer.

Project Director See Principal Investigator.

Proposal Any written presentation/application to a potential source of external funds, referred to as a sponsor, for a research or other sponsored project that provides pricing or cost estimates is considered a proposal. All proposals submitted by a university employee to an outside entity that may directly lead to a sponsored project award, require initial review and coordination through the Office for Research & Sponsored Projects (ORSPA) prior to submission to a potential sponsor, utilizing a Proposal Routing & Approval Form. Proposals are generally grouped as formal or informal proposals:

• formal proposals prepared and submitted to a sponsor outline the scope of activities to be undertaken in response to sponsors' Request for Proposal (RFP) or other requests from a potential sponsor (e.g. RFQ). Informal discussion may also result in the submission of a written formal proposal to be evaluated by the sponsor before a commitment is made to provide funds to support the program or project envisioned. All formal proposals require an institutional endorsement by an official authorized to commit university resources.
• Informal proposals, also referred to as pre-proposals, letter proposals, mini-proposals, preliminary proposals, pre-applications, concept papers, or white papers) are frequently requested by agencies in order to triage potential applicants. A Proposal Routing & Approval Form is also required for these preliminary submissions. Pre-proposals may take many forms, but typically the agencies request a brief summary (generally 2-5 pages) of the project, personnel, and cost estimate. These informal proposals do not involve a commitment of university resources or a signature on behalf of the university since they are not expected to result directly in an award. The purpose of these informal proposals is usually to inform and interest the potential sponsor reviewing these summaries so that they invite the applicant to submit a more detailed formal proposal application.

Proprietary Information Research sponsored by non-governmental entity or individual that involves restrictions on the distribution or publication of the research findings or results following completion, for a specified period or for indefinite duration.

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R

Rebudgeting Process by which funds available for spending are reallocated between budget categories to allow best use of funds to accomplish project goals.

Research and Related Activities All formal investigative efforts (whether funded or unfunded) by faculty, students, and staff that are designed to develop or contribute to generalized knowledge, including analyses of secondary data.

Research & Sponsored Projects Policy Manual (RSP) Provides policies and procedures relating to funded and unfunded research for all ASU faculty and staff involved in research at ASU.

Research Incentive Distribution (RID) A percentage of the Facilities & Administrative costs recovered from sponsors by ASU that is returned to the responsible college as research incentive funds.

Request for Applications (RFA) Any resulting awards would normally be funded by a grant. The RFA instructions include the information necessary to complete the application and mailing instructions.

Request for Proposals (RFP) An RFP contains specific instructions for technical and cost proposals, and usually include a sample contract with terms and conditions that need to be reviewed and approved prior to the submission of the proposal. The institutional endorsement for this type of proposal is considered an official offer; therefore, it must meet certain requirements before if can be signed and submitted.

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S

Single Source Acquisition Issuing an award to a subcontractor without full and open competition. This may be done if an award is the result of a collaboration (where the ideas, concepts, and methodology were developed by the two parties jointly). There are restrictions on the use of this means of procurement and documentation must show justification for using single source acquisition.

Site Visit An agency-initiated review of a proposed project conducted at the applicant's institution.

Sole Source Acquisition A procurement that does not provide full and open competition, but is effected because only one source is available.

Special Purpose Equipment Equipment which can be used only for research, scientific, or other technical activities.

Sponsor An external funding source which enters into an agreement with the university to support research, instruction, public service or other sponsored activities. Sponsors include private businesses, corporations, foundations and other not-for-profit organizations, other universities, and federal, state and local governments.

Sponsored Project A project supported by an external funding source under a mutually binding agreement that restricts the use of funds to the approved project and stipulates other conditions with which the university must comply. Sponsored projects typically:

1. are initiated by a formal proposal and award noticeare restricted to a particular purpose as described in the proposal
2. require technical and/or financial reports
3. entail other administrative requirements. The decision to classify a source of support as a sponsored project is coordinated among the Office for Research and Sponsored Projects Administration (ORSPA), the Development Office, and the Comptroller’s Office. See RSP 004, “Definitions” for a more complete definition.

Subaward An award of financial assistance in the form of money, or property in lieu of money, made under an award by a recipient to an eligible subrecipient or by a subrecipient to a lower tier subrecipient. The term includes financial assistance when provided by any legal agreement, even if the agreement is called a contract, but does not include procurement of goods and services nor does it include any form of assistance which is excluded from the OMB Circular A-110 definition of "award" in paragraph (e).

Subcontract A contract issued under a prime contract, agreement, purchase order, or grant for the procurement of services or program-related tasks over $10,000. Purchase orders for the procurement of goods and supplies do not qualify as subcontracts under policy RSP 503-05, Subcontracts, and fall under the purview of the Purchasing Department. Issuance of subcontracts under federal prime award are subject to compliance with federal law and all subcontracts are subject to the terms and conditions of the prime award and the normal purchasing requirements of the State of Arizona.

Subcontractor Any supplier, distributor, vendor, or firm that furnishes supplies or services to or for a prime contractor or another subcontractor.

Subrecipient The legal entity to which a subaward is made and which is accountable to the recipient for the use of the funds provided. The term may include foreign or international organizations (such as agencies of the United Nations) at the discretion of the Federal awarding agency.

Supplemental Proposal Additional support requested to assure adequate completion of the original scope of work.

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U

University Prior Approval System (UPAS) The system is in place to allow university approval of administrative, budgeting and spending actions as delegated by certain federal sponsors; a UPAS form documents the facts pertinent to a request for changes, including the institutional prior approvals.

Unlike Circumstances Unlike circumstances are associated with the consistent treatment of direct costs and F&A costs on sponsored projects. F&A costs cannot be charged directly to sponsored projects unless “unlike circumstances” can be justified. Justification must meet the following criteria: Direct charging of administrative or clerical staff salaries may be appropriate under the following circumstances:

1. The project is large, complex, and entails assembling and managing teams of investigators, and
2. A significant amount of administrative effort is required to complete specifically identified requirements of the project:
   1. Projects that involve extensive data accumulation, analysis and entry, surveying, tabulation, cataloging, searching literature, and reporting, such as epidemiological studies, clinical trials, and retrospective clinical records studies
   2. Projects that require making travel and meeting arrangements for large numbers of participants, such as conferences and seminars
   3. Projects with a principal focus of the preparation and production of manuals, and large reports, books and monographs (excluding routine progress and technical reports)
   4. Projects that are geographically inaccessible to normal departmental administrative services, such as seagoing research vessels, radio astronomy projects, and other research field sites that are remote from the campus
   5. Individual projects requiring project-specific database management; individualized graphics or manuscripts preparation; human or animal protocol, IRB preparations and/or other project-specific regulatory protocols; and multiple project-related investigator coordination and communications.

Direct charging of office supplies, postage and/or telecommunications costs, substantially beyond that normally provided by academic departments, may be appropriate under the following circumstances:

1. The cost is required by the project scope: 1. local telephone services would be allowable under a program requiring telephone survey, postage would be allowable for a program requiring surveys by mail;and,
2. The cost is identified and properly justified in the sponsored agreement budget and narrative; and,
3. The sponsoring agency accepts the cost as part of the project direct cost budget.

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Sponsored Projects Acronyms

AAALAC Association for the Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care

AAU American Association of Universities

ABOR Arizona Board of Regents

ACO Administrative Contracting Officer

ACUC See IACUC.

ADCRC Arizona Disease Control Research Commission

ADPE Automatic Data Processing Equipment

AICPA American Institute of Certified Public Accountants

APHIS Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

ARPA Advanced Research Projects Agency

A.R.S. Arizona Revised Statutes

ASPM Armed Services Pricing Manual

ASPR Armed Services Procurement Regulations

AUTM Association of University Technology Managers

BAA Broad Agency Announcement

BAFO Best and Final Offer

BOA Basic Ordering Agreement

CAS Cost Accounting Standards

COI Conflict of Interest

Co-PI Co-Principal Investigator

CR Cost Reimbursement

CRADA Cooperative Research and Development Agreement

CTR Cost Transfer Request (Non-Payroll)

ER Effort Report

ERE Employee Related Expenses

F&A Facilities and Administrative Costs (formerly "indirect costs")

FAR Federal Acquisition Regulations

FP Fixed Price

GCA Grant and Contract Accounting

GFE Government-Furnished Equipment

IACUC Institutional Animal Care & Use Committee

IDC Indirect Costs (See F&A)

IGA Intergovernmental Agreement

IIA Investigator Incentive Award

IP Intellectual Property

IRB Institutional Review Board

MTDC Modified Total Direct Costs

NCE No Cost Extension

ORSPA Office for Research & Sponsored Projects Administration

OVPREA Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Affairs

PA Program Announcement

PAF Personnel Action Form

PD Project Director

PI Principal Investigator

RD Payroll Redistributions (payroll cost transfers)

RFA Request for Applications

RFP Request for Proposal

RIA Research Incentive Award

RID Research Incentive Distribution

RSP Research & Sponsored Projects Policies and Procedures Manual

SPA Sponsored Projects Accountant

SOW Statement of Work

SPO Sponsored Projects Officer

SPS Sponsored Projects Services

TDC Total Direct Costs

UPAS University Prior Approval System

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Sponsor Specific Acronyms

ADAMHA Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration

ADEQ Arizona Department of Environmental Quality

ADHS Arizona Department of Health Services

ADOT Arizona Department of Transportation

AFOSR Air Force Office of Scientific Research (DOD)

AHA American Heart Association

AID See USAID.

AMA American Medical Association

NA Administration for Native Americans

AOA Administration on Aging

ARO Army Research Office

BLM Bureau of Land Management

USAID United States Agency for International Development

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