PrintMay 19, 2009
Please Discontinue Budgeting for Administrative Staff in ARRA Applications
Just last Friday the NIH reversed its previous position and stated that it will not support requests for any administrative staff in ARRA (stimulus) applications and "When direct costs have been requested to address ARRA administrative and reporting requirements... NIH staff will make appropriate adjustments." Accordingly, please discontinue budgeting for administrative staff in applications for stimulus funding, effective immediately.
We apologize for the extra work this policy change has created for proposal preparers. Rest assured that FAS will continue to advocate for the additional administrative support needed to adequately administer ARRA awards.
Please check the Frequently Asked Questions below and contact Pat Fitzgerald, Associate Dean for Research (pwf@fas.harvard.edu) with questions.
Guidance from NIH :
http://grants.nih.gov/recovery/faqs_recovery.html#If4
4.Can ARRA grant budgets include direct costs to address ARRA administrative and reporting requirements? (New: 05/15/2009)
No. It has been determined that ARRA requirements do not provide sufficient justification to support the provision of direct costs for administrative support in addition to the Facilities and Administrative (F&A) costs in the awarded budget.
NIH staff will continue to evaluate direct costs requested for administrate support using the guidance provided in OMB Circular A-21 F.6.b.(2) http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/a021/a021.html. However, ARRA requirements will not be considered in this determination, because they are incorporated within the core administrative support for the project, which is reimbursed to the institution through the provision of F&A costs.
Frequently Asked Questions on Stimulus Specialist Cost Budgeting:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Should I discontinue budgeting for administrative support (Stimulus Project Specialists) in all ARRA proposals, or just NIH? | Please discontinue budgeting for administrative support (Stimulus Project Specialists) in all ARRA proposals, NIH and non-NIH. |
