Contracts & Grants: New Awards

New Award Steps

Signature Authority

• Per UC Policy, awards for extramural funding must be reviewed and accepted by an authorized institutional official.
• All grants, contracts or agreements received directly by the PI must be sent to OCG for review and acceptance as the authorized institutional official.
• Agreements for extramural funding, signed by the PI, are non-binding to the University and could put the PI at risk to be financially liable.
• OCG will review the terms of the award to assess compliance with UC policies and negotiate terms and conditions directly with the sponsor if necessary.
• OCG may also contact the PI to obtain concurrence of the terms and conditions.

Review of the Award and Compliance Areas

When a new award is received at OCG, OCG will confirm the proposal is currently in the Grants Tracking System (GTS). If not, OCG will contact the PI to enter the project in GTS so the award can be processed. GTS can be accessed via the UC ANR Portal.

Prior to the acceptance of the award, our office needs to ensure the project and the award terms are in compliance with applicable State, Federal, and University policy. This includes:

• Review and negotiation of the award terms and conditions to bring the terms into compliance with University policy.
• Ensure that all Conflict of Interest requirements, EH&S Compliance, and other UC related compliance documents, such as PI Eligibility, are in place prior to the acceptance of the award.
• Review the budget to ensure accuracy, allowable costs and use of the correct indirect cost rate and, if necessary, submit a indirect cost rate exception request to the UC Office of the President for approval.

Once all applicable compliance items have been completed, the budget approved, and the award terms negotiated, OCG will execute the award.

Model Contract Language for Agreements with the State of California

To reduce inefficiency and to streamline contract negotiations, UCOP, CSU and the State Department of General Services established standardized terms for use in all new research, training or service agreements awarded after January 2016.
Click Here for More Information.

Advance Account

Spending prior to notification of a fully executed award is discouraged. However, there are situations where funding is delayed and the project is ready to commence. If a delay in funding is anticipated, an advance expenditure authorization may be requested. Requests to establish an advance account must be submitted through the BOC or your unit Business Manager for approval. The PI and his or her director must guarantee that if the proposal is not awarded all pre-award expenses will be funded by the unit or other discretionary funds. Once these approvals have been obtained, the request will be forwarded to OCG for review and approval.

(Form can be completed on the Workflow Automation Application. Link to Quick Guide reference for new system. Link to recording of July 28, 2021 training )

Processing the Award in GTS

Upon receipt of a fully signed contract or agreement, OCG will notify PI of the award and distribute the award documents to the appropriate administrative offices responsible for initiating and managing the account(s).

The administrative point of contact responsible for the account will notify the PI when the account(s) are established.

It is critical that the PI review and understand the contract or grant requirements and restrictions of their specific award. If any of the award terms are unclear, it is the PI’s responsibility to contact the OCG for clarification and guidance.