Award Budgeting

An award budget refers to the financial plan approved by the sponsor, either during the initial awarding process or through subsequent amendments. As the grantee, GW must adhere to the funded amounts as well as sponsor’s terms and budget restrictions to ensure accurate representation of the executed agreement.  

Sponsored project budgets typically consist of approved direct cost categories and the corresponding indirect costs. The approved budget may also include cost sharing, whether required by the sponsor or voluntarily committed by the university. 

For detailed information, please visit the Budget Cost Categories page. 

Process

• A Project/Task/Award (PTA) number and a Banner index number are created by the Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP) for new projects/tasks in myResearch and EAS to facilitate effective financial management and accurate reporting.
• Budget details from EAS are reflected in the PI Dashboard, a powerful online tool for personalized award breakdown. 
• The OSP Award Management Team is responsible for updating budget funding and processing budget transfers within Project Tasks. 
• The Research Support Team (RST) is responsible for initiating allowable budget changes that do not affect the total funding amount allocated to a task. 
• The Grants and Accounting Services (GCAS) office performs quality control and reviews award setup and funding established by OSP to ensure accuracy and compliance. 

Note: Grants and Contracts Accounting Services (GCAS) manages the preparation and filing of invoices and financial reports. 

Resources

• OSP Award Management SharePoint Site (GW Login Required)
• PI Dashboard 
• myResearch 
• Uniform Guidance: 200.1 Definitions 
• Uniform Guidance: 200.412 Classification of Costs
• Uniform Guidance: 200.413 Direct Costs
• Uniform Guidance: 200.414 Indirect Costs

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a budget period?

The Uniform Guidance (200.1) defines the budget period as the time interval from the start date to the end date of the funded  portion of an award, during which recipients and subrecipients are authorized to incur financial obligations of the awarded funds. This includes any funds carried forward or other revisions made in accordance with 200.308. 

How are the budget funds and budget periods reflected in the PI Dashboard? 

Once the PTA is established, Principal Investigators (PIs), RST members, and other authorized personnel can search for specific projects, tasks and awards using their identifying numbers. The PI Dashboard project page provides an overview of total funded amounts, award start, end and close dates. Users can refer to the Award page for a detailed budget breakdown of budget allocations by cost category. The top section of this page also provides key award information, including award dates, sponsor name, sponsor award number, IDC rate, spending levels and other details. 

How can a PI charge expenditures when an approved at-risk advance account is budgeted at zero dollars?

An approved at-risk advance account is budgeted at zero dollars because the university has not yet received a fully executed award agreement. However, expenditures may still be incurred, as budgetary controls are disabled in EAS for advance accounts. Once the award is fully executed, a budget is established based on the authorized funding, and budgetary controls are activated in EAS by changing award status from “at risk” to “active." 

When is the funding received from the sponsor budgeted under different tasks? 

Funding received from the sponsor may be budgeted under different tasks depending on specific circumstances. Typically, separate accounts are created for every GW school participating in the research. In addition, distinct tasks are created to support project cost sharing, program income, and to maintain other funding categories such as participant support costs. For awards with carry-forward restrictions, a new Task is required for each budget period to ensure accurate financial reporting and to facilitate sponsor approval requests. 

What happens when the awarded amount differs from the submitted proposal?

When the awarded amount does not match the proposed amount, OSP reviews the notice of award to identify any additions or removal of specific costs or activities. Budgets are then established based on the sponsor’s terms and restrictions and in consultation with the PI. 

If the award is reduced without specific budget line item cuts, OSP applies a proportional reduction across all budget lines. When the reduction exceeds 20% of the proposed budget, OSP requests feedback from the PI and the RST. The RST collaborates with the PI to prepare and submit an updated budget via myResearch to OSP. 

Typically, sponsors do not increase budgets without an updated or supplemental proposal. In such instances, OSP refers to the updated or supplemental proposals to create a budget in EAS. 

Should we update budgets to mirror the expenditures charged? 

Budgets are established based on the submitted proposals, and should not be updated to reflect actual expenditures. This ensures alignment with the approved financial plan and assistance with prior approval requests required for revisions exceeding the sponsor defined thresholds. Since budget lines in EAS are not restricted, allowable expenditures that exceed individual budget lines can still be charged, provided the total expenditures remain within the overall budgeted amount. 

Support

• Research Support Teams
• Office of Sponsored Projects Teams
• For assistance with myResearch, email myresearchgwu [dot] edu (myresearch[at]gwu[dot]edu)