NCRR Review of Carryover Requests

Reference: NIH Guide Notice on Revised Terms and Conditions for NIH Awards (NOT-OD-01-070, September 28, 2001)

Background: NCRR funds several grant mechanisms¹ that do not have automatic carryover authority. The grantees funded via these mechanisms must obtain NCRR's approval before using prior-year unobligated funds. At NCRR, the grants management specialist must analyze the financial status and spending history of the grantee, and the program officer must gauge the scientific need. Carryovers are not uncommon for grants in their second year. This is because it generally takes grantees some time to set up accounts and consortiums, hire their staff, and purchase their equipment during the first year. Similarly, if the grant was recycled in the previous year, the grantee may have had less time to spend the money.

Policy: Grantees may submit carryover requests via fax, e-mail (see the NIH Guide Notice) or U.S.P.S. mail to the Office of Grants Management. The request must include a scientific justification, a plan for the use of funds, and a detailed categorical breakdown, including F&A costs, if applicable. The request must be signed by the authorized business official. If submitted via email the request must be transmitted by the authorized institutional official. The request must include an appropriate scientific justification and cite the budget period that is the source of the requested funds. The scope of the request should be limited to the approved goals of project, or clearly delineate where the request exceeds the approved goals of the research. The grantee can only refer to immediate needs in the current year to justify the need for the carryover. It is not acceptable to indicate they will need the funds in future budget periods. If the grantee has future needs, those needs should be addressed in future budget periods. The request should present the implications for the project if the request is denied.

If the dollar amount is significant (typically 25% of total current year costs), the grantee should also explain why the funds were not fully expended in the prior year.

It is NCRR policy for these requests to be reviewed by both program and grants management staff, and the official determination to approve or decline the request be transmitted from the Office of Grants Management. The formal notification of approval of a carryover request is a revised Notice of Award (NoA). If NCRR determines that that the grantee's carryover request should be denied, the specialist must send a letter or email to the grantee institutional business official and PI denying the request and stating the reason(s) it was not approved.

NCRR staff must determine:

• If the request is reasonable, allowable and necessary; i.e. are there funds within the current budget period to address this need
• If the funds are available per the current Financial Status Report (FSR)
• If the request includes duplication of funding already provided in the current-year support, i.e., overlap. If yes, the request will be denied.
• If the request will generate a recurring cost in future years. If yes, the specialist must ask the grantee to detail how the future year costs will be supported in subsequent budget years. The grantee must describe how they will pay for those future costs as NCRR will not increase the future year committed amounts.
• If the request includes program expansion, i.e., change of scope. If the request exceeds the approved goals of the research (change of scope), program staff must determine if the request can be reviewed administratively or if NCRR should advise the grantee to submit the request to CSR for review as a competing supplement.

Processing of a carryover request that does not include an OFM-approved FSR must include the approval of the Director or Deputy GMO, OGM.

NCRR may receive a carryover request to satisfy a salary commitment made to an employee who was hired later than expected. If the current budget period contains a twelve-month salary commitment for the employee, then the grantee should be advised to utilize current year funds to support the employee.

1. F32s, G12s, K12s, M01s, P20s, P40s, P41s, P51s, T32s, T35s, U24s, U42s, U54s, CTSA UL1, TL1, and KL2s, one-year R41s and one-year R43s