Special Funds & Grants

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About the Special Funds Office

The Special Funds Accounting Office is responsible for the fiscal management of private and publicly sponsored programs. This funding provides support for capital projects, student scholarships/fellowships, program development, and a host of other activities. It is through private and public funding that the University of North Carolina at Asheville is able to expand diversity within the student population, build green facilities, supplement educational activities, and expand community outreach.

The University of North Carolina at Asheville is committed to the principled management of grant and endowment funding. At the center of the university’s assurance, the UNC Asheville Special Funds Accounting Office is responsible for sponsored program accounting and reporting. These assurances are consistent with regulatory compliance and acceptable best practices.

Contracts & Grants Standards for the UNC System

The University of North Carolina Contracts & Grants Business Process Standards document provides access to recently updated business process standards including:

1. Account set-up 2. Time and effort reporting 3. Grant management
4. Billing and drawdowns 5. Reporting 6. Account close-out

Award Seminar

The Grants and Endowment Accountant has created this seminar to assist in navigating through the world of grants management. This presentation is not designed to replace your relationship with the post award administration but to aid in your journey through the life of your award. If during this seminar you find that you require some additional information, please do not hesitate to contact the Special Funds Accountant. The presentation will take approximately 20 minutes to complete.

More information may be found at the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP).

Award Account Set-Up

It is important to note that before anything can occur, the university administration must accept your award. This is increasingly an issue for cost share projects as the State of North Carolina have restricted agencies from making state-supported cost-share commitments. Upon approval by the university, you should provide a copy of the award packet to the Special Funds Accountant. This packet should include a copy of the approved budget, budget justification, and any other related documentation.

The Special Funds Accountant will review the documents and may request clarification from you concerning cost share commitments, contracting, supplemental funding, and the list could goes on. These additional forms include the following:

The Award Set-up Form is the vehicle used to establish your grant account. This is accomplished by the Contracts and Grants Accountant.

Unlike the Award Set-up Form, you will have greater familiarity with the IPAR. This document will be the vehicle you use to request changes to your account, time and effort, pre-award spending, and other fiscal matters related to your award.

After sending this information to the Post-Award Administrator, you will need to review the “New Award Briefing” available on the home page of Contracts & Grants.

For more information, please see the Contracts & Grants section of the Finance Forms page.

Award Cost Share Accountability

Cost sharing or matching means that a portion of the project or program costs are not borne by the sponsor. It includes all contributions, including cash and in-kind, that a recipient makes to an award. If the award is federal, only acceptable non-federal costs qualify as cost sharing and must conform to other necessary and reasonable provisions to accomplish the programs objectives. Cost sharing effort is included in the calculation of total commitment effort. Effort is defined as the portion of time spent on a particular activity expressed as a percentage of the individual’s total activity for the institution.

Cost sharing is auditable and must be allowable under the cost principles outlined in OMB New Uniform Guidance (see section 200.306) and verifiable to records.

Know what Banner account is going to be used to cover the cost share expenses. It is recommended that the PI/PD review cost sharing arrangements with the Special Funds Accountant to avoid confusion when it comes time to complete financial reports.

Plan ahead to know how the cost share will be fulfilled and to ensure that the cost share commitment will be met by the end of the sponsored agreement.

An item that is reported as part of one grant’s cost share may not be reported as part of another cost share agreement.

Cost sharing was included as part of the OMB Circular A 110 – Uniform Administrative Requirements and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-profit Organizations, and has been further updated under OMB’s New Uniform Guidance.

For more information, please see the Contracts & Grants section of the Finance Forms page.

Award Account Close-Out

All good things come to an end and grants are no exception. As the Principal Investigator, you are responsible for complying with the sponsors terms for sponsored program close-out. Failure to comply with the sponsor’s terms may result in university’s inability to receive reimbursement for your sponsored activities. Private sponsors and foundations traditionally outline their close-out requirements in the award documentation. Grants received from the state and federal government must comply with OMB Uniform Guidance for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education. In lieu of formal terms, the Special Funds Accountant will provide the sponsor with a certified close-out financial statement.

As a general rule, most funding agencies require the university to comply with the close-out requirements outlined in:

(a) Recipients (i.e. university) shall submit, within 90 calendar days after the date of completion of the award all financial, performance, and other reports as required by the terms and conditions of the award. The Federal awarding agency may approve extensions when requested by the recipient.

(b) Unless the Federal awarding agency authorizes an extension, a recipient shall liquidate all obligations incurred under the award no later than 90 calendar days after the funding period or the date of completion as specified in the terms and conditions of the award or in agency implementing instructions.

(c) The Federal awarding agency shall make prompt payments to a recipient for allowable reimbursable costs under the award being closed out.

(d) The recipient shall promptly refund any balances of unobligated cash that the Federal awarding agency has advanced or paid and that is not authorized to be retained by the recipient for use in other projects. OMB Circular A-129 governs unreturned amounts that become delinquent debts.

(e) When authorized by the terms and conditions of the award, the Federal awarding agency shall make a settlement for any upward or downward adjustments to the Federal share of costs after closeout reports are received.

(f) The recipient shall account for any real and personal property acquired with Federal funds or receive from the Federal Government in accordance with Sections 200.31 (real) through 200.78 (personal).

(g) In the event a final audit has not been performed prior to closeout of an award, the Federal awarding agency shall retain the right to recover an appropriate amount after fully considering the recommendations on disallowable costs resulting from the final audit.

It should be noted that extensions should be coordinated through the Office of Sponsored Scholarship and Programs

For more information, please see the Contracts & Grants section of the Finance Forms page.

Award Modifications

There are various situations requiring a modification to an award. UNCA has developed a simple set of guidelines to aid in the request for a modification from the sponsor and the university. The most common types of request are described below.

The Budget Modification Matrix will help determine when a request for a budget modification is required. If the matrix indicates that a modification is necessary, contact the Office of Sponsored Scholarship and Programs to assist you with requesting a modification from the sponsor.

If you determine that the work may not be completed or the final reports and/or deliverables will not be finished, a time extension is necessary. Time extension requests are made through the Office of Sponsored Scholarship and Programs.

An IPAR is used when the sponsoring agency has indicated it will award additional funds and/or time, but has not yet provided the official award document. In order to continue charging expenses past the current end date or award amount, an advance request must be reviewed and approved by the PI/PD’s department chair and dean.

If expenditures exceed the award amount, the Special Funds Accountant will inactivate the appropriate Banner account so no further charges can occur. Please note, this will not stop payroll charges. It is the responsibility of the PI/PD and the department to notify the Grants and Endowment Accountant of a charge associated with payroll.

The PI/PD must work closely with the Special Funds Accountant to correct any deficits as soon as possible after they occur. The PI/PD should identify a non-sponsored account with sufficient funds to absorb the deficit. It is usually not acceptable to reallocate expenses from one sponsored program to another in order to correct a deficit or pay a disallowable charge.

In the absence of specific advice within 90 days after the expiration of the award, the expenses will normally be charged in the following manner:

  • First, to the PI’s discretionary incentive account to the extent the funds are available.
  • Next, to the department’s discretionary account to the extent funds are available.
  • Next, to the dean’s discretionary account.
  • Next, to the department’s appropriated account.
  • Next, to the dean’s appropriated account.

For more information, please see the Contracts & Grants section of the Finance Forms page.

Contracts & Grants Policies and Procedures

More often than not, the hardest part of contract and grant management is attempting to keep up with the policies and governing regulations. Compiled to assist faculty and staff, this site compiles the most relevant policies and procedures governing the fiscal management of grants. As some of this information changes very quickly, it is important to contact the Special Funds Accountant for the latest guidance.

  1. Department of Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement 
  2. National Institute of Health (USDHHS)
  3. Federal Acquisition Regulation
  4. NASA Grants Management and Shared Services
  5. OMB Sponsored Circulars Directory
  6. Federal Procurement and Cost Accounting
  7. Federal Funding Accountability & Transparency Act
  8. National Science Foundation Policies & Procedures Guidance

Answers to other questions may be found at the Office of Sponsored Scholarship and Programs (OSSP).

For more information please see the Contracts & Grants section of the Finance Forms page.

Special Funds Contact

Steven Birkhofer

Steven Birkhofer

Special Funds Accountant

Office: 211D Phillips Hall
Phone: (828) 251-6872
Email: sbirkhof@unca.edu