Unbillable Sponsored Costs - Cost Overruns / Sponsored Project Exceptions

To assist with the identification of sponsored projects that need special attention and corrective action, G&C Accounting prepares a monthly exception report to identify all awards with expenditures in excess of available funds and/or active awards with expired term dates. The monthly exception report is distributed to G&C personnel, unit financial officers and appropriate Deans/Directors; representing formal notification to the incurring unit. Corrective action must be taken to clear unbillable amounts as identified each month in the Sponsored Project Exception Report.

In addition to the monthly reporting procedures, G&C Accountants will initiate additional action to clear unbillable costs on sponsored projects. When the assigned G&C Accountant determines that costs incurred are unbillable to the sponsor, the following steps are taken:

These corrective action procedures do not apply to sponsored projects established with OSP-approved Advance Project Numbers or to current projects pending receipt of official modifications. However, written proof/justification from the sponsor is required under these circumstances.

1. G&C contacts the incurring department to determine if immediate action can be taken to resolve the unbillable costs. If the administrator indicates that action will be taken to clear all unbillable amounts within a reasonable time frame (typically 30-60 days), no additional action is required at that time. The assigned G&C Accountant may also contact the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) at this stage to determine if official modifications are pending.
2. If action is not indicated by the department or there is no pending action indicated to resolve the outstanding unbillable costs, the project will be reported to a G&C Accounting Manager. Review and follow-up by G&C Accounting is on a continuing basis until the unbillable costs are resolved in some manner.
3. If appropriate action is not taken by the incurring unit and no additional information is provided to substantiate the unbillable amounts within approximately 60-90 days, all questioned costs will be transferred to the unit’s cost overrun project. This cost transfer will typically be processed within 90 days of the reported exception but may occur sooner as required by applicable financial reporting and/or invoicing requirements. It should be noted that costs transferred to a unit’s cost overrun project may be redirected to other projects as appropriate and as approved.

Forms
Reports are available in the Web Grants Management (GM) system to assist Principal Investigators, assigned delegates, and unit financial officers in providing proper oversight and management of sponsored projects. Proper project management includes posting all appropriate expenses on a timely basis, ensuring that costs are allowable and allocable to the project, and ensuring that expenses do not exceed the authorized budget. The “90 Days to Expiration Report” and the “Project Status Report” are useful for identifying projects that are at or approaching the unbillable stage. These reports are accessible from the main menu of Web GM.

Additional information related to Web GM, including access requirements and training materials, may be accessed from the Grants and Contracts Accounting web site at www.grants.gatech.edu

Contact the Office of Grants and Contracts Accounting at gc.ask@business.gatech.edu for specific guidance related to managing sponsored projects at Georgia Tech.