Overview
This page provides guidance for departmental research administrators, principal investigators, and Contract and Grants Accounting analysts completing award closeout tasks.
An award closeout is the final reconciliation and reporting of expenses and activities. This involves reviewing project expenditures, resolving open commitments, collecting subrecipient documents, and preparing required final reports and deliverables for submission to the sponsor.
Roles and Responsibilities
Departmental Research Administrators and/or Principal Investigators (PIs):
- Determine and communicate with OSR if a No Cost Extension (NCE) or carryover is needed.
- Responsible for oversight of financial, scientific, and compliance aspects of the project. Ensure completion of the project.
- Prepare any final financial reports for non-federal awards.
- Submit Final Reporting Certification for federal or federal flow through awards.
- Verify General Ledger and reconcile departmental expenditures to ensure that all financial transactions are allowable and recorded properly and timely.
- Responsible for spending within authorized budget and period and for removing overdraft and unallowable costs timely.
Contracts and Grants Accounting (CGA) Analysts:
- Send department notification of award ending 45 days prior to end date.
- Prepare the financial report for federal awards.
- Clear any overdrafts or unallowable costs not resolved by the department.
- Refund any balances to sponsor as necessary.
- Engage with the sponsor
- Inactivate the award in RAS.
The Award Closeout Process
An automated notification from Contracts and Grants Accounting (CGA) will be sent to departments 45 days prior to the award end date that the award is coming to an end. The notification contains instructions on completing the financial review and Final Reporting Certification. Once the review and Final Reporting Certification are completed, CGA will prepare the financial report for federal awards, and the department will prepare the financial report for non-federal awards and submit to CGA for review.
Departments should determine well in advance whether to request a No Cost Extension (NCE) or carryover. Coordinate with OSR to obtain sponsor approval.
If the sponsor has pre-approved an NCE or carryover, the document or confirmation should be sent to OSR for further processing and then routed to CGA. The notification itself is insufficient for CGA to set-up the NCE or carryover Mod in RAS. The official mod will need to be processed in CACTAS by OSR.
If the determination is to complete the research by the specified end date and an extension is not necessary, the department will finalize the project and prepare any final reports.
- Departments need to ensure that all financial transactions are recorded properly and timely on the general ledger and review all charges for allowability, allocability and reasonableness.
- Any surplus/deficit balances will need to be cleared. CGA will refund any balances to sponsor as necessary.
- CGA and departments need to ensure all balance sheet accounts are cleared.
- CGA will inactivate the award in RAS for expired award accounts within 120 days of the budget period end date.
Overdrafts
Departments need to clear any overdrafts before the award can be closed. Overdrafts must be cleared by project, at the end of award periods, prior to the final cost-reimbursable invoicing.
CGA will move overdraft or unallowable costs to a department designated discretionary fund if the Department has not cleared the amount in a timely manner.
Collections
CGA will pursue collection on outstanding A/R balances and refund the sponsor on credit balances per award terms and conditions. For more information, see Billing and Collections procedures.