Frequently Asked Questions

 

1. When will the index (account) number for my new research project be assigned?

 

The Grant and Contract Officers in the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) are responsible for reviewing, negotiating, and approving the incoming sponsored agreements (contracts, agreements, grants, cooperative agreements, memorandums of understandings, intergovernmental agreements, interagency agreements and incoming subawards) and writing the out-going subcontracts. Index numbers are assigned to research awards by the Office of Post Award Administration (OPAA).  After a grant has been received and matched up with the proposal or after a contract has been negotiated and fully executed, the grant or contract is forwarded by OSP to OPAA for set up.

 

2. What do you need to write a subcontract from a research award?

a. Index number

b. A comprehensive Scope of Work describing what the subawardee is to accomplish in order to receive the funding.  If there are deliverables, these should be listed specifically along with timelines and due dates.  A copy of OSU’s complete proposal as submitted to the sponsor is not a good scope of work for a subawardees’scope of work unless the proposal explicitly says what OSU will do and what the subawardee will do.

c. Budget (A budget that was approved by the subawardee’s office of sponsored programs)

d. Name of Subawardee’s PI.

e.  Name of the contact person at the other institution who will negotiate or sign the subcontract, if known (usually someone in the other party’s Sponsored Research Office).

f. Period of Performance for the subaward. (It does not have to be the start and end date of the OSU research award, but cannot start before or end after the OSU research award.)

 

3. I received an amendment for my research award, accounted for under Index S0660A. Why didn’t the contract officer amend the subcontracts under that award?

 

Subawards are not modified without authorization from the Principal Investigator (PI).  It is the responsibility of the PI to inform a contract officer in OSP what changes are needed in an existing subaward or whether to issue a new subaward.

 

4.  How much indirect cost is charged for the subcontract amount in OSU’s budget to the sponsor?

OSU charges indirect costs (F&A) on the first $25,000 of the subawardee’s budget to cover administrative expenses, regardless of the period covered by the subaward

 

5. How much indirect cost can the subcontractor charge in its budget?

The Subwardee is allowed to include indirect costs at its organization's negotiated rate up to the amount allowed by OSU’s sponsor, if that rate is limited.

 

6.  What’s the difference between a Procurement and a Subaward/Subcontract?

A procurement action is merely the purchase of goods/service, but usually no intellectual contribution to the project.  A subaward transfers a portion of a sponsored award to another entity for the purpose of programmatic effort, including decision-making, on the project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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