The proposed Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) is responsible for providing a complete budget as part of the proposal submission package.
The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) must have a copy of the budget for the project file. If the PD/PI does not want the budget to be submitted to the sponsor, it should be marked “DO NOT SEND TO SPONSOR.”
All costs included in the budget must be both allowable and allocable for the proposed research. These terms are defined in and governed by OMB Circular A-21, the federal Cost Principles Applicable to Educational Institutions.
The Office of Sponsored Programs created the BUDGET WIZARD to assist in crafting budgets for sponsored research proposal submissions. The campus research community is encouraged to use this tool.
While the budget format and detail will vary with individual sponsors, a typical budget normally includes the following:
Salaries and Wages
- To calculate total salaries and wages, list the amount of time to be spent by any individual serving in any paid capacity on the project.
- Departmental administrative and clerical staff salaries are considered as Facilities and Administrative costs (indirect costs) and cannot normally be charged to sponsored projects. If the sponsored agreement has specific requirements that mandate the use of administrative and clerical staff, this need must be documented in accordance with the requirements of OMB Circular A-21 and be specifically identified in the sponsored agreement.
- The published Georgia Tech average labor rates may be used in proposal budgets unless individuals are identified by name in the budget. When individuals are identified by name, their actual salary should be used in the budget estimate.
- No employee may be scheduled for activities in excess of 100% of effort in any given month, this includes research teaching and service.
- It is Georgia Tech policy that a Principal investigator must devote at least 1% effort to a sponsored program OR a level of effort as required by a sponsor. After the award is granted and accepted, the PI and key personnel are committed to provide that proposed level of effort over the budget period unless the sponsor permits otherwise.
- Sponsored activities may not result in any employees receiving compensation at a rate in excess of their authorized salary or academic rate. For multi-year projects, the budget should take into consideration any possible salary increases.
Fringe Benefits
- Fringe benefits are a direct cost to a sponsored project, are clearly related to the salaries and wages to be paid, and are shown as a separate entry in the budget.
- Full fringe benefit rates are applied to direct salary and wages of full time employees and to part-time employees who work at least 50% time at Georgia Tech.
- Partial fringe benefits are applied to direct salary and wages of part-time employees who work at less than 50 % time at the Institute. These employees do not participate in the retirement, group health and other insurance plans.
- Enrolled students maybe be employed on sponsored projects, and are not subject to fringe benefit rate charges.
- Current Rates
Consultants
Individuals currently employed by Georgia Tech should be listed under personnel and not included under Consultants. A consultant is a firm or an individual offering professional or specialized services for a fixed rate or fee. Georgia Tech only controls the direction of the consultant’s work with respect to work objectives and desired results and not the methodology for achieving the results.
Equipment
- Equipment is defined as all property of a capital nature, complete in itself (stands alone), which does not lose its identity, has an anticipated service life greater than two years, and has a unit cost of $5,000 or more. The budget should specify the name and manufacturer of the equipment whenever possible. Sponsors may want to see the manufacturer’s specifications and price list, particularly if the equipment is very expensive. No F&A Costs are applied to this budget category
- Materials and Supplies –these are consumable supplies, regardless of cost, and equipment with a unit value of under $5,000 or a useful life of less than two years.
- Costs for photocopying, publication costs and page charges, reference books and materials, equipment/computer maintenance, Service Center Rates, and contracted services are also categorized as Materials and Supplies.
- General office supplies, such as staples and pens, may not be allowable on federal grants unless they are related to specific project activities rather than general departmental activities. Budgets that include such items must include a just unique to the project for such materials as well as General purpose equipment. General descriptions of the type of supplies included and a best estimate of their cost can support this budget category.
Travel
For each trip, the proposed destination, purpose and duration of the trip should be described. An estimated breakdown of expenses for each person traveling should include: round trip coach air fare, per diem or living expenses, other related expenses such as ground transportation or conference registration fees.
Subcontracts/Sub-grants
When a proposal contemplates the need for a subcontract or subgrant, the proposed subcontractor’s statement of work and detailed budget signed by an authorized representative of the subcontractor must be included with Georgia Tech’s budget documentation. F&A Costs apply to only the first $25,000 of each subcontract.
Graduate Student Tuition Remission Program (GSTRP)
- Graduate student tuition is charged to sponsored projects using a standard negotiated monthly rate. No F&A Costs are applied to this budget category.
- For more information on the Graduate Tuition Remission program, visit the Graduate Admissions site
- Current Rates
Facilities and Administrative Costs (Commonly referred to as Indirect Cost or Overhead)
- The distribution base used to determine Facilities and Administrative Rates is Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) as defined by OMB Circular A-21. MTDC consists of all salaries and wages, fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel and sub-grants and subcontracts up to the first $25,000 each; and excluding equipment, capital expenditures, charges for tuition remission, rental costs, scholarships and fellowships, as well as the portion of each sub-grant and subcontract in excess of $25,000.
- Current Rates