Subawards

General Information

A subaward occurs when a USU Principal Investigator partners with another organization (a “Subrecipient”) to carry out a portion of a project awarded to USU. These are considered outgoing subawards.

  • Subrecipients share in programmatic decision making with USU and work collaboratively with USU researchers to carry out the sponsor-funded work.
  • Subrecipients are subject to the same award terms and conditions as is USU.
  • Subrecipients commonly include, but are not limited to, institutions of higher education (colleges and universities), non-governmental organizations, non-profit organizations, for-profit organizations, and municipalities (State, County and City offices).

USU’s Sponsored Programs Office (SPO) issues outgoing subawards funded by grants, cooperative agreements and contracts received through SPO. These transactions can support organized research, instruction, or other sponsored activities.

On This Page

Forms

Roles & Responsibilities

The following is a general overview of the roles for those involved in the subaward process:

USU Principal Investigator (PI)

Pre-Award

  • Identifies the appropriate collaborating outside organizations (not individual consultants) to serve as Subrecipients under the sponsored project.
  • Obtains the Subrecipient’s proposal and integrates it into the proposal submitted to the sponsor.

Post-Award

  • Submits the subaward initiation request form to SPO via Kuali.
  • Manages and monitors the subrecipient’s performance and spending on the project, in accordance with the subaward terms.
  • Notifies SPO of any problems or issues with the subrecipient’s performance on the project.
  • Request amendments to the subaward.

Sponsored Programs Office (SPO), Subaward Team

  • Processes subaward requests from USU PIs.
  • Conducts subrecipient risk assessments, including participating in subaward risk assessment meetings, as needed.
  • Receives and reviews the subaward documents.
  • Negotiates the subawards terms with the subrecipients.
  • Issues the fully-executed subawards.
  • Assigns subaward numbers to new subawards.
  • Processes any amendments requested by the USU PI.
  • Helps close out the subaward.

Sponsored Programs Accounting (SPA)

  • Monitors the subrecipient’s spending and invoices.
  • Receives and pays subaward invoices, upon USU PI approval.

Process

1

Subaward Proposal Development

When developing a sponsored research proposal:

  • Evaluate your Subrecipient’s role to determine that the outside organization will be functioning as a Subrecipient, and not as a vendor/contractor. (See the subrecipient compliance form)
  • Obtain a subaward proposal from the subrecipient integrate it into USU’s proposal, according to the sponsor’s requirements.
  • Upload the Subrecipient’s documents and any other required forms into Kuali. The minimum required documents for each subaward are:
    • Subrecipient Vs Contractor Determination Form
    • Subrecipient Commitment Form
    • Scope of Work
    • Budget
    • Budget Justification
    • Indirect Costs Rate Agreement
    • Other documents as required by the Request for Proposals (RFP).
 
2

Subawards at Pre-Award/Just-in-Time Stage

Once USU received the notice of award from the Sponsor:

  • Check with the subrecipient to ensure they are still on track to participate in the research.
  • Check with the subrecipient PI to ensure they have not changed institutions.
  • Check again to ensure your Subrecipient’s relationship to USU is truly that of a Subrecipient, and not that of a supplier/vendor. (See the subrecipient compliance form)
  • Encourage the Subrecipient to register in the System for Award Management (SAM), if they have not done so already.
  • Subrecipients must use a Unique Entity Identifier [UEI], assigned by the System for Award Management.
 
3

Subaward Setup

Once USU Sponsored Programs releases the Prime Award:

  • Contact the Subrecipient PI about any needed changes to the Subrecipient’s budget and/or Statement of Work, based on what the Prime Award can support.
  • Submit a subaward initiation request form directing SPO to issue the subaward.

Notice
Submission of this form is required to initiate communications with the SPO subawards team regarding subaward setup. Direct email communication will not initiate the process.

It is the PI responsibility to complete the Subaward initiation in a timely manner to enable the completion of the work.

Required Information needed for subaward initiation form:

  • Principal Investigator name
  • Award number, and subaward number if requesting a modification.
  • Subaward title
  • Subaward institution
  • Subrecipient principal investigator name and email
  • Subrecipient administrative contact and email
  • Subaward budget period start date
  • Subaward budget period end date
  • Estimated total project period start date
  • Estimated total project period end date
  • Reporting requirements for budget period

Required Documents:

  • Subrecipient Statement of Work
  • Subrecipient Budget
  • Subrecipient Budget Justification
  • Provide feedback, as needed, to the SPO Subaward Specialist during the subaward preparation and negotiation process.
 
4

Subaward Monitoring

After the subaward has become active:

  • Review the subaward document, to understand its terms and conditions. Contact the SPO subaward personnel if you have any questions.
  • Maintain an active collaboration with the Subrecipient PI.
  • Monitor the Subrecipient’s work progress and technical performance.
  • Monitor the Subrecipient’s spending in accordance with the approved budget.
  • Plan for future subaward amendments, including annual allotments. This must be done every time funds are released.
  • Alert SPO to any problems with the Subrecipient’s compliance with the subaward.
 

Frequently Asked Questions

What steps are necessary to set up an approved subaward on a project?

If the proposal included a subaward(s), the PI should complete the Subaward Initiation Form to formally request the setup of the subaward(s) once the main award has been setup and a Banner index has been assigned.

What steps are necessary to make a change to an existing subaward on a project?

The Subaward Initiation Form should be completed to communicate any necessary changes (e.g., add another year of funding, no-cost extension, etc.) to the subaward(s) on a project. 

What should I do if I am having problems with a subrecipient on a project?

PIs are responsible for notifying SPO if they are having any issues with subawardees (e.g. non-responsiveness to requests, delinquent reports, invoicing not matching work performed, etc.) Federal regulations require USU to monitor subawards throughout the duration of the project. If significant concerns are identified, the subaward may be amended or terminated as needed.

What is the process for closing out a subaward?

SPO primarily handles the closeout process for subawards. SPO will confirm the total amount paid to a subrecipient and reach out to the subrecipient for confirmation that no additional reimbursement is required. They will also ask for confirmation that the scope of work has been completed and for copies of the required final reports as needed. Once all items have been received, the subaward will be closed out in Kuali.