Closing Out an Award

• Campus Obligations
• Federal Awards: OMB Circular A-110
• When an Authorized Official Signature is Needed
• Timeliness is Important

Campus Obligations

The University has an obligation to close all Sponsored Programs and to submit any final technical and financial reports in a manner consistent with the terms and conditions of the award. The necessary closing procedures may vary, depending on the policies of the sponsor, whether the support was in the form of a grant, cooperative agreement or contract and the specific terms and conditions of the award. Since most sponsors do not send expiration letters, it is the responsibility of the PI to check the award document for all pertinent details about closeout procedures and dates.

The closeout of a project is the process by which the sponsor determines that all applicable administrative actions and all scientific work on the award have been completed. While closing out an award marks the fulfillment of certain obligations that the university has to the sponsor, certain obligations such as records retention, audit rights and patent rights survive the expiration and close out of an award.

Federal Awards: OMB Circular A-110

OMB Circular A-110 sets forth requirements with respect to the complete and timely submission of final reports for federal grants, cooperative agreements and contracts. To be in compliance with A-110, all financial, performance and other required reports must be submitted within 90 calendar days after the expiration or termination date of the award. Some federal awards may reference and incorporate more restrictive closeout requirements in the terms and conditions of the award - if so, the more restrictive requirements should be adhered to in closing out the award.

Failure to adhere to the specific closeout requirements of an award may result in the withholding of new awards by the federal sponsor to either the PI or the campus. In extreme cases, the sponsor may suspend payments for costs incurred by the University on other projects funded by the federal sponsor.

When an Authorized Official Signature is Needed

Some sponsors may require that final reports be signed by an Authorized Official of the University. In these cases, the report should be sent to Sponsored Programs Administration for signature.

Timeliness Is Important

Timeliness is important when closing out an award to assure:

• full compliance with the terms and conditions of the award,
• sound award management, and
• collection of all monetary reimbursement for costs incurred.