In cases of over expenditure, the PI and department administrator should take immediate steps to eliminate the shortfall within the month after it appears on the Financial Summary Reports. In practice, over expenditures should not continue beyond a three month period.
How Tufts manages over expended grants: | Month #1 : Sponsored Programs Accounting will notify the Principal Investigator and/or department/office manager if an over expenditure occurred. If Sponsored Programs Accounting is advised that additional funds are forthcoming within ninety days (either through a continuation, renewal, or incremental funding of the award), then the over expenditure can remain in place. If additional funds are not expected, then action should be taken to clear the over expenditure before month end. |
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| Month #2: If the PI is unable to resolve or propose a plan to remedy the over expenditure by the second month, a notice will be sent to the BFO and to the Department Chairperson specifying the project/grant, and amount overspent and assistance to clear the over expenditure. |
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| Month #3: If the over expenditure is not cleared by the third month, an unrestricted department account will be requested by SPA from the School Officials to absorb the over expended balance. |
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How do I transfer expenses off an over expended grant?
| Non-salary expense | Submit Expense Transfer Form |
| Salary expense | Make adjustments through the Effort Reporting System via a PAF, Quarterly Effort Report (QER) or Non-Covered Personnel Report. |
Who is responsible for preventing/monitoring over expenditures on Grants?
Principal Investigators (PIs) and/or a designated individual, such as a Department/Office Manager, are primarily responsible for monitoring and reviewing all expenditures on his/her grants.
What is Sponsored Programs Accounting's role?
The role of Sponsored Programs Accounting is to assist departments in monitoring grant expenditures. In a case of over expenditure, SPA not only brings the problem to the attention of the responsible people, but can also help by reviewing and interpreting the information on financial reports and troubleshoot problems that may contribute to the over expenditure.
The full Over Expenditure policy is available to view by clicking here .
