A Message from the Vice President for Research
Dear Colleagues,
Recent federal court rulings have continued to affect the implementation of several Executive Orders and agency actions that could impact the university’s research enterprise. These include actions related to NIH IDC rates, USAID funding, DEI-related projects and requirements, and other activities addressed by the Executive Orders.
We also understand that previously canceled NIH and NSF review panel meetings are being rescheduled.
Federal agencies continue to develop and implement a process for reviewing awarded projects that may be affected by the Executive Orders. The timeline for this, as well as the impacts, remains uncertain.
This week, we received seven termination notices for previously suspended USAID and Department of State projects. We are working directly with the affected PIs and their teams to mitigate the impacts.
The UGA senior administration continues to monitor this rapidly changing situation and communicate directly with state and federal officials. Our senior leadership has conducted several meetings to evaluate these developments and determine how we can continue to support our researchers. We strive to minimize the impact of these changes on our faculty, students, staff, and other stakeholders.
Our recommendations in the current environment are below.
Awards
- Please continue all work under existing awards unless you receive a specific stop work order.
- Please be aware that new awards, incremental funding, grant transfers, and sponsor prior approvals may be delayed, at least during the new administration’s transition period.
- Please be aware that the federal government remains under a Continuing Resolution. As a result, awards and increments may be reduced. Once the federal government has a balanced budget, awards and increments may be increased to the originally anticipated funding levels.
- Carefully monitor spending to avoid deficits. When appropriate, utilize Pending Awards and Pre-Award Spending. Carefully review and approve subrecipient invoices in a timely fashion. Ensure all billing and invoicing are current. Future federal funding is often subject to the availability of funds and government priorities.
- Prioritize submitting any interim and final technical reports and deliverables that may be overdue. Ensure all upcoming interim and final technical reports and deliverables are provided on time. SPA must be provided copies of all interim and final technical reports.
- Share communications with SPA. If you receive a stop-work order, a request to pause work, a request to alter the scope of work, or similar communications, please forward these to Jill Tincher and Cathy Cuppett with the subject line “ Federal Transition. “ Please allow Jill and Cathy time to review. Once reviewed, they will provide guidance on the next steps.
- Stay updated on policy changes: Keep an eye on federal agency announcements regarding updates to funding or compliance requirements. Also monitor the UGA Federal Funding Updates page.
Proposals
- Please continue submitting proposals as usual.
- Until further notice, all proposals should include UGA/UGARF’s federally negotiated Indirect Cost (IDC) Rate, unless the funding opportunity has an IDC Rate restriction. Please include the following language within your budget justification:
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- “Given the Temporary Restraining Order pertaining to NOT-OD-25-068 which is in effect at this time, this proposal includes the indirect cost rate contained within the UGARF/UGA Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement. We understand that the IDC Rate applicable to this project may be subject to change as the situation develops.”
- Please review the online funding announcement frequently and carefully to ensure it has not been revised, postponed, or rescinded. Changes or cancellations have occurred in isolated cases.
- Recognize that federal grant/study review timelines have been delayed. Monitor federal agency systems to learn when your proposal/s is scheduled to be reviewed.
We appreciate your patience, dedication, and resilience as we navigate these challenges together. We remain committed to keeping you informed as new information becomes available. If you have any questions regarding your sponsored projects, please contact Jill Tincher (Jill.Tincher@uga.edu) or Cathy Cuppett (cathy15@uga.edu) in SPA. For general inquiries, please contact vpr@uga.edu.
Sincerely,
Christopher King, DVM, DACLAM
Interim Vice President
Office of Research | University of Georgia
https://research.uga.edu | vpr@uga.edu
Enabling discovery to build a better world