BUDGETING AND

BUDGET
JUSTIFICATION
Workshop Theme: Writing a Competitive proposal

SICRA WORKSHOP AT MUWRP NOV 20-22, 2019

Esther Ssebyala
Grants and Admin Manager
Global Health Uganda Ltd
 Expected outcomes
By the end of the presentation, the
participants are expected to:
• Be more confortable in drawing
research budgets
• Be more conversant with important
Budget Terms
• Understand the types of budgets and
Components
• Be able to write a budget justification

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 Where do I start

 Seek clarity:
– Funder regulations
− Mechanism of Support,
− Funds Available,
− Cost Sharing or Matching
− Funding Restrictions.
– Project duration
– Allowable costs
– Subawards??

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 Key points to remember….
 Don’t budget for it, if you cant justify it!
 Requesting for lots of new equipment suggests
an insufficient environment to do the work
 Research grants are NOT training programs, be
careful how you budget and justify capacity
building aims
 Significant over- or under-estimating suggests
insufficient understanding of the scope of work.
 Unless required, plan for self reliance
 R01 almost always get cut by 15%, so try to be
as close to the cap as possible 4
 Why the budget

 A proposal budget constitutes an important part

of the grant application packet.

 A proposal budget can also include any revenue

a project may generate.

 The proposal budget serves the basic purpose

of showing the funder how much money a
project will cost and whether those costs adhere
to guidelines 5
 Importance of the budget…ctd

 reveals the applicant’s understanding of what is

required to accomplish the proposed research

 budget is not used to assess scientific merit and

is reviewed after the scientific merit is assessed

 Science drives the budget

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How to make a simple research
budget
Here are five steps to create a simple budget for
your research project.
• List your activities. Eg blood draw at 0m, CBC
testing at 3m, EEG, home visit at 6m etc
• Check the rules again.
• Cost each item.
• Put it in a spreadsheet.
• Justify it.

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 Important budget terms
 Direct costs: directly attributable to the
project and allowable
– salaries & fringe benefits, consultants,
equipment, supplies, travel, publication,
– Indirect costs/F&A Costs - “sometimes
referred to as “overhead Cost”. They are
shared by all cost centers and hence not
readily assignable to a project. Eg Board
Room space usage
• Specific rate is negotiated –NICRA
• Different funders provide different rates
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 Types of budgets

There are two primary types of Budget Forms:

– Detailed R&R (PHS SF424)
– PHS 398 modular.

 Generally, you must use the R&R Budget

Form if you are applying for more than
$250,000 per budget period in direct costs,
and you must use the Modular Budget Form if
you are applying for less than $250,000.

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Modular or Detailed Budget?

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PHS SF424 Budget components
 Research & Related Budget
– R&R Budget Component
• Section A and B
• Sections C through E
• Sections F through K
• Cumulative Budget

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 Sections A&B: Personnel
 Determine the base salaries: Worth of a
position at 100% effort for whole year
 Determine the amount of time (effort) that
the PI will spend on this project.
– Calendar vs. Academic/Summer months
– Provide time in “person-months” units, not percent
effort

 Determine the number, role and amount of

time needed for other personnel
– Technicians, Postdoctoral Fellows,Graduate
Students etc
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R&R Budget Sections A & B
R&R Budget
Sections C - E
 Section C: Is new equipment
needed?

 $5k or more otherwise supplies

 If additional equipment is needed, this is the
time to consider requesting it.
 Equipment should be project specific – be sure
to include a written justification.
 Most equipment is requested during the first
year of the grant.

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 Section D: Travel funds

 Travel is not necessarily a luxury

 Should be appropriately budgeted for following
institutional guidelines
 Some grants advise inclusion of budget for PI
travel for networking meetings.
 Estimate no of PX, days and destination
 This amount is usually small:
– $1,000 - 2,000 per scientific meeting per
individual per year
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 Section E: Participant/Trainee
Support Costs

 Unless stated in the FOA, this section

should be left blank for NIH applications
– Include tuition remission under Section F:
Other Direct Costs

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 R&R Budget
Sections F - K
Include tuition
remission in Item F,
Other Direct Costs
Item F(5),
Consortium Costs is
not auto-populated.
Next Period Button
not available until all
required data fields
are completed,
including the budget
justification
attachment.
 Section F: Other Direct Costs
Estimate the materials and supplies needed for
the personnel involved.
 The quantity and amount will vary depending on
the nature of the research proposed.
– Animal intensive studies and studies involving
human subjects tend to be more costly.
– In silico studies tend to be less costly for supplies.

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 Section F: Other Direct Costs

 This category also includes funds needed for items

such as:
– Publication costs
– Equipment maintenance
– Consortium/subcontracts
– Tuition remission
 Estimate these expenses realistically

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 Budget Justification

 The purpose of a budget justification

(sometimes also called a “budget narrative”)
is to explain and justify all expenses required
to achieve project aims and objectives

 Reviewers and Administrators use this to

decide if you really need what you request

 Don’t include it, if you cant justify it!

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 Budget Justification: Key
personnel
 For each PI, Co-PI, or Project Director, list name,
title, amount of time to be spent on the project
and what s/he will accomplish.

 Example:
Dr. Smith will serve as principal investigator and
will commit two summer months of effort to this
project. She will primarily be responsible for xyz.
Total salary requested for Dr. Smith is $11,111.

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 Budget Justification: Other
personnel
 Include Research technicians, lab managers,
students—any other personnel being paid out of
the grant. List name (if known), title, amount of
time to be spent on the project, and what s/he will
accomplish.

 Example:
 One undergraduate student will commit 10
hours/week at $10/hour for 30 weeks, and will be
responsible for . …..Total requested for Other
Personnel is $3,000.
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 Budget Justification: Benefits

 Benefits should be calculated for any personnel

proposed to be paid from the grant.
 They must be consistent with the institutional
policies and applied in a similar way to all grants
 Example: Fringe benefits are calculated using
current approved institutional rate of 15%, 10% for
the mandatory NSSF and 5% for staff medical
insurance.
 Total Benefits: $4,233

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 Budget Justification: Travel
 Explain the need for travel (how it will benefit the
project’s aims) and your calculations of travel costs.
Break down by airfare, hotel, per diem, etc.
 Example:
 Dr. Smith requests funds to attend the Society of
XYZ annual conference in Dubuque, Iowa, for the
purpose of disseminating project results.
Conference fee is $1,500. Travel costs are
estimated at $750 for airfare, three nights’ lodging
at $150/night, $30 for local transportation, and $46
per diem for three days.
 Total Travel: $4,236
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Budget Justification: Equipment
 Equipment is an item of lasting value with a cost of
over $5,000.
 List the equipment you are requesting, including
model name/number, and price quotes from a vendor.
Explain the necessity of the equipment to the project.
 Example:
In order to complete Aim #2, a high power microscopy
lens is required. This lens will enable researchers to
detect the presence of damaged protons. We request
funds to purchase one XYZ Microscope, Model #123, at
$5,355.
 Total Equipment: $
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 Budget Justification: Other
Direct Costs
 Sometimes “Supplies” and “Contractual Services” are
listed as separate categories)

 Supplies are non-durable goods with an individual

value of less than $5,000. List supplies in general
categories (i.e., office supplies, lab consumables,
etc.).
 Example: Test tubes, beakers, chemicals, assay kits
and lab consumables are required for this project to
complete blood tests and analysis, estimated at
$3,000.
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 Budget Justification: Other
Direct Costs
 Consulting services
 Provide the consultant’s name, company/organization,
and purpose to the project. List individual costs for
consultant: travel, per diem, compensation/fee.
 Example: Funds are requested to contract with Dr.
Sandra Brown of GreatLabs in San Antonio, TX. Dr.
Brown is a leading expert in damaged proton
detection, and has significant experience with clinical
trials and participant recruitment. Dr. Brown’s
consultant fee will total $2,000. Additionally, Dr. Brown
will travel once during the project period to Kla.
Airfare, $1530, two days’ per diem, $240, and two
nights of accommodation, $360 28
 Budget Justification: Indirect
Costs (F&A)
 ALL Federal grants must include Indirect Costs (IDC)
unless they are explicitly disallowed in the proposal
guidelines
 Some institutions have a negotiated indirect cost rate
agreements (NICRA)
 With the exception of the American University of Beirut
and the WHO, which are eligible for full F&A cost
reimbursement, F&A costs under grants to foreign and
international organizations are funded at a fixed rate
of 8% of MTDC, exclusive of tuition and related fees,
direct expenditures for equipment, and subawards in
excess of $25,000.
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 R&R Subaward
Budget Attachment Form
 Used for detailed budget from consortia
 Subawardees use correct software version
 Applicant sends R&R Subaward budget component
to Subawardee(s); it is completed and returned;
applicant attaches it in this component
 Allows up to 10 separate subaward budget
attachments
– Provide one budget for each consortium grantee
– If more than 10 subawardees, include details for
additional subawardees in budget justification (Section K)
 Where to get help
 SF424 R&R guides and FAQs
– http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/424/index.htm#inst
– http://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/faq_full.htm
-https://grants.nih.gov/grants/how-to-apply-applicati
on-guide/forms-e/general/g.300-r&r-budget-form.ht
m
PHS 398 instructions
– http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html
 NIH Program and Grants Management staff
 Other experienced personnel at your institution

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Questions?