2 Comments
You probably saw the Guide Notice that we sent out earlier this week about accelerating American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects that may run beyond September 30, 2013. This September, we received a memo from the Office of Management and Budget Director, Mr. Lew, who underscored the need for all federal agencies to outlay Recovery Act funds as expeditiously as possible in order to have the greatest impact on the economy. Last year, I encouraged you to accelerate Recovery Act projects to the degree possible. And indeed, you have done that well, so much so that there will only be a small fraction of awards to which our notice will apply. So, again, I encourage you to complete your Recovery Act funded projects by September 30, 2013. Go science go!
If you are anticipating that your research will extend past September 2013, we will need to know by June 1, 2012. We will work with you to determine ways to accelerate grant expenditure or perhaps pursue other options for your particular situation.
Is this a sign of an impending move to limit the ability to get no-cost extensions on other kinds of NIH grants? If so, I will need to take that into account in terms of not letting my expenditures lag behind the initially budgeted amounts (as may often happen if it takes longer than anticipated to get the initial phases of the work accomplished), in order to avoid losing the funds at the end of the initially funded period of award.
There are no plans to modify existing NIH policy on no-cost extensions for non-ARRA funded grants. Where extensions are needed to support the research goals they will be provided in line with current policies. This notice is for ARRA-funded projects only and was necessary to support the administration’s goals and requirements as outlined in the OMB memorandum.