Overview

An award closeout is the final reconciliation and reporting of expenses and activities. This involves reviewing project expenditures, resolving open commitments, collecting subrecipient documents, and preparing required final reports and deliverables for submission to the sponsor including:

• Financial Reports/Invoices
• Scientific/Technical Reports
• Milestone Deliverables
• Invention/Property Statements

Timeliness of final reporting is crucial to ensure compliance with sponsor requirements. Typical deadlines are outlined below.

Failure to submit reports by the deadline can result in suspension of the principal investigator (PI) and/or university from receipt of additional funding, reimbursement for current costs, and ability to submit future proposals. University closeout policies and procedures were developed to ensure that all sponsor requirements are met in accordance with federal Uniform Guidance standards.

Closeout Responsibilities

Principal Investigator Responsibilities

The Departmental Checklist, which is created from Updates to Posted Forms, provides a full list of closeout action items for completion. For more information, view details regarding carry-forward, residual balances, gift assessment fees, invention statements, and overdrafts.

The principal investigator (PI) bears the responsibility to:

• Review Research Financial Services account reconciliation detailing the final expenditures and award balance to verify accuracy of the final Financial Report/Invoice. Submit any adjustments to Research Financial Services, including those related to unallowable, questionable, or overdraft expenditures.
• Prepare and submit any required Scientific/Technical Reports or Milestone Deliverables to the sponsor. Research Financial Services does not require a copy of the PI’s Final Technical Report. However, our team does require either a copy of the transmittal letter to the sponsor, or notification by the PI/department that the final technical reports/deliverables have been submitted to the agency.
• Complete any required forms related to Invention and/or Property Statements and send to Research Financial Services for review. Reach out to our team in order to obtain sponsor-specific templates if necessary.
• Provide Research Financial Services with the PI’s approval confirmation of the final account balance, completion of all contractual commitments, and submission of all reports required by the sponsor.

Research Financial Services Responsibilities

We bear the responsibility to:

• Provide the PI/department with the account reconciliation for review. Coordinate with the PI/department to ensure that all expenditures are finalized and adjustments are processed in order to reach a final account balance.
• Prepare and submit the final Financial Report/Invoice according to the finalized account reconciliation.
• Submit any required Invention/Property Statements completed by the PI to the sponsor.
• Close sponsored award fund sources/indices in the financial system.

Invention Statements

Invention Statements should be provided directly to the Research Financial Services Accountant/Analyst during the Award Closeout process.

Invention Statement Process

1. PI / Department fills out the Invention Statement form. Reach out to the Research Financial Services Grant Accountant/Analyst with any questions regarding specific templates required by the sponsor. Verify accuracy of included information: performance period, PI name, award number, granting agency, and invention disclosures.
   
   Return the completed form to the Research Financial Services Grant Accountant/Analyst.
   
   For NIH awards, the PI should initiate the Invention Statement in eRA Commons and email a copy of the completed form to Research Financial Services for approval. View the NIH Final Invention Statement and Certification Form [editable PDF].
2. The office of Research Financial Services verifies information and sends the completed Invention Statement form to Technology Transfer for approval.
3. Technology Transfer verifies accuracy of the Invention Statement content. If revisions are required, the form is routed back to the PI/department for revision. Upon approval, Technology Transfer signs the Invention Statement and sends it back to Research Financial Services.
4. Research Financial Services submits the approved Invention Statement to the sponsor with the final invoice/report. When applicable, Research Financial Services will approve the Invention Statement in eRA Commons.