As a condition of receiving federal funding, institutions must maintain an accurate system for reporting the percentage of time that employees devote to federally sponsored projects. An effort reporting system provides the principal means for certifying that the salaries and wages charged to federally sponsored projects are consistent with the effort contributed. All employees involved in certifying effort must understand that severe penalties and funding disallowances could result from inaccurate, incomplete, or untimely effort reporting. Creighton must comply with the guidelines established in OMB Circular A-21, Section J.8 Compensation for personal services. Under this system the distribution of activities by Creighton University employees paid on government grants will be supported by periodic reports confirming that effort expended on these projects closely approximates the actual salary distribution for the period.
Supplemental compensation is excluded from the reporting process.
Personnel Activity Reports will be distributed to departments based on pay cycles. They should be reviewed, modified if appropriate, signed by the employee and returned to the Controller's Office on a timely basis. Mandatory cost sharing is required by certain sponsors and is stated in the award documents. Voluntary cost sharing represents additional effort expended on the project that is not required by the agency. For a detailed definition, see the Cost Sharing Policy and Procedure in the Controller's Office Policies and Procedures Manual.