Estimated Processing Timelines
Please note that many awards require third-party coordination or approval. Consequently, certain variables affecting the timeline may be beyond our immediate control.
Pre-Establishment of Account (1 week)
- The Pre-Establishment of Account (Pre-Estab) refers to setting up a project account in advance of receiving an official award from the sponsor. These requests are typically processed within one week, provided the submission to Office of Post Award Management (OPAM) includes written sponsor confirmation of funding assurance, award amount, source account number, and anticipated effective start date.
Unrestricted Grants (1 week)
- Unrestricted grants are typically conveyed through a brief letter accompanied by a check. This type of award is not subject to any deliverables, reporting requirements, or terms and conditions.
Standard Grants (1 - 2 weeks)
- Standard grants do not require substantial negotiation and are typically processed within one to two weeks.
Standard Contracts (1 - 2 weeks)
- Standard contracts do not require substantial negotiation and are typically processed within one to two weeks.
Complex Awards (3-4 weeks)
Grants, Contracts, Cooperative Agreements, Subcontracts, CRADAs
- Complex awards include restrictive or non-standard terms that require additional review and coordination. These may involve data confidentiality, Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), intellectual property (IP) or background IP (BIP) rights, publication restrictions, export control, liability limitations, or fundamental research considerations. Processing typically takes three to four weeks but may extend to six weeks or longer depending on the complexity of the terms and the time needed to reach agreement with the sponsor.
E-Verify
As a federal contractor, the university must comply with E-Verify regulations to verify the employment eligibility of all employees assigned to work on federal contracts containing the FAR E-Verify clause. Non-compliance may jeopardize the university's ability to receive federal contract funds in the future, and therefore, the cooperation of all departments and personnel assigned to work on federal contracts is required.
E-Verify is an electronic employment verification system used in the United States to confirm the employment eligibility of newly hired employees. It is operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Employers who participate in E-Verify can use the system to verify the identity and employment authorization of their employees by comparing information provided on an employee's Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) with data from the DHS and SSA databases. This helps employers ensure that they are hiring individuals who are legally authorized to work in the United States.
When an employer submits an employee's information to E-Verify, the system checks it against records held by the DHS and SSA to confirm the validity of the information. The results are typically available within a few seconds, indicating whether the employee's information matches the government records and if they are eligible to work.
Important Notes:
- E-Verify is not a comprehensive background check or screening tool. It focuses solely on verifying employment eligibility based on the information provided by the employee and comparing it to government databases. It does not verify an individual's immigration status or citizenship.
- Department Business Managers are responsible for ongoing coordination with the Principal Investigator to maintain compliance with E-Verify in cases of personnel changes during the contracted work.
- Existing employees assigned to an E-Verify project must complete a new I-9 Form and initiate E-Verify within the later of 90 days from the contract start date or 30 days of project assignment. Newly-hired employees must complete an I-9 Form and initiate E-Verify within three days of employment.
- The PI and the employees will work directly with Human Resources.
- To schedule an appointment for an employee to complete E-verification please submit a question via AskHR. Once logged in, choose the topic "Payroll & Benefits Forms". In the "Please tell us more about your question" box type "E-Verify needed".