Rules and regs

To compete in the university research arena, one must know the rules of the game.

A university research agreement is fundamentally a work contract between a sponsor and a university. The researcher is the resident expert that the university identifies to carry out the proposed work. By submitting formal proposals, a researcher agrees to abide by the policies and procedures of the university and its sponsor. This means that a researcher must understand rules and regulations that affect university research. Conducting sponsored research with commercial entities usually involves institutionally driven and controlled terms and conditions. However, the major portion of university research is federally sponsored, and so is directly subject to federal regulations governing the conduct and financial accountability of the research. Many federal regulations "flow down" and are applicable to a researcher's project when the university is a subcontractor to a nonfederal entity that has a federally sponsored contract.

Relevant regulations take many forms. Following is a list of some types, with descriptions of important regulations in each category.

1. Administrative Regulations

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) publishes regulations that specifically address university research, including: OMB Circular A-21, "Cost Principles for Educational Institutions." This defines allowable costs for project agreements made between the federal government and educational institutions. In addition to describing permissible budgetary items, it tells when written justifications for expenditures are required. Its infamous Section F.6.b specifies the circumstances under which researchers can charge secretarial time, supplies, and other administrative support to a project.

OMB Circular A-110, "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Learning" Federal sponsors may not impose requirements in addition to or inconsistent with those delineated in this circular. Section C.23 is especially important because it provides definitions and criteria for allowable cost-sharing or matching.

OMB Cost Accounting Standards (CAS). In May 1996, four of these regulations became applicable to educational institutions, and two of these directly apply to researchers. CAS 501 requires that both the proposal and post-award budgets have identical categories. CAS 502 requires consistent allocation of costs. For example, if secretarial time is included in the indirect cost rate, a researcher cannot also charge it directly to the project without specific approval and a written justification.

Additional regulations for university research appear in the Code of Federal Regulations. The most noteworthy section is part 401.14(c) and (f) of Title 37, which governs invention disclosure. Specifically, the regulation compels nonprofits working under federal agreements to promptly disclose any inventions to the funding agency.

2. Agency-Specific Regulations

The National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health each publish conflict of interest (COI) standards (60 FR 35820 and 60 FR 35810, respectively) that require principal research investigators to disclose significant financial interests that the proposed research funding would reasonably appear to affect. Each institution has developed internal procedures for implementing and administering these standards, and researchers should expect other federal agencies to adopt similar COI standards and procedures in the future.

3. General Legislation

An example of these laws is the "Fly America Act." Federal sponsoring agencies reference it to stipulate that all air travel charged to the project be on U.S. air carriers.

Federal rules and regulations governing university research are important both to the people who conduct research and to those who administer them. A clear understanding of and respect for these rules and regulations will make the roles of principal investigators and research administrators easier and more productive.

[Author Affiliation]

Lester A. Gerhardt is chair of ASEE's Engineering Research Council and associate dean of engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Jean N. Humphries is director of research services for the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of the Texas A&M University System. The opinions expressed here are solely theirs.