Grant Survival!
How to Spend Your Money Without Losing Your Mind
Negotiating the University's purchasing and hiring systems on your own? Here's a quick guide to some of the most common grant expenditures. Need more help? See the sections on Hiring and Purchasing in ORDA's online Sponsored Project Guide, or explore the links at the bottom of ORDA's Grant Management page.
The electronic forms used for financial transactions are fillable PDFs that may be downloaded from SIUC's central eForms repository or from the Administrative Information System (AIS) web site. Completed forms must be printed out, signed by the fiscal officer of the grant, and sent to Grant & Contract Accounting, mailcode 6812. They may not yet be submitted online.
Before you spend, make sure you have sufficient funds in the proper budget line: Salaries, Wages (for student workers), Travel, Equipment, Commodities, Contractual Services, etc.
Paying research participants (non-SIU employees)
Pay with an Accounts Payable Invoice Distribution Form (see next section) marked "No Services Rendered."
Paying for services, including conference fees and page charges
Use an Accounts Payable Invoice Distribution Form for most services up to $1,500 and also for a select list of services up to $5,000. The latter include subscriptions, page charges and reprints, registration fees (which can also be paid by P-card up to $3,500; see below), and travel reimbursement to students and non-SIUC employees. (Purchasing has a complete list of what's allowable. If it costs more than $1,500 and it's not on the list, you need to use a Purchase Requisition instead; see below).
See instructions for guidance on filling out Invoice Distributions. If payment is required in advance (for things like conference fees and subscriptions), you won't have an invoice number; add the notation "Pro Forma" in the "Description/Notes" section of the form.
If you're buying services from an individual rather than an incorporated business, the supplier must fill out and sign an Independent Contractor Analysis Form and a W-9 Form. If the individual is named in the grant, also submit a copy of the fully executed grant. This will greatly expedite approval.
Campus service units: In the case of those with their own work order forms (e.g., Printing, Mail Service, Travel Service, etc.), the grant account will be debited automatically for services rendered. Other units will submit an invoice to you for services rendered. You reimburse these units with a Transfer Voucher.
Paying grant-related travel expenses for staff, students, and non-SIUC personnel
Contact Accounts Payable (453-2253) to get authorized to use Orbitz for Business. With your grant's P-card (see below), you can use Orbitz to book and pay for flights, car rentals, and hotel reservations. Out-of-pocket expenses such as meals and mileage on personal vehicles are reimbursed to University employees via an Accounts Payable Travel Expense Voucher and to students and non-University personnel via an Accounts Payable Invoice Distribution form.
Note: Vehicles for University travel may not be rented within 100 miles of Carbondale. Instead, you must reserve a fleet vehicle from Travel Service [representative rates | Travel Service Vehicle Request]
For more on travel, see the Travel section of the Sponsored Project Guide.
Getting a P-card
Use a P-card to buy most commodities, less-expensive equipment, and some services. P-cards are University credit cards obtained from Purchasing; to get one for your grant, call Purchasing (453-5751). The per-purchase transaction limits:
- $3,500 for commodities
- $3,500 for Dell and Apple computers
- $1,500 for any other piece of equipment
- $3,500 for computer software (must not required a signed license agreement)
- $3,500 for conference registration fees
These limits include any shipping/handling charges. Since SIUC is a state institution, tax may not be charged on purchases. You'll have to notify vendors of this. If an online ordering site automatically adds tax, you must contact the vendor via telephone instead to place your order. On occasion you may have to fax a vendor a copy of SIUC's Tax Exemption Letter.
The P-card monthly charge limit is $15,000. To request a higher limit, submit a Higher Transaction or Monthly Limit Request Form to Purchasing. Computer purchases require a Computer P-Card Request (see "Buying computers," below).
Use prime vendors for purchases whenever possible. Note: There are some categories of prohibited or restricted purchases.
See the Purchasing Office's P-card web site for forms, information, and the P-card Policies and Procedures Manual. P-card records must be retained by the cardholder for seven years in a form easily accessible for auditing.
Buying office supplies
Order office supplies online, at a discount, from OfficeMax Solutions. Don't have a P-card? Get one first (see above); you'll need it to pay. Then call Purchasing (453-5751) to request a short authorization form that you fill out and fax to OfficeMax. The company will e-mail you a password giving you online access.
Buying lab supplies
Fisher Scientific Co. has a prime vendor contract with SIUC to furnish laboratory equipment, casework, supplies, and chemicals. Access the Fisher catalog; you'll have to log in to see current SIUC discount prices. Order online with a P-card if the transaction is less than $3,500. If it's more, order by sending a Purchase Requisition (see below) to Grant & Contract Accounting, mailcode 6812. Requisitions of $50,000 or above require special approvals. Questions? Call Purchasing (453-5751).
Buying computers
Dell computers and Apple computers may be purchased with a P-card if the system costs less than $3,500. SIUC has a prime vendor contract with 710 Bookstore to provide Dell computers. Go to the Dell site from Purchasing's prime vendor page to configure the system you want. Print out an e-quote. If the system costs less than $3,500, submit the e-quote with a Computer P-card Request to Purchasing, mailcode 6813. (Go to the P-card page and select from the forms menu to find the Computer Request.) If the system costs $3,500 or more, submit the e-quote with a Purchase Requisition to Grant & Contract Accounting, mailcode 6812. The procedure is the same for Macintosh computers. Go to the Apple web site and choose the education site for the best prices.
Other computer purchases, regardless of cost, require a Purchase Requisition (see next section). In addition, purchases of computers other than Dells, Maintoshes, and Unix-based computers require a written justification to accompany the Purchase Requestion.
Buying other stuff: purchase requisitions
If it can't be bought via P-card or Invoice Distribution, it requires a Purchase Requisition. Fill out the requisition with the grant budget purpose number and title, department, description of the items or service to be purchased, quantity, cost or price quote, recommended supplier, completion date (if services), and fiscal officer's signature. Attach a copy of the literature that describes the product or service. Send the requisition to Grant & Contract Accounting, mailcode 6812. Allow a couple of weeks for routine purchases.
Important: If your grant requires a specific vendor for the purchase, or if your requirements are extremely specialized, you need to request a sole source contract by submitting a Sole Source Justification Form with your requisition. If the purchase amount is above the bid limit (currently $32,600), allow several weeks of lead time. All sole source contracts above the bid threshold must be published in advance in the Illinois Procurement Bulletin.
Bidding: Requests to purchase an item or service costing more than $32,600 (more than $20,000 or more in the case of professional/artistic services) must be competitively bid and advertised over a 14-day period before a supplier is selected. Provide detailed specs and allow 3-4 weeks of lead time. Exceptions to bidding: You're using a prime vendor like Dell or Fisher, or you get approval for a sole source contract.
Big-ticket items: Allow 6-8 weeks of lead time for purchases of $50,000 or more, which involve special approvals. If the grant requires a specific vendor, submit a Sole Source Justification Form with the requisition. Otherwise, submit a brief letter of justification with the requisition stating what you're buying, what it will be used for, the grant account number, and the funding agency. See Board Letter Requirements for more information.
Hiring graduate assistants on grants
See sections I-III of the Graduate Assistant Handbook to learn about types of appointments, benefits, and leave policies for GAs.
- Stipend rates
- Graduate Assistant Hiring Process This PDF document tells you the steps and forms involved (most of the forms are fillable PDFs now available at the eForms web site.
Hiring student workers on grants
If you know a student you want to hire, he or she must obtain a Student Employment Referral from SalukiNet or from the Financial Aid Office. (International students must go to the International Students and Scholars Office to get their referrals.) If you need to find job applicants, fill out a Student Employment Job Posting Request and submit it to the Financial Aid Office, mailcode 4702. Job openings are posted on the Financial Aid Office web site. Applicants will contact you to set up an interview. Don't interview applicants unless they have a Student Employment Referral.
To hire a student, complete section 2 of the student's referral form. The form must then be signed by the fiscal officer of the grant. You'll also need an Employment Eligibility Verification (I-9) form. The student completes section 1 of the I-9 form; you complete section 2 and sign the Certification section. The student must return the referral and the I-9 form in person to Financial Aid (international students return these to the International Students and Scholars Office instead). The student can begin work when he or she brings back an orange Supplemental Payroll Time card from Financial Aid.
For important information about student employment, see the Student Employment Supervisors Manual.