Definitions

Instruction means the teaching and training activities of an institution. This term includes all teaching and training activities, whether they are offered for credit toward a degree or certificate, or on a non-credit basis, and whether they are offered through regular academic departments or separate divisions, such as a summer school division or an extension division. Departmental research, for purposes of this document, is not considered as a major function but as a part of Instruction.

Educational service agreements are the sponsored operations supporting the teaching and training activities of the institution. These agreements are synonymous with the University's restricted instruction funds (RH accounts, excluding salary supplements where no EFT is assigned).

Organized research means all research and development activities of an institution that are separately budgeted and accounted for by the institution. This term includes research and development activities that are sponsored by Federal and non-Federal agencies and organizations, as well as those that are separately budgeted by the institution under an internal allocation of institutional funds. It also includes activities involving the training of individuals in research techniques (commonly called research training) where such activities utilize the same facilities as other research and development activities, and where such research and development activities include all cost incurred by the institution in performing the activities. Cost sharing applicable to externally sponsored research grants and contracts is a part of organized research.

Organized research - agriculture means all research and development activities performed through the agricultural experiment stations that are separately budgeted and accounted for by the institution.

Other Sponsored Agreements (Public Service) are the sponsored operations established to provide non-instructional services to individuals and groups external to the institution. These agreements are synonymous with the University's restricted public service accounts.

Departmental administration means those activities performed for administrative and supporting services that benefit common or joint departmental activities or objectives in academic deans' offices, academic departments and divisions, and organized research units. Organized research units include institutes, study centers, and research centers.

Policy

OMB Circular A-21 (A-21) contains requirements for procedures and documentation in support of the distribution of salaries and wages (direct and indirect) under a system of Personnel Activity Reports (PAR).

Personnel Activity Reports will reflect the distribution of activity expended by each employee covered by the PAR system on an after-the-fact basis. The distribution of salary is obtained from the Payroll Voucher System.

Each PAR will account for 100 percent of the activity for which the employee is compensated and which is required in fulfillment of the employee's obligation to the institution. The PAR will reasonably reflect the percentage of activity applicable to each account/project.

To confirm that the distribution of activity represents a reasonable estimate of the work performed by the employee during the period, each PAR must be reviewed for accuracy and approved by the employee or by a responsible official having first-hand knowledge of the work performed. If someone other than the employee is certifying effort worked, documentation must be retained in accordance with A-21, University, and Board of Regents policies and procedures.

A-21 requires that cost sharing of salaries and wages be supported by Personnel Activity Reports (PAR).

Note: Effective December 31, 2005, the University will implement an electronic PAR system.

Employees of the University of Georgia will be included in the PAR system according to the criteria indicated below.

1) Any employee who has any portion of his/her salary charged directly to any activity for which an overhead rate is to be determined. This category includes employees who have any portion of their salaries charged directly to a contract, grant, or cost sharing account.

2) Any employee who has a portion of his/her salary charged to a major activity of the University (i.e., Instruction, Research, Public Service). 

3) Any employee who has any portion of his/her time charged to more than one F&A activity.

Specific guidance has been provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture through the Department of Health and Human Services as to the effort reporting requirements applicable to individual employees who expend effort on Cooperative Extension Service and Agricultural Experiment Station programs. Individual employees are not subject to the effort reporting requirements outlined in this policy if:

1) An Experiment Station employee's salary is charged 100 percent to one or more Experiment Station programs. Experiment Station programs are Hatch Regional Research, Hatch Formula, McIntire-Stennis, Title V of the Rural Development Act, Section 1445 of PL 95-113-1890 Institutions, Section 1433 of PL 95-113-Animal Health and State funds for Experiment Station research.

2) An Extension service employee's salary is charged 100 percent to one or more Extension Service programs. Extension Service programs are Smith Lever [Sections 3(b), 3(c) and (d)] and State funds for extension. Smith Lever Section (d) programs are Pesticide Impact Assessment, Food and Nutrition Education, Pest Management, Farm Safety, Urban Gardening and Energy.

The effort reporting requirements outlined in this policy do apply to University employees paid from combination of Cooperative Extension Service and Agricultural Experiment Station funds. For the individual employees with 100% of their effort charged as noted in 1 & 2 above, it is necessary that their workload be reviewed periodically and any necessary adjustments made to payroll charges. For those Cooperative Extension Service and Agricultural Experiment Station employees not subject to the effort reporting requirements of this publication, contact should be made with the Dean's Office, College of Agriculture to assure appropriate review procedures are followed.

The Finance and Administration Office will automatically generate a PAR after each pay period for professional or professorial employees (personnel paid monthly) who should complete a PAR based on the payroll distribution of their salary. A PAR should be requested from the Finance and Administration Office if the effort was expended on an activity that makes the employee subject to the provisions of A-21. Completion and return of the form will initiate a journal entry reflecting the actual distribution of effort for that pay period.