Prudent financial management of sponsored accounts includes timely and accurate reporting and account/award close out. These functions are tested as part of the annual OMB A-133 audit as well as by other sponsoring agencies when they make periodic visits to Harvard.

On a quarterly basis, the department administrator should run the segments report from CREW to identify accounts ending within 120 days. The administrator should ensure that all project costs are appropriately charged to the account. As the project nears termination it is important to review all costs and remove those which are unallowable or inappropriate to this account.

Upon project termination, OSP Financial Analyst will review the account and work with the local unit administrator to determine the final figure to be reported to the sponsor on the financial report or final invoice. As part of the close out process, the local administrator needs to do the following (if necessary):

• Notify internal service centers and payroll of an account change for future costs such as printing, telephone, postage and salary/fringe.
• Promptly transfer all erroneous charges, clearing deficits and post-term charges. (For additional information on keeping your accounts reconciled on a regular basis see account reconciliation.)

In most cases for federal awards, final financial reports and final invoices must be submitted no later than 90 days from the award end date. State and private agency deadlines may vary. To meet sponsor deadlines there needs to be clear and timely communication between local unit administrators and OSP Financial Analysts. OSP will submit the final financial report/invoice to the sponsor upon agreement with the local unit's on the final figure to be reported.

University Policy and Procedures for Sponsored Financial Reporting

Generally there are up to sixty days to process payments for costs that were incurred prior to the end of the project/award, but not posted to the account before the termination date.

Any charges posted after the termination date will need to be explained and justified for allowability. (For more information, see the policy segments under unreconciled accounts.)

Examples of common post-term charges include:

• payroll expenses
• telephone costs
• copy services
• and service center charges

UIS will work with departments to identify disabled accounts. At the department's discretion, telephone charges to disabled accounts can be posted to a default account specified by the department. This interim measure can be taken until the departmental contact has requested a new account code to bill the telephone service.

Please note: it is the department's responsibility to notify UIS of the new account to be used.

To initiate a telecom change and create new account codes, notify UIS by or by phone at 5-5457.

For those in the Longwood area who wish to change a telecom billing code, please cc: for all sponsored billing changes.

For additional information regarding UIS Telecom services
For additional information regarding HMS Telecom services

Potential unallowable/unallocable cost areas:

• Restricted purchases without proper authorization from the sponsor and/or the University.
• Costs that would normally be indirect but are charged as direct costs without proper justification or demonstration of unlike circumstances. Two examples of this are office supplies and clerical/administrative salaries. For more information on allowable costs see Cost Analysis and Compliance.
• Charges found to be out of compliance with the reasonability and allocability provisions of OMB Circular A-21.
• Post-term charges as previously described.

These expenditures are prime candidates for disallowance, and the local unit will be consulted to substantiate them. If these charges cannot be justified, then the local unit may be required to remove them.