Baylor PI Newsletter - July 27, 2026
Upcoming Faculty Appointment Transition and Sponsored Projects
As Baylor transitions to 9.5-month faculty appointments in academic year 2026–2027 and to 9-month academic year appointments beginning in 2027–2028, some sponsored projects may experience small differences between the salary amounts included in the proposal budget and the actual salary charges once the new appointment periods take effect. These differences are expected and, by themselves, do not require changes to a faculty member's committed effort. As with any sponsored project, however, Principal Investigators (PIs) and their Business Offices should continue to monitor expenditures and projections to ensure costs remain within the overall award budget.
These variances occur because many existing awards were proposed and funded using a 10-month faculty appointment basis, while salary will now be calculated using the faculty member's institutional base salary and current appointment period (9.5 or 9 months). This is similar to differences that occur when a proposal includes an anticipated merit increase, but the actual increase differs slightly. In both cases, modest differences between budgeted and actual salary charges are a normal part of sponsored project administration and do not affect the approved scope of work or the faculty member's committed effort.
Consistent with OVPR policy and federal requirements under 2 CFR 200, sponsored project budgets are financial planning documents and are not expected to match actual expenditures exactly. Variances between budgeted and actual costs are generally allowable, provided the costs remain reasonable, allocable, consistently applied, and appropriately documented.
Pre-Award Research Administration has been working with faculty during proposal development to account for the new appointment periods in proposals submitted under the updated model. As new awards are funded using the revised appointment periods, these differences will naturally diminish over time.
Updated Internal Proposal Deadline Policy | |||||||||||||
As a reminder, beginning August 1, 2026, OVPR is implementing an updated 30-10-5-3 Internal Proposal Deadline Policy, for all proposals submitted for external funding on or after that date. This updated framework builds on the existing 10-5-3 structure by introducing a 30-business-day initiation requirement for proposals that include subawards and by clarifying expectations at each stage of proposal preparation and submission. Key Internal Deadlines The 30-10-5-3 model includes four milestones, counted in business days prior to the sponsor deadline: | |||||||||||||
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These deadlines ensure adequate time for institutional review and submission. Proposals that miss the Day 5 or Day 3 deadlines may not be submitted, particularly during periods of high proposal volume. OVPR recommends that PIs engage with their Pre-Award URA four to six weeks in advance of the sponsor deadline whenever possible. Early planning supports a smooth review process and timely submission. To assist with planning, the table below outlines the Day 30 and Day 10 proposal initiation deadlines for selected October 2026 sponsor deadlines.
For additional details and guidance, please review the full policy and FAQs. Questions may be directed to your Pre-Award URA. | |||||||||||||
New IRB PI Eligibility Policy
A new policy establishing Principal Investigator (PI) eligibility requirements and responsibilities for individuals conducting human subjects research will become effective on September 1, 2026. It will apply to all IRB-regulated studies, including exempt, expedited, full board, and studies conducted under reliance agreements. It does not apply to projects determined to be non-human subjects research. The policy limits PI eligibility to certain faculty/staff roles and provides a process for an exception request for those otherwise ineligible. The policy’s purpose is to strengthen institutional accountability, reduce regulatory risk, ensure experienced oversight of human subjects research, and support required continuity in recordkeeping, data management, and study closeout.
The new policy is available on the OVPR policy website. Please review this policy prior to its effective date. Contact Deborah Holland, Deborah_L_Holland@baylor.edu, with any questions.
OMB Proposed Changes to 2 CFR 200, Uniform Guidance
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released proposed updates to the Uniform Guidance. OMB received nearly 500,000 comments regarding the proposed changes and their potential impact on research institutions.
OVPR is closely monitoring the OMB review process and the potential implications for sponsored research administration. At this time, the proposed updates have not been finalized, and it is not yet known which changes, if any, will be incorporated into the final guidance or how those changes may be implemented.
When final changes are issued, OVPR will carefully review the updated requirements and communicate any impacts to the Baylor research community. We will provide additional guidance and resources as more information becomes available.
The current anticipated effective date for any approved updates is October 1, 2026, to align with the start of the government’s new federal fiscal year.
OVPR-20 Policy for Budget Revisions to Sponsored Projects
The OVPR-20 Policy for Budget Revisions to Sponsored Projects has been updated to reflect recent process and regulatory changes. Updates include the removal of references to the Prior Approval Matrix to align with changes to 2 CFR Part 200, revisions to reflect Baylor's current post-award support model with Business Offices serving as the primary point of contact for Principal Investigators on budget revision requests, and formatting enhancements to improve readability and ease of navigation.
NASA Disclosure Forms
In accordance with Grant Information Circular 26-02, Research Security Training Requirements, all covered individuals named on NASA grant and cooperative agreement proposals will be required to attest that they have completed research security training prior to proposal submission beginning August 5, 2026. This attestation will be made by signing a certification included in the NASA biographical sketch and current and pending (other) support forms. To support your preparation, NASA is providing advance copies of the updated forms that will be required . The new attestation related to research security training is highlighted within these documents. Please contact your Pre-Award URA for more information.
Monitor Sponsored Project Spending Anytime with the PI Dashboard
Principal Investigators have 24/7 access to the financial status of their sponsored projects through the PI Dashboard.
The PI Dashboard provides real-time visibility into each project's financial performance, allowing PIs to monitor budget-to-actual spending at a glance. For those who need more detailed information, the dashboard also offers expenses by category, expenses by supplier, and salary distributions charged to the project.
Regularly reviewing your project spending can help you identify potential issues early, support informed decision-making, and ensure your project remains on track throughout the award lifecycle. If you have questions about the information displayed in the dashboard, your Financial Manager (FM) is available to assist.
Training Opportunity
New to Baylor or New to Grant Writing Workshop
Sept. 18th from 12:00-1:00
This workshop will share tools available at Baylor for faculty writing grants (Templates, Guides, Grant Shell, Planner). Attendees will receive a copy of Baylor’s Grant Writing Handbook, learn how to get editing help, and how to schedule one-on-one consultations.
This workshop will be hosted in BSB Room E201 and Teams.
Register here: https://baylor.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6r3Ivdg4MD4oD5Q
