7.4.5 Time and Effort Reporting

Policy

The federal Office of Management and Budget’s Uniform Guidance 2 CFR 200 requires the documentation of personal services charged to sponsored agreements. The Uniform Guidance requires after-the-fact reporting of the percentage of time each employee spent on all grants and contracts compared to total time (effort).

This reporting requires the signature of the employee, Principal Investigator, or responsible official(s) to confirm that the percentages allocated to each activity represent a reasonable estimate of the work performed. This process is commonly known as “Time and Effort Reporting.”

The purpose of the report is to confirm that the charge made to the payroll system “reasonably reflects” each employee's activity. Significant deviations from payroll charges require an adjustment to the payroll. The report is prepared by the Comptroller's Office and sent to each department three times per year (fall, spring and summer semesters).