Expenditure Guidelines for TRIF Water Sustainability Program (WSP) Funding

WSP funds may NOT be used to support business/administrative positions.

TRIF dollars may not be spent simply to cover activities that are already part of our daily business--we must be able to point to discrete, new activities funded by TRIF.

TRIF funds should not be used to pay salary and ERE costs of individuals whose work was previously paid for by appropriated funds. More specifically, we can't use TRIF funds to replace funds lost to budget cuts. Prior audit findings demonstrate that ABOR intends for TRIF money to be put toward new activities, not to the functions they view as already in place. Thus, the administrative/business functions of the initiative are subsidized by the university.

Partial funding of faculty salaries or supplemental compensation (as allowed by UA policy), using TRIF dollars, may be allowable if such expenditures relate to new TRIF activities. Keep in mind that ABOR is expecting us to use TRIF dollars to bring in new people, or bring together new teams of people who would not otherwise be working together, to work on specific NEW projects. TRIF monies must NOT be used to pay an existing faculty member to do something close to what they'd already be doing in the absence of a TRIF project.

Individuals who were previously paid from externally-funded research grants and contracts may be paid from TRIF funds if they undertake new activities covered by the approved TRIF business plan. Make sure you document the TRIF work people are doing, through their job description or some other mechanism.

We report our budgets and expenditures to ABOR in the following broad categories: (a) Personal services (including ERE); (b) Operations (including travel and capital equipment); (c) Student support (scholarships and fellowships); and (d) Capital projects (construction / debt service / major renovation & remodeling exceeding $100,000 ).

Student support expenditures are not allowed except through the initiative's student fellowship program.

Annual Budgets for the WSP initiative are approved, in advance, by ABOR, and we have limited opportunities to go back for budget modifications. Be aware that we may not exceed our approved budgets in personal services, student support, or capital projects, without going back to ABOR for permission to do so.

Using TRIF funds for capital projects requires VP Research Office approval, because ABOR has imposed a ceiling on such expenditures at the institutional level. Any anticipated expenditures of this nature must be proposed ahead of time to allow for discussion among programmatic and financial leadership, and for submission of relevant information to ABOR.for approval (via the business plan).

Carryover of funds from one fiscal year to the next is not permitted.

The budget for the WSP initiative is based on a projection of state sales tax revenue. We are subject to mid-year budget reductions when sales tax revenues fall short of projections.

TRIF funds are Public Funds. The determination of the allowability of expenditures on TRIF funds should be guided by the following questions: (a) Are the expenditures related to the initiative? (b) Are the expenditures supported by the business plan? and (c) Would the expenditures stand up to public scrutiny? The University encourages us to use the guidelines for expenditure of state funds as a general rule for TRIF funds, but certain types of expenditures not allowable on state funds (for example, food for conferences or workshops, employee relocation, student support expenses) can be allowed where they are clearly supported by the business plan, and are clearly supporting the goals and objectives of the initiative.

Budgeting and accounting for the initiative as a whole are handled by business staff in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) Business Office (Forbes 320 & 322). ALL budget loads, budget transfers, and new account requests must be approved by that office. All personnel paper work including, but not limited to PCF's, PAF's, RBC's, hiring forms and supplemental compensation paperwork, must be submitted to that office for review and approval.