Office of the Vice President for Research Technology and Research Initiative Fund (TRIF) General
Terms and Conditions Revised
January 31, 2021
The goal of TRIF is to stimulate Arizona’s knowledge-based economy by supporting innovation, entrepreneurship, research and development, and workforce development, as well as the infrastructure needed to advance in these areas.
- Introduction
- Applicability
- Responsibilities of Recipients Contact Information
Introduction
The Technology and Research Initiative Fund (TRIF) is a special investment in Arizona State Universities made possible by the passage of Proposition 301 in the year 2000. Proposition 301 resulted in a 0.6% sales tax increase (starting in FY2002). The portion that goes to the Arizona Board of Regents (“the Board”) for distribution to the state’s three universities is allocated as follows:
Arizona State University – 40% Northern Arizona University – 20% The University of Arizona – 40%
Adherence to the following terms and conditions is critical to NAU’s ability to retain its current level of TRIF funding.
Applicability
These terms and conditions apply to projects and programs funded by TRIF through the Office of the Vice President for Research. Where terms and conditions of the award letter conflict with these terms and conditions, Award Letter terms and conditions shall apply.
Responsibilities of Recipients
The Board expects each state university to spend TRIF funds in the fiscal year in which they are appropriated and to report outcomes that demonstrate an economic benefit to the State of Arizona. It is therefore imperative that all recipients of TRIF funds at NAU use these funds in a timely way to support activities and initiatives that are primarily designed to generate outcomes that are reportable to the Regents at the end of each fiscal year.
Budget Administration
The Principal Investigator or Project Director is responsible for managing TRIF funds, for keeping expenditures within the limits of the approved budget categories and for adherence to these terms and conditions. All expenditures made with TRIF funds must conform to University accounting policies and procedures that generally apply to state funds and must be allocable to the TRIF project or purpose for which the funds were awarded.
Receiving your TRIF Award/Allocation
All recipients of TRIF funds at NAU must submit a proposal consisting of a budget request and a narrative, which at a minimum, provides the following information:
HOW the TRIF funds will be spent (i.e., budget by expenditure category, calendar quarter and including budget justification);
- WHAT the TRIF funds will support (i.e., budget by activity and accompanying narrative
- Projected outcomes
- Narrative explaining how the TRIF-funded activities will generate the projected outcomes
During the proposal review and award negotiation process, the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) will evaluate these requests to ensure that activities are aligned with NAU and ABOR TRIF objectives, that costs requested are reasonable, justified and that they are consistent with the kinds of costs that are appropriate to be funded by the TRIF program. The OVPR will also consider whether or not the funds requested would be sufficient to fund the activities described and may adjust the allocation accordingly.
In order to ensure that TRIF funds are spent in a timely way, costs must be directly charged to the TRIF budget when they are incurred (i.e., costs should not be first charged to another account and then transferred to the TRIF account at some other point during the project period). The OVPR monitors all TRIF accounts to ensure that funds are being spent as indicated in the funded proposal.
Budget Modifications. At any time during the project period a TRIF project director may determine that savings have been achieved that will result in funds not being spent as originally planned. In such cases, project directors should redirect such funds to cover costs that can be justified as supporting the overall goals of the project. The redirection of TRIF funds will require OVPR prior approval (i.e., prior to incurring the expense) under the following circumstances:
- Anytime the redirection of funds is the result of a change in the scope of activities/purpose thatwas described in the proposal
- To move funds to or from any Personnel expense category*
- To move funds to or from any Capital expense category*
- To move funds to International Travel*
*Such costs must first be allowable under the applicable funding program. For example, if personnelcosts are not supported under a specific internal grant program, funds may not be moved to anyPersonnel expense under any circumstances.
Budget modifications requiring prior OVPR approval will be accepted up to sixty (60) days prior to the end of the project period.
Unspent funds. Every attempt should be made to spend TRIF funds during the awarded project period. No-cost extensions are only considered under extenuating circumstances. PIs who determine that funds will be unspent at the end of the project period should contact the Associate Vice President for Research to discuss before requesting a no-cost extension.
Any request to retain unspent funds must provide the following information:
- The anticipated amount of the unspent funds and why they will not be spent
- Why the funds could not be redirected to support the project during the project period
- What the funds will be used for if the request is approved and how the use of the funds will support the goals of the project
- Approximate date when the funds will be spent
Such requests will be considered by the OVPR up to sixty (60) days prior to the end of the project period.
The consideration of these “no-cost extensions” will be dependent upon a number of factors, including whether or not funding is needed for other activities.
Funds that remain unspent at the end of the project period and that have not been approved for retention by the project will revert to the Vice President for Research.
Intellectual Property. NAU and ABOR policies regarding intellectual policy apply to all NAU employees and non-employee students, as well as those who create intellectual property with the significant use of university resources. The Principal Investigator/Project Director of a TRIF-funded project is responsible for ensuring that all individuals (including students) associated with the project comply with these Policies.
If any intellectual property is developed under any TRIF-funded project, it must be promptly disclosed in accordance with these policies. If necessary, contact NAU Innovations (928-523-4620) for assistance with disclosing, and to learn about protecting, the IP.
Reporting Obligations
Publications arising from work funded in full or in part by TRIF should acknowledge the funding as follows:
“This work was funded under the State of Arizona Technology and Research Initiative Fund (TRIF), administered by the Arizona Board of Regents.”
Deliverables TRIF-funded activities place a heavy emphasis on outcomes. “Deliverables” are outcomes that are reportable to ABOR. The university is required to report to ABOR annually on the number and types of deliverables that have been generated across all TRIF-funded activities and investments. To this end, Principal Investigators/Project Directors will receive a request from the OVPR (toward the end of the project period) for an accounting of deliverables that were generated through activities supported by TRIF funds during the current fiscal year. The project award letter will indicate when this report is due.
Deliverables are reportable to ABOR for five years after the initial investment (grant or allocation). Therefore, Principal Investigators/Project Directors should expect to receive this request each year for five years after receiving the original request. Each year, only deliverables that have not yet been reported should be included. Specific instructions for reporting deliverables will be included with the request.
Recipients of TRIF funds who fail to submit complete deliverable reports during the first or any of the five subsequent years may be declared ineligible for further support under the TRIF program and all other programs administered by the Office of the Vice President for Research.
Final Report
A final narrative report describing the activities supported by TRIF funding is due on or before June 1 of each fiscal year (for projects on a fiscal year cycle) or on or before the end date of the project period, whichever applies. This report should not exceed 5 pages and should describe the extent to which project tasks and goals (as stated in the approved proposal) were accomplished.
Recipients of TRIF funds who fail to submit complete final reports may be ineligible to receive further support under TRIF and any other programs administered by the Office of the Vice President for Research.
Contact Information
Principal Investigators/Project Directors of TRIF-funded projects are encouraged to keep in touch with the OVPR during the course of the project/fiscal year. Any anticipated changes in the project timeline and/or scope of work should be discussed with the OVPR in a timely manner.
To initiate budget modifications that require advance approval or request retention of unspent funds, or for any questions relating to these terms and conditions, please e-mail your request to OVPR@nau.edu.
To discuss anticipated changes in the scope of the funded project or program, please contact the OVPR at OVPR@nau.edu or 928-523-8549.