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October 1996
Scientific opportunities in the area of drug abuse are tremendous, and
growing exponentially. This rate of growth has put significant pressure
on the budget of NIDA to continue to successfully meet its broad mandated
mission. The successful operation of any research grant program requires
that consideration be given to a number of competing goals: how to balance
the needs of an expanding existing project for increased funding, while
also meeting the needs of new projects for sufficient funds; how to appropriately support the existing pool of scientists, while still allowing for opportunities to expand and to broaden the pool of scientific talent; and how to appropriately support the existing pool of research, while still allowing for opportunities to broaden the types of research questions being addressed and the methodologies being used.
In this context, on the advice of the National Advisory Council on Drug
Abuse, the NIDA has established cost management guidelines for the funding
of the competitive renewal of prior grant awards.
Definition of Grant Terms:
- New Grant; Type 1 -- This is the initial support for a project that
has not previously received any funding support. It is awarded competitively
after review by an IRG and the NIDA Council.
- Competitive Renewal; Renewal; Competitive Continuation; Type 2 --
This grant award provides funding to continue a grant that is otherwise
scheduled to terminate. It requires the submission by the applicant of a
full grant application, and must compete for funding through the IRG and
Council processes. (For example, a renewal grant may involve an application
to provide support for years 5-9 of a previously funded 4-year grant.)
- Continuation Grant; Type 5 -- This is the next incremental year of
the current grant project period (eg, years 2-4 of a 4 year grant).
Cost Management Guidelines:
- The level of funding for the first year of a competitive renewal grant
should increase by no more than 10% compared with the level of funding for
the last budget period of the prior continuation grant.
- (Thus, for example, if the total funding level for year 4 of a grant
was $200,000, then the total funding level for year 5 should be no more
than $220,000, where year 5 is the first year of the renewal grant.)
- Rare exceptions to this policy will be considered on a grant-by-grant
basis. It is recognized that for a specific grant there may well be a need
for funding increases greater than 10%, based on the type of research to
be supported, changes at the university level, or other factors. It is expected
that both the IRG and program staff will be involved in this consideration.
- Council will be informed of any exceptions that have been made by
the Institute.
- These guidelines will apply to all research grants, including for
example research project grants (R01s), research program projects (P01s),
research cooperative projects (U01s), research center grants, and merit
awards (R37s). Only SBIR awards, Career Awards (K grants), the renewal of
First awards (R29s) as R01s, and research training fellowship and institutional
grant awards are not covered by these guidelines.
Implementation of these guidelines will require the joint efforts of applicants,
IRG reviewers, and program staff. It is recognized that implementation may
result in some changes to related practices. In this context, it is important
to bear in mind that, while competing renewals (Type 2s) may involve an
expansion of an existing project, they are, by definition, intended to support
the continuation of the particular project(s) that had been funded under
the Type 5 grant -- research which substantially changes the research that
had been funded under the previous Type 5 should, by definition, be submitted
as a separate new, Type 1, grant.
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