Highlights
Volume 1, September 2003

Proactive Reviews

Review of Conference Awards Prompts Investigations

A proactive review of NSF awards for conferences, workshops, and symposia uncovered numerous instances of non-compliance with a variety of grant conditions. Our interest in these awards was prompted by the case of an engineering professor who failed to account properly for $124,955 in conference registration fees, spent NSF funds improperly, and violated conflict-of-interest rules in the planning and implementation of an NSF-sponsored conference (March 2002 Semiannual Report, p. 50). The award in question was governed by special grant conditions (FL26) which require that conference fees be used to defray reasonable meeting expenses and to offset allowable costs otherwise chargeable to the grant.

We used a stratified random sample of 71 awards for review, drawn from one year's awards for conferences, workshops and symposia. Specific information about the awards was requested from the grantee institutions. Preliminary results indicate that activities associated with these awards generated close to $1 million in registration and other fees, some of which grantees first discovered in the course of responding to our request for information. We also found numerous instances where grant conditions were violated, particularly in the area of funds designated specifically for participant support. Investigations have been opened, where appropriate, to pursue recoveries and to consider allegations of fraud. One such investigation has already resulted in the return of over $20,000 in unspent program income to NSF. During the next semiannual period we expect to report on the further outcomes of this project.

• OIG Reviews Travel Card Issues (see Semiannual for Details)

• OIG Prepares for ECIE Investigative Quality
  Assessment Review Peer Review (see Semiannual for Details)

 Jul 08, '04