Resetting Grant Start Dates

Questions and Answers Table of Contents

What does "resetting a grant start date" mean?

Resetting a grant's start date means NIAID shortens the duration of the first year of your grant. The date for the beginning of year two then becomes your new anniversary date for future events, such as the due date for your progress report and time to resubmit your renewal application.

Why does NIAID reset grant start dates?

Rarely, NIAID resets start dates to make sure we can fund all our grants by the end of the fiscal year. Here's the reason:

We don't always have an approved budget at the beginning of the fiscal year, so we reduce the number of grants funded early in the year to make sure we don't overspend. Learn more about this at Paylines and Budget Pages Change Throughout the Year.

Consequently, we fund most of our grants in the second half of the fiscal year -- particularly towards the end, when NIAID usually raises paylines and funds selective pay and deferred grants.

As a result, we get a lot of grants with anniversary dates closer to the end of the fiscal year than the beginning.

This is usually not a problem. However, when too many grants accumulate towards the end of the year, it's more difficult to fund all the grants in our portfolio by the federally mandated September 30 deadline.

It's not just a matter of possibly running out of time. We may have to work through a budget contingency or a problem you have in meeting administrative requirements.

By resetting some grant start dates, we make sure we have enough time to make all our awards before the deadline.

Is shortening the grant year NIH-wide or only for NIAID?

Resetting grant start dates is an NIAID policy. To find out how other institutes manage their grants, contact a grants management specialist there.

When NIAID resets grant start dates, which grants are affected?

It can vary, but we reset start dates for competing R01s, MERIT awards, program projects, and cooperative agreement applications approved for four or five years.

What is the budget impact of resetting grant start dates?

If your grant is affected, we reduce your first year of funding in some budget categories. You will be subject to a three-month or six-month rollback, depending on the start date of your award.

Three-Month Rollback

• Three-month reduction in first year for personnel costs only.
• Awards with start dates of April 1 through July 1.
• Applies to unsolicited and PA/PAR R01, MERIT award, program project, and cooperative agreement applications.
• Anniversary date set back three months.

Six-Month Rollback

• Six-month reduction in first year affecting all recurring cost budget categories except travel, equipment, and alterations and renovations.
  • Equipment and A&R will be fully funded at the scientific review group-recommended level.
  • Travel will be reduced. Discuss this with your grants management specialist.
• Awards with start dates of mid-July or later.
• Applies to unsolicited and PA/PAR R01, MERIT award, program project, and cooperative agreement applications and those responding to an RFA.
• Anniversary date set back six months.

Can you give me an example of how this will affect due dates for progress reports and for reapplying?

Track your due dates from your grant's reset date, not the original start date.

For example, take a four-year grant whose anniversary date is reset to March 1. Your progress report will be due on January 15 if it's eSNAP or January 2 if it's not eSNAP. (Progress reports are due 45 days before a grant's anniversary date for eSNAP applications, 60 days for non-eSNAP.)

Likewise, before your grant project period ends on February 28, you should submit your renewal application for the September 1 deadline or earlier, so you can get a September Council review.

See the Resetting Grant Anniversary Dates table for a more detailed example.

How does NIAID announce this policy?

For years we reset grant start dates, we announce the policy in NIAID Funding News and contact you or your business office if your grant is affected.

Will this policy affect a two-year grant?

No. NIAID resets start dates for grants awarded for four- or five-year grants only.

What if my question wasn't answered here, or I'd like to suggest a question?

Email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. We answer questions by email and post them here. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.