ecert Training Training for USC s On-line Effort Certification System

What is effort certification? Way for government and other sponsors to verify salary charges After-the-fact confirmation of effort Demonstrates that salaries charged to sponsored projects or cost sharing reasonably reflect effort performed Required by USC policy and the federal government

Inaccurate certification may result in: financial penalties, expense disallowances, damage to USC s reputation, and damage to your own reputation Late effort reports may result in a spending freeze on the accounts.

ecert Objectives Facilitate compliance with OMB Circular A-21 by certifying to percentage of effort, not just dollars paid Ensure timely certification Ability to monitor certification via reports, reminders, follow-up Reduce paperwork and streamline the process

Differences from Paper System All electronic storage, automatic email reminders, centrally accessible Schedule maximum of 4 times per year vs. 12 times on monthly schedule Certification is by employee not by account Now based on % of effort worked in period instead of $ paid in period

Who will use ecert? Faculty will certify for themselves and their Research Assistants Exempt staff will certify for themselves Non-exempt staff certified through OTiS Preparer assists certifiers Reviewer assigns Preparer(s), has access to summary reports for school, department, or unit activity

When will they certify? Quarter Schedule 12 month faculty and exempt staff For example April June quarter will be certified in July Semester Schedule 9 month faculty and Research Assistants Average effort over the period is certified 30 day deadline from when period opens

ecert Workflow Timeline Certification period opens for Preparer Preparers enter %s and comments Certification period opens for Certifiers Certifiers certify effort in ecert Emails to preparers to review certifications If necessary, payroll expense transfers processed to match payroll with effort

What needs to be certified? Institutional Base Salary (IBS) paid from grants, contracts, or cost sharing IBS is defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement (December 2003) as: The annual compensation paid by an organization for an employee s appointment, whether that individual s time is spent on research, teaching, patient care, or other activities.

IBS Basic Principles IBS is the total guaranteed USC salary set in advance by the Provost IBS includes: Core salary (formerly called base salary ) Private Practice or clinical core salary (KSOM) HRA effort (KSOM) Supplemental Salary Administrative stipends Clinical and other supplements

IBS Basic Principles (cont.) IBS does not include: Teaching overloads Housing subsidies Outside consulting income Bonuses Clinical incentives or bonuses (KSOM) Direct pay from LAC+USC Medical Center, Children s Hospital Medical Group, or Doheney Eye Institute (KSOM) *for a full list refer to guidance

How is IBS used? IBS is used for proposing, budgeting, and charging effort on grants and contracts For example, if a PI proposes to spend 10% of his or her effort on the project, 10% of his or her IBS should be budgeted and charged [except if there is cost-sharing or the PI is paid over the NIH salary cap]

IBS Example 12 month faculty PI Trojan makes $120,000 a year IBS for each quarter = $30,000 Paid $1,000 per month from NIH grant Paid $3,000 for quarter from NIH grant % of effort per payroll for quarter = 10% ($3,000 divided by $30,000)

How much effort do I certify? Effort is NOT calculated based on a 40 hour week, it is based on 100% of USC effort Faculty and exempt staff certify to 100% RAs are certified up to their appointment level (25%, 33%, 50%) Average effort over the period is certified

Salary over the NIH Cap PI paid over the cap performing 10% effort may charge up to 10% of the NIH cap Example: PI with $250,000 salary performs 10% effort on an NIH grant They can charge $19,970 to the NIH grant (assuming the 2010 cap of $199,700) Salary over the NIH salary cap must be charged to an unrestricted account ($25,000 less $19,970)

Or log in with my.usc.edu single sign on SCera link

My Alerts and Different SCera Applications Alerts will appear here ecert application tab ttrojan

Setup Preparer Assignment Tab Trojan, Tommy 1 st Select Certifier from dropdown 2nd Enter Preparer s 7-digit employee ID and hit Add button

1 st Step: Preparer Enters Effort PI Trojan Select Period Select Profile CP is default pay type then hit Go

Preparer Labor Distribution and Certification Screen PI Trojan USC Account Project Project Object Certification Period Project Name No. Start End Date Code Object Description April May June Total Locomotion NSF 53-xxxx-1234 8/1/2003 7/31/2004 11200 Faculty Base 5,000.00 5,000.00 5,000.00 15,000.00 Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1231 9/1/2003 8/31/2004 11200 Faculty Base 2,500.00 2,500.00 2,500.00 7,500.00 Department Account 12-xxxx-9876 11200 Faculty Base 2,500.00 2,500.00 2,500.00 7,500.00 Totals 10,000.00 10,000.00 10,000.00 30,000.00

Certification Portion of Screen Locomotion NSF Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1234 53-xxxx-1231 50 25 50 25 Cardinal Star - % committed to on PAR Gold Star - % of Current Pay during period Next

Certification with %s and comments entered Locomotion NSF 53-xxxx-1234 50 50 Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1231 25 25 0 When finished press Next button Next

Preparer Confirmation Screen Locomotion NSF Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1234 53-xxxx-1231 50 25 50 25 Edit or Done Buttons You have completed the certification entry. Please inform the certifier(s) noted below to certify: Trojan, Tommy Edit Done

More detail on calculating %s %s should include: Any transactions that are for work done in that period regardless of when they hit the account Any pending transactions for work done in that period %s should not include: Transactions that hit the account in that period but were for work done in a prior period For those over the NIH cap, the cap is used to calculate effort %s

3 rd Step - Certifier - My Profile Screen Tommy Trojan 1234567890 Chemistry The College McCarthy Quad ttrojan@usc. $120,000 12 month Quarterly IBS is populated from FSMS for faculty and BDS for exempt staff

Certifier Confirms Effort Labor Distribution and Certification Screen PI Trojan(prepared) USC Account Project Project Object Certification Period Project Name No. Start End Date Code Object Description April May June Total Locomotion NSF 53-xxxx-1234 8/1/2003 7/31/2004 11200 Faculty Base 5,000.00 5,000.00 5,000.00 15,000.00 Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1231 9/1/2003 8/31/2004 11200 Faculty Base 2,500.00 2,500.00 2,500.00 7,500.00 Department Account 12-xxxx-9876 11200 Faculty Base 2,500.00 2,500.00 2,500.00 7,500.00 Totals 10,000.00 10,000.00 10,000.00 30,000.00

Certification with %s and comments entered Locomotion NSF 53-xxxx-1234 50 50 Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1231 25 25 0 When finished press Next button to submit Next

Certifier Confirmation Screen Locomotion NSF Mars Exploration 53-xxxx-1234 53-xxxx-1231 50 25 50 25 Confirmation Statement Edit or Accept Buttons Edit

Certification is Complete Exit or Return Help Tab Count of RAs left to certify for Return to complete additional certifications or print a copy To logout please close your entire browser or clear cookies

PI Certifies for Research Assistant RA Jones Locomotion NSF 53-xxxx-1234 Pick RA under Select Profile 50% Locomotion NSF 53-xxxx-1234

Delegating Responsibility to Certify for RAs RA Jones 1234567 53-xxxx-1234 Locomotion NSF Tommy Trojan Enter USC ID of new certifier and press submit new name will appear

Next Steps Certifications will appear on Certification Summary report for review by Preparer and Reviewer Payroll does not have to match effort at time of certification Effort changes require a payroll expense transfer so payroll matches effort performed

Email Schedule Certifiers 1 st Email Period Open 30 days to certify Reminder when 15 and 7 days left Preparers 1 st Email 7 days before period opens 2 nd Email - Period Open 30 days 15 day and 7 day reminders Reviewers Reminder with 7 days left

ecert Reports Found under Reports tab Completed Reports appear on My Scera tab Incomplete Certification Report Report of certifiers who haven t certified Certification Summary Report Summary of certifiers activity Base Salary Variance Report Compares payroll IBS vs. BDS, FSMS IBS

Report Tab Report tab Select certification period Can Select Certifier or Preparer Optional qualifiers to view specific data

More info on Effort Reporting Report tab Select certification period Can Select Certifier or Preparer http://fbs.usc.edu/depts/ofa Optional qualifiers to view specific data

Thank you!! Any questions? For ecert contact the Office of Financial Analysis at 213-821-1937 or email: ecert@usc.edu More info: http://fbs.usc.edu/depts/ofa For assistance with other SCera applications: scera@usc.edu For password assistance contact ITS at: 323-442-1968 for HSC accounts 213-740-5555 for UPC or other accounts