Non-Federal Payment Policy

Revised 12/06 (Review the changes)

APPLICABILITY / PURPOSE

Payment terms must provide a positive cash flow for the life of the project.  If funds are not on hand when expenditures are incurred, the University must use other sources of funding to subsidize the project until payment is received.  Arizona Revised Statutes Titles 15 and 35, and Article 9, Section 7 of the Arizona State Constitution indicate that state funds must be used for allocated purposes, i.e., not to subsidize for-profit agencies that contract with the University. 
The Non-Federal Payment Policy applies to sponsored agreements where all of the following exist:

1. Agreement total costs (direct plus indirect) are $25,000 or greater.
2. The sponsor is non-federal.  Non-federal is defined as a for-profit company/industry.
   • The policy does not apply to industry sponsors issuing sub-federal awards to the University of Arizona. 
   • The policy does not apply to industry sponsors that are designated as small businesses. 

ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT TERMS

Payment terms should be established so that sufficient cash exists to cover the expenditure activity of the project throughout the life of the project. The University of Arizona requires 25% (or greater) advance payment on agreements with business and industry.  Beyond the advanced payment, the remaining schedule of payments can be adjusted depending on the length of the project, milestone/deliverable schedules, and/or the anticipated schedule of expenditures. Some acceptable examples are:

1. Advanced payment startup with subsequent payments made by invoice on a cost reimbursement basis.
2. Advanced payment at startup with subsequent fixed payments on a quarterly basis.
3. Advanced payment at startup with subsequent fixed payments based on project milestones. 

The unexpended balance will be refunded to the sponsor at the end of the project if required by the terms of the agreement.

EXAMPLES OF UNACCEPTABLE PAYMENT TERMS

1. The total amount of the project is paid upon completion.
2. Payment terms either provide only a small advance payment, or none at all.
3. The payment terms call for cost-reimbursement invoicing with no advance payment.
4. Payment terms indicate that an amount will be withheld until the end of the project.  This may be acceptable if the withheld amount is a very small portion of the total amount (less than or equal to 10% of the award total). 

NON-FEDERAL PAYMENT POLICY WAIVERS (NFPP WAIVER)

If an agreement’s payment terms do not meet the Non-Federal Payment Policy, and the sponsor will not revise them, a waiver of the policy is required.  Use the Non-Federal Payment Policy Waiver Request Form to justify waiver of the policy from the Office of the Vice President for Research.  In the justification, it is not sufficient to simply state that the department/college is aware of its responsibilities should the sponsor default.  The justification must indicate why it is in the University’s best interest to accept the project with payment terms that do not provide a positive cash flow. 

NFPP Waiver Form PDF WORD

BUDGET AUTHORITY

With acceptable payment terms or an approved NFPP Waiver, budget will be loaded to the University FRS account in the amount authorized by the terms of the agreement. If small cash deficits accrue due to fluctuations in the spending pattern during the project period, the budget will not be reduced nor will the account be frozen*.  The account will be frozen if a budget deficit occurs.** 

*Cash deficit:                 cash received is less than expenditures incurred
**Budget deficit:             budget loaded is less than expenditures incurred

Unresolved cash or budget deficits:
Normally, the entire authorized project budget will be loaded to the account at the beginning of the project, regardless of the method of payment. Examples of exceptions include clinical trials, projects with a fixed-rate/fee payment basis, and high-risk- sponsors, in which case the budget is loaded ascash is received.

The Vice President for Research will periodically receive an accounts receivable report, sorted by sponsor, to identify sponsor non-payment patterns. The Vice President forResearch has the right to restrict spending to cash-on-hand if the sponsor is overdue in making payment to the University or if other circumstances justify a more conservative approach. At discretion of the Vice President forResearch, indirect cost revenue associated with a non-federal sponsored account may be withheld from the college allocation until the applicable payment is received from the sponsor.

If the principal investigator or business manager is aware of any information about a sponsor that is relevant to determining the risk of default of payment, for a proposed project or for a current project, it is the principal investigator's/business manager’s responsibility to report the information to the Vice President forResearch and Sponsored Projects Services.

EXCEPTIONS
Exceptions to this policy may be approved by the Vice President for Research.

Mailing Address:
PO Box 3308
Tucson, AZ 85722-3308

Phone: (520) 626-6000
Proposal Fax: (520) 626-4130
Post Award Fax: (520) 626-4137
Email: sponsor@u.arizona.edu

The University of Arizona
All contents copyright © 2008. Arizona Board of Regents.