RDMC Basic Services Fee Guidance

The RDMC receives support for its administrative services from central sources through indirect cost recovery. It also offers two types of fee-based services: basic and add-on that may be direct charged to sponsored programs.

RDMC Basic Services

The basic services fee covers the cost of essential data management services required to comply with both sponsor and UNC data management and sharing mandates. This basic services model benefits individual projects by providing crucial data management support for a fee, which will be included in proposal budgets. Refer to the RDMC basic services fee guidance for a comprehensive list of services included in the basic services model.

RDMC Add-On Services

For projects with intensive or challenging data management and sharing needs, RDMC offers add-on services . Departments may submit a request for add-on services for RDMC to assist with budgeting or providing more information.

Activity and Sponsor Types

• Applicable for all sponsors.
• Projects classified as Organized Research (OR), Clinical Trial (CT), or Phase 4 Clinical Trial (C4), excluding training grants and fellowships.
  • Refer to the OSP F&A Guidance webpage for more details on F&A Activity Types.

Exceptions

Projects with annual total (direct + indirect) budget of less than $50,000 receive a 100% subsidy

• These projects do not include the RDMC fee in proposal budgets as central sources will subsidize the fee.

Projects with annual total (direct + indirect) budget between $50,000 – $74,999 receive a 50% subsidy

• For example, a two-year award of 65,000 total should budget 50% of annualized RDMC basic services fee, or $450 per year x 2 = $900).

Proposals

Submitted on or after November 1, 2024:

• Required on proposal budgets for the following RAMSeS Chess Code selections (excluding training grants and fellowships):
  • Chess Code 01 – Research and Development
  • Chess Code 05 – Clinical Trial
• Exception applies on Research Performance Progress Reports (RPPRs) or non-competitive renewals when funding for the continuation year is based on an existing award, and the current PS Project ID for that award does not incur the RDMC basic services fee.

Submitted prior to November 1, 2024:

• At the time of award or an intent to fund, the Principal Investigator (PI) may elect to include the RDMC basic services fee by rebudgeting and incorporating the basic services fee amount into their award budgets.
• The revision and submission of budgets must be completed by the Department but will be reviewed by the Office of Sponsored Programs Specialist/Officer (SPS).
• Proposal rebudgeting is not required unless requested by the sponsor (i.e., during Just-In-Time (JIT) or Intent to Fund). If the proposal budget is being revised at JIT, it may be the School of Medicine Sponsored Programs Office (SOMSPO) reviewing the revisions.

Awards

Awards budgeted with initial RDMC fee model or without a RDMC budget:

• PI/Department may elect to include the RDMC basic services fee by submitting a budget revision (PDF) or a prior approval form with budget revision (PDF) (when sponsor prior approval is required for rebudgeting) that incorporates the fee amount into their award budgets.
• PI/Departments that choose not to utilize the RDMC basic services model will also not be allowed to revise any previous RDMC fee model budgets unless required by the sponsor.
• No action is needed for previously charged RDMC fee from the initial model.

Award modifications that increase the total award amount above subsidy limits:

• For proposals submitted after November 1, 2024 where a revised Notice of Award (NOA) identifies that the annual total (direct and indirect) budget amount has increased above the subsidy limits for the RDMC basic services fee, the PI/Department will need to rebudget to incorporate the appropriate RDMC basic services fee.

Beginning October 1, 2024, all proposals may include budgeting for the new RDMC basic services model. Effective November 1, 2024, all proposals categorized as Organized Research or a Clinical Trial submitted on or after this date must include the RDMC basic services fee.

Central Office Review

OSP and the SOMSPO are required to ensure that proposal budgets for OR, CT, and C4 applications include the RDMC basic services model. In the RAMSeS Internal Processing Form (IPF), these proposals are identified by:

• Chess Code 01 – Research and Development
• Chess Code 05 – Clinical Trials

Exceptions are in place to exclude training and fellowship awards if the submission is for an “NIH Grant”.

Waiver Process

In limited circumstances, the RDMC basic services fee may be waived with approval from:

• Appointing Department’s Chair or Center Director
• School or Division Dean
• RDMC Director
• OSP Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research (OSP AVC)

Departments complete and attach the RDMC Basic Services Waiver Request Form (PDF) to the applicable RAMSeS IPF using document type “RDMC Waiver.” These additional document types must also be uploaded in the RAMSeS IPF: Abstract, Budget (internal), Budget Justification, and Data Management and Sharing Plan (when applicable). Departments are responsible for collecting the necessary department and division signatures. The Proposal Specialist from OSP or SOMSPO will route the form to the OSP AVC who will acquire the RDMC signature and sign for final approval. Once fully approved, the waiver will be returned to the Proposal Specialist for upload to RAMSeS.

RAMSeS IPF Data Management & Sharing Screen

Effective December 1, 2023, there is a requirement in the RAMSeS IPF to collect information on projected research data to result from funded research programs. The Data Management and Sharing Screen in RAMSeS will enable RDMC to better understand data management needs. The screen only displays when Chess Code 01 and 05 are selected and exclude training and fellowship awards for an “NIH Grant”. For help with any part of filling in the requested information in the IPF while planning grants, please visit the RDMC Pre-Award webpage for guidance.

All sponsored projects that are classified under the OR, CT, C4 categories are required to include the RDMC basic services in proposal budgets according to the fee schedule below. RDMC fees charged on projects are subject to F&A recovery.

Departments should budget appropriately for the data management and sharing needs of their projects. The minimum requirement is to include the RDMC basic services fee. If additional costs are necessary to support data management and sharing, departments should continue to include those costs in their proposal budgets. PI/Departments should contact the RDMC for support developing data management and sharing plans and budgeting for those needs.

Budget Justification

The text below describing the RDMC basic services fee coverage may be used in the budget justification component of the proposal package. Refer to the RDMC webpage for updated justifications or assistance with any specific justification language.

NIH Budgeting Reminders

The National Institutes of Health budgeting for data management and sharing guide provides detailed information on the allowable and unallowable cost categories related to data management. As previously noted, it is important to appropriately budget for all data management and sharing needs, in addition to the required RDMC basic services fee when applicable. Additionally, all costs for data management and sharing must be incurred during the performance period, even costs for preservation of the data post-award.

Allowable

• Curating data
• Developing supporting documentation
• Formatting data according to accepted community standards, or for transmission to and storage at a selected repository for long-term preservation and access
• De-identifying data
• Preparing metadata to foster discoverability, interpretation, and reuse
• Local data management considerations, such as unique and specialized information infrastructure necessary to provide local management and preservation
• Preserving and sharing data through established repositories, such as data deposit fees.

Unallowable

• Infrastructure costs that are included in institutional overhead (for instance, Facilities and Administrative costs )
• Costs associated with the routine conduct of research, including costs associated with collecting or gaining access to research data
• Costs that are double charged or inconsistently charged as both direct and indirect costs

A Note on Personnel Budgeting

Although agency-specific calculators (such as the NIH National Institute of Mental Health Data Archive Tool) are available to assist with budgeting, please be aware that these tools may not capture all associated costs. One of the areas typically under-estimated is personnel time necessary to accomplish tasks related to data management and sharing.

When budgeting personnel costs, keep with the NIH Grants Policy Statement and represent personnel time as percentages of salaries and wages. Budgeting personnel time as salaries also supports reflecting the appropriate “effort” those individuals have on a project.

For further guidance, reference the updated NIH FAQs and resources regarding the NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy .

Account Codes

There are two RDMC expense account codes. One for the RDMC basic services fee required on OR or CT projects and another for RDMC add-on services. Both are subject to F&A recovery.

• 559011 – VCR Research Data Management Basic Fee
• 559012 – VCR Research Data Management Add-On (available soon)

Monthly Billing Model

Applicability

This billing model applies to all award/projects where OSP assigns budget for the RDMC basic services fee and directly invoices sponsors (i.e., ledger 5 projects and some ledger 3 clinical trials).

Process

The RDMC basic fee will be charged monthly via Customer Billing Management (CBM) to applicable projects based on the budget amount assigned. When a budget revision is processed to reduce or increase the RDMC basic services fee budget, the monthly amount charged for the fee will also be adjusted in the next monthly billing cycle.

Examples

• If the annual total budget for a project is $80,000, the RDMC basic fee budget assigned will be $450. Once the project is set-up for spending, $37.50 per month will be charged for the duration of that project period.
• If the annual total budget for that project increases to $100,000, the RDMC basic services fee budget is revised to $900 and at the next billing cycle, $75 per month will be the new monthly charge that recurs for the duration of that project period.

Annual Billing Model

Applicability

This billing model applies to all award/projects where departments directly invoice sponsors (i.e., ledger 6 billing per unit projects).

Process

On applicable projects, the amount of revenue collected during that fiscal year will be referenced to collect the appropriate annual fee amount via a fiscal year end journal.

Examples

• If the annual revenue (July 1-June 30) received for a project is $90,500, the RDMC basic services fee of $900 will be charged to the project from a fiscal year end journal.
• If the annual revenue (July 1-June 30) received for a project is $74,200, the RDMC basic services fee of $450 will be charged to the project from a fiscal year end journal.
• If the annual revenue (July 1-June 30) received for a project is $21,000, no fee will be accessed.