Salary-Offset Policy
(REV 2/08)
When a Principal Investigator uses grant funds to cover his/her salary and fringe benefits during the academic year, the department will return 50% of that amount to the Principal Investigator. The maximum amount a Principal Investigator can earn is 20% of his/her academic year salary and fringe benefits. For example, to receive the maximum 20% allocation, sponsored funds would need to cover 40% of a Principal Investigators academic year salary. Of the 40%, 20% would go to the Principal Investigators offset account and 20% would go to the Department. A non-sponsored account will be established, and the respective funds will be transferred into this account, which the Principal Investigator can use at his/her own discretion. The transfer of these funds will take place after the last pay period of the academic year. This is usually around the third week in June.
For example, a faculty member with a 9-month base salary of $50,000 uses grants funds during the academic year to pay 10% of his/her salary. Assuming a fringe rate of 25%, the salary offset would be calculated as follows:
50,000*.10=5,000 in salary
5,000*.25=1,250 in fringe
Total amount used to calculate offset is 5,000+1,250=6,250
6,250*.50=3,125
The faculty member would receive $3,125, which would be transferred to his/her salary-offset account.
Note: When a faculty member's 9-month salary exceeds $139,950 (NIH salary cap for 9-month appointments), the salary amount used in the offset calculation is $139,950. So, if the 9-month base salary is $150,000, and grant funds are used to cover 10% of the salary, the calculation would be done using the NIH cap of 139,950*.10, NOT 150,000*.10. In addition, the salary-offset policy does not apply during Sabbatical and Single Semester leaves.
Questions pertaining to this policy can be directed to Barbara Becker Wesley and Guillermo De Paz