The Institute for Energy Efficiency coordinates contracts and grants related to energy efficiency topics. Our specialized staff allows us to manage complex and multidisciplinary proposals, and awards with above average reporting requirements.  If you have not submitted a proposal through the Institute for Energy Efficiency before and you are interested in submitting something now, please contact us.

 

Faculty wishing to submit a proposal for funding through IEE should fill out the IEE Proposal Information Form and submit it to amandamiller@iee.ucsb.edu.

The UCSB Office of Research is the designated campus entity in charge of submitting proposals on behalf of the University.  IEE staff work with Principal Investigators and the Office of Research to develop proposal packets for submission to solicitations, Request for Proposals, and calls.  The campus review process for grant proposals takes up to two weeks, and the time to prepare a proposal packet in accordance with the solicitation instructions can be lengthy, so Principal Investigators are encouraged to reach out to IEE C&G staff upon deciding to submit a proposal (at least six weeks prior to the deadline).  

For more information on the UCSB proposal preparation process visit the proposal preparation webpage on the UCSB Office of Research Website.

Federal and State grants and agreements bring with them a variety of restrictions and reporting requirements. Upon receipt of an award, IEE C&G staff will highlight reporting requirements and unique restrictions for PIs. If an expense will be incurred on a Contract or Grant, certain restrictions and approvals may be needed. The type and method for approval vary greatly between agency and funding type. These may include complex campus, University, State, Federal, or agency specific restrictions that must be fully vetted and evaluated. It is crucial that PIs contact the C&G staff with questions before making large purchases or complicated travel plans.  

For more information regarding the use of federal funds in procurement, visit the federal funds webpage on the UCSB Business & Financial Services website.

All PIs who manage their contracts or grants are set up with access to our online financial system, GUS. Please login to view your award balances, expenditures, payroll summaries, outstanding liens, etc. PIs should use their UCSB email addresses and an assigned password for initial login. Once logged in, PIs will be prompted to reset the password. C&G staff can assist with resetting passwords and usernames.

In addition to grants, research may be funded by service contracts or gifts. The UC Santa Barbary Policy and Procedure governs which instrument is appropriate.

C&G staff will work with PIs to determine which award instrument is applicable to the circumstances of the proposed research work.  Please note, if it is determined that a service contract is the correct instrument, it can take in excess of eight weeks for UCSB processing.  Regardless of the award instrument, PIs, researchers, and students should never commence work until an agreement is in place and a project code is assigned.

PI to provide (6 weeks before proposal is due):

  1. Solicitation for proposal and a proposed title
  2. Statement of Work - information on what will be done for the budgeted amount
  3. Personnel information for the researchers, students, PI effort, supplies, travel, and equipment needed in order to carry out the proposed work
  4. Quotes for specific supply and equipment items needed

C&G staff to provide:

  1. Develop draft budget for PI to review
  2. Review proposal components against solicitation specifications, if applicable
  3. Route packet to Office of Research (or other applicable office) for review, and work with PI to respond to any feedback provided

The following websites and listservs are available to faculty and researchers who are searching for funding opportunities. Please contact the C&G staff if you plan to apply for any funding opportunities found on these sites or elsewhere.

Our colleagues at the UCSB Office of Research invite you to visit their website's Research Development webpage. Here you will find links to funding opportunity databases, ways to locate funding sources, limited-submission funding information, and sponsor agencies. Specifically, the Office of Research provides a bi-monthly newsletter called Funding Resources that presents new funding opportunities, details new services that the Office of Research provides and highlights new developments in research funding.

The federal government requires an effort report when an individual is compensated by or has agreed to contribute time to a federally sponsored project. All faculty who serve as investigators on sponsored agreements are personally responsible to certify the amount of effort that they and their employees spent on sponsored activities.

The University fulfills the effort reporting requirement through the use of the Effort Reporting System (ERS). ERS is a web-based tool that calculates the distribution of effort for all employees paid from federal and federal flow-through funds, captures certification electronically, and provides a mechanism for processing corrections and re-certifying reports.

For the latest information, step-by-step guide, FAQs, link to ERS and more, visit the Extramural Funds Effort Reporting webpage.