Business & Financial Services

System Access and Roles

Department Coordinators (Coordinators)

Department Coordinators (Coordinators) access the Payroll Certification system through R’Space Authorized Apps. Coordinators must have the "Department Coordinator – Payroll Certification" role assigned to them in EACS. Coordinators previously assigned in PIWRS have been migrated into the new system. Department SAAs should review these assignments in EACS to ensure accuracy and address any gaps.

Coordinators serve as the main point of contact for Principal Investigators (PIs) and play a critical role in supporting successful certifications.

Their responsibilities include:

• Communicating key deadlines
• Reviewing and preparing necessary documentation (e.g., cost-sharing, salary adjustments), reviewing cost notes, and adding comments to facilitate PI certification
• Sharing training resources
• Providing ongoing support and guidance throughout the certification process
   

Principal Investigators (PIs)

Principal Investigators (PIs) are automatically granted access if they are assigned to a Contract & Grant. Once the Coordinator clicks “Submit to Principal Investigator,” PIs will receive an email notification with a link to complete their certification.

PI Responsibilities as Certifiers

The Annual Payroll Certification is a good faith acknowledgment by the PI. This means:

• The Certifier reasonably believes the salary and financial information they personally know is accurate.
• For information not personally known, the Certifier may rely on the data provided—unless they have personal knowledge of inaccuracies or weaknesses.
• If issues are known and disclosed, it is still reasonable for the Certifier to rely on the data in light of that disclosure.
• Personal liability only applies if the Certifier knowingly submits false information, such as intentional fraud or deliberate misconduct.
• Certifiers are not personally liable for staff errors that are not obvious or known to them.

Before certifying, PIs should:

• Review the report to verify the list of employees, salary charges, cost sharing, and any salary adjustments. Confirm that:
  • Payroll expenses are reasonable relative to the work performed
  • Salary costs directly benefit the project
  • Expenses conform to the sponsor’s terms and conditions

Payroll Certification Periods & Deadlines

Coordinators have access to the COA Projects linked to their PIs’ UCPath Home Department to support the certification process. For each period, they should review and prepare any necessary documentation (e.g., cost-sharing, salary adjustments), review all cost notes, and add comments to help facilitate the PI certification.

Note: Due to system logic configurations, initial certification budget periods shown under the “Certification/Budget Period” may not align with the current certification periods.
 

This will resolve once the system transitions to a standard processing cycle.

Manual SCT (Salary Cost Transfer) Reminders

All manual SCTs must be entered using the Direct Project Salary Adjustment function in the tool. Please include the following in certifications:

• Posted manual SCTs for earning periods within the certification window
• Pending manual SCTs expected to post within the certification window
• Corrections to previously submitted manual SCTs
• Rejected SCTs due to overdrafts (ODs), if ODs are expected to be cleared
• Pending SCTs for expired awards, if included on the final sponsor invoice

Use the PPM Expense Detail Report

The PPM Expense Detail Report is the recommended method for validating manual SCTs because it provides:

• Transaction Source (All)
• Employee Name and ID
• Journal Reference
• Expenditure Item Date (equals the Earnings End Date)
• Transaction Number (used for drill-down verification in Project Costs)

Watch the training demo for information on how to run and filter the report, including:

• Recommended report parameters.
• How to verify SCTs using expenditure item dates and transaction numbers.
• How to use project costs for transaction drill-down.

Note for older manual SCTs: Earlier entries may lack detailed comments or employee information. Departments may need to follow up directly to confirm the intent of those entries.

Why isn't Looker Finance Recommended?

• Looker only pulls from the General Ledger (GL) and lacks the ability to show transaction-level SCT detail.
• It does not distinguish between manual and system-generated entries, making it unreliable for SCT verification.

Cost Notes 

Ensure Cost Note confirmations have been entered via "Comments" for NIH and NSF-funded projects when manual salary adjustments are made or when PI/Co-PIs are not listed as the Project Manager in PPM.

Cost Note #1: By entering this direct project salary adjustment, I confirm that the salary reported complies with NSF's general policy that limits senior project personnel to no more than two months of cumulative salary charged across all NSF projects per year. For Payroll Certification purposes, senior project personnel are defined as anyone listed as the PI or Co-Investigator on the award being certified. For additional information please visit NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) website: https://www.nsf.gov/policies/pappg/23-1/ch-2-proposal-preparation#2D2fia 

Cost Note #4: By entering this direct project salary adjustment, I confirm that the salary reported complies with NIH's salary cap requirement. For additional information please visit the NIH Salary Cap guidance on Academic Personnel's website: https://academicpersonnel.ucr.edu/compensation/ 

Training & Support

Department Coordinators

• Training: Payroll Certification - Department Coordinator 
• Support: Report any questions or concerns by submitting a ticket to Finance and Administration Support. Select Service/Business Area ‘Contracts & Grants’ at: https://ucrsupport.service-now.com/finadmin_portal. 

Principal Investigators

• Training: Payroll Certification - Principal Investigator 
• Support: Direct any questions about this process to your Department Coordinator.