Before a proposal may be forwarded to a sponsor, it must receive administrative approval. The appropriate academic and research administration personnel will review the proposal for its compliance with various hospital, ACHRI, state, and federal guidelines. In order to expedite the administrative review process, the Grant Proposal Submission Form must be completed and signed to ensure that the proposal is properly routed, documented, reviewed, and approved. The Grant Proposal Submission Form is an internal (ACHRI) document and does not need to be sent to the sponsor.

The following must be submitted and approved, prior to submission to the sponsor:

• One copy of the draft proposal,
• A FINAL BUDGET,
• Budget Justification, and
• The completed Grant Proposal Submission Form

It is a good idea to plan ahead and give yourself plenty of time (we recommend 10 days before the deadline) in order to obtain the required signatures. It is the responsibility of the principal investigator to provide the specified number of copies of the proposal to the sponsor in a timely fashion.

Many sponsors require or allow at least a partial electronic submission. As with any proposal, please contact the ACHRI Pre-Award office when preparing a proposal. Online submission systems also require an Authorized Organizational Representative to review and approve proposals in progress. While E-proposals must conform to the instructions provided by the specific sponsor, Departmental and ACHRI approval of the Grant Proposal Submission Form (paper copy) is still required prior to the proposals being submitted to all sponsors.

All proposals must be submitted through ACHRI for administrative approval. Your proposal will be reviewed for its compliance with various hospital, ACHRI, state, and federal guidelines. Your Pre-Award officer,Lee Smith, is also responsible for the accounting of the ACHRI facilities and administration cost return accounts, and for providing faculty with information about the facilities and administration costs of sponsored projects.

ACHRI must receive your proposal and the Grant Proposal Submission Form at least 24 hours prior to your submission date to the agency. Plan ahead and give yourself plenty of time in order to obtain the required signatures. Be aware of what the application deadline is and whether it means postmarked or received by. Also note the time of day and time zone specified.

If a pre-proposal is required by the sponsor it must be submitted through ACHRI with a Grant Proposal Submission form just like a regular proposal. It is important to have a record of the submitted proposal available when sponsors call ACHRI.

Most common sponsors using electronic proposal submission:

National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Electronic submission of proposals to NIH through NIH eRA Commons (http://commons.era.nih.gov/) is still in pilot-testing phase. "e-SNAP" allows submission of progress reports for continuations. PIs can review the current status of their grant applications, review detailed information associated with their grants, and apply for no-cost extensions through "Status."

Grants.gov
Grants.gov (www.grants.gov) is a single, comprehensive website that will soon contain information on all federal grant programs. It allows organizations to electronically find and apply for competitive grant opportunities from all federal grant-making agencies.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
In FY 2004 selected programs in USDA's CSREES (Competitive State Research, Education, and Extension Service) have submitted grants electronically through the new federally developed Grants.gov (www.grants.gov). It is anticipated that all USDA proposals will be submitted via the Grants.gov system in the future.