Thank you all for your insight.  I realize that "base plus grants" is
really the wrong way to phrase the issue:  I should say
"salary+grants=base."  Either way, the NIH Grants Policy Statement seems to
disallow any such arrangement:  the GPS defines "Institutional Base Salary," as
"The annual compensation paid by an applicants/grantee organization for an
employee's appointment..."  So if I were auditing, I would probably look at
a faculty member's PAST salary to judge the base.  If the institution
actually provided bridge funding to maintain the salary base during years
when the faculty member recovered no salary from grants, there would be no
problem.  But if the salary actually paid to the faculty member varied by
as much as 20% from one year to the next, that would be a problem.  I still
wonder how medical schools manage this.  Does anyone have a "model" faculty
appointment letter they are willing to share with me?

Erik

>Date:    Tue, 20 Aug 2002 11:55:21 -0400
>From:    "Kaars, Charles" <xxxxxx@RESEARCH.BUFFALO.EDU>
>Subject: Re: "Base-plus-grants" salary arrangements
>
>Erik:
>
>         The key here is that Dr. A's medical school establishes her base
>salary for 100% effort as $112,500.  It then appoints Dr. A at 80% effort
>and pays her 80% of her full time base salary (i.e. $90k).  She may draw the
>20% of her base salary which is not paid by her institution from her grants.
>With the proviso, of course, that she may only draw salary from a grant in
>direct proportion to her effort on that grant.
>
>         Hope this helps.
>
>Charlie
>
>Charles Kaars
>Assistant Vice President
>Sponsored Programs Administration
>Suite 211 The UB Commons
>Amherst, NY 14228
>716-645-2977 ext. 101 (voice)
>716-645-3730 (Fax)

---
Erik A. Thelen, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Office of Research and Sponsored Programs
Marquette University; P.O. Box  1881; Milwaukee, WI 53201-1881

Email xxxxxx@marquette.edu     Phone 414-288-5327     Fax 414-288-1578
URL   http://www.marquette.edu/orsp

======================================================================
 Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including
 subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available
 via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists")
======================================================================