Build the budget file set from the solicitation
The controlled set starts with the active funding notice, sponsor forms, institutional rates, approved salary bases, subaward inputs and the budget justification. Drafts that do not support the current submission should be excluded or clearly separated.
A university team receives three collaborator spreadsheets and an old internal model. The grant writer creates a current-cycle register, assigns an owner to each cost category and excludes prior-year rates until the research office confirms them.
Run the control in five steps
- 01Record the solicitation, deadline and submission system.
- 02List every workbook, rate source, quote and justification.
- 03Assign an owner and status to each budget component.
- 04Separate prior-cycle examples from current working files.
- 05Approve a single current model before detailed review.
Preserve the decision trail
Keep sponsor, opportunity, version, owner, source date, applicable period, approval status, exclusions and final submission mapping.
Stop and investigate when
- Two workbooks both claim to be final.
- A rate has no effective date or institutional source.
- Sensitive salary detail appears in an unnecessary copy.
State what this does not prove
Does not replace provider permissions, guaranteed backup, password recovery or enterprise identity management. Sponsor rules, institutional approval, submission systems, provider permissions and recovery remain separate.
Grant budget security questions
Should every supporting email enter the archive?
No. Preserve only material approval or source evidence under institutional policy.
Does the archive determine allowable cost?
No. Sponsor rules and institutional review determine allowability.
Sources for this decision
Links support specific controls and do not imply endorsement.