Definition of Terms Used in Decision Matrix
- Individuals engaged in research include everyone who is responsible for the design, conduct, or reporting of research. This may include research staff and students in addition to principal investigators, co-investigators, or project directors.
- Research (in this context) means any systematic investigation, study, or experiment designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge.
- A systematic investigation, study, or experiment is one that involves a prospective plan - which incorporates quantitative or qualitative data collection and data analysis - to answer a question.
- Research includes basic research, applied research, and product development.
Sponsored projects are any project or program that receives external (extramural) funding through grants from public entities and in some cases from corporations and foundations. Generally, these are projects and programs where the terms of the grant legally obligate the university to carry out a project or program involving a defined set of activities and/or deliverables within a defined time period.
Philanthropic gifts that provide funds and restrict how they can be used without obligating the university to carry out a specific project or program are excluded from this definition of sponsored projects.
Individuals “involved in procurement activities” include employees authorized to make purchases of $ 15,000 or more. They also include employees who make decisions or recommendations about purchases of $ 15,000 or more regarding:
- Contract terms and conditions.
- Who is awarded a contract.
- Evaluation of a bid or proposal.
Compensation is defined as: Any form of benefit including but not limited to salary, retainers, honoraria, intellectual property rights or royalties, or promised, deferred, or contingent interest.
Compensation includes sponsored travel or reimbursement, including travel that is reimbursed or sponsored by a Federal, state, or local government agency, an institution of higher education, an academic teaching hospital, a medical center, or a research institute that is affiliated with an institution of higher education. These benefits do not require disclosure under Decision Matrix Categories 4 and 5, but they never-the-less require prior approval under Decision Matrix Category 3.
Covered family members include:
- a spouse;
- a dependent child or stepchild or other dependent, for purposes of determining federal income tax liability during the period covered by the disclosure statement;
- Any other person financially dependent on the individual;
- Any other person with whom the individual has joint Financial Interests, such that an objective third party could reasonably conclude that the individual’s decisions or other exercise of Institutional Responsibilities could be influenced by their effect on the other person’s Financial Interest;
- Any person may meet the above definition and be identified as a family member without regard to whether a legal or biological family relationship exists.
No. Investment vehicles, such as mutual funds or retirement accounts, are not substantial interests in a business entity as long as the individual does not directly control the investment decisions made in those vehicles.
This refers to service that is unrelated to your position at UTRGV or your UTRGV responsibilities. Examples include boards of the following nature – a municipality; local religious congregation; neighborhood association; public, private or parochial school; political organization; social advocacy organization; youth sports or recreation league; affinity group such as the local orchid society or model train collectors club; and other similar outside boards
A foreign talent program is an effort organized, managed, or funded by a foreign government, or a foreign government instrumentality or entity, to recruit science and technology professionals or students (regardless of citizenship or national origin, or whether having a full-time or part-time position).
- A covered individual shall submit or update a financial interest disclosure statement:
- not later than the 30th day of initial employment, covering the 12 months preceding the date of disclosure;
- annually not later than March 1; and
- not later than the 30th day after acquiring a new financial interest that requires disclosure under Section 2.02, such as receiving payments, an equity interest, intellectual property rights, or royalties that would require disclosure on an annual financial interest disclosure statement.
- A covered individual who is planning to participate in a PHS-funded research project shall submit a financial interest disclosure statement not later than the time of application for PHS funded research, except that an individual who is new to the institution and who is planning to participate in an on-going PHS-funded research project shall submit the statement not later than the 30th day of initial employment.
- Faculty and exempt staff (those not eligible for overtime pay) without any outside activities or interests to report must still log into the Portal during the Annual Reporting Period, which is January, February, and March each year- to report “No Activity” for the prior year.