October 2025 Newsletter | CAHNR Business Office

October 2025 Newsletter

Fiscal Updates:

Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity) 
- FY25 Accounts  
  - will remain open through 10/31/25 for expenses incurred by 9/30/25
  - After October 31^st, no additional transactions will be allowed on these accounts – transactions may need to be moved to an unrestricted account 
  - Please monitor your continuation accounts for timely cost transfer submission 
    - Please contact the BO if you need any assistance  
  - On November 1^st the BO will begin the Federal FY25 close out process

- FY26 Accounts  
  - New Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2025 (FFY26) 
    - FFY26 Accounts have been requested with SPS
    - Please stay tuned for new FFY26 accounts from the B.O. once we have the information

- Your department Smith-Lever budget was identified in your FY26 Dept. Budget Hearing Letter from the Dean  
  - *Reminder: Every expense must be categorized in 1 or more of the 5 areas strategic areas by the utilization of sub-accounts (only exception is Regular Payroll) 
    - Sub-Accounts 
      - Climate (CLIM) 
      - Food (FOOD) 
      - Health (HLTH) 
      - Landscapes (LAND) 
      - Misc. (MISC)

OVPR/SPS Update: 

Changes to distribution of Indirect Costs (IDCs):
- Effective Sept. 11, 2025, PIs began receiving 5% of recovered indirect costs (IDCs) from all sponsored activities in real time, credited to their PI IDC account.
- IDC returns are based on the Distribution of Credit (DOC) listed in InfoEd at proposal submission; each PI must have an active PI IDC account (set up by Research Finance if needed).
- IDC returns will now be distributed nightly (instead of annually), so timely updates to DOC records are essential to avoid reconciliation issues.

No-cost Extension Request (NCE): 
- Effective Aug 1^st, all new NCE request will be submitted and processed in JIRA.
- The submission process does not change. To submit a request, continue using the existing Post-Award Forms website and select the “No-Cost Extension Request Form.”  Submissions will now route through Jira automatically.

Sub-award PO Revisions
- Ensure to add additional lines in the revision to increase funding
  - Object codes:
    - 6603- Subagreements Less Or Equal To $25K
    - 6604- Subagreements Greater Than $25K
    - 6607- Subagreements Less Or Equal To $50K
    - For subawards issued after 7/1/25 and made under awards issued after 10/1/24
    - 6608- Subagreements Greater Than $50K
    - For subawards issued after 7/1/25 and made under awards issued after 10/1/24

HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates

I-9 Processing Reminder
- To remain compliant with federal regulations, all newly hired employees must have their I-9 form completed and submitted to Payroll within three business days of their start date.
- If you encounter any issues meeting this deadline, please contact the Business Office immediately for assistance.

Special Payrolls Reminder
- To help avoid delays in special payroll hire requests, please be sure to include the following in your submissions:
- Detailed Justification: Clearly explain how the position supports the mission of your department, college, or the University.
- Long-Term Appointments: If the employee has been on special payroll for more than 18 months, provide a rationale for their continued employment and include an anticipated end date (e.g., “This appointment supports a grant scheduled to end on [date]”).
- Timing: Submit requests at least 6 to 8 weeks in advance to allow time for any follow-up questions from Human Resources.

Continuation Offer Letter Signatory Process
- Effective October 1: Signature Process Update
  - Applies to titles covered under Articles 24 & 26
  - Dean’s Signature is no longer required if:
    - The offer is made after October 1
    - No financial support is requested from the Dean’s Office
  - In these cases, the offer may be signed at the departmental level and forwarded for processing
    - Reminder: All offer letters (OLs) should still be routed to Amanda Masztal for content review prior to employee signature.

Spring 2026 Payroll Deadlines
- Graduate Students – Spring
  - New Grad Dates: 1/7/2026-5/22/2026
  - Continuing Grad Dates: 1/8/2026-5/22/2026
  - Offer letters due to students by Saturday, October 31st
  - Smart-HR Deadlines
    - Business Office Deadline: Friday, November 21st
    - Payroll Deadline: Friday, December 5^th(tentative)
    - Graduate Assistant Stipend information can be found HERE
- Adjunct Faculty – Spring
  - Semester Dates: 1/20/2026-5/12/2026
  - PageUp Entry Deadline: Friday, November 7^th
  - Page Up Approval By: Sunday, November 30^th(tentative)
  - Smart-HR Deadlines
    - Business Office Deadline: Monday, December 1st
    - University Deadline: Friday, December 19^th(tentative)
    - Adjunct Stipend information can be found HERE

Graduate School Timely Topics
- Register for sessions HERE
- Upcoming sessions:
  - Supporting Graduate Students Through Inclusive Mentorship
    - Thursday, October 9^th at 1:00pm
  - Supporting International Graduate Students at UConn
    - Thursday, October 23^rd at 1:00pm
  - Graduate Admissions: Reading and Reviewing Applications in the Slate Reader
    - Thursday, October 30^th at 1:00pm

Payroll HireRight I-9 Training
- Register for sessions HERE
- Upcoming sessions:
  - Tuesday, October 7^th at 2:00pm
  - Thursday, November 13^th at 10:00am

HR PageUp Training
- TBD – be sure to check the PageUp home page for future opportunities HERE

CAHNR Internal Professional Development Opportunities:

The CAHNR’s Dean’s Office is committed to providing opportunities for faculty, staff, and graduate students to expand their professional knowledge and skills. Throughout the year, the Dean’s Office will organize workshops and offer training, that will help the CAHNR community grow. Workshops and training will focus on fostering employee understanding and abilities in both hard and soft skills, such as in communication, HR/Payroll competency, and creativity.

As Professional Development Opportunities are finalized, they will be listed on our website here. Please be sure to check regularly for new learning opportunities and other about upcoming events.

Fall 2025 CAHNR Admin Meeting   
- Thursday October 2^nd, Young Building 209, Virtual Option Available

CAHNR Staff Advisory Council (SAC)
- Visit the CAHNR Staff SharePoint Sitefor opportunities with professional development, networking, and even hobby and wellness events.

Fun “Dad” Jokes:

Why are ghouls so bad at communicating? 
They ghost you.
Why don’t mummies take time off? 
They’re afraid to unwind.
What’s a vampire’s favorite fruit? 
Neck-tarines.