Written by Justo Torres.
The Employee Activity Reporting System, known as TEARS, is NC State’s official effort reporting system. It is supported through a collaboration between the Office of Contracts and Grants and the Office of Information Technology.
To comply with the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance), employees engaged in sponsored activities must periodically review and certify their effort. This includes:
- Costs for labor (salaries/wages, benefits) that are charged directly to sponsored projects
- Cost shared against a non-federal funding source or funded from a federal appropriation
Personnel working on sponsored projects will certify their effort annually. In the event a 9-month faculty member works on their projects over the summer, a separate certification will be required for the summer period.
At NC State, we certify effort via TEARS using the Plan-Confirmation method:
- Personnel assignments reflect anticipated work distribution (percentage of effort spent on each sponsored project).
- Assignments (and reallocation of funds) are updated in a timely manner to reflect changes.
- Cost sharing is entered at the beginning of an award and updated as needed.
- Effort Reports are certified at the end of the fiscal year.
It is critical to note that effort reports through TEARS are the official, auditable statements of who is working on what sponsored projects. The statements must be complete and accurate.
Additional TEARS and effort reporting resources can be accessed in the Effort Reporting/TEARS page.