NIAID Sets Interim Paylines, Financial Management Plan for FY 2025

October 1^st is New Year’s Day on NIAID’s fiscal year calendar. Maybe you didn’t set any New Year’s resolutions, but we established our interim paylines and financial management plan for fiscal year (FY) 2025. 

Before we get to the numbers, below, there are two contextual points you should know. 

First is that our budget outlook at the outset of FY 2025 is clearer than it was at this time last year. We begin this fiscal year operating under a continuing resolution that funds the Institute at its FY 2024 level through December 20, 2024. This time last year, given an uncertain budget outlook, we incorporated percentage reductions to grant awards for the first time in more than a decade. We will do so again this year, but at a lesser rate. Another marked improvement, as compared to this time last year, is that we’ve already set interim paylines for every relevant award type.  

Second is that we are increasing our commitment to our extramural research training portfolio, which includes notable changes to our paylines for training (T), fellowship (F), and career development (K) awards. Those changes are reflected in the table below and explained in greater detail in this issue’s article Taking a New Approach to Our Research Training Portfolio. 

Interim Paylines 

Remember, NIAID Paylines are funding cutoff points for investigator-initiated grant applications based on score during peer review. Early in the fiscal year, we set interim paylines at a conservative level as an administrative step that allows us to make awards for top-scoring grants while we wait for that year’s appropriation. For a full explanation, refer to NIAID Paylines and Budget Information Changes Throughout the Year and Paylines Are a Conservative Funding Cutoff Point. 

Here are our interim paylines to begin FY 2025: 

Note that we are, for the first time, using percentile rank in the paylines for fellowship applications (e.g., F30, F31, F32). This kind of ranking permits comparisons across scientific review groups that may have different scoring behaviors.  

Another difference from prior years is that we set paylines by activity code for most research training and career development grant types (rather than establishing a single payline for all K awards). Finally, NIAID stopped accepting Short-Term NRSA Training Award (T35) applications after the May 7, 2024 receipt date, and no longer has a T35 payline.

Financial Management Plan 

NIAID will fund competing and noncompeting awards at 97 percent of the approved or committed funding level, respectively. There is a long list of exceptions for which the percentage reduction will not apply: 

• Fellowship (F) awards 
• Training (T) awards 
• Career development (K) awards 
• Small business (SBIR/STTR) awards 
• Research transition (R00) awards  
• Research conference grant (R13) awards 
• Method to Extend Research in Time (R37) awards 
• Awards funded with non-direct appropriations (e.g., supplemental appropriations) 
• Awards funded with appropriations specifically directed by Congress 

For comparison’s sake, we began FY 2024 by funding competing and noncompeting awards at 90 percent of approved or committed funding levels.  

Our renewal budget cap for R01 awards remains in effect; still at 20 percent over the direct costs of the last noncompeting award, not including equipment or alterations and renovations costs. For a competing R01 renewal, NIAID will fund at 97 percent of approved funding level after applying the renewal budget cap. 

Upward adjustments to awarded levels will be considered after FY 2025 appropriations are enacted. 

Find complete details on our Financial Management Plan page.