NIH covers costs for critical data management and sharing (DMS) activities, including de-identification, dataset documentation, preparing data for repository deposit, and repository fees. NIH acknowledges that these costs may be challenging to anticipate and itemize, and will likely allow some revisions for awarded grants.
Unless a project is planning large-scale data availability as a central purpose, it may be best to start with known costs that clearly apply to data management and sharing, balanced by a flexible amount for unanticipated costs. Initially, more time may be needed for this area of budget planning.
This section of the guide focuses on where to list costs and categories of allowable costs, including those specific to JHU research support. For more details, see NIH's "Budgeting for Data Management and Sharing" guidance.
Note that costs must be incurred and applied during the grant's performance period. Services continuing after a particular grant's funding must be either prepaid from that grant, or covered by other funds.
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine's Office of Research Administration (ORA) and Johns Hopkins University Research Administration (JHURA) also provide JHU Specific Budget Guidance, linked at the JHURA Data Management and Sharing page.
Reasonable, allowable costs associated with DMS plans should be requested in the budget and budget justification sections of the application. Total costs are aggregated on a single "Data Management and Sharing Costs” budget line in section F, itemized in the "Budget Justification" section L.
Costs that can be directly charged to the award include costs for:
Example 1: If a DMS plan proposes preserving and sharing scientific data for 10 years in an established repository with a deposition fee, the cost for the entire 10-year period must be paid prior to the end of the period of performance.
Example 2: If the DMS plan proposes deposition to multiple repositories, costs associated with each proposed repository may be included.
Note that activities related to routine data management during research may not belong in section F. (See NIH’s R&R Budget Form Section F: 8-17.)
Budget requests for data management and sharing must NOT include:
Note that both "Data Management Expenses" and "Activities" are listed and detailed in the Budget Justification section, itemized by the categories "Personnel" and "Other Expenses."
For more details see NIH's "Budgeting for Data Management and Sharing" guidance.
Budget requests should be included in one of the following ways:
Quoted from NIH Grants and Funding's "How to Apply - Application Guide."
Special Instructions for Applications Submitted with a Data Management and Sharing Plan:
If a data management and sharing plan is required in the proposed application [see instructions for the "Other Plan(s)" attachment on the PHS 398 Research Plan Form and the PHS 398 Career Development Award Supplemental Form, as applicable], include a brief justification of the proposed activities that will incur costs.
The data management and sharing justification must be clearly labeled as "Data Management and Sharing Justification" in the budget justification attachment.
Provide a brief summary of the type and amount of scientific data and the name of the established repository(ies) where they will be preserved and shared. Indicate general cost categories such as curating data and developing supporting documentation, local data management activities, preserving and sharing data through established repositories, etc., including an amount for each category and a brief explanation. Specify in the justification if no costs will be incurred for data management and sharing. The length of the justification should be no more than half a page.
For more information, see the following NIH guidance:
The following are DMS cost estimates from JHU's Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Data Management (BEAD) Core. The BEAD Core provides research support services, including writing data management plans.
Note that these costs are provided as suggestions only and should be commensurate with the activities of the individual DMS plan. Costs may be replaced with BEAD Core subscription hours either in-full or in-part for faculty in subscribing departments.
JHU offers a variety of research support services whose fees could be included in the budgets of NIH grants. Note that these fees may not be appropriate as allowable costs for the "Data Management & Sharing" budget line.
These costs should often be listed as "associated with the routine conduct of research, including costs associated with collecting or gaining access to the research data" or as infrastructure costs (e.g., facilities and administrative costs).
In some cases, service providers may not itemize charges for DMS support services such as de-identification, instead bundling them with other types of services in a single fee. In such cases, these bundled costs should be listed elsewhere, such as under research conduct support.