Hatch & Multistate Projects

All faculty members with a research appointment must have an active Hatch or Multistate Hatch project documented with USDA NIFA. Summaries of these projects are posted on the USDA NRS website and are easily accessible to Congress, their staff, and the public, with yearly results also available. Our college manages the University of Georgia’s Hatch profile to justify the use of Agricultural Experiment Station funds for faculty salaries. Please review the information below for guidance on policy, proposal development, submission, renewal, FAQs, processes, and reporting.

HATCH & MULTISTATE CAPACITY FUNDING

Hatch Capacity Funding is provided under the Hatch Act of 1887, which supports agricultural research at State Agricultural Experiment Stations (SAES) associated with 1862 Land-Grant Institutions. These funds help advance research in various agricultural areas, including soil and water conservation, plant and animal health, food processing and safety, and sustainable agriculture.
Multistate Capacity Funding supports collaborative research projects that address regional or national issues. This funding encourages cooperative efforts between multiple states' SAES, universities, and federal agencies to solve complex agricultural problems.
Funding amounts are determined based on statutory formulas that consider factors like rural and farm population and agricultural needs in the state. Each state receives a base amount, with additional funds allocated based on these factors.

In recent years, the University of Georgia has received substantial funding for Hatch Capacity Grants. For example, in FY2022, UGA received approximately $5.8 million in Hatch Act funds, supporting a wide range of agricultural research initiatives across the state.
CAES allocates Hatch capacity funds by covering a portion of research faculty salaries based on their research appointment percentages. Specifically, half of the research appointment percentage is funded by Hatch monies, provided the salary is covered by hard money (state funds, not solely grant money).

For example, a 30% research appointment results in Hatch funding covering 15% of the salary.

These funds are used exclusively for faculty salaries and not for other research operations. To comply with regulations, all faculty receiving Hatch Capacity Funds must be documented in the NIFA NRS system as participants in an active Hatch or Multistate project.

HATCH PROJECT DEVELOPMENT & SUBMISSION

A Hatch Project should fundamentally serve as a "plan of work" for Georgia Agricultural Experiment Station (GAES) faculty and should encompass all research activities of that faculty member.

The funding sources (i.e. federal Hatch/Multistate funds and the required state matching dollars) require these faculty to have plans of work in the form of a Hatch Project recorded in NIFA's NRS system.

Hatch projects are initiated by faculty members, reviewed by department heads and peers, approved by the Associate Dean of Research, and filed with the CAES Accountability & Reporting department for submission into NRS for USDA NIFA approval. Upon USDA NIFA approval, a Hatch project becomes official.
All faculty, CAES and FACS, with the Georgia Agricultural Experiment Station (GAES) with a research Allocation of Effort (AOE) funded by state or federal dollars must be listed in NRS with an active Hatch project.
- If your research allocation is 25% or less, your minimum requirement is to be a co-investigator on a research project.
- If your research allocation is more than 25% you must be a Project Director (also known as a Project Investigator or PI) or a participant on a multistate research project documenting your work on the project in NRS.
- New faculty members with a research AOE must satisfy this requirement within 6 months of their appointment date.
NEW PROJECT

Faculty:
1. Project Development: Collaborate with Department Head: Faculty develop a Hatch research project in collaboration with their Department Head to ensure alignment with departmental and institutional priorities.
2. Obtain Necessary Approvals:
  - IRB Approval: If human subjects are involved, obtain Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval
  - IACUC Approval: If vertebrate animals are used, obtain Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) approval.
3. Submit Project Outline: Faculty submit the project outline using the Hatch/Multistate Project Outline Submission form.
  - Please review these examples of what a good Non-Technical Summary & Methodology form (PDF) looks like. Note that they are thoroughly detailed and answer each question asked in the form.
Department Heads:
1. Peer Review: Select two peers from within the department and on from another department to review the project.
2. Approval: After the peer review, the Department Head works with the faculty member to make any necessary updates. Once ready, the Department Head approves the project and submits any updates through a Smartsheet request.
Associate Dean:
1. Initial Review: AD reviews the project outline.
2. Request for Updates: If necessary, the AD requests additional updates from the faculty member.
3. Final Approval: AD approves the project.
Accountability & Reporting Staff:
1. NIFA NRS Submission: Following AD approval, the CAES Accountability & Reporting Staff (A&R) submit the project to NIFA’s NRS System.
2. NIFA Review: If NIFA requests changes, A&R will coordinate with the faculty member and Department Head to address them.
3. NIFA Approval: A&R will notify faculty when NIFA approves a project, confirming the official active and end dates.
FACULTY REPORTING
- Annual Reporting: Faculty are required to submit annual progress reports for each active year of the project.
- Final Report: A final report must be submitted during the last year of the project.
PROJECT RENEWAL

Approved projects can be active for up to five years. As the project nears its end date, faculty may choose to renew it. The renewal process is similar to the initial submission but does not require a second peer review. Alternatively, faculty may submit a new project by following the steps above.
Your Hatch Project (or Multistate Participation Documentation) should meet the following criteria:
- Proven Research Record: Faculty must have a proven record of research in the area of interest prior to submission of the project.
- Relevant Expertise: Tailor your project to provide valuable information in an area where the Agricultural Experiment Stations (AES) require specialized knowledge.
- Preliminary Approvals: Get preliminary approval from the appropriate Department Head and the Associate Dean for Research for your proposed project.
- Peer Review: The written project must be subject to peer reviews within the Department or College as per the AES guidelines.
The CAES A&R Hatch Project Submission process ensures compliance with preliminary approvals and peer review standards. Your ongoing research likely aligns with Hatch Project criteria, eliminating the need for starting from scratch.

Consider Hatch Project initiation and reporting as opportunities to document and highlight the significant research endeavors you're already engaged in as a CAES faculty member.
To complete the submission form for initiating or renewing your Hatch project in the NIFA Reporting System (NRS), you will need the following information:
- Project Title
- Date of Initiation
- Estimated Date of Completion (5-Year Maximum)
- Co-Project Investigator Information (If Applicable)
- Non-Technical Summary & Methodology (Word)
- Research Effort Categories of the Project
- Classification and Percentages (If Not Multistate)
- IRB Approval or Exemption Date (If Human Subjects Are Involved)
- IACUC Approval Date (If Vertebrate Animals Are Used)

MULTISTATE RESEARCH PROJECTS

A Multistate Research Projects (formerly called "Regional Projects") involves collaborative research addressing issues across states or regions involving committees of researchers from different Land Grant Universities. These projects are approved by regional agricultural experiment station directors and the USDA. They may also include National Research Projects involving multiple regions like NRSP-1 and NRSP-8.

UGA faculty members can petition to join active Multistate Research Projects or initiate their own.

Participating in a Multistate research project does not guarantee additional new funding for the Multistate research. Usually, the Regional Research Funds (RRF) allocated to the relevant department for Multistate projects replace regular Hatch or State funds, keeping the total funding for the department's research program unchanged. The Multistate research is essentially a replacement for other research work or is meant to complement existing projects.
NIMSS Reporting

You will be reporting progress to the regional research project team/project head. This information gets compiled by the project team and submitted in an annual report. The annual reports and other information about the project are housed in NIMSS.

NRS Reporting

In addition to NIMSS reporting, Multistate work must be formally documented in NRS using the same project initiation and annual reporting steps as Hatch.

When creating a project initiation to document Multistate work in NRS, here are some things to remember:
- The project type is Multistate Hatch
- You will need to reference the Multistate number found in NMISS
- You should adjust the approved Multistate project outline in NIMSS to include your research activities and, more specifically, your contributions in Georgia to support the Multistate Project you're involved in.
Only one voting representative is allowed per institution per project (although several faculty members may all serve as members of a project).

A total amount of up to $1500 will be available for project travel for the project's official representative only. The account information use for this is below. A budget transfer will need to be processed to move the funds from CAES Asst Dean of Research dept ID: 17510001 to your dept ID. Please be prepared to cover any additional travel expenses with a departmental or other related account.

Fund 11500
Program
12100
Dept 17510001
Class 61MSH
Budget Code 700000
FIND A MULTISTATE PROJECT
- Go to the National Information Management Support System (NIMSS)
- Use the “Search NIMSS” box to search by keyword or project number, or the Sort by Region function to find a list of projects by region.
- Select View by the project you wish to view.
BECOME AN OFFICIAL PARTICIPANT IN A MULTISTATE PROJECT
- Search NIMSS to find a Multistate Project that your work can support
- Get approval from your Department Head to join the project
- Petition the Project's Administrative Advisor for approval to participate
- Once approved, complete the Appendix E form for the Office of the Associate Dean for Research, which will formally add you as a project participant in NIMSS.
- Follow the Hatch Project process in order to begin documentation of your Multistate Research work in NIMSS.
Yes, UGA Faculty may initiate a new Multistate Research Project if their desired research and objectives are not already represented by a current project.

Here are the steps:
- Review SAAESD's Considering a New Multistate Project page.
- Consult with your Department Head and the Associate Dean for Research's office at agresch@uga.edu
- Once established, follow the Hatch Project Development & Submission instructions to document your Georgia based work on the project in NRS for Hatch.

Fund	11500
Program	12100
Dept	17510001
Class	61MSH
Budget Code	700000

HATCH & MULTISTATE PROJECT REPORTING

Each year the Project Director must submit an annual report (progress or final) on any active project documented in NIFA's NRS system.

In early December, CAES Accountability & Reporting will send information and reminders to submit your annual reports, which are due by January 15th to allow time for A&R staff to review and enter reports into NRS.

The report period covers October 1 through September 30 of the previous year.

If your project ended on or before September 30th of the reporting period, the project report will be a Final Report/Result. In the project is still active at time of reporting, the report is an annual progress report.

Submit Annual Progress or Final Reports using thie NIFA Annual Progress Report form.
As mentioned in the Multistate section, Multistate projects require reporting progress to regional research project teams/project heads. Additionally, Multistate activities must be formally recorded in NRS as Multistate Hatch projects.

The NRS Multistate Hatch project reporting process and requirements are the same as those for Hatch projects, which includes annual or final reports due by December 31st for all active projects.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT of USDA SUPPORT BY NIFA

Proper acknowledgement of your public funding in published articles, manuscripts, dissertations, posters, presentations, inventions, patents, and press releases in compliance with 2 CFR 415.2 is critical for the success of the agency’s programs.

Required Acknowledgement of USDA Support