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NIH Salary Cap

			Related Resources Salary Limitation on Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Contracts (January 6, 2010) NIH Salary Cap Summary Also on Government Affairs Research Funding

The "Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010" [P.L. 111-117] retains the cap on salaries on extramural grants funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration at the Executive Level I rate ($199,700 in 2010).

The president's FY 2011 budget, released February 1, 2010, proposes to reduce the salary cap to Executive Level II ($179, 700 in 2010).

AAMC Action

The AAMC supports the retention of the salary cap at Executive Level I.

Background

The FY 1990 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act instituted a prohibition on the use of NIH or ADAMHA funds "to pay the salary of an individual, through a grant or other extramural mechanism, at a rate in excess of $120,000 per year." Similar language has been included in each subsequent Labor-HHS-Education appropriation with the following modifications. The limit was increased in the FY 1992 appropriation to $125,000. The FY 1998 Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act [P.L. 105-277] linked the maximum salary to the Executive Level III salary rate. The final conference agreement on the FY 2000 Labor-HHS bill raised the NIH salary cap from Executive Level III to Executive Level II. The conference report (H. Rpt. 106-1033) accompanying the Consolidated Omnibus Appropriations Act for FY 2001 [P.L. 106-554] increased the NIH salary cap to Executive Level I.

Ironically, the NIH intramural community faced a similar situation two decades ago. One of the solutions Congress developed to permit the NIH to recruit and retain high-quality scientific investigators was the Senior Biomedical Research Service (SBRS), which was established in November 1990 [P.L. 101-509; 42 U.S.C. 237]. Under the SBRS, the NIH can support up to 500 "individuals outstanding in the field of biomedical research or clinical research evaluation." [42 U.S.C. 237(b)] The salary for members of the service cannot exceed Executive Level I

Administration Activity

On January 6, 2010, NIH posted a notice (NOT-OD-10-041) regarding the salary limitation on NIH awards.

The president's FY 2011 budget (Department of Health and Human Services, General Provisions, section 203), released on February 1, 2010, proposed to reduce the salary cap to Executive Level II ($179,700 in 2010).

Congressional Activity

The "Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010" [P.L. 111-117] retains the cap on salaries on NIH, SAMHSA, and AHRQ extramural grants at the current Executive Level I rate ($199,700 in 2010).

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