Policy: Financial Conflicts of Interest Related to Research and Sponsored Programs

Reconciling the Policy SFI definition with 2 CFR 910.200

Persons whose interests are captured. DOE requires consideration of the interests of the Covered Individual and the Covered Individual's spouse and dependent children. The policy's definition of Immediate Family is broader and continues to apply; disclosing the broader set satisfies DOE.

Non-publicly traded entities. For a foreign or domestic non-publicly traded entity, an SFI exists where remuneration not otherwise disclosed as current, pending, or Other Support received in the preceding twelve months exceeds $5,000 in the aggregate, or where any equity interest is held regardless of value.

Intellectual property. Intellectual property rights and interests (for example, patents, copyrights) are an SFI upon receipt of income related to those rights and interests.

No de minimis threshold for travel or intellectual property. Investigators must disclose all reimbursed or sponsored travel and all intellectual property interests, regardless of value.

Travel exclusions. Travel reimbursed or sponsored by the following are not SFIs:

• a Federal, state, or local government agency of the United States; 
• a domestic institution of higher education; or 
• a domestic research institute affiliated with a domestic institution of higher education. 

Investigators should note that the DOE exclusion does not extend to academic teaching hospitals or medical centers that are not so affiliated; where the policy exclusion is broader, the narrower DOE exclusion applies to DOE-funded work.

Excluded interests. The following are not SFIs:

• Salary, royalties, or other remuneration paid by the University to a currently employed or appointed Covered Individual (including intellectual property rights assigned to the University and royalty-sharing agreements); 
• income from investment vehicles such as mutual funds and retirement accounts where the individual does not directly control investment decisions; 
• income from seminars, lectures, or teaching engagements sponsored by a U.S. Federal, state, or local government agency, a domestic institution of higher education, or an affiliated domestic research institute; and 
• income from service on advisory committees or review panels for those same entities.

Identification and Designation of Covered Individuals

As prime applicant, the University is responsible for assessing the Covered Individual definition against each person listed on a DOE application, and for identifying any such person to DOE for designation if not already designated by operation of 2 CFR 910.200.

The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP) will make this assessment as part of proposal review. Because submission of a current and pending support disclosure or a biosketch/resume for a person operates as DOE designation, any person for whom either document is submitted is a Covered Individual.

The Covered Individual population may be broader than the policy's Investigator population. It reaches any individual — including individuals at the master's or baccalaureate level — who contributes in a substantive, meaningful way to the development or execution of the scope of work, together with any person named in the NOFO or award terms. PIs must identify such personnel to ORSP at proposal preparation.

Disclosure Requirements and Timing

The following requirements supplement the Disclosure Submission and Review Procedures section of the policy for DOE-funded work.

• Disclosure before application submission. Every Covered Individual must have provided all required COI and COC disclosures to the University no later than the time the application is submitted to DOE. This is earlier than the policy's award-setup deadline. Investigators must complete disclosures in LIRA before ORSP submits the proposal.
• Individuals added after application. Where the University seeks to add a Covered Individual after application, that individual must complete the required disclosures before participating in the project.
• Annual updates. Each Covered Individual participating in a DOE award must update disclosures annually.
• New conflicts — 15 days. Each Covered Individual must report any new actual, apparent, or potential COI or COC as soon as practicable and in no event later than 15 days after it arises. This deadline replaces the policy's 30-day deadline for DOE-funded work.
• Conflicts of commitment are separately disclosable. Covered Individuals must disclose conflicting obligations of the kind described in the COC definition in Section 3, including:
  • outside employment and pending employment; 
  • titled academic, professional, or institutional appointments, whether or not compensated and whether full-time, part-time, or voluntary, including adjunct, visiting, and honorary positions; 
  • participation in or applications to foreign government-sponsored talent recruitment or similar programs; and 
  • any obligation that would require improperly sharing information with, or withholding information from, the University or DOE. 

Note that disclosure of participation in a Foreign Talent Recruitment Program under the policy and under the University's Policy: Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs does not by itself satisfy the broader COC disclosure obligation.

• Travel disclosures. For reimbursed or sponsored travel, disclosures must state, at a minimum, the purpose of the trip, the identity of the sponsor or organizer, the destination, and the duration. The Office of Research Integrity will determine whether further information is needed, including a determination or disclosure of monetary value, to assess whether the travel constitutes a COI or COC.
• Foreign entity due diligence. Each Covered Individual is expected to maintain a reasonable understanding of the entities with which they do business and to exercise due diligence in determining whether an interest presents an actual, apparent, or potential COI or COC.

Required Certification Statement

Each disclosure submitted under this Appendix must be signed and dated by the Covered Individual and must include the certification statement set out in Appendix A to 2 CFR part 910, subpart C. The certification is incorporated into the LIRA disclosure workflow. The certification records the individual's acknowledgment that: 

• the disclosure is required to obtain Federal funding; 
• the information is true, complete, and accurate to the best of the individual's knowledge and belief; 
• false, fictitious, or fraudulent information, misrepresentations, half-truths, or omissions of material fact may subject the individual to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties under 18 U.S.C. 287, 1001, and 1031 and 31 U.S.C. 3729–3733 and 3801–3812; 
• the statements are material to the Government's funding decision, and; 
• the individual has a continuing responsibility to update disclosures during the period of performance.

Review, Determination, and Management

Designated officials. The Office of Research Integrity is the designated University office that solicits and reviews COI and COC disclosures from Covered Individuals under 2 CFR 910.230(b)(1).

Determination. The Office of Research Integrity reviews all Covered Individuals' disclosures to determine whether an actual, apparent, or potential COI or COC exists. For DOE purposes:

• an actual conflict exists where an SFI or financial relationship exists that could directly and significantly affect the design, conduct, reporting, or funding of the project or other award-related activities;
• a potential conflict exists where such an interest or relationship may arise in the future, for example where an individual applies for outside employment, and;
• an apparent conflict exists where a conflict may appear to exist to a reasonable outside observer even though no actual or potential conflict exists.

Management measures. Where a conflict is identified, the Office of Research Integrity, in consultation with the Vice Provost for Research and the Conflict of Interest Review Committee (CIRC) under Appendix A of the policy, will determine the actions taken and to be taken to eliminate or, where appropriate, manage or reduce the conflict. Measures may include:

• public disclosure of the conflict when the project is presented or published;
• disclosure directly to participants in projects involving human subjects;
• appointment of an independent monitor or oversight committee capable of protecting the purpose, design, conduct, and reporting of the project against bias;
• modification of the project plan; 
• change of personnel or personnel responsibilities, or disqualification of personnel from all or part of the project; 
• reduction or elimination of the financial interest or the commitment, and/or; 
• severance of the relationship creating the conflict.

Management Plans. Management Plans for DOE-funded work are developed, approved, monitored, and appealed under Appendix A of the policy, and must address COCs as well as COIs.

Reporting to DOE

This Section supplements Appendix C of the policy. ORSP, in coordination with the Office of Research Integrity, submits the following to DOE in writing.

• Unmanageable conflicts. Any actual, apparent, or potential COI or COC — including any reported to the University by a subrecipient — that cannot be eliminated or appropriately managed or reduced under University policy.
• All foreign-government-related conflicts. Any actual, apparent, or potential COI or COC — including any reported by a subrecipient — involving any foreign government, its instrumentalities, or any other entity owned, funded, or otherwise controlled by a foreign government, together with the measures taken to eliminate, manage, or reduce it. This obligation applies whether or not the conflict is manageable.
• Timing and placement. Conflicts requiring disclosure to DOE must be clearly and explicitly disclosed in the application itself. Where a Covered Individual is added after application, the conflict must be disclosed in writing to DOE before that individual participates in the project.
• Expanded reporting on request. Where required by the NOFO or award terms, the University will disclose all Covered Individuals' COIs and COCs, including those the University has determined are appropriately managed or reduced.
• Supporting documentation. On DOE request, the University will provide associated disclosures, documentation demonstrating how a conflict was managed or reduced, and sufficient information for DOE to understand the nature and extent of the conflict and to assess whether the University's actions are sufficient.
• Annual COI/COC reports. For any conflict previously reported on an ongoing DOE-funded project, the University will provide an annual COI/COC report addressing the status of the conflict and any changes to the Management Plan. The report must state whether the conflict is still being managed or remains unmanaged or unmanageable, or explain why the conflict no longer exists. Annual reports continue for the duration of the project period, including extensions with or without funds, in the time and manner required by the award terms.
• Routine or on-request submissions. DOE may require the University to submit all or some Covered Individuals' disclosures routinely or on request, including: 
  • as part of monitoring compliance; 
  • in the event of bankruptcy or other legal winding down of the University; 
  • upon acquisition of the University by a foreign entity, including a foreign entity obtaining a controlling interest, or; 
  • as otherwise provided in 2 CFR part 200 and part 910.
• Noncompliance by a Covered Individual. Where the University becomes aware that a Covered Individual failed to comply with University COI or COC policy or with a Management Plan, the University will promptly notify DOE in writing of the failure and of the corrective action taken or to be taken. DOE declined to adopt a 60-day reporting window; corrective action need not be completed before the report is made. Determinations of noncompliance under Appendix D of the policy must therefore be routed to ORSP for prompt DOE notification rather than held pending completion of remedial steps.

Subrecipient Requirements

This Section supplements Appendix B of the policy for DOE prime awards.

• The written subrecipient agreement must establish whether the recipient's (Lehigh's) or the subrecipient's COI and COC policy applies to the subrecipient's Covered Individuals.
• Where the subrecipient's policy applies, the subrecipient must certify in the agreement that its policy complies with 2 CFR part 910, subpart C. If the subrecipient cannot so certify, the agreement must state that the subrecipient's Covered Individuals are subject to Lehigh's COI and COC policy as supplemented by this Appendix.
• Where the subrecipient's policy applies, the agreement must specify time periods for the subrecipient to report all identified COIs and COCs to the University, sufficient to allow the University to meet its DOE reporting deadlines, including the 15-day new-conflict deadline and prompt noncompliance notification.
• Where Lehigh's policy applies, the agreement must specify time periods for the subrecipient to submit all Covered Individuals' disclosures to the University, sufficient to allow the University to meet its review, management, and reporting obligations.
• For DOE prime awards, the policy's treatment of subrecipients without a compliant policy is modified: such a subrecipient is not ineligible, and the "special circumstances" limitation in Appendix B (requiring all subrecipient personnel to attest at the proposal stage that they have no Related SFIs) does not apply. Instead, the subrecipient's Covered Individuals are subject to Lehigh's policy under paragraph 2 above, and must complete the same disclosures, certification, and training required of Lehigh Covered Individuals. The University retains the right to modify or end the subaward agreement.
• Appendix B of the policy is amended to cite 2 CFR part 910, subpart C in place of the December 20, 2021 DOE Interim Conflict of Interest Policy.

Organizational Conflicts of Interest

This Section establishes a requirement not addressed in the policy.

• Written standards of conduct. As they pertain to university subsidiary organizations, the Office of the Research Integrity maintains written standards of conduct covering OCIs as defined at 2 CFR 200.318(c)(2). The University does not have a parent or affiliated organization. 
• Prohibition. Where the effects of a potential or actual OCI cannot be avoided, eliminated, or mitigated, the anticipated procurement or other transaction must not be made using DOE funds or cost share funds.
• Disclosure and timing. The University must disclose any potential or actual OCI to DOE in writing within 15 business days of learning of the conflict. Disclosure must be made in the application for financial assistance and before engaging in a procurement or other transaction to acquire services or property using DOE funds with a subsidiary organization.
• Required content. An OCI disclosure must include, at a minimum: 
  • the name, address, and website (as applicable) of the entity presenting the OCI; 
  • the relationship between the University and that entity; 
  • the nature, anticipated value, and basis for the anticipated procurement or other transaction; 
  • the basis for the University's determination regarding the existence of an OCI; and
  • how the University will avoid, eliminate, or mitigate the OCI.
• Scope beyond procurement. These requirements extend to transactions other than formal procurements that acquire goods or services through different mechanisms or authorities. Procurement Services will route any proposed transaction using DOE funds or DOE cost share with a Lehigh subsidiary organization to the Office of Research Integrity for OCI screening before the transaction is committed.

Training

This Section supplements Appendix E of the policy.

• Each Covered Individual must complete COI and COC training before engaging in a project funded under a DOE award, and refresher training at least every two years. The two-year interval replaces the policy's four-year interval for DOE-funded work.
• To satisfy this requirement, each Covered Individual must complete the CITI Research Security training, as currently required annually for DOE investigators. Additionally, as currently required for all Lehigh University faculty and staff engaged in externally sponsored research, each Covered Individual must annually review the policy on financial conflicts of interest related to research, which includes this Appendix. 
• In addition, a Covered Individual must complete training within 30 days of any of the following: the University revises its COI or COC policies or procedures in a manner affecting Covered Individual responsibilities; the Covered Individual is new to the University; or the University finds that the Covered Individual is not in compliance with its COI and COC policy or an applicable Management Plan. The Office of Research Integrity will identify when these instances occur and implement the requirement.

Noncompliance, Remedies, and Enforcement

This Section supplements Appendix D of the policy. Investigators should understand that where the University fails to disclose a COI or COC, or fails to sufficiently manage or mitigate one, DOE may require action to eliminate or mitigate the conflict to a risk level acceptable to DOE and, absent that, may determine that the award no longer effectuates program goals or agency priorities and terminate it; may determine that the circumstances disqualify an entity or individual from all or part of an award; or may reject an application. DOE may inquire at any time before, during, or after an award into any Covered Individual's disclosures and the University's review of and response to them, whether or not the University found a conflict, and may impose specific award conditions under 2 CFR 200.208 or take actions under 2 CFR 200.339.

Where a Covered Individual knowingly fails to disclose required information, DOE may: 

• reject an application; 
• suspend or terminate an award; 
• discontinue or de-obligate funding for the individual or the University, temporarily or permanently; 
• refer the University for suspension or debarment proceedings; 
• refer the failure to the DOE Office of Inspector General or Federal law enforcement; 
• report the University in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS); or 
• take actions under 2 CFR 200.339 or other applicable law. False, fictitious, or fraudulent information, or omission of a material fact, in any disclosure, report, or record required under 2 CFR part 910, subpart C may carry criminal, civil, or administrative penalties.

Failure to disclose an OCI before engaging in a covered procurement or other transaction may result in the costs of that procurement or transaction being disallowed.

Records, Access, and Availability of the Policy

• Policy availability. The University must make its written COI and COC policy available within five business days following any request for it. The policy and this Appendix are posted publicly. The Office of Research Integrity responds to direct requests within five business days.
• Records and DOE access. The University must submit, or permit on-site review of, all records pertinent to compliance with 2 CFR part 910, subpart C. DOE will maintain the confidentiality of records of financial interests to the extent permitted by law. Records are retained under Appendix F of the policy.
• Suspected fraud. Where fraud, misrepresentation, or related misconduct is suspected in relation to a disclosure submitted to DOE, DOE may refer the matter to its Office of Inspector General. The University will cooperate with any such inquiry.

Conforming Changes to the Policy

Effective August 17, 2026, the Policy is amended as follows:

• References section — replace the citation to the Department of Energy Interim Conflict of Interest Policy (December 20, 2021) with: 2 CFR part 910, subpart C, Conflicts of Interest, Conflicts of Commitment, Organizational Conflicts of Interest, and Other Matters of Concern (91 FR 43511, July 16, 2026).
• Appendix B (Subrecipient Requirements) — replace "For DOE awards: the December 20, 2021 Department of Energy Interim Conflict of Interest Policy" with "For DOE awards: 2 CFR part 910, subpart C," and read Appendix B subject to Section 9 of this Appendix.
• Appendix C (Sponsor Reporting Requirements) — replace "To DOE as required pursuant to Section V(b) of the December 20, 2021 Department of Energy Interim Conflict of Interest Policy" with "To DOE as required pursuant to 2 CFR 910.240 and 910.260," and read Appendix C subject to Section 8 of this Appendix.
• Appendix E (Training Requirements) — the reference to DOE awards issued on or after December 20, 2021 continues to apply to awards issued before August 17, 2026; awards issued on or after that date are subject to Section 11 of this Appendix.
• Disclosure Submission and Review Procedures — the 30-day deadline for reporting new or materially changed SFIs remains in effect generally, subject to the 15-day DOE deadline in Section 5.4 of this Appendix for DOE-funded work.