Gaba-A Alliance Research & Financial Policy

Research Funding & Indirect Cost Policy

The GABA-A Alliance is dedicated to streamlining research and development to find urgent therapeutic options for children affected by GABA-A related diseases. Because our community operates with a profound sense of urgency, we must ensure that every dollar raised directly accelerates breakthroughs.

To maximize the impact of our funding, the GABA-A Alliance does not pay or support indirect fees, institutional overhead, or general administrative costs associated with research grants, biobanks, or projects. Funding awarded by our organization must be allocated exclusively to direct project expenses that contribute entirely to advancing scientific understanding and therapeutic solutions. All projects must clearly state a detailed SOW and cost breakdown prior to approval of funding. This is to ensure transparency for our community.

We appreciate the collaboration of our research partners in honoring this commitment to our families. For questions regarding budget eligibility or specific direct expenses, please contact our team at Info@gabaa.org

Supplementary Guide

Direct vs. Indirect Costs

Eligible Direct Costs (Approved): The GABA-A Alliance fully funds expenses tied directly to the execution of the approved research project, including:

Laboratory Consumables & Supplies: Reagents, assay kits, pipettes, cell culture media, and specialized chemicals.
Project-Specific Equipment: Purchase or rental of specialized machinery or equipment necessary solely for the funded project's execution.
Direct Research Personnel: Salaries and stipends for post-doctoral researchers, lab technicians, or graduate students for the exact percentage of time spent directly working on the alliance-funded project.
Core Facility Fees: Direct charges for utilizing specialized institutional core facilities (such as imaging cores or sequencing services) required for the project.

Ineligible Indirect Costs (Disallowed Overhead) The GABA-A Alliance does not fund general institutional operational expenses, including:

Facilities and Administrative (F&A) Costs: Institutional overhead rates, utility costs, building maintenance, or laboratory rent.
Clerical and Administrative Salaries: Salaries for departmental administrative assistants, human resources personnel, or institutional financial officers.
General Office Supplies: Computers, printers, paper, internet fees, or software licenses not exclusively dedicated to the specific scientific experiment.
Tuition Remission: Institutional student tuition fees or general university student health insurance plans.