Event 19 | Final Reconciliation

Story Background

The project is nearly finished, but the finances are not clean yet

The Community Access to Preventive Healthcare Initiative is nearing the end of its project period. Most programmatic work has been completed, the team is preparing final reports, and Dr. Brown is focused on wrapping up the scientific work.

Marcus now turns his attention to the financial record. Some costs have posted, but other activity may still be pending. CHAN may have a final invoice. Payroll may need a final review. Purchase orders may still be open. Participant incentive records may need final reconciliation.

Final reconciliation is the process of comparing the project’s financial activity against the project record before closeout.

The question is not simply “How much money is left?” The question is whether all project obligations have been identified, reviewed, documented, and resolved.

Trigger Issue

David asks Marcus to review closeout financial items

From: David Patel, Research Finance

To: Marcus Rivera

Cc: Dr. Aneka Brown

Subject: Final Reconciliation Review

Hi Marcus,

As we approach the end of the Community Access award, I am beginning the final financial reconciliation review.

Before we prepare the final financial report, we need to confirm whether there are any outstanding obligations, pending invoices, final payroll adjustments, open purchase orders, or unresolved cost corrections.

Could you work with Dr. Brown, Jasmine’s replacement, and CHAN to confirm the status of remaining project activity and outstanding financial items?

Thank you,
David Patel
Research Finance

Training Concept

Final reconciliation connects project activity to the financial record

Final reconciliation is a financial cleanup process before closeout. Marcus compares the financial report, project records, pending obligations, and remaining deliverables to make sure the award file is complete.

Outstanding Obligations

Costs the project has committed to pay but that may not have fully posted yet.

Pending Invoices

Vendor or subrecipient invoices that still need to be received, reviewed, approved, or posted.

Open Encumbrances

Purchase orders or commitments that remain open in the financial system.

Final Payroll Review

Confirms that salary charges are complete, accurate, and aligned with project work.

Financial Cleanup

Resolves errors, removes invalid charges, clears open items, and confirms that the account is ready for final reporting.

Closeout Risk

If reconciliation is incomplete, final reports may be inaccurate or costs may be questioned later.

What Marcus Reviews

The final review requires multiple records

Final Financial Report Draft

Shows expenses, obligations, remaining balance, and categories that need final review.

Open Obligation List

Identifies purchase orders, unpaid invoices, pending subrecipient costs, and other commitments.

CHAN Final Invoice Status

Confirms whether CHAN has submitted its final invoice, deliverables, and required closeout documents.

Payroll and Effort Records

Confirm that final salary charges and effort records align with approved project work.

Participant Incentive Reconciliation

Verifies that gift card purchases, distribution logs, and remaining inventory are reconciled.

Cost Correction Log

Confirms that transfers, corrections, and adjustments have been resolved and documented.

Final Reconciliation Review

What remains unresolved?

Closeout Financial Snapshot

Outstanding items before final reporting

Cleanup Required

Review Item Status Risk Action Needed

CHAN final invoice Expected but not yet posted Final costs may be understated Confirm submission and review

Open purchase order Still active May reserve funds unnecessarily Close or confirm need

Final payroll period Needs review Salary may post after review Confirm payroll schedule

Participant incentives Inventory reconciliation pending Gift card records may be incomplete Reconcile logs and inventory

Marcus cannot finalize the award based only on the current balance. He must identify what is still pending and whether the final financial record reflects the full project story.

Marcus’s Analysis

Questions before final financial reporting

Are all project costs posted?

Marcus checks whether final invoices, payroll, subrecipient costs, and approved purchases have posted.

Are any obligations still open?

Open obligations must be confirmed, closed, or resolved before the final financial report is submitted.

Are any costs incorrect?

Marcus reviews whether unallowable costs, miscoded expenses, or unresolved transfers remain.

Does spending match project activity?

Costs should align with completed outreach, participant activity, CHAN work, payroll, and approved project needs.

Are supporting records complete?

Documentation should support final expenses, obligations, corrections, and remaining balances.

Can the final report be submitted confidently?

The final financial report should not be submitted until major pending items are resolved or properly accounted for.

Decision Point

Can the final financial report be submitted now?

David wants to prepare the final financial report, but Marcus sees a pending CHAN invoice, an open purchase order, final payroll still needing review, and incomplete incentive reconciliation. What is the best next step?

Resolution

Marcus helps complete the financial cleanup checklist

Final Reconciliation Review Notes

Prepared by Marcus Rivera

Issue Identified The project is approaching closeout, but several financial items remain pending or unresolved.

Records Reviewed Financial report draft, open obligation list, CHAN invoice status, payroll records, participant incentive reconciliation, and cost correction log.

Administrative Concern The final financial report may be inaccurate if pending invoices, obligations, payroll, or reconciliation items are not resolved first.

Recommended Action Confirm CHAN’s final invoice, resolve open purchase orders, complete final payroll review, reconcile incentives, clear cost corrections, and document the final balance before closeout.

Final reconciliation is the last chance to make sure the financial record matches the work that actually happened.

Common Misconceptions

What learners should not assume

“The current balance is the final answer.”

The current balance may change if invoices, payroll, obligations, or corrections have not fully posted.

“Closeout is only a finance task.”

Closeout depends on input from the PI, project staff, subrecipients, research administration, and finance.

“Small unresolved items can wait.”

Small unresolved items can delay final reporting, create audit questions, or require corrections after closeout.

Year 3 Connection

Final reconciliation prepares the award for closeout

Event 19 is the bridge between project activity and formal closeout. The cleaner the reconciliation, the smoother the closeout process.

Financial accuracy

Final reporting depends on accurate posted expenses, resolved obligations, and documented corrections.

Subrecipient completion

CHAN’s final invoice, reports, and deliverables must be resolved before the award can close cleanly.

Closeout readiness

Reconciliation helps Marcus identify gaps before they become closeout problems.

Resources

References behind this scenario

These references show why final reconciliation must happen before final financial reporting and closeout. A post-award research administrator should help confirm outstanding obligations, pending invoices, final payroll activity, subrecipient items, participant incentive records, cost corrections, and project-side documentation so Research Finance can prepare an accurate final financial report.

2 CFR 200.328 — Financial Reporting

This federal section relates to financial reporting requirements for federal awards, including the need for required financial information to be reported according to sponsor and federal requirements.

Connection to Event 19: the final financial report should be based on a reconciled financial record, not an incomplete snapshot of current activity.

2 CFR 200.344 — Closeout

This federal section addresses award closeout requirements, including the submission of required financial, performance, and other reports after the period of performance ends.

Connection to Event 19: reconciliation prepares the project for accurate final reporting and closeout.

Open Obligation Report

An open obligation report helps identify purchase orders, pending invoices, subrecipient costs, payroll activity, and other commitments that may still affect the final financial record.

Connection to Event 19: Marcus helps David confirm whether open items should be paid, closed, adjusted, or documented before final reporting.

Institutional Closeout Checklist

An institutional closeout checklist helps coordinate final payroll, invoices, subrecipient items, participant incentive reconciliation, cost corrections, reporting tasks, and project records.

Connection to Event 19: the checklist helps Marcus coordinate the project-side cleanup needed before Research Finance completes final reporting.