Hula hoops Mascot to Bueracracy

So I get paid through grants. Either through the department I'm in or my mentors research grants or is the case now and NIH training grant. No to get a training grant is really an honor. I had to do interview and get letters of recommendation ect. What this means is, is that while I get paid the same the money comes from somewhere else. Additionally my Mentor doesn't have for the bill for pay me and we have more money to do fun stuff and by cool equipment.

While there is a small army of very competent secretaries sorting out the rubrics cube that is academic research funding, the government is involved and so therefore complecated. To make matters worse the taxability of each funding source differs and the title of my position for which I am being paid differs.

Let me attempt to explain the circus that surrounds my paycheck. I entered graduate school in a feeder program called CMB. That money is not state or local taxable, but is federally taxable. However the University will not withhold any money for taxes. In Aug. I became an member of my degree granting department (Microbiology). Money from them which is paid by my mentor is fully taxable except FICA, and they do withholdings. But late Aug. I get a training grant, yah. Money from them is like the CMB program. But they didn't get the paperwork in fast enough and they paid me for Aug. out of the Micro. dept. which one would think would be fine but. They money from the training grant is extra. Grant money if not spent soon enough goes away. They needed to get me started by Aug. or the money to pay goes back to Uncle Sam. In the middle of this my tuition and health insurance which is paid by the same source as my stipend what ever it be at the time didn't get paid and I got a late fee. Now I go in and they pay the tuition but not the insurance. I was told to pay the insurance and they'd pay me extra. But at the time they thought the Micro. Dept. was paying for Aug. so then they realize they have to post date my apointment into the training grant (or the money goes away) So now they are going to pay my insurance and the university will give me a check. But I also need to pay them for my Aug. stipend (which was from the micro. dept.) (yes they are paying me and then I'm paying them) and then they'll pay me for Aug and Sept. from the training grant.

Makes perfect sense, right?