INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETING FORM NIH 2706
"FINANCIAL REPORT OF INDIVIDUAL PROJECT/CONTRACT"

GENERAL INFORMATION

Purpose. Form NIH 2706 is designed to: (1) provide a management tool for use by be NIH in monitoring the application of financial and personnel resources to the NIH contracts; (2) provide contractors with financial and personnel management data which is usable in their management processes; (3) promptly indicate potential areas of contract underruns or overruns by making possible comparisons of actual performance and projections with prior estimates on individual elements of cost and personnel; and (4) obtain contractor's analyses of cause and effect of significant variations between actual and prior estimates of financial and personnel performance.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

Scope. The specific cost and personnel elements to be reported shall be established by mutual agreement prior to award. The Government may require the contractor to provide detailed documentation to support any element(s) on one or more financial reports.

Number of Copies and Mailing Address. An original and two (2) copies of the report(s) shall be sent to the contracting officer at the address shown on the face page of the contract, no later than 30 working days after the end of the period reported. However, the contract may provide for one of the copies to be sent directly to the project officer.

REPORTING STATISTICS

A modification which extends the period of performance of an existing contract will not require reporting on a separate Form NIH 2706, except where it is determined by the contracting officer that separate reporting is necessary. Furthermore, when incrementally funded contracts are involved, each separate allotment is not considered a separate contract entity (only a funding action). Therefore, the statistics under incrementally funded contracts should be reported cumulatively from the inception of the contract through completion.

Definitions and Instructions for Completing Form NIH 2706. For the purpose of establishing expenditure categories in Column A, the following definitions and instructions will be utilized. Each contract will specify the categories to be reported.

(1) Key Personnel. Include key personnel regardless of annual salary rates. All such individuals should be listed by names and job titles on a separate line including those whose salary is not directly charged to the contract but whose effort is directly associated with the contract. The listing must be kept up to date.

(2) Personnel--Other. List as one amount unless otherwise required by the contract.

(3) Fringe Benefits. Include allowances and services provided by the contractor to employees as compensation in addition to regular salaries and wages. If a fringe benefit rate(s) has been established, identify the base, rate, and amount billed for each category. If a rate has not been established, the various fringe benefit costs may be required to be shown separately. Fringe benefits which are included in the indirect cost rate should not be shown here.

(4) Accountable Personal Property. Include nonexpendable personal property with an acquisition cost of $1,000 or more and with an expected useful life of two or more years, and sensitive items regardless of cost. Form HHS 565, "Report of Accountable Property," must accompany the contractor's public voucher (SF 1034/SF 1035) or this report if not previously submitted. See "Contractor's Guide for Control of Government Property."

(5) Supplies. Include the cost of supplies and material and equipment charged directly to the contract, but excludes the cost of nonexpendable equipment as defined in (4) above.

(6) Inpatient Care. Include costs associated with a subject while occupying a bed in a patient care setting. It normally includes both routine and ancillary costs.

(7) Outpatient Care. Include costs associated with a subject while not occupying a bed. It normally includes ancillary costs only.

(8) Travel. Include all direct costs of travel, including transportation, subsistence and miscellaneous expenses. Travel for staff and consultants shall be shown separately. Identify foreign and domestic travel separately. If required by the contract, the following information shall be submitted: (i) Name of traveler and purpose of trip; (ii) Place of departure, destination and return, including time and dates; and (iii) Total cost of trip.

(9) Consultant Fee. Include fees paid to consultant(s). Identify each consultant with effort expended, billing rate, and amount billed.

(10) Premium Pay. Include the amount of salaries and wages over and above the basic rate of pay.

(11) Subcontracts. List each subcontract by name and amount billed.

(12) Other Costs. Include any expenditure categories for which the Government does not require individual line item reporting. It may include some of the above categories.

(13) Overhead/Indirect Costs. Identify the cost base, indirect cost rate, and amount billed for each indirect cost category.

(14) General and Administrative Expense. Cite the rate and the base. In the case of nonprofit organizations, this item will usually be included in the indirect cost.

(15) Fee. Cite the fee earned, if any.

(16) Total Costs to the Government.

PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS

These instructions are keyed to the Columns on Form NIH 2706.

Column A--Expenditure Category. Enter the expenditure categories required by the contract.

Column B--Percentage of Effort/Hours Negotiated. Enter the percentage of effort or number of hours agreed to during contract negotiations for each labor category listed in Column A.

Column C--Percentage of Effort/Hours-Actual. Enter the cumulative percentage of effort or number of hours worked by each employee or group of employees listed in Column A.

Column D--Cumulative Incurred Cost at End of Prior Period. Enter the cumulative incurred costs up to the end of the prior reporting period. This column will be blank at the time of the submission of the initial report.

Column E--Incurred Cost-Current Period. Enter the costs which were incurred during the current period.

Column F--Cumulative Incurred Cost to Date. Enter the combined total of Columns D and E.

Column G--Estimated Cost to Complete. Make entries only when the contractor estimates that a particular expenditure category will vary from the amount negotiated. Realistic estimates are essential.

Column H--Estimated Costs at Completion. Complete only if an entry is made in Column G.

Column I--Negotiated Contract Amount. Enter in this column the costs agreed to during contract negotiations for all expenditure categories listed in Column A.

Column J--Variance (Over or Under). Complete only if an entry is made in Column H. When entries have been made in Column H, this column should show the difference between the estimated costs at completion (Column H) and negotiated costs (Column I). When a line item varies by plus or minus 10 percent, i.e., the percentage arrived at by dividing Column J by Column I, an explanation of the variance should be submitted. In the case of an overrun (net negative variance), this submission shall not be deemed as notice under the Limitation of Cost (Funds) Clause of the contract.

Modifications. List any modification in the amount negotiated for an item since the preceding report in the appropriate cost category.

Expenditures Not Negotiated. List any expenditure for an item for which no amount was negotiated (e.g., at the discretion of the contractor in performance of its contract) in the appropriate cost category and complete all columns except for I. Column J will of course show a 100 percent variance and will be explained along with those identified under J above.

NIH 2706, Instructions
(May 1997)