Cost Principles
The costs of a grant-supported activity are comprised of allowable direct costs, plus the allocable portion of the organization's associated facilities and administrative (F&A) costs. Direct costs are costs that can be specifically identified with a particular project or program, while F&A costs are incurred for common or joint objectives and which therefore cannot be identified specifically with a particular project or program. The allowability, reasonableness and necessity of direct and F&A costs that may be charged to NIH grants are outlined in the following five sets of cost principles:
These cost principles are a term of NIH grant awards implemented in applicable HHS regulations (45 CFR Part 74 and 45 CFR Part 92).
Facilities & Administrative Cost Rate Negotiations
The payment of facilities & administrative (F&A) costs is based upon rates established through a formal agreement between the grantee organization and the cognizant Federal agency. The negotiated rate is applied to the applicable direct cost base to determine the amount of F&A costs to be awarded. HHS Division of Cost Allocation Regional Offices (see list at end of letter) negotiate F&A rates for educational institutions, hospitals and non-profit organizations. The NIH Division of Financial Advisory Services will negotiate an F&A rate for commercial (for-profit) organizations. HHS/NIH recognizes F&A cost rates applicable to research activities negotiated by other Federal agencies adjusted for the HHS treatment of independent (self-sponsored) research and development (IR&D) costs.
Some exceptions to reimbursement of F&A costs are listed below. See the NIH GPS for additional information:
- NIH does not reimburse F&A costs on grants to individuals, grants to other agencies of the Federal Government, construction grants, conference grants, or NRSA individual fellowships.
- NIH reimburses limited F&A costs (8% of modified total direct costs less tuition and fees, equipment, and subawards in excess of $25,000) for institutional research training grants and career (K) awards.
- NIH reimburses limited F&A costs (8% of modified total direct costs less equipment) to foreign grantees to support the cost of compliance with public policy requirements.
Applicants can request F&A costs up to 40 percent of total direct costs for both Phase I and Phase II SBIR/STTR awards without negotiations. NIH does not negotiate rates if the applicant has only Phase I awards (i.e., the applicant cannot request F&A costs that are greater than 40 percent of total direct costs). DFAS will only negotiate rates with applicants who request more than 40 percent of total direct costs on a Phase II award.
Administrative Standards for Grants (see also Terms of Award)
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has established administrative standards for organizations receiving Federal assistance.
The OMB website is: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/; copies of the OMB Circulars are available from: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/ or by calling (202) 395-3080.
Audit Requirements
For fiscal years ending after 12/31/2003, NIH grantees or subrecipients that expend $500,000 or more in Federal awards during their fiscal year are subject to an audit requirement. Organizations expending less than $500,000 during their fiscal year are not required to have an annual audit for that year, but must make their grant related records available to NIH or other designated officials for review or audit.
Audit requirements for State and local governments, and non-profit organizations (including colleges, universities, hospitals, etc.) receiving Federal awards or subawards, are defined in OMB Circular A-133, Subpart B, Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations (revised 6/27/03). A completed data collection form (SF-SAC) and the audit reporting package must be submitted to:
Federal Audit Clearinghouse
Bureau of the Census
1201 E 10th Street
Jeffersonville, IN 47132
Tel: 888-222-9907
http://harvester.census.gov/sac/
Audit requirements for commercial/for-profit and foreign organizations are defined in 45 CFR Part 74.26(d) and the NIH GPS, respectively. Commercial/for-profit and foreign organizations are provided with two options to satisfy the audit requirements: either (1) a financial-related audit of all HHS awards as defined in, and in accordance with, the Government Auditing Standards (commonly known as the Yellow Book); or (2) an audit that meets the requirements of OMB Circular A-133. The data collection form (SF-SAC) is not required to accompany the audit report. Audit reports of commercial/for-profit and foreign organizations should be submitted to:
National External Audit Review Center
HHS Office of Audit Services
1100 Walnut Street, Suite 1750
Kansas City , MO 64106-2197
tel: 800-732-0679 or 816-268-3610
Additional information relating to audit requirements for for-profit organizations is available at http://oamp.od.nih.gov/dfas/faqforprofitaudits.asp.
It is imperative that grantees submit required audit within the specified time limits.
Requirements and Provisions Applicable to ARRA Awards
All standard terms and conditions referenced on each NIH Notice of Award (see: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/awardconditions.htm) apply unless they conflict or are superseded by the following terms and conditions implementing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) requirements below. In addition to the standard terms and conditions of award, recipients receiving funds under Division A of ARRA must abide by the terms and conditions listed below:
Recipient Reporting
Reporting and Registration Requirements under Section 1512 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Public Law 111-5
(a) This award requires the recipient to complete projects or activities which are funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ("Recovery Act") and to report on use of Recovery Act funds provided through this award. Information from these reports will be made available to the public.
(b) The reports are due no later than ten calendar days after each calendar quarter in which the recipient receives the assistance award funded in whole or in part by the Recovery Act.
(c) Recipients and their first-tier recipients must maintain current registrations in the Central Contractor Registration (www.ccr.gov) at all times during which they have active federal awards funded with Recovery Act funds. A Dun and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number (www.dnb.com) is one of the requirements for registration in the Central Contractor Registration.
(d) The recipient shall report the information described in section 1512(c) using the reporting instructions and data elements that will be provided online at www.FederalReporting.gov and ensure that any information that is pre-filled is corrected or updated as needed.
Preference for Quick Start Activities
In using funds for this award for infrastructure investment, recipients shall give preference to activities that can be started and completed expeditiously, including a goal of using at least 50 percent of the funds for activities that can be initiated not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of ARRA. Recipients shall also use grant funds in a manner that maximizes job creation and economic benefit. (ARRA Sec. 1602)
Limit on Funds
None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available in ARRA may be used by any State or local government, or any private entity, for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, or swimming pool. (ARRA Sec. 1604)
ARRA: One-Time Funding
Unless otherwise specified, ARRA funding to existent or new awardees should be considered one-time funding.
Disclosure of Fraud or Misconduct
Each recipient or sub-recipient awarded funds made available under the ARRA shall promptly refer to the HHS Office of Inspector General any credible evidence that a principal, employee, agent, contractor, sub-recipient, subcontractor, or other person has submitted a false claim under the False Claims Act or has committed a criminal or civil violation of laws pertaining to fraud, conflict of interest, bribery, gratuity, or similar misconduct involving those funds. The HHS Office of Inspector General can be reached at http://www.oig.hhs.gov/fraud/hotline/.
Responsibilities for Informing Sub-recipients
Recipients agree to separately identify to each sub-recipient, and document at the time of sub-award and at the time of disbursement of funds, the Federal award number, any special CFDA number assigned for ARRA purposes, and amount of ARRA funds.
Recovery Act Transactions listed in Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards and Recipient Responsibilities for Informing Sub-recipients
(a) To maximize the transparency and accountability of funds authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)(Recovery Act) as required by
Congress and in accordance with 45 CFR 74.21 and 92.20 "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements", as applicable, and OMB A-102 Common Rules provisions, recipients agree to maintain records that identify adequately the source and application of Recovery Act funds.
(b) For recipients covered by the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996 and OMB Circular A-133, "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations," recipients agree to separately identify the expenditures for Federal awards under the Recovery Act on the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA) and the Data Collection Form (SF-SAC) required by OMB Circular A-133. This shall be accomplished by identifying expenditures for Federal awards made under Recovery Act separately on the SEFA, and as separate rows under Item 9 of Part III on the SF-SAC by CFDA number, and inclusion of the prefix "ARRA-" in identifying the name of the Federal program on the SEFA and as the first characters in Item 9d of Part III on the SF-SAC.
(c) Recipients agree to separately identify to each sub-recipient, and document at the time of sub-award and at the time of disbursement of funds, the Federal award number, CFDA number, and amount of Recovery Act funds. When a recipient awards Recovery Act funds for an existing program, the information furnished to sub-recipients shall distinguish the sub-awards of incremental Recovery Act funds from regular sub-awards under the existing program.
(d) Recipients agree to require their sub-recipients to include on their SEFA information to specifically identify Recovery Act funding similar to the requirements for the recipient SEFA described above. This information is needed to allow the recipient to properly monitor sub-recipient expenditure of ARRA funds as well as oversight by the Federal awarding agencies, Offices of Inspector General and the Government Accountability Office.
Electronic Research Administration (eRA)
eRA Commons
The eRA Commons provides grantees with the ability to conduct extramural research business electronically with the NIH. All grantee institutions and Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD/PIs) must be registered in the eRA Commons. The Commons is the only place where PD/PIs can review assignment information, peer review outcomes, Summary Statements, and other related grant documents such as submitted applications and Notices of Awards. Institutional officials can check the status of grant applications, submit Just-In-Time information, submit SNAP Progress Reports, review applications and Notice of Awards, access the face page of Progress Reports, and submit electronic FSRs, no-cost extension notifications, closeout documents and documents associated with NIH institutional training grants (appointment forms and termination notices). For more information, go to: https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/. Details on the Commons registration process can be found at: https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/registration/registrationInstructions.jsp. For additional information or user support contact the NIH Commons User Support Branch at commons@od.nih.gov. The Help Desk can also be reached by telephone:
866-504-9552 (toll free)
301-402-7469 (voice)
301-451-5675 (fax)
301-451-5939 (TTY)
Electronic Submission of Applications
NIH is presently transitioning from paper to electronic submission of grant applications via the online portal of Grants.gov, using the government-wide electronic application form SF424 (R&R). In addition to new application forms and processes, electronic submission requires that two systems with separate registration and validation processes work together - Grants.gov, the federal government's single on-line portal to find and apply for federal funding, and eRA Commons, the system that allows applicants to interact electronically with NIH.
A unique quality of electronic submission is that applications must be submitted in response to a specific Funding Opportunity Announcement. To accommodate investigator-initiated applications, NIH utilizes Parent Announcements which can be found at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/parent_announcements.htm. Additional information about the process of electronic submission, including a transition timeline, Frequently Asked Questions, training resources and other useful information can be found at: http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/index.htm.
Electronic Access to Grant-Related Resources
All grant-related resources such as the NIHGPS, NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, and other resources can be accessed electronically, searched and downloaded.
NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
The NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts (NIH Guide), published daily and indexed weekly, provides information to the research community regarding NIH Program Announcements (PAs), Requests for Applications (RFAs), Requests for (contract) Proposals (RFPs), Parent Announcements, Requests for Information (RFI), and Notices of new or changed NIH grants policy. PAs and RFAs are also known government-wide as Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) and can also be found at www.grants.gov/.
The NIH Guide is available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.html. A listserv subscription to the weekly Table of Contents is highly recommended as the best means of keeping up-to-date with NIH announcements, policy changes and clarifications, and FOAs. To subscribe visit: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/listserv.htm.
NIH Extramural Research Training and Research Career Opportunities
A wealth of information about NIH supported research training and research career opportunities is on the NIH Office of Extramural Research Web site.
NIH Award Data
Extramural award data is available from NIH's Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT). RePORT includes the new Reports, Data and Analysis (RDA) Website, (formerly called the Award Information and Data page), and CRISP (Computer Retrieval of Information on Scientific Projects). On September 1, 2009 the CRISP system will soon be replaced by the RePORT Expenditures and Results (RePORTER) query tool. If you have questions about statistics and award data, contact DISHelp@mail.nih.gov, for questions about CRISP contact CRISPmail@mail.nih.gov. For comments on RePORT, or suggestions for additional content, please use the Feedback button found at the bottom of each RePORT page.
NIH Grant Application Instructions and Forms
The Forms and Applications webpage includes details concerning application procedures, application forms, and dates for submission of applications. Activity (mechanism) codes and related definitions used in extramural programs can be found at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/funding_program.htm. The address to send questions about applications and forms is: grantsinfo@nih.gov.
Application forms for the majority of the NIH grant programs are described below:
SF424 Research and Research Related (R&R): The Federal wide common application form used by Federal agencies involved in research and research-related grant funding. NIH mechanisms that have transitioned to electronic submission require prospective grantees to submit through Grants.gov using the SF424 (R&R). NIH collects information that is unique to NIH's requirements in electronic form components known as PHS398, which are part of SF424 (R&R) grant packages. Each FOA has unique instructions and required form set that can be downloaded from Grants.gov.
PHS 398: The paper Public Health Service Grant Application is used for grant mechanisms that have not transitioned to electronic submission using the SF424 (R&R). See http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/files/NIH_Transition_Plan.pdf (PDF - 44 KB) for the latest information on transition of mechanisms to electronic submission.
PHS 2590: The Non-Competing Continuation Progress Report is required to request continued support for a Public Health Service grant (including Research Career Development Awards and Institutional National Research Service Awards). This form is submitted to a central mailing address at the NIH (see Progress Report). For SNAP awards, the progress report is submitted electronically through the eRA Commons.
SF424 (R&R) Individual Fellowship Application Guide for preparing and submitting individual fellowship applications via Grants.gov to NIH using the SF424 (R&R).
PHS 416-9 Application for Public Health Service Individual National Research Service Award (Fellowship) Continuation.
Other Important Offices at NIH AND HHS
Payment Management System
The Payment Management System is administered by the Program Support Center (PSC), DHHS, and payments for NIH grant awards are made through the Division of Payment Management, with the exception of awards to individuals, foreign organizations, and agencies of the Federal Government (see below). Applicant organizations are assigned a 12-digit Entity Identification Number for payment and accounting purposes. That number is an expansion of the 9-digit Employer Identification Number assigned to an organization by the Internal Revenue Service.
Requests for downloadable forms and inquiries regarding payments should be directed to:
Division of Payment Management
11400 Rockville Pike
Rockwall Bldg.
Rockville, MD 20852
tel: 301-443-1660
Most grantees are required to file the Federal Cash Transactions Report (FCTR) (PSC 272 (PDF - 26 KB)) of disbursements with PMS within 45 days after the end of each quarter. Although it may be submitted electronically through the Electronic PSC 272 website, you must also print, sign, and mail the PSC 272 certification page to:
Division of Payment Management
P.O. Box 6021
Rockville, MD 20852
tel: 301-443-1660
Questions regarding payments of grants to individuals, foreign organizations, and agencies of the Federal Government should be addressed to:
Government Accounting Branch
Office of Financial Management
National Institutes of Health
2115 East Jefferson Street
Room 4B432, MSC 8500
Bethesda, MD 20892-8500
tel: 301-402-9123
Please note that grantees must file all SF 269 and PSC 272 reports by September 30th of the 5th fiscal year after funds are awarded. Failure to do so will result in an automatic cancellation of any remaining balance, pursuant to Public Law No. 101-510 amended 31 U.S.C. Sections 1551-1557. This is called expired appropriations and means that all unexpended funds/unobligated balances falling under the Expired-Year (M Year) of an award are returned to the U.S. Treasury, and are no longer available for use either by NIH or the grantee. Institutions will receive a “Grants Expiring Letter” if an unexpended balance of funds are about to expire. The letter is generally sent out in March of each year as a one time reminder that unexpended funds must be reported by September 30th to avoid loss of those funds.
Patient Care Costs
In instances where the proposed project represents a clinical research study, funds may be requested in a grant application for Patient Care Costs. Due to the special nature of these costs, a detailed explanation is required in the application as to how the total amount requested was determined. In situations where the amount requested for patient care results in an award that exceeds $100,000 in that category for a single budget period, the grantee organization must either have in place or take steps to develop a negotiated patient care rate agreement with HHS.
Hospitals and nonprofit organizations with questions concerning the negotiation of F&A cost rate agreements or patient care rate agreements should contact the appropriate office listed below.
HHS Division of Cost Allocation Regional Offices
Northeast
26 Federal Plaza
Room 41-118
New York, NY 10278
tel: 212-264-2069 fax: 212-264-5478 |
Connecticut, Maine,
Massachusetts, New
Hampshire, New Jersey,
New York, Rhode Island,
Vermont, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands |
Mid-Atlantic
HHS Building , Room 5130
330 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, DC 20201
tel: 202-401-2808 fax: 202-619-3379 |
Alabama, Delaware,
District of Columbia,
Florida, Georgia, Kentucky
Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia |
Central States
1200 Main Tower Building
Room 1135
Dallas, TX 75202
tel: 214-767-3261 fax: 214-767-3264 |
Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana,
Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana,
Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, Nebraska, New
Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Wisconsin |
Western
50 United Nations Plaza
Room 304
San Francisco, CA 94102
tel: 415-437-7820 fax: 415-437-7823 |
Alaska, Arizona, California
Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho,
Montana, Nevada, North Dakota,
Oregon, South Dakota, Utah,
Washington, Wyoming |
For-profit organizations should contact:
Office of Acquisition Management and Policy, NIH
Division of Financial Advisory Services
6100 Executive Boulevard, Room 6B05, MSC 7540
Bethesda, MD 20982-7540
tel: 301-496-4401
For links to contact information sources for questions relating to NIH grants administration, and IC contacts and funding opportunities, visit: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/staff_list_grants_admin.htm.
You can receive updates on NIH policies and activities, and gain a better understanding of the operation of NIH extramural programs, by reading the NIH Extramural Nexus, an electronic monthly update from the Office of Extramural Research (OER). OER is the hub for grants policy and operations, grants administration, and the coordination of NIH's extramural programs and activities. Subscriptions are available from the Subscription Center.
We wish you great success in our partnership to improve the health of the Nation.
Sincerely,
Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration
Office of Extramural Research
Office of the Director
National Institutes of Health |