Dear ListServers,

I'm calling on your collective memory/wisdom. We submitted a proposal
several months ago to a Federal agency for annual renewal of an existing
award. The requested funds are a component of a larger general program. We
provided information showing a substantial amount of "income" which would
support the over-all program to give a full picture of the current program
funding. We did not call these funds cost sharing or matching nor was cost
sharing or matching required. Some of the income cited is from other Federal
awards which support the project PI's.

The funding agency decided to issue a new award rather than continue the old
award and listed this "income" as cost sharing. I explained that we did not
intend or consider this to be cost sharing and that I would have to remove
the other Federal funding from the number stated on the award as I could not
use Federal funds to cost share on another Federally-funded award.

The grant administrator said he could give us a letter stating that it was
OK to use Federal funds for cost sharing. Can he do this? I am very
reluctant to agree to this (it is a substantial amount of money) as I can't
afford a disallowance at a later date.

Does anyone have experience with an exception such as this? Thanks!

Val Seaquist
Office of Research Administration
The University of Alabama in Huntsville

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