If you propose and they accept, you're obligated. It is a lot like a contract in that regard. The worst is that it can be an oblique offer on your PI's part. You do not have to have a legislative requirement to have cost sharing. You can also agree to an amount that exceeds the legislative requirements. The result is the same. You are obligated to that level. Having said that, the agencies have several options in the event your PI proposed to cost share lunar exploration as part of their $25,000 training grant proposal. They can reduce the requirement to what was legislatively required, or to what was programmatically required, or renegotiate it all together. They can also decide to reduce your award in proportion to the missing match. If the agency's program staff are poo pooing cost sharing, you should be pulling out your electron microscopes and deciphering every word's meaning in the proposal. I wouldn't trust them. Especially agencies like NSF (sorry, Mr. Kull). NSF recently (5/99) revised their procedures when it comes to cost sharing, but the foxes continue to guard the hen house. Mr. Kull is trying to change the foxes into some other benign life form, but these things take time. I wish him all the luck and good fortune in the world! xxxxxx@SBLHS.ORG wrote: > Hi, all -- > > I'd like some more thoughts on the question of documentation of cost > sharing. > > The question of the cost-sharing obligation came up at a grantees meeting > for a program which funds a project at my organization. The program > management > staff told our project director that since there was no "legislative > requirement" > for the cost-sharing for this particular grant program, the amount reported > on > the financial status report did not necessarily have to match the amount > listed > as non-federal funds on the notice of award. I and others at the meeting > expressed some skepticism that auditors would agree with this interpretation. > We > agreed that the more prudent practice would be to make certain that the > cost-sharing amounts indicated in the approved budget of record ARE items > which can be documented and that the sum reported on the financial status > report meet or > exceed the amount on the notice of award. Agency staff pooh-pooh the need > for this sort of exactness, but I remain unconvinced. > > IS there a difference in the way auditors review programs without a > matching requirement in the authorizing language of the program? I'd > appreciate > hearing what others have found to be true. > > --------- > Molly Daniel > Grants Specialist > Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System > Mattoon, IL > email: xxxxxx@sblhs.org > ____________________Reply Separator____________________ > Subject: Re: Cost sharing > Author: gschmidt <xxxxxx@FAMU.EDU> > Date: 08/12/99 1:55 PM > > You will be asked every year of the award to document your matching through > the Financial Status Report. These are certified by your financial officer > as being true and accurate, and they are auditable. > "Peter J. Dolce" wrote: > > We have a contract from DHHS in which we committed to cost share a > > certain amount. I know that A110 says that cost-shared amounts must be > > verifiable from the recipient's records and have seen, at NCURA > > sessions, some pretty rigorous means that universities use to document > > cost-sharing, project by project. > > > > Should we expect to be asked, during the close-out period for the > > contract or at some other time, to document that we cost-shared the > > amount we said we would in the original proposal? > > > > -- > > Peter J. Dolce, Ph.D. > > Director, Research Support Services > > Meharry Medical College > > 1005 Todd Boulevard Phone 615 327 6703 > > Nashville, TN Fax 615 327 6716 > -- > Greg Schmidt > Manager, Contract & Grant Accounting > Florida A&M University > 201 FHAC > Tallahassee, FL 32307-3200 > DUNS: 623751831 > College of the Year - 1997 > 850/561-2956 voice > 850/561-2461 fax > > ====================================================================== > Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including > subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available > via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") > ====================================================================== > > ====================================================================== > Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including > subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available > via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") > ====================================================================== -- Greg Schmidt Manager, Contract & Grant Accounting Florida A&M University 201 FHAC Tallahassee, FL 32307-3200 DUNS: 623751831 College of the Year - 1997 850/561-2956 voice 850/561-2461 fax ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ======================================================================
