Program Income (for awards made after January 2016)
Cost-sharing is no longer a requirement. Membership fees received by the Center are considered program income. At least 90% of the IUCRC program income must be used to support direct costs of the research, and up to 10% may be used to support indirect costs. Any unexpended program income remaining at the end of the grant must be remitted to NSF by crediting costs otherwise chargeable against the grant or if that is not possible returned to the NSF. Membership fees cannot be transferred from Phase to Phase but can be spent if a no cost extension is requested while NSF funds are still available.
The 2014 Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) requires that all awardee organizations submit a Program Income Reporting Sheet. Reporting instructions and Reporting Sheet are found here.
Cost-sharing (for awards prior to January 2016)
NSF issued a revised version of the Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), (NSF 15-1) which became effective for all proposals submitted or due on or after December 26, 2014. In addition, existing awards that receive a funding increment on or after December 26, 2014 are subject to NSF 15-1 and to the NSF Grant General Conditions (GC-1) which will be incorporated by reference into that funding amendment.
The PAPPG is comprised of documents relating to the Foundation's proposal and award process, including guidance on the preparation and submission of proposals to NSF and guidance on managing and monitoring the award and administration of grants and cooperative agreements made by the Foundation.
The PAPPG, in conjunction with GC-1, serves as the Foundation's implementation of 2 CFR § 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance). In addition to the significant changes to implement the Uniform Guidance, the PAPPG contained other important revisions and updates.
Please note that one significant change relates to required cost sharing reports. NSF now requires that awards with any mandatory cost sharing must document such cost sharing (on an annual and final basis), the Authorized Organizational Representative must certify that the amount is correct, and the cost sharing must be reported to NSF via use of NSF's electronic systems.
Step by step instructions for completing and submitting the required annual cost sharing report are found here. Please note that for existing awards that received a funding increment on or after December 26, 2014, NSF has entered "Administrative" certifications so that you do not need to submit prior certifications. You will only need to provide a certification for the most current period.
The Federal-wide requirements related to cost sharing can be found in 2 CFR § 200.306 "Cost Sharing or Matching." Chapter II.C.2 of the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) (Part I of the PAPPG) and Chapter II.C of the NSF Award and Administration Guide (AAG) (Part II of the PAPPG) provide information about NSF's cost sharing policies and requirements. Article 29 of GC-1 outlines grant conditions for cost sharing and cost sharing records.
Please keep in mind the following:
- Although annual reports are now required, the cost sharing commitment on Line M of the NSF-approved budget must only be met by the end of the award.
- Funding from another Federal agency cannot be used to meet the mandatory cost sharing commitment.
- Failure to meet the mandatory cost sharing commitment may result in the disallowance of some or all of the costs charged to the award; the subsequent recovery by NSF of some or all of the NSF funds provided under the award; and/or possible termination of the award.
If you need technical assistance with preparing and submitting the report, please contact the FastLane Help Desk by email at fastlane@nsf.gov.