NSF has specific statutory authority that authorizes other Federal Agencies to transfer funds to NSF and NSF to use those funds to provide support to scientific and engineering research or education. NSF recommends that agencies use this provision of the NSF Act of 1950 as amended (42 USC §1873(f)) as the statutory authority for the transfer of funds for IUCRCs.
Membership fees received via IAA are paid to the university via supplemental funding to an existing NSF grant. IUCRC grants are awarded via a competitive peer review process at NSF which eliminates the need for other federal agencies to hold a competitive procurement process. NSF cannot change the terms and conditions of the grant as a result of the IAA. Because NSF grants are not contracts, but are financial assistance awards, IAAs cannot be accepted that have acquisition or contractual requirements outlined or embedded in them, such as deliverables or reporting at intervals other than those of the original award.
In order to process your IAA request in a timely manner, you must know:
- The center(s) you want to join;
- The university receiving your membership; and,
- The cost of the membership.
Please note that NSF will not process IAA for centers approaching the end of their award or in No-Cost Extension status. It is incumbent upon you to ensure that the IUCRC you are trying to join is eligible to receive NSF supplemental funding to its NSF award.
Preparation Instructions
The following items should be sent via email, to the IUCRC Interagency processing team at: iucrcinteragency@nsf.gov.
The subject line should start with the words "IUCRC IAA Request for (insert IUCRC Center name)" followed by the agency's agreement number. This will help expedite initial processing and facilitate follow-up.
It is recommended that a draft of each document be sent to the IUCRC Interagency team for review prior to signatures.
G-Invoicing
NSF has begun the implementation of G-Invoicing, a new online platform developed by the Department of Treasury to initiate and settle Interagency Agreements (IAAs). All General Terms and Conditions (GT&Cs) (7600A) will be processed through G-Invoicing starting October 1, 2022 and new Orders (7600B/MIPR) starting October 31, 2022.
To assess readiness for G-Invoicing with NSF, please fill out the “NSF Trading Partner Readiness Intake Form” and send it to the IUCRC Interagency team at iucrcinteragency@nsf.gov and the IUCRC team will let you know whether your IAA will be processed using G-Invoicing or the paper form. If your agency is not ready for G-Invoicing, refer to the “IAA Paperwork” instructions.
Note: Please have two separate Order Lines for your Orders in G-Invoicing. One for Programmatic Cost and another for NSF’s Administrative Cost Recovery (ACR) Overhead fee.
IAA Paperwork
There are two variations of IAA paperwork the IUCRC IAA processing team will accept. They are as follows:
- Completed 7600A and 7600B forms. Please complete the highlighted areas in each form. For further 7600A/B Instructions please visit the U.S. Department of Treasury website.
- The following language MUST be included in Requesting Scope field (Block 11) of the 7600A AND Comments OR Bona Fide Need (Block 16 OR 76) of the 7600B.
Description: "Funds are to obtain membership and/or augment ongoing research projects at the IUCRC for (insert the name of the IUCRC) (insert Grant ID). Funds may be used to support research across all participating sites in the
IUCRC. Deliverables may include a report on expenditure of funds presented at each of the Center’s Industry Advisory Board meetings. NSF is authorized to apply 7.82% (based on the programmatic costs) overhead fee for administrative cost recovery for FY 2024 until further notice." Use the Administrative Cost Recovery (ACR) calculator to help compute the amount of money your agency should send to NSF. - The following language MUST be included in Servicing Clauses field (Block 20) of the 7600A.
Statutory Authority: "This is a non-acquisition/contract/procurement agreement being entered into pursuant to the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (42 USC §1873(f)). Acceptance is made with the understanding that funds will be made available pursuant to the terms and conditions of the NSF award and in accordance with the appropriation cited on the agreement." - The following language MUST be included Restrictions field (Block 14) and Servicing Clauses field (Block 20) of the 7600A.
"Funds from the other agency will be supplemental funding to an existing NSF grant. NSF cannot change the terms and conditions we impose on our grantees as a result of the IAA."
- The following language MUST be included in Requesting Scope field (Block 11) of the 7600A AND Comments OR Bona Fide Need (Block 16 OR 76) of the 7600B.
- Completed Agency Funding document (i.e. MIPR, NASA Form 523, Economy Act Form)
- The following language MUST be included in the ITEM DESCRIPTION SECTION.
Description: "Funds are to obtain membership and/or augment ongoing research projects at the IUCRC for (insert the name of the IUCRC). Funds may be used to support research across all participating sites in the IUCRC. Deliverables may include a report on expenditure of funds presented at each of the Center’s Industry Advisory Board meetings. NSF is authorized to apply 7.82% (based on the programmatic costs) overhead fee for administrative cost recovery for FY 2024 until further notice."
Statutory Authority: "This is a non-acquisition/contract/procurement agreement being entered into pursuant to the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (42 USC §1873(f)). Acceptance is made with the understanding that funds will be made available pursuant to the terms and conditions of the NSF award and in accordance with the appropriation cited on the agreement." - Your agency’s Agency Location Code (ALC)
- Your agency’s Treasury Account Symbol (TAS)
- The following language MUST be included in the ITEM DESCRIPTION SECTION.
OR
Billing
When funds from an IAA are applied to an NSF grant, billing must be cost reimbursable, and payment will be done via IPAC (Intra-Governmental Payment and Collection System) notification.
Occasionally, an obligated IAA may not have been billed and invoiced by the university and thus NSF is unable to bill the other agency. The university is responsible to ensure that the following steps have taken place:
- Requesting agency: Notifies both NSF (iucrcinteragency@nsf.gov) and the University that there is an outstanding amount against the IAA;
- University: Informs NSF's Cash Management Section that the amounts under the IAA have been expended; and,
- NSF's Accounting Operations Branch: Receives report from the Cash Management section and submits an invoice to the requesting agency.
Submission Deadline Notice
To ensure obligation of funds prior to the end of the fiscal year, IAAs must be submitted to the NSF IUCRC program no later than the Second Tuesday in July. All submissions sent after that date will be returned to the submitting agency if funds are due to expire at the end of the Fiscal Year. Submissions sent after the deadline can be held over until the new fiscal year if the funds are not due to expire until the end of the new fiscal year.
Timelines
- 15 to 30 days - to process an agency IAA request once NSF receives a complete and accurate IAA package as outlined in the Preparation Instructions above.
- 10 to 30 days after the IAA documents are processed - to process an IUCRC's request to obtain the funds coming from an agency.
Additional Information
If you have any questions about the IUCRC Interagency Agreement process, please contact the IUCRC IAA Processing Team at iucrcinteragency@nsf.gov.