5 U.S.C. 301 and 10 U.S.C. 113.
This part of the DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations:
(a) Provides general information about the Defense Grant and Agreement Regulatory System (DGARS).
(b) Sets forth general policies and procedures related to DoD Components' overall management of functions related to assistance and certain other nonprocurement instruments subject to the DGARS (
The Defense Grant and Agreement Regulatory System (DGARS) is the system of regulatory policies and procedures for the award and administration of DoD Components' assistance and other nonprocurement awards. DoD Directive 3210.6
The Defense Grant and Agreement Regulatory System (DGARS) applies to the following types of funding instruments awarded by DoD Components:
(a) All grants, cooperative agreements, and technology investment agreements.
(b) Other nonprocurement instruments, as needed to implement statutes, Executive orders, or other Federal Governmentwide rules that apply to those other nonprocurement instruments, as well as to grants and cooperative agreements.
The purposes of the DGARS are to provide uniform policies and procedures for DoD Components' awards, in order to meet DoD needs for:
(a) Efficient program execution, effective program oversight, and proper stewardship of Federal funds.
(b) Compliance with relevant statutes; Executive orders; and applicable guidance, such as Office of Management and Budget (OMB) circulars.
(c) Collection from DoD Components, retention, and dissemination of management and fiscal data related to awards.
The Director of Defense Research and Engineering, or his or her designee, develops and implements DGARS policies and procedures. He or she does so by issuing and maintaining the DoD publications that comprise the DGARS.
A DoD publication (DoD 3210.6-R
(a) The types of instruments that are subject to the DoDGARs vary from one
(b) Note that each portion of the DoDGARs identifies the types of instruments to which it applies. However, grants officers and agreements officers must exercise caution when determining the applicability of some Governmentwide rules that are included within the DoDGARs, because a term may be defined differently in a Governmentwide rule than it is defined elsewhere in the DoDGARs. One example is part 33 of the DoDGARs (32 CFR part 33), which contains administrative requirements for awards to State and local governments. That DoDGARs part is the DoD's codification of the Governmentwide rule implementing OMB Circular A-102.
(c) For convenience, the table in Appendix A to this part provides an overview of the applicability of the various portions of the DoDGARs.
The DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations provide uniform policies and procedures for the award and administration of DoD Components' awards. The DoDGARs are the primary DoD regulations for achieving the DGARS purposes described in § 21.210.
The Head of each DoD Component that makes or administers awards, or his or her designee, is responsible for ensuring compliance with the DoDGARs within that DoD Component.
Yes, Heads of DoD Components or their designees may issue regulations, procedures, or instructions to implement the DGARS or supplement the DoDGARs to satisfy needs that are specific to the DoD Component, as long as the regulations, procedures, or instructions do not impose additional costs or administrative burdens on recipients or potential recipients.
Yes, Heads of DoD Components or their designees must establish policies and procedures in areas where uniform policies and procedures throughout the DoD Component are required, such as for:
(a) Requesting class deviations from the DoDGARs (
(b) Designating one or more Grant Appeal Authorities to resolve claims, disputes, and appeals (
(c) Reporting data on assistance awards and programs, as required by 31 U.S.C. chapter 61 (
(d) Prescribing requirements for use and disposition of real property acquired under awards, if the DoD Component makes any awards to institutions of higher education or to other nonprofit organizations under which real property is acquired in whole or in part with Federal funds (
Unless the DoDGARs specify that they apply, policies and procedures in the following acquisition regulations that apply to procurement contracts do
(a) The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)(48 CFR parts 1-53).
(b) The Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS)(48 CFR parts 201-270).
(c) DoD Component supplements to the FAR and DFARS.
(a) The DoD publishes the DoDGARs in chapter I, subchapter C, Title 32 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and in a separate internal DoD document (DoD 3210.6-R). The DoD document is divided into parts, subparts, and sections, to parallel the CFR publication. Cross-references within the DoDGARs are stated as CFR citations (
(b) The DoD publishes updates to the DoDGARs in the
(c) A standing working group recommends revisions to the DoDGARs to the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E). The DDR&E, Director of Defense Procurement, and each Military Department must be represented on the working group. Other DoD Components that make or administer awards may also nominate representatives. The working group meets when necessary.
(a) The Head of the DoD Component or his or her designee may authorize individual deviations from the DoDGARs, which are deviations that affect only one award, if the deviations are not prohibited by statute, executive order or regulation.
(b) The Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E) or his or her designee must approve in advance any class deviation that affects more than one award. Note that OMB concurrence also is required for class deviations from two parts of the DoDGARs, 32 CFR parts 32 and 33, in accordance with 32 CFR 32.4 and 33.6, respectively.
(a) DoD Components must submit copies of justifications and agency approvals for individual deviations and written requests for class deviations to: Deputy Director of Defense Research and Engineering, ATTN: Basic Research, 3080 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-3080.
(b) Grants officers and agreements officers must maintain copies of requests and approvals for individual and class deviations in award files.
This subpart applies to grants, cooperative agreements, and technology investment agreements, which are legal instruments used to reflect assistance relationships between the United States Government and recipients.
This subpart describes the sources and flow of authority to make or administer assistance awards, and assigns the broad responsibilities associated with DoD Components' use of those instruments.
Yes, the use of an assistance instrument to carry out a program requires authorizing legislation. That is unlike the use of a procurement contract, for which Federal agencies have inherent, Constitutional authority.
No, the statutory authority described in § 21.410 need not specifically say that
DoD Components may use assistance instruments under a number of statutory authorities that fall into three categories:
(a)
(1) Authority under 10 U.S.C. 2391 to award grants or cooperative agreements to help State and local governments alleviate serious economic impacts of defense program changes (
(2) Authority under 10 U.S.C. 2413 to enter into cooperative agreements with entities that furnish procurement technical assistance to businesses.
(b)
(c)
(1) A federal statute authorizing a program that is consistent with an assistance relationship (
(2) Exemptions requested by the Department of Defense and granted by the Office of Management and Budget under 31 U.S.C. 6307, as described in 32 CFR 22.220.
The Head of a DoD Component, or his or her designee, may delegate to the heads of contracting activities (HCAs) within the Component, that Component's authority to make and administer awards, to appoint grants officers and agreements officers (
When designated by the Head of the DoD Component or his or her designee (see 32 CFR 21.425), the head of the awarding or administering activity (
Yes, each DoD Component that awards grants or enters into cooperative agreements must have a formal process (see § 21.425) for selecting and appointing grants officers and for terminating their appointments. Similarly, each DoD Component that awards or administers technology investment agreements must have a process for selecting and appointing agreements officers and for terminating their appointments.
In selecting grants officers and agreements officers, DoD Components must use the following minimum standards:
(a) In selecting a grants officer, the appointing official must judge whether the candidate has the necessary experience, training, education, business acumen, judgment, and knowledge of assistance instruments and contracts to function effectively as a grants officer. The appointing official also must take those attributes of the candidate into account when deciding the complexity and dollar value of the grants and cooperative agreements to be assigned.
(b) In selecting an agreements officer, the appointing official must consider all of the same factors as in paragraph (a) of this section. In addition, the appointing official must consider the candidate's ability to function in the less structured environment of technology investment agreements, where the rules provide more latitude and the individual must have a greater capacity for exercising judgment. Agreements officers therefore should be individuals who have demonstrated expertise in executing complex assistance and acquisition instruments.
A statement of a grants officer's or agreements officer's appointment:
(a) Must be in writing.
(b) Must clearly state the limits of the individual's authority, other than limits contained in applicable laws or regulations. Information on those limits of a grants officer's or agreements officer's authority must be readily available to the public and agency personnel.
(c) May, if the individual is a contracting officer, be incorporated into his or her statement of appointment as a contracting officer (
A termination of a grants officer's or agreements officer's authority:
(a) Must be in writing, unless the written statement of appointment provides for automatic termination.
(b) May not be retroactive.
(c) May be integrated into a written termination of the individual's appointment as a contracting officer, as appropriate.
Only grants officers are authorized to sign, administer, or terminate grants or cooperative agreements (other than technology investment agreements) on behalf of the Department of Defense. Similarly, only agreements officers may sign, administer, or terminate technology investment agreements.
Grants officers and agreements officers may bind the Government only to the extent of the authority delegated
Grants officers and agreements officers should be allowed wide latitude to exercise judgment in performing their responsibilities, which are to ensure that:
(a) Individual awards are used effectively in the execution of DoD programs, and are made and administered in accordance with applicable laws, Executive orders, regulations, and DoD policies.
(b) Sufficient funds are available for obligation.
(c) Recipients of awards receive impartial, fair, and equitable treatment.
This subpart prescribes policies and procedures for compiling and reporting data related to DoD awards and programs that are subject to information reporting requirements of 31 U.S.C. chapter 61. That chapter of the U.S. Code requires the Office of Management and Budget to maintain a Governmentwide information system to collect data on Federal agencies' domestic assistance awards and programs.
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) is a Governmentwide compilation of information about domestic assistance programs. It covers all domestic assistance programs and activities, regardless of the number of awards made under the program, the total dollar value of assistance provided, or the duration. In addition to programs using grants and agreements, covered programs include those providing assistance in other forms, such as payments in lieu of taxes or indirect assistance resulting from Federal operations.
The Federal Program Information Act (31 U.S.C. 6101 through 6106), as implemented through OMB Circular A-89,
(a) Each DoD Component that provides domestic financial assistance must:
(1) Report to the Director of Information, Operations and Reports, Washington Headquarters Services (DIOR, WHS) all new programs and changes as they occur or as the DoD Component submits its annual updates to existing CFDA information.
(2) Identify to the DIOR, WHS a point-of-contact who will be responsible for reporting the program information and for responding to inquiries related to it.
(b) The DIOR, WHS is the Department of Defense's single office for collecting, compiling and reporting such program information to the OMB and GSA.
Data from the Defense Assistance Awards Data System (DAADS) are used to provide:
(a) DoD inputs to meet statutory requirements for Federal Governmentwide reporting of data related to obligations of funds by assistance instrument.
(b) A basis for meeting Governmentwide requirements to report to the
(c) Information to support policy formulation and implementation and to meet management oversight requirements related to the use of awards.
The Deputy Director, Defense Research and Engineering (DDDR&E), or his or her designee, issues necessary policy guidance for the Defense Assistance Awards Data System.
The Director of Information Operations and Reports, Washington Headquarters Services (DIOR, WHS), consistent with guidance issued by the DDDR&E:
(a) Processes DAADS information on a quarterly basis and prepares recurring and special reports using such information.
(b) Prepares, updates, and disseminates instructions for reporting information to the DAADS. The instructions are to specify procedures, formats, and editing processes to be used by DoD Components, including record layout, submission deadlines, media, methods of submission, and error correction schedules.
Each DoD Component must have a central point for collecting DAADS information from contracting activities within that DoD Component. The central points are as follows:
(a) For the Army: As directed by the U.S. Army Contracting Support Agency.
(b) For the Navy: As directed by the Office of Naval Research.
(c) For the Air Force: As directed by the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, Acquisition Contracting Policy and Implementation Division (SAF/AQCP).
(d) For the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Defense Agencies, and DoD Field Activities: Each Defense Agency must identify a central point for collecting and reporting DAADS information to the DIOR, WHS, at the address given in § 21.555(a). DIOR, WHS serves as the central point for offices and activities within the Office of the Secretary of Defense and for DoD Field Activities.
The office that serves, in accordance with § 21.535, as the central point for collecting DAADS information from contracting activities within each DoD Component must:
(a) Establish internal procedures to ensure reporting by contracting activities that make awards subject to 31 U.S.C. chapter 61.
(b) Collect information required by DD Form 2566,
(c) Submit to the DIOR, WHS, any recommended changes to the DAADS.
Yes, DoD Components' central points must collect and report the data required by the DD Form 2566 for each individual action that involves the obligation or deobligation of Federal funds for an award that is subject to 31 U.S.C. chapter 61.
Yes, DoD Components' central points must report each action as an obligation or deobligation under a specific programmatic listing in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA, see § 21.505). The programmatic listing to be shown is the one that provided the funds being obligated or deobligated. For example, if a grants officer or agreements officer in one
DoD Components' central points must report:
(a) On a quarterly basis to DIOR, WHS. For the first three quarters of the Federal fiscal year, the data are due by close-of-business (COB) on the 15th day after the end of the quarter (
(b) On a floppy diskette or by other means permitted either by the instructions described in § 21.530(b) or by agreement with the DIOR, WHS. The data must be reported in the format specified in the instructions.
Yes, DoD Components must assign identifying numbers to all awards subject to this subpart, including grants, cooperative agreements, and technology investment agreements. The uniform numbering system parallels the procurement instrument identification (PII) numbering system specified in 48 CFR 204.70 (in the “Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement”), as follows:
(a) The first six alphanumeric characters of the assigned number must be identical to those specified by 48 CFR 204.7003(a)(1) to identify the DoD Component and contracting activity.
(b) The seventh and eighth positions must be the last two digits of the fiscal year in which the number is assigned to the grant, cooperative agreement, or other nonprocurement instrument.
(c) The 9th position must be a number:
(1) “1” for grants.
(2) “2” for cooperative agreements, including technology investment agreements that are cooperative agreements (see Appendix B to 32 CFR part 37).
(3) “3” for other nonprocurement instruments, including technology investment agreements that are not cooperative agreements.
(d) The 10th through 13th positions must be the serial number of the instrument. DoD Components and contracting activities need not follow any specific pattern in assigning these numbers and may create multiple series of letters and numbers to meet internal needs for distinguishing between various sets of awards.
The acquiring (by purchase, lease, or barter) of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the United States Government (see more detailed definition at 48 CFR 2.101). In accordance with 31 U.S.C. 6303, procurement contracts are the appropriate legal instruments for acquiring such property or services.
An official with the authority to enter into, administer, and/or terminate technology investment agreements.
The transfer of a thing of value to a recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States (
A grant, cooperative agreement, technology investment agreement, or other nonprocurement instrument subject to one or more parts of the DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations (
See the definition for procurement contract in this subpart.
An activity to which the Head of a DoD Component has delegated broad authority regarding acquisition functions, pursuant to 48 CFR 1.601.
A person with the authority to enter into, administer, and/or terminate contracts and make related determinations and findings. A more detailed definition of the term appears at 48 CFR 2.101.
A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6305, is used to enter into the same kind of relationship as a grant (see definition “grant”), except that substantial involvement is expected between the Department of Defense and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the cooperative agreement. The term does not include “cooperative research and development agreements” as defined in 15 U.S.C. 3710a.
The issuance or use of a policy or procedure that is inconsistent with the DoDGARs.
The Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Military Departments, the Defense Agencies, and DoD Field Activities.
A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6304, is used to enter into a relationship:
(a) Of which the principal purpose is to transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States, rather than to acquire property or services for the Department of Defense's direct benefit or use.
(b) In which substantial involvement is not expected between the Department of Defense and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the grant.
An official with the authority to enter into, administer, and/or terminate grants or cooperative agreements.
A legal instrument other than a procurement contract. Examples include instruments of financial assistance, such as grants or cooperative agreements, and those of technical assistance, which provide services in lieu of money.
A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6303, reflects a relationship between the Federal Government and a State, a local government, or other recipient when the principal purpose of the instrument is to acquire property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government. See the more detailed definition for contract at 48 CFR 2.101.
An organization or other entity receiving an award from a DoD Component.
A special class of assistance instruments used to increase involvement of commercial firms in defense research programs and for other purposes related to integrating the commercial and defense sectors of the nation's technology and industrial base. Technology investment agreements include one kind of cooperative agreement with provisions tailored for involving commercial firms, as well as one kind of other assistance transaction. Technology investment agreements are described more fully in 32 CFR part 37.
5 U.S.C. 301 and 10 U.S.C. 113.
(a) This part outlines grants officers' and DoD Components' responsibilities related to the award and administration of grants and cooperative agreements.
(b) In doing so, it also supplements other parts of the DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations (DoDGARs) that are either Governmentwide rules or DoD implementation of Governmentwide guidance in Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circulars. Those other parts of the DoDGARs, which are referenced as appropriate in this part, are:
(1) Governmentwide rules on debarment, suspension and drug-free workplace requirements, in 32 CFR part 25.
(2) The Governmentwide rule on lobbying restrictions, in 32 CFR part 28.
(3) Administrative requirements for grants and agreements awarded to specific types of recipients:
(i) For State and local governmental organizations, in the Governmentwide rule at 32 CFR part 33.
(ii) For institutions of higher education and other nonprofit organizations, at 32 CFR part 32.
(iii) For for-profit organizations, at 32 CFR part 34.
(c) The organization of this part parallels the award and administration process, from pre-award through post-award matters. It therefore is organized in the same manner as the parts of the DoDGARs (32 CFR parts 32, 33, and 34) that prescribe administrative requirements for specific types of recipients.
Other than the terms defined in this section, terms used in this part are defined in 32 CFR part 21, subpart F.
(1) Research-related, science and engineering education, including graduate fellowships and research traineeships.
(2) Research instrumentation and other activities designed to enhance the infrastructure for science and engineering research.
(1) That the debtor fails to pay by the date specified in the initial written notice from the agency owed the debt,
(2) With respect to which the debtor has elected not to exercise any available appeals or has exhausted all agency appeal processes.
This subpart provides the bases for determining the appropriate type of instrument in a given situation.
Before using a grant or cooperative agreement, the grants officer shall make a positive judgment that an assistance instrument, rather than a procurement contract, is the appropriate instrument, based on the following:
(a)
(i) When a statute specifically provides otherwise; or
(ii) When an exemption is granted, in accordance with § 22.220.
(2) For research and development, the appropriate use of grants and cooperative agreements therefore is almost exclusively limited to the performance of selected basic, applied, and advanced research projects. Development projects nearly always shall be performed by contract or other acquisition transaction because their principal purpose is the acquisition of specific deliverable items (e.g., prototypes or other hardware) for the benefit of the Department of Defense.
(b)
(1) Fee or profit is to be paid to the recipient of the instrument; or
(2) The instrument is to be used to carry out a program where fee or profit is necessary to achieving program objectives.
(a) Before a grant or cooperative agreement may be used, the grants officer must:
(1) Identify the program statute, the statute that authorizes the DoD Component to carry out the activity the principal purpose of which is assistance (see 32 CFR 21.410 through 21.420.
(2) Review the program statute to determine if it contains requirements that affect the:
(i) Solicitation, selection, and award processes. For example, program statutes may authorize assistance to be provided only to certain types of recipients; may require that recipients meet certain other criteria to be eligible to receive assistance; or require that a specific process shall be used to review recipients' proposals.
(ii) Terms and conditions of the award. For example, some program statutes require a specific level of cost sharing or matching.
(b) The grants officer shall ensure that the award of DoD appropriations through a grant or cooperative agreement for a research project meets the standards of 10 U.S.C. 2358, DoD's broad authority to carry out research, even if the research project is authorized under a statutory authority other than 10 U.S.C. 2358. The standards of 10 U.S.C. 2358 are that, in the opinion of the Head of the DoD Component or his or her designee, the projects must be:
(1) Necessary to the responsibilities of the DoD Component.
(2) Related to weapons systems and other military needs or of potential interest to the DoD Component.
(a) Once a grants officer judges, in accordance with §§ 22.205 and 22.210,
(1) Grants shall be used when the grants officer judges that substantial involvement is not expected between the Department of Defense and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated in the agreement.
(2) Cooperative agreements shall be used when the grants officer judges that substantial involvement is expected. The grants officer should document the nature of the substantial involvement that led to selection of a cooperative agreement. Under no circumstances are cooperative agreements to be used solely to obtain the stricter controls typical of a contract.
(b) In judging whether substantial involvement is expected, grants officers should recognize that “substantial involvement” is a relative, rather than an absolute, concept, and that it is primarily based on programmatic factors, rather than requirements for grant or cooperative agreement award or administration. For example, substantial involvement may include collaboration, participation, or intervention in the program or activity to be performed under the award.
Under 31 U.S.C. 6307, “the Director of the Office of Management and Budget may exempt an agency transaction or program” from the requirements of 31 U.S.C. chapter 63. Grants officers shall request such exemptions only in exceptional circumstances. Each request shall specify for which individual transaction or program the exemption is sought; the reasons for requesting an exemption; the anticipated consequences if the exemption is not granted; and the implications for other agency transactions and programs if the exemption is granted. The procedures for requesting exemptions shall be:
(a) In cases where 31 U.S.C. chapter 63 would require use of a contract and an exemption from that requirement is desired:
(1) The grants officer shall submit a request for exemption, through appropriate channels established by his or her DoD Component (see 32 CFR 21.320(a)), to the Director of Defense Procurement (DDP).
(2) The DDP, after coordination with the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E), shall transmit the request to OMB or notify the DoD Component that the request has been disapproved.
(b) In other cases, the DoD Component shall submit a request for the exemption through appropriate channels to the DDR&E. The DDR&E shall transmit the request to OMB or notify the DoD Component that the request has been disapproved.
(c) Where an exemption is granted, documentation of the approval shall be maintained in the award file.
This subpart establishes DoD policy and implements statutes related to the use of competitive procedures in the award of grants and cooperative agreements.
(a) It is DoD policy to maximize use of competition in the award of grants and cooperative agreements. This also conforms with:
(1) 31 U.S.C. 6301(3), which encourages the use of competition in awarding all grants and cooperative agreements.
(2) 10 U.S.C. 2374(a), which sets out Congressional policy that any new grant for research, development, test, or evaluation be awarded through merit-based selection procedures.
(b) Grants officers shall use merit-based, competitive procedures (as defined by § 22.315) to award grants and cooperative agreements:
(1) In every case where required by statute (e.g., 10 U.S.C. 2361, as implemented in § 22.310, for certain grants to institutions of higher education).
(2) To the maximum extent practicable in all cases where not required by statute.
(a)
(1)
(2)
(b)
(i) In the case of a new grant for research and development, there is a statute meeting the criteria in paragraph (c)(1) of this section;
(ii) In the case of a follow-on grant for research and development, or of a grant for the construction of research or other facilities, there is a statute meeting the criteria in paragraph (c)(2) of this section; and
(iii) The Secretary of Defense submits to Congress a written notice of intent to make the grant. The grant may not be awarded until 180 calendar days have elapsed after the date on which Congress received the notice of intent. Contracting activities must submit a draft notice of intent with supporting documentation through channels to the Deputy Director, Defense Research and Engineering.
(2) Because subsequently enacted statutes may, by their terms, impose different requirements than set out in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, grants officers shall consult legal counsel on a case-by-case basis, when grants for the performance of research and development or for the construction of research or other facilities are to be awarded to institutions of higher education by other than merit-based competitive procedures.
(c)
(1)
(i) Identifies the particular institution of higher education involved;
(ii) States that such provision of law modifies or supersedes the provisions of 10 U.S.C. 2361 (a requirement that applies only if the statute authorizing or requiring award by other than competitive procedures was enacted after September 30, 1989); and
(iii) States that the award to the institution of higher education involved is required by such provision of law to be made in contravention of the policy set forth in 10 U.S.C. 2374(a).
(2)
(i) Identifies the particular institution of higher education involved; and
(ii) States that such provision of law modifies or supersedes the provisions of 10 U.S.C. 2361 (a requirement that applies only if the statute authorizing or requiring award by other than competitive procedures was enacted after September 30, 1989).
(3)
(A) Identifies the particular entity involved;
(B) States that the award to that entity is required by such provision of law to be made in contravention of the policy set forth in 10 U.S.C. 2374(a).
(ii)
(A) Investigate, examine, or experiment upon any subject of science or art of significance to the Department of Defense or any Military Department; and
(B) Report on such matters to the Congress or any agency of the Federal Government.
Competitive procedures are methods that encourage participation in DoD programs by a broad base of the most highly qualified performers. These procedures are characterized by competition among as many eligible proposers as possible, with a published or widely disseminated notice. Competitive procedures include, as a minimum:
(a) Notice to prospective proposers. The notice may be a notice of funding availability or Broad Agency Announcement published in the
(1) Programmatic area(s) of interest, in which proposals or applications are sought.
(2) Eligibility criteria for potential recipients (see subpart D of this part).
(3) Criteria that will be used to select the applications or proposals that will be funded, and the method for conducting the evaluation.
(4) The type(s) of funding instruments (e.g., grants, cooperative agreements, other assistance instruments, or procurement contracts) that are anticipated to be awarded pursuant to the announcement.
(5) Instructions for preparation and submission of a proposal or application, including the time by which it must be submitted.
(b) At least two eligible, prospective proposers.
(c) Impartial review of the merits of applications or proposals received in response to the notice, using the evaluation method and selection criteria described in the notice. For research and development awards, in order to be considered as part of a competitive procedure, the two principal selection criteria, unless statute provides otherwise, must be the:
(1) Technical merits of the proposed research and development; and
(2) Potential relationship of the proposed research and development to Department of Defense missions.
Some programs may be competed for programmatic or policy reasons among specific classes of potential recipients. An example would be a program to enhance U.S. capabilities for academic research and research-coupled graduate education in defense-critical, science and engineering disciplines, a program that would be competed specifically among institutions of higher education. All such special competitions shall be consistent with program representations in the President's budget submission to Congress and with subsequent Congressional authorizations and appropriations for the programs.
Increasing the ability of HBCUs and MIs to participate in federally funded, university programs is an objective of Executive Order 12876 (3 CFR, 1993 Comp., p. 671) and 10 U.S.C. 2323. Grants officers shall include appropriate provisions in Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) or other announcements for programs in which awards to institutions of higher education are anticipated, in order to promote participation of HBCUs and MIs in such programs. Also, whenever practicable, grants officers shall reserve appropriate programmatic areas for exclusive competition among HBCUs and MIs when preparing announcements for such programs.
The purpose of this subpart is to specify policies and procedures for grants officers' determination of recipient qualifications prior to award.
(a)
(b)
The grants officer is responsible for determining a recipient's qualification prior to award. The grants officer's signature on the award document shall signify his or her determination that either:
(a) The potential recipient meets the standards in § 22.415 and is qualified to receive the grant or cooperative agreement; or
(b) An award is justified to a recipient that does not fully meet the standards, pursuant to § 22.405(b). In such cases, grants officers shall document in the award file the rationale for making an award to a recipient that does not fully meet the standards.
To be qualified, a potential recipient must:
(a) Have the management capability and adequate financial and technical resources, given those that would be made available through the grant or cooperative agreement, to execute the program of activities envisioned under the grant or cooperative agreement.
(b) Have a satisfactory record of executing such programs or activities (if a prior recipient of an award).
(c) Have a satisfactory record of integrity and business ethics.
(d) Be otherwise qualified and eligible to receive a grant or cooperative agreement under applicable laws and regulations (see § 22.420(c)).
(a) The appropriate method to be used and amount of effort to be expended in deciding the qualification of a potential recipient will vary. In deciding on the method and level of effort, the grants officer should consider factors such as:
(1) DoD's past experience with the recipient;
(2) Whether the recipient has previously received cost-type contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements from the Federal Government; and
(3) The amount of the prospective award and complexity of the project to be carried out under the award.
(b) There is no DoD-wide requirement to obtain a pre-award credit report, audit, or any other specific piece of information. On a case-by-case basis, the grants officer will decide whether there is a need to obtain any such information to assist in deciding whether the recipient meets the standards in § 22.415 (a), (b), and (c).
(1) Should the grants officer in a particular case decide that a pre-award credit report, audit, or survey is needed, he or she should consult first with the appropriate grants administration office (identified in § 22.710), and decide whether pre-existing surveys or audits of the recipient, such as those of the recipient's internal control systems under OMB Circular A-133
(2) If, after consulting with the grants administration office, the grants officer decides to obtain a credit report, audit, or other information, and
(i) The grants officer shall take such information into account when determining whether the potential recipient is qualified with respect to the grant or cooperative agreement; and
(ii) If the grants officer decides to make the award to the recipient, unless there are compelling reasons to do otherwise, the grants officer shall delay the award of the grant or cooperative agreement until payment is made or satisfactory arrangements are made to repay the debt.
(c) In deciding whether a recipient is otherwise qualified and eligible in accordance with the standard in § 22.415(d), the grants officer shall ensure that the potential recipient:
(1) Is not identified on the Governmentwide “List of Parties Excluded from Federal Procurement and Nonprocurement Programs” as being debarred, suspended, or otherwise ineligible to receive the award. The grants officer shall check the list of such parties for:
(i) Potential recipients of prime awards, as described at 32 CFR 25.505(d);
(ii) A recipient's principals (e.g., officers, directors, or other key employees, as defined at 32 CFR 25.105); and
(iii) Potential recipients of subawards, where DoD Component approval of such principals or lower-tier recipients is required under the terms of the award (see 32 CFR 25.505(e)).
(2) Has provided all certifications and assurances required by Federal statute, Executive order, or codified regulation, unless they are to be addressed in award terms and conditions at the time of award (see § 22.510).
(3) Meets any eligibility criteria that may be specified in the statute authorizing the specific program under which the award is being made (see § 22.210(a)(2)).
(d) Grants officers shall obtain each recipient's Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN, which may be the Social Security Number for an individual and Employer Identification Number for a business or non-profit entity) and notify the recipient that the TIN is being obtained for purposes of collecting and reporting on any delinquent amounts that may arise out of the recipient's relationship with the Government. Obtaining the TIN and so notifying the recipient is a statutory requirement of 31 U.S.C. 7701, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (section 31001(i)(1), Pub. L. 104-134).
The purpose of this subpart is to supplement other regulations that implement national policy requirements, to the extent that it is necessary to provide additional guidance to DoD grants officers. The other regulations that implement national policy requirements include:
(a) The other parts of the DoDGARs (32 CFR parts 32, 33, and 34) that implement the Governmentwide guidance in OMB Circulars A-102
(b) DoD regulations other than the DoDGARs.
(c) Other Federal agencies' regulations.
(a)
(2)
(ii) Whenever possible, and to the extent consistent with statute and codified regulation, grants officers should identify the certifications that are required for the particular type of recipient and program, and consolidate them into a single certification provision that cites them by reference.
(A) Appendix A to this part lists the common certifications and cites their applicability. Because some certifications (e.g., the certification on lobbying in Appendix A to this part) are required by law to be submitted at the time of proposal, rather than at the time of award, Appendix A to this part includes language that may be used for incorporating common certifications by reference into a proposal.
(B) If a grants officer elects to have proposers incorporate certifications by reference into their proposals, he or she must do so in one of the two following ways. When required by statute or codified regulation, the solicitation must include the full text of the certifications that proposers are to provide by reference. In other cases, the grants officer may include language in the solicitation that informs the proposers where the full text may be found (e.g., in documents or computer network sites that are readily available to the public) and offers to provide it to proposers upon request.
(C) Grants officers may incorporate certifications by reference in award documents when doing so is consistent with statute and codified regulation. Note that a statute requires submission of the lobbying certification in Appendix A to this part at the time of proposal, and that 32 CFR 25.510(a) requires submission of certifications regarding debarment and suspension at the time of proposal. The provision that a grants officer would use to incorporate certifications in award documents, when consistent with statute and codified regulation, would be similar to the provision in Appendix A to this part, except that it would be modified to state that the recipient is providing the required certifications by signing the award document or by accepting funds under the award.
(b)
An annual appropriations act can include general provisions stating national policy requirements that apply to the use of funds (e.g., obligation through a grant or cooperative agreement) appropriated by the act. Because these requirements are of limited duration (the period during which a given year's appropriations are available for obligation), and because they can vary from year to year and from one agency's appropriations act to another agency's, the grants officer must know the agency(ies) and fiscal year(s) of the appropriations being obligated by a given grant or cooperative agreement, and may need to consult legal counsel if he or she does not know the requirements applicable to those appropriations.
(a)
(b)
(1)
(2)
(c)
(d)
(2)
(3)
(e)
(1) Not award any grant or cooperative agreement to an institution of higher education that has been identified pursuant to the procedures of 32 CFR part 216. Such institutions are identified on the Governmentwide “List of Parties Excluded from Federal Procurement and Nonprocurement Programs,” as being ineligible to receive awards of DoD funds (note that 32 CFR 25.505(d) requires the grants officer to check the list prior to determining that a recipient is qualified to receive an award).
(2) [Reserved]
(3) Not consent to any subaward of DoD funds to such an organization, under a grant or cooperative agreement to any recipient, if such subaward requires the grants officer's consent.
(4) Include the clause in paragraph (f) of this section in each grant or cooperative agreement with an institution of
(5) If an institution of higher education refuses to accept the clause in paragraph (f) of this section:
(i) Determine that the institution is not qualified with respect to the award. The grants officer may award to an alternative recipient.
(ii) Transmit the name of the institution, through appropriate channels, to the Director for Accession Policy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management Policy, OASD(FMP), 4000 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-4000. This will allow OASD(FMP) to decide whether to initiate an evaluation of the institution under 32 CFR part 216, to determine whether it is an institution that has a policy or practice described in paragraph (c) of this section.
(f)
Grants officers shall include appropriate award terms or conditions, if a recipient's activities under an award will be subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3500, et seq.):
(a) Generally, the Act only applies to Federal agencies—it requires agencies to obtain clearance from the Office of Management and Budget before collecting information using forms, schedules, questionnaires, or other methods calling either for answers to:
(1) Identical questions from ten or more persons other than agencies, instrumentalities, or employees of the United States.
(2) Questions from agencies, instrumentalities, or employees of the United States which are to be used for statistical compilations of general public interest.
(b) The Act applies to similar collections of information by recipients of grants or cooperative agreements only when:
(1) A recipient collects information at the specific request of the awarding Federal agency; or
(2) The terms and conditions of the award require specific approval by the agency of the information collection or the collection procedures.
(a)
(1) The metric system is the preferred measurement system for U.S. trade and commerce.
(2) The metric system of measurement will be used, to the extent economically feasible, in federal agencies' procurements, grants, and other business-related activities.
(3) Metric implementation shall not be required to the extent that such use is likely to cause significant inefficiencies or loss of markets to United States firms.
(b)
This subpart sets forth grants officers' responsibilities relating to the award document and other actions at the time of award.
At the time of award, the grants officer is responsible for ensuring that:
(a) The award instrument contains the appropriate terms and conditions, in accordance with § 22.610.
(b) Information about the award is provided to the office responsible for preparing reports for the Defense Assistance Award Data System (DAADS), to ensure timely and accurate reporting of data required by 31 U.S.C. 6101-6106 (see 32 CFR part 21, subpart E).
(c)(1) In addition to the copy of the award document provided to the recipient, a copy is forwarded to the office designated to administer the grant or cooperative agreement, and another copy is forwarded to the finance and accounting office designated to make the payments to the recipient.
(2) For any award subject to the electronic funds transfer (EFT) requirement described in § 22.810(b)(2), the grants officer shall include a prominent notification of that fact on the first page of the copies forwarded to the recipient, the administrative grants officer, and the finance and accounting office. On the first page of the copy forwarded to the recipient, the grants officer also shall include a prominent notification that the recipient, to be paid, must submit a Payment Information Form (Standard Form SF-3881
(a) Each award document shall include terms and conditions that:
(1) Address programmatic requirements (e.g., a statement of work or other appropriate terms or conditions that describe the specific goals and objectives of the project). The grants officer shall develop such terms and conditions in coordination with program officials.
(2) Provide for the recipient's compliance with:
(i) Pertinent Federal statutes or Executive orders that apply broadly to Federal or DoD assistance awards.
(ii) Any program-specific requirements that are prescribed in the program statute (see § 22.210(a)(2)), or appropriation-specific requirements that are stated in the pertinent Congressional appropriations (see § 22.515).
(iii) Pertinent portions of the DoDGARs or other Federal regulations, including those that implement the Federal statutes or Executive orders described in paragraphs (a)(2) (i) and (ii) of this section.
(3) Specify the grants officer's instructions for post-award administration, for any matter where the post-award administration provisions in 32 CFR part 32, 33, or 34 give the grants officer options for handling the matter. For example, under 32 CFR 32.24(b), the grants officers must choose among possible methods for the recipient's disposition of program income. It is essential that the grants officer identify the option selected in each case, to provide clear instructions to the recipient and the grants officer responsible for post-award administration of the grant or cooperative agreement.
(b) To assist grants officers:
(1) Appendix B to this part provides model clauses to implement certain Federal statutes, Executive orders, and regulations (see paragraph (a)(2)(i) of this section) that frequently apply to DoD grants and cooperative agreements. Grants officers may incorporate the model clauses into award terms and conditions, as appropriate. It should be noted that Appendix B to this part is an aid, and not an exhaustive list of all requirements that apply in all cases. Depending on the circumstances of a given award, other statutes, Executive orders, or codified
(2) Appendix C to this part is a list of administrative requirements that apply to awards to different types of recipients. It also identifies post-award administration issues that the grants officer must address in the award terms and conditions.
This subpart prescribes policies and procedures for administering grants and cooperative agreements. It does so in conjunction with 32 CFR parts 32, 33, and 34, which prescribe administrative requirements for particular types of recipients.
(a) DoD policy is to have each recipient deal with a single office, to the maximum extent practicable, for post-award administration of its grants and cooperative agreements. This reduces burdens on recipients that can result when multiple DoD offices separately administer grants and cooperative agreements they award to a given recipient. It also minimizes unnecessary duplication of field administration services.
(b) To further reduce burdens on recipients, the office responsible for performing field administration services for grants and cooperative agreements to a particular recipient shall be, to the maximum extent practicable, the same office that is assigned responsibility for performing field administration services for contracts awarded to that recipient.
(c) Contracting activities and grants officers therefore shall use cross-servicing arrangements whenever practicable and, to the maximum extent possible, delegate responsibility for post-award administration to the cognizant grants administration offices identified in § 22.710.
In accordance with the policy stated in § 22.705(b), the DoD offices (referred to in this part as “grants administration offices”) that are assigned responsibility for performing field administration services for grants and cooperative agreements are (see the “DoD Directory of Contract Administration Services Components,” DLAH 4105.4,
(a) Regional offices of the Office of Naval Research, for grants and cooperative agreements with:
(1) Institutions of higher education and laboratories affiliated with such institutions, to the extent that such organizations are subject to the university cost principles in OMB Circular A-21.
(2) Nonprofit organizations that are subject to the cost principles in OMB Circular A-122,
(b) Field offices of the Defense Contract Management Command, for grants and cooperative agreements with all other entities, including:
(1) For-profit organizations.
(2) Nonprofit organizations identified in Attachment C of OMB Circular A-122 that are subject to for-profit cost principles in 48 CFR part 31.
(3) Nonprofit organizations subject to the cost principles in OMB Circular A-122, if their principal business with the Department of Defense is other than research and development.
(4) State and local governments.
The primary responsibility of cognizant grants administration offices shall be to advise and assist grants officers and recipients prior to and after award, and to help ensure that recipients fulfill all requirements in law, regulation, and award terms and conditions. Specific functions include:
(a) Conducting reviews and coordinating reviews, audits, and audit requests. This includes:
(1) Advising grants officers on the extent to which audits by independent auditors (i.e., public accountants or Federal auditors) have provided the information needed to carry out their responsibilities. If a recipient has had an independent audit in accordance with OMB Circular A-133, and the audit report disclosed no material weaknesses in the recipient's financial management and other management and control systems, additional preaward or closeout audits usually will not be needed (see §§ 22.420(b) and 22.825(b)).
(2) Performing pre-award surveys, when requested by a grants officer, after providing advice described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section.
(3) Reviewing recipients' systems and compliance with Federal requirements, in coordination with any reviews and compliance audits performed by independent auditors under OMB Circular A-133, or in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award. This includes:
(i) Reviewing recipients' financial management, property management, and purchasing systems, to determine the adequacy of such systems.
(ii) Determining that recipients have drug-free workplace programs, as required under 32 CFR part 25.
(4) Notifying the Office of the Assistant Inspector General for Policy and Oversight (OAIG(P&O)), 400 Army-Navy Drive, Arlington, VA 22202, if either of the following is not available within a reasonable period of time (e.g., six months) after the date on which a recipient of DoD grants and agreements was to have submitted its audit report under OMB Circular A-133 to the OAIG(P&O):
(i) The recipient's audit report under OMB Circular A-133.
(ii) The OAIG(P&O)'s desk review of the recipient's audit report, or a letter stating that the OAIG(P&O) has decided not to conduct a desk review.
(b) Performing property administration services for Government-owned property, and for any property acquired by a recipient, with respect to which the recipient has further obligations to the Government.
(c) Ensuring timely submission of required reports.
(d) Executing administrative closeout procedures.
(e) Establishing recipients' indirect cost rates, where the Department of Defense is the cognizant or oversight Federal agency with the responsibility for doing so.
(f) Performing other administration functions (e.g., receiving recipients' payment requests and transmitting approved payment authorizations to payment offices) as delegated by applicable cross-servicing agreements or letters of delegation.
This subpart sets forth grants officers' and DoD Components' responsibilities for post-award administration, by providing DoD-specific requirements on payments; debt collection; claims, disputes and appeals; and closeout audits.
Grants officers responsible for post-award administration of grants and cooperative agreements shall administer such awards in accordance with the following parts of the DoDGARs, as supplemented by this subpart:
(a)
(1) For awards to domestic institutions of higher education and other nonprofit organizations, requirements are specified in 32 CFR part 32, which is the DoD implementation of OMB Circular A-110.
(2) For awards to State and local governments, requirements are specified in 32 CFR part 33, which is the DoD codification of the Governmentwide common rule to implement OMB Circular A-102.
(3) For awards to domestic for-profit organizations, requirements are specified in 32 CFR part 34, which is modeled
(b)
(a)
(b)
(2) It also is a Governmentwide requirement to use electronic funds transfer (EFT) in the payment of any grant for which an application or proposal was submitted or renewed on or after July 26, 1996, unless the recipient has obtained a waiver by submitting to the head of the pertinent Federal agency a certification that it has neither an account with a financial institution nor an authorized payment agent. This requirement is in 31 U.S.C. 3332, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (section 31001(x)(1)(A), Pub. L. 104-134), and as implemented by Department of Treasury regulations at 31 CFR part 208. As a matter of DoD policy, this requirement applies to cooperative agreements, as well as grants. Within the Department of Defense, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service implements this EFT requirement, and grants officers have collateral responsibilities at the time of award, as described in § 22.605(c), and in postaward administration, as described in § 22.810(c)(3)(iv).
(3) Expanding on these Governmentwide policies, DoD policy is for DoD Components to use electronic commerce, to the maximum extent practicable, in the portions of the payment process for grants and cooperative agreements for which grants officers are responsible. In cases where recipients submit each payment request to the grants officer, this includes using electronic methods to receive recipients' requests for payment and to transmit authorizations for payment to the DoD payment office. Using electronic methods will improve timeliness and accuracy of payments and reduce administrative burdens associated with paper-based payments.
(c)
(1) Handling the recipient's requests for payments in accordance with DoD implementation of Governmentwide guidance (see 32 CFR 32.22, 33.21, or 34.12, as applicable).
(2) Reviewing each payment request to ensure that:
(i) The request complies with the award terms.
(ii) Available funds are adequate to pay the request.
(iii) The recipient will not have excess cash on hand, based on expenditure patterns.
(3) Maintaining a close working relationship with the personnel in the finance and accounting office responsible for making the payments. A good working relationship is necessary, to ensure timely and accurate handling of financial transactions for grants and cooperative agreements. Administrative grants officers:
(i) Should be generally familiar with policies and procedures for disbursing offices that are contained in Chapter 19 of Volume 10 of the DoD Financial Management Regulation (the FMR, DoD 7000.14-R
(ii) Shall forward authorizations to the designated payment office expeditiously, so that payments may be made in accordance with the timely payment
(A) No more than seven calendar days after receipt of the recipient's request by the administrative grants officer, whenever electronic commerce is used (i.e., EDI to request and authorize payments and electronic funds transfer (EFT) to make payments).
(B) No more than thirty calendar days after receipt of the recipient's request by the administrative grants officer, when it is not possible to use electronic commerce and paper transactions are used.
(C) No more than seven calendar days after each date specified, when payments are authorized in advance based on a predetermined payment schedule, provided that the payment schedule was received in the disbursing office at least 30 calendar days in advance of the date of the scheduled payment.
(iii) Shall ensure that the recipients' Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) is included with each payment authorization forwarded to the payment office. This is a statutory requirement of 31 U.S.C. 3325, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (section 31001(y), Pub. L. 104-134).
(iv) For each award that is required to be paid by EFT (see § 22.605(c) and (§ 22.810(b)(2)), shall prominently indicate that fact in the payment authorization.
(a)
(1) Processing recipient claims and disputes.
(2) Deciding appeals of grants officers' decisions.
(b)
(i) Be submitted in writing to the grants officer for decision;
(ii) Specify the nature and basis for the relief requested; and
(iii) Include all data that supports the claim.
(2)
(c)
(2)
(ii) If a grants officer and a recipient are not able to resolve an issue through unassisted negotiations, the grants officer shall encourage the recipient to enter into ADR procedures. ADR procedures may be used prior to submission of a recipient's claim or at any time prior to the Grant Appeal Authority's decision on a recipient's appeal (see paragraph (e)(3)(iii) of this section).
(d)
(i) Prepare a written decision, which shall include the reasons for the decision; shall identify all relevant data on which the decision is based; shall identify the cognizant Grant Appeal Authority and give his or her mailing address; and shall be included in the award file; or
(ii) Notify the recipient of a specific date when he or she will render a written decision, if more time is required to do so. The notice shall inform the recipient of the reason for delaying the decision (e.g., the complexity of the
(2) The decision of the grants officer shall be final, unless the recipient decides to appeal. If a recipient decides to appeal a grants officer's decision, the grants officer shall encourage the recipient to enter into ADR procedures, as described in paragraph (c) of this section.
(e)
(i) An individual at a grade level in the Senior Executive Service, if civilian, or at the rank of Flag or General Officer, if military; or
(ii) A board chaired by such an individual.
(2)
(3)
(ii)
(iii)
(f)
(g)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(1) Describes the debt, including the amount, the name and address of the official who determined the debt (e.g., the grants officer under § 22.815(d)), and a copy of that determination.
(2) Informs the recipient that:
(i) Within 30 calendar days of the grants officer's decision, the recipient shall either pay the amount owed to the grants officer (at the address that
(ii) If the recipient elects not to appeal, any amounts not paid within 30 calendar days of the grants officer's decision will be a delinquent debt.
(iii) If the recipient elects to appeal the grants officer's decision the recipient has 90 calendar days, or 150 calendar days if ADR procedures are used, after receipt of the grants officer's decision to file the appeal, in accordance with § 22.815(e)(3)(i).
(iv) The debt will bear interest, and may include penalties and other administrative costs, in accordance with the debt collection provisions in Chapters 29, 31, and 32 of Volume 5 and Chapters 18 and 19 of Volume 10 of the DoD Financial Management Regulation (DoD 7000.14-R). No interest will be charged if the recipient pays the amount owed within 30 calendar days of the grants officer's decision. Interest will be charged for the entire period from the date the decision was mailed, if the recipient pays the amount owed after 30 calendar days.
(d)
(1) If the recipient pays the amount owed within 30 calendar days to the grants officer, the grants officer shall forward the payment to the responsible payment office.
(2) If within 30 calendar days the recipient elects to appeal the grants officer's decision, further action to collect the debt is deferred, pending the outcome of the appeal. If the final result of the appeal is a determination that the recipient owes a debt to the Federal Government, the grants officer shall send a demand letter to the recipient and transfer responsibility for further debt collection to a payment office, as described in paragraph (d)(3) of this section.
(3) If within 30 calendar days the recipient has neither paid the amount due nor provided notice of intent to file an appeal of the grants officer's decision, the grants officer shall send a demand letter to the recipient, with a copy to the payment office that will be responsible for collecting the delinquent debt. The payment office will be responsible for any further debt collection activity, including issuance of additional demand letters (see Chapter 19 of volume 10 of the DoD Financial Management Regulation, DoD 7000.14-R). The grants officer's demand letter shall:
(i) Describe the debt, including the amount, the name and address of the official that determined the debt (e.g., the grants officer under § 22.815(d)), and a copy of that determination.
(ii) Notify the recipient that the debt is a delinquent debt that bears interest from the date of the grants officer's decision, and that penalties and other administrative costs may be assessed.
(iii) Identify the payment office that is responsible for the collection of the debt, and notify the recipient that it may submit a proposal to that payment office to defer collection, if immediate payment is not practicable.
(e)
(a)
(1) 32 CFR 32.71 and 32.72, for awards to institutions of higher education and other nonprofit organizations.
(2) 32 CFR 33.50 and 33.51, for awards to State and local governments.
(3) 32 CFR 34.61 and 34.62, for awards to for-profit entities.
(b)
(1) The amount of the award.
(2) DoD's past experience with the recipient, including the presence or lack of findings of material deficiencies in recent:
(i) Audits of individual awards; or
(ii) Systems-wide financial audits and audits of the compliance of the recipient's systems with Federal requirements, under OMB Circular A-133, where that Circular is applicable. (See § 22.715(a)(1)).
E.O. 12549, 3 CFR 1986 Comp., p.189; E.O. 12689 , 3 CFR 1989 Comp., p.235; sec. 2455, Pub. L. 103-355, 108 Stat. 3327 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).
(a) This part is subdivided into ten subparts. Each subpart contains information related to a broad topic or specific audience with special responsibilities, as shown in the following table:
(b) The following table shows which subparts may be of special interest to you, depending on who you are:
(a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier for the general public and business community to use. The section headings and text, often in the form of questions and answers, must be read together.
(b) Pronouns used within this part, such as “I” and “you,” change from subpart to subpart depending on the audience being addressed. The pronoun “we” always is the DOD Component.
(c) The “Covered Transactions” diagram in the appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers” at which the DOD Component enforces an exclusion under this part.
This part uses terms throughout the text that have special meaning. Those terms are defined in Subpart I of this part. For example, three important terms are—
(a)
(b)
(c)
This part adopts a governmentwide system of debarment and suspension for DOD Component nonprocurement activities. It also provides for reciprocal exclusion of persons who have been excluded under the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and provides for the consolidated listing of all persons who are excluded, or disqualified by statute, executive order, or other legal authority. This part satisfies the requirements in section 3 of Executive Order 12549, “Debarment and Suspension” (3 CFR 1986 Comp., p. 189), Executive Order 12689, “Debarment and Suspension” (3 CFR 1989 Comp., p. 235) and 31
Portions of this part (see table at § 25.25(b)) apply to you if you are a(n)—
(a) Person who has been, is, or may reasonably be expected to be, a participant or principal in a covered transaction;
(b) Respondent (a person against whom the DOD Component has initiated a debarment or suspension action);
(c) DOD Component debarring or suspending official; or
(d) DOD Component official who is authorized to enter into covered transactions with non-Federal parties.
(a) To protect the public interest, the Federal Government ensures the integrity of Federal programs by conducting business only with responsible persons.
(b) A Federal agency uses the nonprocurement debarment and suspension system to exclude from Federal programs persons who are not presently responsible.
(c) An exclusion is a serious action that a Federal agency may take only to protect the public interest. A Federal agency may not exclude a person or commodity for the purposes of punishment.
With the exceptions stated in §§ 25.120, 25.315, and 25.420, a person who is excluded by the DOD Component or any other Federal agency may not:
(a) Be a participant in a(n) DOD Component transaction that is a covered transaction under subpart B of this part;
(b) Be a participant in a transaction of any other Federal agency that is a covered transaction under that agency's regulation for debarment and suspension; or
(c) Act as a principal of a person participating in one of those covered transactions.
(a) The Head of the DOD Component or his or her designee may grant an exception permitting an excluded person to participate in a particular covered transaction. If the Head of the DOD Component or his or her designee grants an exception, the exception must be in writing and state the reason(s) for deviating from the governmentwide policy in Executive Order 12549.
(b) An exception granted by one agency for an excluded person does not extend to the covered transactions of another agency.
If any Federal agency excludes a person under its nonprocurement common rule on or after August 25, 1995, the excluded person is also ineligible to participate in Federal procurement transactions under the FAR. Therefore, an exclusion under this part has reciprocal effect in Federal procurement transactions.
If any Federal agency excludes a person under the FAR on or after August 25, 1995, the excluded person is also ineligible to participate in nonprocurement covered transactions under this part. Therefore, an exclusion under the FAR has reciprocal effect in Federal nonprocurement transactions.
Given a cause that justifies an exclusion under this part, we may exclude any person who has been involved, is currently involved, or may reasonably be expected to be involved in a covered transaction.
Check the
Except if provided for in Subpart J of this part, this part—
(a) Addresses disqualified persons only to—
(1) Provide for their inclusion in the
(2) State responsibilities of Federal agencies and participants to check for disqualified persons before entering into covered transactions.
(b) Does not specify the—
(1) DOD Component transactions for which a disqualified person is ineligible. Those transactions vary on a case-by-case basis, because they depend on the language of the specific statute, Executive order, or regulation that caused the disqualification;
(2) Entities to which the disqualification applies; or
(3) Process that the agency uses to disqualify a person. Unlike exclusion, disqualification is frequently not a discretionary action that a Federal agency takes.
A covered transaction is a nonprocurement or procurement transaction that is subject to the prohibitions of this part. It may be a transaction at—
(a) The primary tier, between a Federal agency and a person (see appendix to this part); or
(b) A lower tier, between a participant in a covered transaction and another person.
The importance of a covered transaction depends upon who you are.
(a) As a participant in the transaction, you have the responsibilities laid out in Subpart C of this part. Those include responsibilities to the person or Federal agency at the next higher tier from whom you received the transaction, if any. They also include responsibilities if you subsequently enter into other covered transactions with persons at the next lower tier.
(b) As a Federal official who enters into a primary tier transaction, you have the responsibilities laid out in subpart D of this part.
(c) As an excluded person, you may not be a participant or principal in the transaction unless—
(1) The person who entered into the transaction with you allows you to continue your involvement in a transaction that predates your exclusion, as permitted under § 25.310 or § 25.415; or
(2) A(n) DOD Component official obtains an exception from the Head of the DOD Component or his or her designee to allow you to be involved in the transaction, as permitted under § 25.120.
All nonprocurement transactions, as defined in § 25.970, are covered transactions unless listed in § 25.215. (See appendix to this part.)
The following types of nonprocurement transactions are not covered transactions:
(a) A direct award to—
(1) A foreign government or foreign governmental entity;
(2) A public international organization;
(3) An entity owned (in whole or in part) or controlled by a foreign government; or
(4) Any other entity consisting wholly or partially of one or more foreign governments or foreign governmental entities.
(b) A benefit to an individual as a personal entitlement without regard to the individual's present responsibility (but benefits received in an individual's business capacity are not excepted). For example, if a person receives social security benefits under the Supplemental Security Income provisions of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 1301 et seq., those benefits are not covered transactions and, therefore, are not affected if the person is excluded.
(c) Federal employment.
(d) A transaction that the DOD Component needs to respond to a national or agency-recognized emergency or disaster.
(e) A permit, license, certificate, or similar instrument issued as a means to regulate public health, safety, or the environment, unless the DOD Component specifically designates it to be a covered transaction.
(f) An incidental benefit that results from ordinary governmental operations.
(g) Any other transaction if the application of an exclusion to the transaction is prohibited by law.
(a) Covered transactions under this part—
(1) Do not include any procurement contracts awarded directly by a Federal agency; but
(2) Do include some procurement contracts awarded by non-Federal participants in nonprocurement covered transactions (see appendix to this part).
(b) Specifically, a contract for goods or services is a covered transaction if any of the following applies:
(1) The contract is awarded by a participant in a nonprocurement transaction that is covered under § 25.210, and the amount of the contract is expected to equal or exceed $25,000.
(2) The contract requires the consent of a(n) DOD Component official. In that case, the contract, regardless of the amount, always is a covered transaction, and it does not matter who awarded it. For example, it could be a subcontract awarded by a contractor at a tier below a nonprocurement transaction, as shown in the appendix to this part.
(3) The contract is for federally-required audit services.
As a participant in a transaction, you will know that it is a covered transaction because the agency regulations governing the transaction, the appropriate agency official, or participant at the next higher tier who enters into the transaction with you, will tell you that you must comply with applicable portions of this part.
When you enter into a covered transaction with another person at the next lower tier, you must verify that the person with whom you intend to do business is not excluded or disqualified. You do this by:
(a) Checking the
(b) Collecting a certification from that person if allowed by this rule; or
(c) Adding a clause or condition to the covered transaction with that person.
(a) You as a participant may not enter into a covered transaction with an excluded person, unless the DOD Component grants an exception under § 25.120.
(b) You may not enter into any transaction with a person who is disqualified from that transaction, unless you have obtained an exception under the disqualifying statute, Executive order, or regulation.
(a) You as a participant may continue covered transactions with an excluded person if the transactions were in existence when the agency excluded the person. However, you are not required to continue the transactions, and you may consider termination. You should make a decision about whether to terminate and the type of termination action, if any, only after a thorough review to ensure that the action is proper and appropriate.
(b) You may not renew or extend covered transactions (other than no-cost time extensions) with any excluded person, unless the DOD Component grants an exception under § 25.120.
(a) You as a participant may continue to use the services of an excluded person as a principal under a covered transaction if you were using the services of that person in the transaction before the person was excluded. However, you are not required to continue using that person's services as a principal. You should make a decision about whether to discontinue that person's services only after a thorough review to ensure that the action is proper and appropriate.
(b) You may not begin to use the services of an excluded person as a principal under a covered transaction unless the DOD Component grants an exception under § 25.120.
Yes, you as a participant are responsible for determining whether any of your principals of your covered transactions is excluded or disqualified from participating in the transaction. You may decide the method and frequency by which you do so. You may, but you are not required to, check the
If as a participant you knowingly do business with an excluded person, we may disallow costs, annul or terminate the transaction, issue a stop work order, debar or suspend you, or take other remedies as appropriate.
Before entering into a covered transaction with a participant at the next lower tier, you must require that participant to—
(a) Comply with this subpart as a condition of participation in the transaction. You may do so using any method(s), unless § 25.440 requires you to use specific methods.
(b) Pass the requirement to comply with this subpart to each person with whom the participant enters into a covered transaction at the next lower tier.
Before you enter into a covered transaction at the primary tier, you as the participant must notify the DOD Component office that is entering into the transaction with you, if you know that you or any of the principals for that covered transaction:
(a) Are presently excluded or disqualified;
(b) Have been convicted within the preceding three years of any of the offenses listed in § 25.800(a) or had a civil judgment rendered against you for one of those offenses within that time period;
(c) Are presently indicted for or otherwise criminally or civilly charged by a governmental entity (Federal, State or local) with commission of any of the offenses listed in § 25.800(a); or
(d) Have had one or more public transactions (Federal, State, or local) terminated within the preceding three years for cause or default.
As a primary tier participant, your disclosure of unfavorable information about yourself or a principal under § 25.335 will not necessarily cause us to deny your participation in the covered transaction. We will consider the information when we determine whether to enter into the covered transaction. We also will consider any additional information or explanation that you elect to submit with the disclosed information.
If we later determine that you failed to disclose information under § 25.335 that you knew at the time you entered into the covered transaction, we may—
(a) Terminate the transaction for material failure to comply with the terms and conditions of the transaction; or
(b) Pursue any other available remedies, including suspension and debarment.
At any time after you enter into a covered transaction, you must give immediate written notice to the DOD Component office with which you entered into the transaction if you learn either that—
(a) You failed to disclose information earlier, as required by § 25.335; or
(b) Due to changed circumstances, you or any of the principals for the transaction now meet any of the criteria in § 25.335.
Before you enter into a covered transaction with a person at the next higher tier, you as a lower tier participant must notify that person if you know that you or any of the principals are presently excluded or disqualified.
If we later determine that you failed to tell the person at the higher tier that you were excluded or disqualified at the time you entered into the covered transaction with that person, we may pursue any available remedies, including suspension and debarment.
At any time after you enter into a lower tier covered transaction with a person at a higher tier, you must provide immediate written notice to that person if you learn either that—
(a) You failed to disclose information earlier, as required by § 25.355; or
(b) Due to changed circumstances, you or any of the principals for thetransaction now meet any of the criteria in § 25.355.
(a) You as an agency official may not enter into a covered transaction with an excluded person unless you obtain an exception under § 25.120.
(b) You may not enter into any transaction with a person who is disqualified from that transaction, unless you obtain a waiver or exception under the statute, Executive order, or regulation that is the basis for the person's disqualification.
As an agency official, you may not enter into a covered transaction with a participant if you know that a principal of the transaction is excluded, unless you obtain an exception under § 25.120.
After entering into a covered transaction with a participant, you as an agency official may not approve a participant's use of an excluded person as a principal under that transaction, unless you obtain an exception under § 25.120.
(a) You as an agency official may continue covered transactions with an excluded person, or under which an excluded person is a principal, if the transactions were in existence when the person was excluded. You are not required to continue the transactions, however, and you may consider termination. You should make a decision about whether to terminate and the type of termination action, if any, only after a thorough review to ensure that the action is proper.
(b) You may not renew or extend covered transactions (other than no-cost time extensions) with any excluded person, or under which an excluded person is a principal, unless you obtain an exception under § 25.120.
If a transaction at a lower tier is subject to your approval, you as an agency official may not approve—
(a) A covered transaction with a person who is currently excluded, unless you obtain an exception under § 25.120; or
(b) A transaction with a person who is disqualified from that transaction, unless you obtain a waiver or exception under the statute, Executive order, or regulation that is the basis for the person's disqualification.
As an agency official, you must check to see if a person is excluded or disqualified before you—
(a) Enter into a primary tier covered transaction;
(b) Approve a principal in a primary tier covered transaction;
(c) Approve a lower tier participant if agency approval of the lower tier participant is required; or
(d) Approve a principal in connection with a lower tier transaction if agency approval of the principal is required.
You check to see if a person is excluded or disqualified in two ways:
(a) You as an agency official must check the
(b) You must review information that a participant gives you, as required by § 25.335, about its status or the status of the principals of a transaction.
You as an agency official must require each participant in a primary tier covered transaction to—
(a) Comply with subpart C of this part as a condition of participation in the transaction; and
(b) Communicate the requirement to comply with Subpart C of this part to persons at the next lower tier with whom the primary tier participant enters into covered transactions.
To communicate the requirement, you must include a term or condition in the transaction requiring the participants' compliance with subpart C of this part and requiring them to include a similar term or condition in lower-tier covered transactions.
If a participant knowingly does business with an excluded or disqualified person, you as an agency official may refer the matter for suspension and debarment consideration. You may also disallow costs, annul or terminate the transaction, issue a stop work order, or take any other appropriate remedy.
If you as an agency official determine that a participant failed to disclose information, as required by § 25.335, at the time it entered into a covered transaction with you, you may—
(a) Terminate the transaction for material failure to comply with the terms and conditions of the transaction; or
(b) Pursue any other available remedies, including suspension and debarment.
If you as an agency official determine that a lower tier participant failed to disclose information, as required by § 25.355, at the time it entered into a covered transaction with a participant at the next higher tier, you may pursue any remedies available to you, including the initiation of a suspension or debarment action.
The
(a) Federal agency officials use the
(b) Participants also may, but are not required to, use the
(1) Principals of their transactions are excluded or disqualified, as required under § 25.320; or
(2) Persons with whom they are entering into covered transactions at the next lower tier are excluded or disqualified.
(c) The
In accordance with the OMB guidelines, the General Services Administration (GSA) maintains the
(a) At a minimum, the
(1) The full name (where available) and address of each excluded or disqualified person, in alphabetical order, with cross references if more than one name is involved in a single action;
(2) The type of action;
(3) The cause for the action;
(4) The scope of the action;
(5) Any termination date for the action;
(6) The agency and name and telephone number of the agency point of contact for the action; and
(7) The Dun and Bradstreet Number (DUNS), or other similar code approved by the GSA, of the excluded or disqualified person, if available.
(b)(1) The database for the
(2) Agencies disclose the SSN of an individual to verify the identity of an individual, only if permitted under the Privacy Act of 1974 and, if appropriate, the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988, as codified in 5 U.S.C. 552(a).
Federal officials who take actions to exclude persons under this part or officials who are responsible for identifying disqualified persons must enter the following information about those persons into the
(a) Information required by § 25.515(a);
(b) The Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) of the excluded or disqualified person, including the social security number (SSN) for an individual, if
(c) Information about an excluded or disqualified person, generally within five working days, after—
(1) Taking an exclusion action;
(2) Modifying or rescinding an exclusion action;
(3) Finding that a person is disqualified; or
(4) Finding that there has been a change in the status of a person who is listed as disqualified.
If you have questions about a person in the
(a) You may access the
(b) As of November 26, 2003, you may also subscribe to a printed version. However, we anticipate discontinuing the printed version. Until it is discontinued, you may obtain the printed version by purchasing a yearly subscription from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402, or by calling the Government Printing Office Inquiry and Order Desk at (202) 783-3238.
When we receive information from any source concerning a cause for suspension or debarment, we will promptly report and investigate it. We refer the question of whether to suspend or debar you to our suspending or debarring official for consideration, if appropriate.
Suspension differs from debarment in that—
In deciding whether to suspend or debar you, we handle the actions as informally as practicable, consistent with principles of fundamental fairness.
(a) For suspension actions, we use the procedures in this subpart and subpart G of this part.
(b) For debarment actions, we use the procedures in this subpart and subpart H of this part.
(a) The suspending or debarring official sends a written notice to the last known street address, facsimile number, or e-mail address of—
(1) You or your identified counsel; or
(2) Your agent for service of process, or any of your partners, officers, directors, owners, or joint venturers.
(b) The notice is effective if sent to any of these persons.
Yes, when more than one Federal agency has an interest in a suspension or debarment, the agencies may consider designating one agency as the lead agency for making the decision. Agencies are encouraged to establish
If you are suspended or debarred, the suspension or debarment is effective as follows:
(a) Your suspension or debarment constitutes suspension or debarment of all of your divisions and other organizational elements from all covered transactions, unless the suspension or debarment decision is limited—
(1) By its terms to one or more specifically identified individuals, divisions, or other organizational elements; or
(2) To specific types of transactions.
(b) Any affiliate of a participant may be included in a suspension or debarment action if the suspending or debarring official—
(1) Officially names the affiliate in the notice; and
(2) Gives the affiliate an opportunity to contest the action.
For purposes of actions taken under this rule, we may impute conduct as follows:
(a)
(b)
(c)
Yes, we may settle a debarment or suspension action at any time if it is in the best interest of the Federal Government.
Yes, if we enter into a settlement with you in which you agree to be excluded, it is called a voluntary exclusion and has governmentwide effect.
(a) Yes, we enter information regarding a voluntary exclusion into the
(b) Also, any agency or person may contact us to find out the details of a voluntary exclusion.
Suspension is a serious action. Using the procedures of this subpart and subpart F of this part, the suspending official may impose suspension only when that official determines that—
(a) There exists an indictment for, or other adequate evidence to suspect, an offense listed under § 25.800(a), or
(b) There exists adequate evidence to suspect any other cause for debarment listed under § 25.800(b) through (d); and
(c) Immediate action is necessary to protect the public interest.
(a) In determining the adequacy of the evidence to support the suspension, the suspending official considers how much information is available, how credible it is given the circumstances, whether or not important allegations are corroborated, and what inferences can reasonably be drawn as a result. During this assessment, the suspending official may examine the basic documents, including grants, cooperative agreements, loan authorizations, contracts, and other relevant documents.
(b) An indictment, conviction, civil judgment, or other official findings by Federal, State, or local bodies that determine factual and/or legal matters, constitutes adequate evidence for purposes of suspension actions.
(c) In deciding whether immediate action is needed to protect the public interest, the suspending official has wide discretion. For example, the suspending official may infer the necessity for immediate action to protect the public interest either from the nature of the circumstances giving rise to a cause for suspension or from potential business relationships or involvement with a program of the Federal Government.
A suspension is effective when the suspending official signs the decision to suspend.
After deciding to suspend you, the suspending official promptly sends you a Notice of Suspension advising you—
(a) That you have been suspended;
(b) That your suspension is based on—
(1) An indictment;
(2) A conviction;
(3) Other adequate evidence that you have committed irregularities which seriously reflect on the propriety of further Federal Government dealings with you; or
(4) Conduct of another person that has been imputed to you, or your affiliation with a suspended or debarred person;
(c) Of any other irregularities in terms sufficient to put you on notice without disclosing the Federal Government's evidence;
(d) Of the cause(s) upon which we relied under § 25.700 for imposing suspension;
(e) That your suspension is for a temporary period pending the completion of an investigation or resulting legal or debarment proceedings;
(f) Of the applicable provisions of this subpart, Subpart F of this part, and any other DOD Component procedures governing suspension decision making; and
(g) Of the governmentwide effect of your suspension from procurement and nonprocurement programs and activities.
If you as a respondent wish to contest a suspension, you or your representative must provide the suspending official with information in opposition to the suspension. You may do this orally or in writing, but any information provided orally that you consider important must also be submitted in writing for the official record.
(a) As a respondent you or your representative must either send, or make rrangements to appear and present, the information and argument to the suspending official within 30 days after you receive the Notice of Suspension.
(b) We consider the notice to be received by you—
(1) When delivered, if we mail the notice to the last known street address, or five days after we send it if the letter is undeliverable;
(2) When sent, if we send the notice by facsimile or five days after we send it if the facsimile is undeliverable; or
(3) When delivered, if we send the notice by e-mail or five days after we send it if the e-mail is undeliverable.
(a) In addition to any information and argument in opposition, as a respondent your submission to the suspending official must identify—
(1) Specific facts that contradict the statements contained in the Notice of Suspension. A general denial is insufficient to raise a genuine dispute over facts material to the suspension;
(2) All existing, proposed, or prior exclusions under regulations implementing E.O. 12549 and all similar actions taken by Federal, state, or local agencies, including administrative agreements that affect only those agencies;
(3) All criminal and civil proceedings not included in the Notice of Suspension that grew out of facts relevant to the cause(s) stated in the notice; and
(4) All of your affiliates.
(b) If you fail to disclose this information, or provide false information, the DOD Component may seek further criminal, civil or administrative action against you, as appropriate.
(a) You as a respondent will not have an additional opportunity to challenge the facts if the suspending official determines that—
(1) Your suspension is based upon an indictment, conviction, civil judgment, or other finding by a Federal, State, or local body for which an opportunity to contest the facts was provided;
(2) Your presentation in opposition contains only general denials to information contained in the Notice of Suspension;
(3) The issues raised in your presentation in opposition to the suspension are not factual in nature, or are not material to the suspending official's initial decision to suspend, or the official's decision whether to continue the suspension; or
(4) On the basis of advice from the Department of Justice, an office of the United States Attorney, a State attorney general's office, or a State or local prosecutor's office, that substantial interests of the government in pending or contemplated legal proceedings based on the same facts as the suspension would be prejudiced by conducting fact-finding.
(b) You will have an opportunity to challenge the facts if the suspending official determines that—
(1) The conditions in paragraph (a) of this section do not exist; and
(2) Your presentation in opposition raises a genuine dispute over facts material to the suspension.
(c) If you have an opportunity to challenge disputed material facts under this section, the suspending official or designee must conduct additional proceedings to resolve those facts.
(a) Suspension proceedings are conducted in a fair and informal manner. The suspending official may use flexible procedures to allow you to present matters in opposition. In so doing, the suspending official is not required to follow formal rules of evidence or procedure in creating an official record upon which the official will base a final suspension decision.
(b) You as a respondent or your representative must submit any documentary evidence you want the suspending official to consider.
(a) If fact-finding is conducted—
(1) You may present witnesses and other evidence, and confront any witness presented; and
(2) The fact-finder must prepare written findings of fact for the record.
(b) A transcribed record of fact-finding proceedings must be made, unless you as a respondent and the DOD Component agree to waive it in advance. If you want a copy of the transcribed record, you may purchase it.
(a) The suspending official bases the decision on all information contained in the official record. The record includes—
(1) All information in support of the suspending official's initial decision to suspend you;
(2) Any further information and argument presented in support of, or opposition to, the suspension; and
(3) Any transcribed record of fact-finding proceedings.
(b) The suspending official may refer disputed material facts to another official for findings of fact. The suspending official may reject any resulting findings, in whole or in part, only after specifically determining them to be arbitrary, capricious, or clearly erroneous.
The suspending official must make a written decision whether to continue, modify, or terminate your suspension within 45 days of closing the official record. The official record closes upon the suspending official's receipt of final submissions, information and findings of fact, if any. The suspending official may extend that period for good cause.
(a) If legal or debarment proceedings are initiated at the time of, or during your suspension, the suspension may continue until the conclusion of those proceedings. However, if proceedings are not initiated, a suspension may not exceed 12 months.
(b) The suspending official may extend the 12 month limit under paragraph (a) of this section for an additional 6 months if an office of a U.S. Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Attorney, or other responsible prosecuting official requests an extension in writing. In no event may a suspension exceed 18 months without initiating proceedings under paragraph (a) of this section.
(c) The suspending official must notify the appropriate officials under paragraph (b) of this section of an impending termination of a suspension at least 30 days before the 12 month period expires to allow the officials an opportunity to request an extension.
We may debar a person for—
(a) Conviction of or civil judgment for—
(1) Commission of fraud or a criminal offense in connection with obtaining, attempting to obtain, or performing a public or private agreement or transaction;
(2) Violation of Federal or State antitrust statutes, including those proscribing price fixing between competitors, allocation of customers between competitors, and bid rigging;
(3) Commission of embezzlement, theft, forgery, bribery, falsification or destruction of records, making false statements, tax evasion, receiving stolen property, making false claims, or obstruction of justice; or
(4) Commission of any other offense indicating a lack of business integrity or business honesty that seriously and directly affects your present responsibility;
(b) Violation of the terms of a public agreement or transaction so serious as to affect the integrity of an agency program, such as—
(1) A willful failure to perform in accordance with the terms of one or more public agreements or transactions;
(2) A history of failure to perform or of unsatisfactory performance of one or more public agreements or transactions; or
(3) A willful violation of a statutory or regulatory provision or requirement applicable to a public agreement or transaction;
(c) Any of the following causes:
(1) A nonprocurement debarment by any Federal agency taken before October 1, 1988, or a procurement debarment by any Federal agency taken pursuant to 48 CFR part 9, subpart 9.4, before August 25, 1995;
(2) Knowingly doing business with an ineligible person, except as permitted under § 25.120;
(3) Failure to pay a single substantial debt, or a number of outstanding debts (including disallowed costs and overpayments, but not including sums owed the Federal Government under the Internal Revenue Code) owed to any Federal agency or instrumentality, provided the debt is uncontested by the debtor or, if contested, provided that the debtor's legal and administrative remedies have been exhausted;
(4) Violation of a material provision of a voluntary exclusion agreement entered into under § 25.640 or of any settlement of a debarment or suspension action; or
(5) Violation of the provisions of the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 (41 U.S.C. 701); or
(d) Any other cause of so serious or compelling a nature that it affects your present responsibility.
After consideration of the causes in § 25.800 of this subpart, if the debarring official proposes to debar you, the official sends you a Notice of Proposed Debarment, pursuant to § 25.615, advising you—
(a) That the debarring official is considering debarring you;
(b) Of the reasons for proposing to debar you in terms sufficient to put you on notice of the conduct or transactions upon which the proposed debarment is based;
(c) Of the cause(s) under § 25.800 upon which the debarring official relied for proposing your debarment;
(d) Of the applicable provisions of this subpart, Subpart F of this part, and any other DOD Component procedures governing debarment; and
(e) Of the governmentwide effect of a debarment from procurement and nonprocurement programs and activities.
A debarment is not effective until the debarring official issues a decision. The debarring official does not issue a decision until the respondent has had an opportunity to contest the proposed debarment.
If you as a respondent wish to contest a proposed debarment, you or your representative must provide the debarring official with information in opposition to the proposed debarment. You may do this orally or in writing, but any information provided orally that you consider important must also be submitted in writing for the official record.
(a) As a respondent you or your representative must either send, or make arrangements to appear and present, the information and argument to the debarring official within 30 days after you receive the Notice of Proposed Debarment.
(b) We consider the Notice of Proposed Debarment to be received by you—
(1) When delivered, if we mail the notice to the last known street address, or five days after we send it if the letter is undeliverable;
(2) When sent, if we send the notice by facsimile or five days after we send it if the facsimile is undeliverable; or
(3) When delivered, if we send the notice by e-mail or five days after we send it if the e-mail is undeliverable.
(a) In addition to any information and argument in opposition, as a respondent your submission to the debarring official must identify—
(1) Specific facts that contradict the statements contained in the Notice of Proposed Debarment. Include any information about any of the factors listed in § 25.860. A general denial is insufficient to raise a genuine dispute over facts material to the debarment;
(2) All existing, proposed, or prior exclusions under regulations implementing E.O. 12549 and all similar actions taken by Federal, State, or local agencies, including administrative
(3) All criminal and civil proceedings not included in the Notice of Proposed Debarment that grew out of facts relevant to the cause(s) stated in the notice; and
(4) All of your affiliates.
(b) If you fail to disclose this information, or provide false information, the DOD Component may seek further criminal, civil or administrative action against you, as appropriate.
(a) You as a respondent will not have an additional opportunity to challenge the facts if the debarring official determines that—
(1) Your debarment is based upon a conviction or civil judgment;
(2) Your presentation in opposition contains only general denials to information contained in the Notice of Proposed Debarment; or
(3) The issues raised in your presentation in opposition to the proposed debarment are not factual in nature, or are not material to the debarring official's decision whether to debar.
(b) You will have an additional opportunity to challenge the facts if the debarring official determines that—
(1) The conditions in paragraph (a) of this section do not exist; and
(2) Your presentation in opposition raises a genuine dispute over facts material to the proposed debarment.
(c) If you have an opportunity to challenge disputed material facts under this section, the debarring official or designee must conduct additional proceedings to resolve those facts.
(a) Debarment proceedings are conducted in a fair and informal manner. The debarring official may use flexible procedures to allow you as a respondent to present matters in opposition. In so doing, the debarring official is not required to follow formal rules of evidence or procedure in creating an official record upon which the official will base the decision whether to debar.
(b) You or your representative must submit any documentary evidence you want the debarring official to consider.
(a) If fact-finding is conducted—
(1) You may present witnesses and other evidence, and confront any witness presented; and
(2) The fact-finder must prepare written findings of fact for the record.
(b) A transcribed record of fact-finding proceedings must be made, unless you as a respondent and the DOD Component agree to waive it in advance. If you want a copy of the transcribed record, you may purchase it.
(a) The debarring official may debar you for any of the causes in § 25.800. However, the official need not debar you even if a cause for debarment exists. The official may consider the seriousness of your acts or omissions and the mitigating or aggravating factors set forth at § 25.860.
(b) The debarring official bases the decision on all information contained in the official record. The record includes—
(1) All information in support of the debarring official's proposed debarment;
(2) Any further information and argument presented in support of, or in opposition to, the proposed debarment; and
(3) Any transcribed record of fact-finding proceedings.
(c) The debarring official may refer disputed material facts to another official for findings of fact. The debarring official may reject any resultant findings, in whole or in part, only after specifically determining them to be arbitrary, capricious, or clearly erroneous.
(a) In any debarment action, we must establish the cause for debarment by a preponderance of the evidence.
(b) If the proposed debarment is based upon a conviction or civil judgment, the standard of proof is met.
(a) We have the burden to prove that a cause for debarment exists.
(b) Once a cause for debarment is established, you as a respondent have the burden of demonstrating to the satisfaction of the debarring official that you are presently responsible and that debarment is not necessary.
This section lists the mitigating and aggravating factors that the debarring official may consider in determining whether to debar you and the length of your debarment period. The debarring official may consider other factors if appropriate in light of the circumstances of a particular case. The existence or nonexistence of any factor, such as one of those set forth in this section, is not necessarily determinative of your present responsibility. In making a debarment decision, the debarring official may consider the following factors:
(a) The actual or potential harm or impact that results or may result from the wrongdoing.
(b) The frequency of incidents and/or duration of the wrongdoing.
(c) Whether there is a pattern or prior history of wrongdoing. For example, if you have been found by another Federal agency or a State agency to have engaged in wrongdoing similar to that found in the debarment action, the existence of this fact may be used by the debarring official in determining that you have a pattern or prior history of wrongdoing.
(d) Whether you are or have been excluded or disqualified by an agency of the Federal Government or have not been allowed to participate in State or local contracts or assistance agreements on a basis of conduct similar to one or more of the causes for debarment specified in this part.
(e) Whether you have entered into an administrative agreement with a Federal agency or a State or local government that is not governmentwide but is based on conduct similar to one or more of the causes for debarment specified in this part.
(f) Whether and to what extent you planned, initiated, or carried out the wrongdoing.
(g) Whether you have accepted responsibility for the wrongdoing and recognize the seriousness of the misconduct that led to the cause for debarment.
(h) Whether you have paid or agreed to pay all criminal, civil and administrative liabilities for the improper activity, including any investigative or administrative costs incurred by the government, and have made or agreed to make full restitution.
(i) Whether you have cooperated fully with the government agencies during the investigation and any court or administrative action. In determining the extent of cooperation, the debarring official may consider when the cooperation began and whether you disclosed all pertinent information known to you.
(j) Whether the wrongdoing was pervasive within your organization.
(k) The kind of positions held by the individuals involved in the wrongdoing.
(l) Whether your organization took appropriate corrective action or remedial measures, such as establishing ethics training and implementing programs to prevent recurrence.
(m) Whether your principals tolerated the offense.
(n) Whether you brought the activity cited as a basis for the debarment to the attention of the appropriate government agency in a timely manner.
(o) Whether you have fully investigated the circumstances surrounding the cause for debarment and, if so, made the result of the investigation available to the debarring official.
(p) Whether you had effective standards of conduct and internal control systems in place at the time the questioned conduct occurred.
(q) Whether you have taken appropriate disciplinary action against the individuals responsible for the activity which constitutes the cause for debarment.
(r) Whether you have had adequate time to eliminate the circumstances
(s) Other factors that are appropriate to the circumstances of a particular case.
(a) If the debarring official decides to debar you, your period of debarment will be based on the seriousness of the cause(s) upon which your debarment is based. Generally, debarment should not exceed three years. However, if circumstances warrant, the debarring official may impose a longer period of debarment.
(b) In determining the period of debarment, the debarring official may consider the factors in § 25.860. If a suspension has preceded your debarment, the debarring official must consider the time you were suspended.
(c) If the debarment is for a violation of the provisions of the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988, your period of debarment may not exceed five years.
(a) The debarring official must make a written decision whether to debar within 45 days of closing the official record. The official record closes upon the debarring official's receipt of final submissions, information and findings of fact, if any. The debarring official may extend that period for good cause.
(b) The debarring official sends you written notice, pursuant to § 25.615 that the official decided, either—
(1) Not to debar you; or
(2) To debar you. In this event, the notice:
(i) Refers to the Notice of Proposed Debarment;
(ii) Specifies the reasons for your debarment;
(iii) States the period of your debarment, including the effective dates; and
(iv) Advises you that your debarment is effective for covered transactions and contracts that are subject to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR chapter 1), throughout the executive branch of the Federal Government unless an agency head or an authorized designee grants an exception.
Yes, as a debarred person you may ask the debarring official to reconsider the debarment decision or to reduce the time period or scope of the debarment. However, you must put your request in writing and support it with documentation.
The debarring official may reduce or terminate your debarment based on—
(a) Newly discovered material evidence;
(b) A reversal of the conviction or civil judgment upon which your debarment was based;
(c) A bona fide change in ownership or management;
(d) Elimination of other causes for which the debarment was imposed; or
(e) Other reasons the debarring official finds appropriate.
(a) Yes, the debarring official may extend a debarment for an additional period, if that official determines that an extension is necessary to protect the public interest.
(b) However, the debarring official may not extend a debarment solely on the basis of the facts and circumstances upon which the initial debarment action was based.
(c) If the debarring official decides that a debarment for an additional period is necessary, the debarring official must follow the applicable procedures in this subpart, and subpart F of this part, to extend the debarment.
Persons are
(a) Interlocking management or ownership;
(b) Identity of interests among family members;
(c) Shared facilities and equipment;
(d) Common use of employees; or
(e) A business entity which has been organized following the exclusion of a person which has the same or similar management, ownership, or principal employees as the excluded person.
(a) A judgment or any other determination of guilt of a criminal offense by any court of competent jurisdiction, whether entered upon a verdict or plea, including a plea of nolo contendere; or
(b) Any other resolution that is the functional equivalent of a judgment, including probation before judgment and deferred prosecution. A disposition without the participation of the court is the functional equivalent of a judgment only if it includes an admission of guilt.
(a)
(1) The agency head; or
(2) An official designated by the agency head.
(b) DOD Components' debarring officials for nonprocurement transactions are the same officials identified in 48 CFR part 209, subpart 209.4 as debarring officials for procurement contracts.
(a) The Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 276(a));
(b) The equal employment opportunity acts and Executive orders; or
(c) The Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7606), Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1368) and Executive Order 11738 (3 CFR, 1973 Comp., p. 799).
(a) That a person or commodity is prohibited from being a participant in
(b) The act of excluding a person.
(a)
(1) Grants.
(2) Cooperative agreements.
(3) Scholarships.
(4) Fellowships.
(5) Contracts of assistance.
(6) Loans.
(7) Loan guarantees.
(8) Subsidies.
(9) Insurances.
(10) Payments for specified uses.
(11) Donation agreements.
(b) A nonprocurement transaction at any tier does not require the transfer of Federal funds.
(a) An officer, director, owner, partner, principal investigator, or other person within a participant with management or supervisory responsibilities related to a covered transaction; or
(b) A consultant or other person, whether or not employed by the participant or paid with Federal funds, who—
(1) Is in a position to handle Federal funds;
(2) Is in a position to influence or control the use of those funds; or,
(3) Occupies a technical or professional position capable of substantially influencing the development or outcome of an activity required to perform the covered transaction.
(a)
(1) Any of the states of the United States;
(2) The District of Columbia;
(3) The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;
(4) Any territory or possession of the United States; or
(5) Any agency or instrumentality of a state.
(b) For purposes of this part,
(a)
(1) The agency head; or
(2) An official designated by the agency head.
(b) DOD Components' suspending officials for nonprocurement transactions are the same officials identified in 48 CFR part, subpart 209.4 as suspending officials for procurement contracts.
(a)
(b)
41U.S.C.701,
This part carries out the portion of the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 (41 U.S.C. 701
(a) Portions of this part apply to you if you are either—
(1) A recipient of an assistance award from the DOD Component; or
(2) A(n) DOD Component awarding official. (See definitions of award and recipient in §§ 26.605 and 26.660, respectively.)
(b) The following table shows the subparts that apply to you:
This part does not apply to any award that the Head of the DOD Component or his or her designee determines that the application of this part would be inconsistent with the international obligations of the United States or the laws or regulations of a foreign government.
It will affect future contract awards indirectly if you are debarred or suspended for a violation of the requirements of this part, as described in § 26. 510(c). However, this part does not apply directly to procurement contracts. The portion of the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 that applies to Federal procurement contracts is carried out through the Federal Acquisition Regulation in chapter 1 of Title 48 of the Code of Federal Regulations (the drug-free workplace coverage currently is in 48 CFR part 23, subpart 23.5).
There are two general requirements if you are a recipient other than an individual.
(a) First, you must make a good faith effort, on a continuing basis, to maintain a drug-free workplace. You must agree to do so as a condition for receiving any award covered by this part. The specific measures that you must
(1) Publish a drug-free workplace statement and establish a drug-free awareness program for your employees (see §§ 26.205 through 26.220); and
(2) Take actions concerning employees who are convicted of violating drug statutes in the workplace (see § 26.225).
(b) Second, you must identify all known workplaces under your Federal awards (see § 26.230).
You must publish a statement that—
(a) Tells your employees that the unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensing, possession, or use of a controlled substance is prohibited in your workplace;
(b) Specifies the actions that you will take against employees for violating that prohibition; and
(c) Lets each employee know that, as a condition of employment under any award, he or she:
(1) Will abide by the terms of the statement; and
(2) Must notify you in writing if he or she is convicted for a violation of a criminal drug statute occurring in the workplace and must do so no more than five calendar days after the conviction.
You must require that a copy of the statement described in § 26.205 be given to each employee who will be engaged in the performance of any Federal award.
You must establish an ongoing drug-free awareness program to inform employees about—
(a) The dangers of drug abuse in the workplace;
(b) Your policy of maintaining a drug-free workplace;
(c) Any available drug counseling, rehabilitation, and employee assistance programs; and
(d) The penalties that you may impose upon them for drug abuse violations occurring in the workplace.
If you are a new recipient that does not already have a policy statement as described in § 26.205 and an ongoing awareness program as described in § 26.215, you must publish the statement and establish the program by the time given in the following table:
There are two actions you must take if an employee is convicted of a drug violation in the workplace:
(a) First, you must notify Federal agencies if an employee who is engaged in the performance of an award informs you about a conviction, as required by § 26.205(c)(2), or you otherwise learn of the conviction. Your notification to the Federal agencies must_
(1) Be in writing;
(2) Include the employee's position title;
(3) Include the identification number(s) of each affected award;
(4) Be sent within ten calendar days after you learn of the conviction; and
(5) Be sent to every Federal agency on whose award the convicted employee was working. It must be sent to every awarding official or his or her official designee, unless the Federal agency has specified a central point for the receipt of the notices.
(b) Second, within 30 calendar days of learning about an employee's conviction, you must either_
(1) Take appropriate personnel action against the employee, up to and including termination, consistent with the requirements of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), as amended; or
(2) Require the employee to participate satisfactorily in a drug abuse assistance or rehabilitation program approved for these purposes by a Federal, State or local health, law enforcement, or other appropriate agency.
(a) You must identify all known workplaces under each DOD Component award. A failure to do so is a violation of your drug-free workplace requirements. You may identify the workplaces_
(1) To the DOD Component official that is making the award, either at the time of application or upon award; or
(2) In documents that you keep on file in your offices during the performance of the award, in which case you must make the information available for inspection upon request by DOD Component officials or their designated representatives.
(b) Your workplace identification for an award must include the actual address of buildings (or parts of buildings) or other sites where work under the award takes place. Categorical descriptions may be used (
(c) If you identified workplaces to the DOD Component awarding official at the time of application or award, as described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, and any workplace that you identified changes during the performance of the award, you must inform the DOD Component awarding official.
As a condition of receiving a(n) DOD Component award, if you are an individual recipient, you must agree that—
(a) You will not engage in the unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensing, possession, or use of a controlled substance in conducting any activity related to the award; and
(b) If you are convicted of a criminal drug offense resulting from a violation occurring during the conduct of any award activity, you will report the conviction:
(1) In writing.
(2) Within 10 calendar days of the conviction.
(3) To the DOD Component awarding official or other designee for each award that you currently have, unless § 26.301 or the award document designates a central point for the receipt of the notices. When notice is made to a central point, it must include the identification number(s) of each affected award.
As a(n) DOD Component awarding official, you must obtain each recipient's agreement, as a condition of the award, to comply with the requirements in—
(a) Subpart B of this part, if the recipient is not an individual; or
(b) Subpart C of this part, if the recipient is an individual.
A recipient other than an individual is in violation of the requirements of
(a) The recipient has violated the requirements of subpart B of this part; or
(b) The number of convictions of the recipient's employees for violating criminal drug statutes in the workplace is large enough to indicate that the recipient has failed to make a good faith effort to provide a drug-free workplace.
An individual recipient is in violation of the requirements of this part if the Head of the DOD Component or his or her designee determines, in writing, that—
(a) The recipient has violated the requirements of subpart C of this part; or
(b) The recipient is convicted of a criminal drug offense resulting from a violation occurring during the conduct of any award activity.
If a recipient is determined to have violated this part, as described in § 26.500 or § 26.505, the DOD Component may take one or more of the following actions—
(a) Suspension of payments under the award;
(b) Suspension or termination of the award; and
(c) Suspension or debarment of the recipient under 32 CFR Part 25, for a period not to exceed five years.
The Secretary of Defense or Secretary of a Military Department may waive with respect to a particular award, in writing, a suspension of payments under an award, suspension or termination of an award, or suspension or debarment of a recipient if the Secretary of Defense or Secretary of a Military Department determines that such a waiver would be in the public interest. This exception authority cannot be delegated to any other official.
(a) The term award includes:
(1) A Federal grant or cooperative agreement, in the form of money or property in lieu of money.
(2) A block grant or a grant in an entitlement program, whether or not the grant is exempted from coverage under the Governmentwide rule 32 CFR Part 33 that implements OMB Circular A-102 (for availability, see 5 CFR 1310.3) and specifies uniform administrative requirements.
(b) The term award does not include:
(1) Technical assistance that provides services instead of money.
(2) Loans.
(3) Loan guarantees.
(4) Interest subsidies.
(5) Insurance.
(6) Direct appropriations.
(7) Veterans' benefits to individuals (
(a)
(1) All direct charge employees;
(2) All indirect charge employees, unless their impact or involvement in the performance of work under the award is insignificant to the performance of the award; and
(3) Temporary personnel and consultants who are directly engaged in the performance of work under the award and who are on the recipient's payroll.
(b) This definition does not include workers not on the payroll of the recipient (
(a) The principal purpose of which is to transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States, rather than to acquire property or services for the Federal Government's direct benefit or use; and
(b) In which substantial involvement is not expected between the Federal agency and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the award.
Section 319, Public Law 102-121 (31 U.S.C. 1352); 5 U.S.C. section 301; 10 U.S.C. 113.
See also Office of Management and Budget notice published at 54 FR 52306, December 20, 1989.
(a) No appropriated funds may be expended by the recipient of a Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative ageement to pay any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with any of the following covered Federal actions: the awarding of any Federal contract, the making of any Federal grant, the making of any Federal loan, the entering into of any cooperative agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
(b) Each person who requests or receives from an agency a Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement shall file with that agency a certification, set forth in Appendix A, that the person has not made, and will not make, any payment prohibited by paragraph (a) of this section.
(c) Each person who requests or receives from an agency a Federal contract, grant, loan, or a cooperative agreement shall file with that agency a disclosure form, set forth in Appendix B, if such person has made or has agreed to make any payment using nonappropriated funds (to include profits from any covered Federal action), which would be prohibited under paragraph (a) of this section if paid for with appropriated funds.
(d) Each person who requests or receives from an agency a commitment providing for the United States to insure or guarantee a loan shall file with that agency a statement, set forth in appendix A, whether that person has
(e) Each person who requests or receives from an agency a commitment providing for the United States to insure or guarantee a loan shall file with that agency a disclosure form, set forth in Appendix B, if that person has made or has agreed to make any payment to influence or attempt to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with that loan insurance or guarantee.
For purposes of this part:
(a)
(b)
(1) The awarding of any Federal contract;
(2) The making of any Federal grant;
(3) The making of any Federal loan;
(4) The entering into of any cooperative agreement; and,
(5) The extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
(1) An individual who is appointed to a position in the Government under title 5, U.S. Code, including a position under a temporary appointment;
(2) A member of the uniformed services as defined in section 101(3), title 37, U.S. Code;
(3) A special Government employee as defined in section 202, title 18, U.S. Code; and,
(4) An individual who is a member of a Federal advisory committee, as defined by the Federal Advisory Committee Act, title 5, U.S. Code appendix 2.
(l)
(m)
(n)
(o)
(p)
(q)
(a) Each person shall file a certification, and a disclosure form, if required, with each submission that initiates agency consideration of such person for:
(1) Award of a Federal contract, grant, or cooperative agreement exceeding $100,000; or
(2) An award of a Federal loan or a commitment providing for the United States to insure or guarantee a loan exceeding $150,000.
(b) Each person shall file a certification, and a disclosure form, if required, upon receipt by such person of:
(1) A Federal contract, grant, or cooperative agreement exceeding $100,000; or
(2) A Federal loan or a commitment providing for the United States to insure or guarantee a loan exceeding $150,000,
(c) Each person shall file a disclosure form at the end of each calendar quarter in which there occurs any event that requires disclosure or that materially affects the accuracy of the information contained in any disclosure form previously filed by such person under paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section. An event that materially affects the accuracy of the information reported includes:
(1) A cumulative increase of $25,000 or more in the amount paid or expected to be paid for influencing or attempting to influence a covered Federal action; or
(2) A change in the person(s) or individual(s) influencing or attempting to influence a covered Federal action; or,
(3) A change in the officer(s), employee(s), or Member(s) contacted to influence or attempt to influence a covered Federal action.
(d) Any person who requests or receives from a person referred to in paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section:
(1) A subcontract exceeding $100,000 at any tier under a Federal contract;
(2) A subgrant, contract, or subcontract exceeding $100,000 at any tier under a Federal grant;
(3) A contract or subcontract exceeding $100,000 at any tier under a Federal loan exceeding $150,000; or,
(4) A contract or subcontract exceeding $100,000 at any tier under a Federal cooperative agreement,
(e) All disclosure forms, but not certifications, shall be forwarded from tier to tier until received by the person referred to in paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section. That person shall forward all disclosure forms to the agency.
(f) Any certification or disclosure form filed under paragraph (e) of this section shall be treated as a material representation of fact upon which all receiving tiers shall rely. All liability arising from an erroneous representation shall be borne solely by the tier filing that representation and shall not be shared by any tier to which the erroneous representation is forwarded. Submitting an erroneous certification or disclosure constitutes a failure to file the required certification or disclosure, respectively. If a person fails to file a required certification or disclosure, the United States may pursue all available remedies, including those authorized by section 1352, title 31, U.S. Code.
(g) For awards and commitments in process prior to December 23, 1989, but not made before that date, certifications shall be required at award or commitment, covering activities occurring between December 23, 1989, and the date of award or commitment. However, for awards and commitments in process prior to the December 23, 1989 effective date of these provisions, but not made before December 23, 1989, disclosure forms shall not be required at time of award or commitment but shall be filed within 30 days.
(h) No reporting is required for an activity paid for with appropriated funds if that activity is allowable under either subpart B or C.
(a) The prohibition on the use of appropriated funds, in § 28.100 (a), does not apply in the case of a payment of reasonable compensation made to an officer or employee of a person requesting or receiving a Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement if the payment is for agency and legislative liaison activities not directly related to a covered Federal action.
(b) For purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, providing any information specifically requested by an agency or Congress is allowable at any time.
(c) For purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, the following agency and legislative liaison activities are allowable at any time only where they are not related to a specific solicitation for any covered Federal action:
(1) Discussing with an agency (including individual demonstrations) the qualities and characteristics of the person's products or services, conditions or terms of sale, and service capabilities; and,
(2) Technical discussions and other activities regarding the application or adaptation of the person's products or services for an agency's use.
(d) For purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, the following agencies and legislative liaison activities are allowable only where they are prior to formal solicitation of any covered Federal action:
(1) Providing any information not specifically requested but necessary for an agency to make an informed decision about initiation of a covered Federal action;
(2) Technical discussions regarding the preparation of an unsolicited proposal prior to its official submission; and,
(3) Capability presentations by persons seeking awards from an agency pursuant to the provisions of the Small Business Act, as amended by Public Law 95-507 and other subsequent amendments.
(e) Only those activities expressly authorized by this section are allowable under this section.
(a) The prohibition on the use of appropriated funds, in § 28.100 (a), does not apply in the case of a payment of reasonable compensation made to an officer or employee of a person requesting or receiving a Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement or an extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of a Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement if payment is for professional or technical services rendered directly in the preparation, submission, or negotiation of any bid, proposal, or application for that Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement or for meeting requirements imposed by or pursuant to law as a condition for receiving that Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
(b) For purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, “professional and technical services” shall be limited to advice and analysis directly applying any professional or technical discipline. For example, drafting of a legal document accompanying a bid or proposal by a lawyer is allowable. Similarly, technical advice provided by an engineer on the performance or operational capability of a piece of equipment rendered directly in the negotiation of a contract is allowable. However, communications with the intent to influence made by a professional (such as a licensed lawyer) or a technical person (such as a licensed accountant) are not allowable under this section unless they provide advice and analysis directly applying their professional or technical expertise and unless the advice or analysis is rendered directly and solely in the preparation, submission or negotiation of a covered Federal action. Thus, for example, communications with the intent to influence made by a lawyer that do not provide legal advice or analysis directly and solely related to the legal aspects of his or her client's proposal, but generally advocate one proposal over another are not allowable under this section because the lawyer is not providing professional legal services. Similarly, communications with the intent to influence made by an engineer providing an engineering analysis prior to the preparation or submission of a bid or proposal are not allowable under this section since the engineer is providing technical services but not directly in the preparation, submission or negotiation of a covered Federal action.
(c) Requirements imposed by or pursuant to law as a condition for receiving a covered Federal award include those required by law or regulation, or reasonably expected to be required by law or regulation, and any other requirements in the actual award documents.
(d) Only those services expressly authorized by this section are allowable under this section.
No reporting is required with respect to payments of reasonable compensation made to regularly employed officers or employees of a person.
(a) The prohibition on the use of appropriated funds, in § 28.100 (a), does not apply in the case of any reasonable payment to a person, other than an officer or employee of a person requesting or receiving a covered Federal action, if the payment is for professional or technical services rendered directly in the preparation, submission, or negotiation of any bid, proposal, or application for that Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement or for
(b) The reporting requirments in § 28.110 (a) and (b) regarding filing a disclosure form by each person, if required, shall not apply with respect to professional or technical services rendered directly in the preparation, submission, or negotiation of any commitment providing for the United States to insure or guarantee a loan.
(c) For purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, “professional and technical services” shall be limited to advice and analysis directly applying any professional or technical discipline. For example, drafting of a legal document accompanying a bid or proposal by a lawyer is allowable. Similarly, technical advice provided by an engineer on the performance or operational capability of a piece of equipment rendered directly in the negotiation of a contract is allowable. However, communications with the intent to influence made by a professional (such as a licensed lawyer) or a technical person (such as a licensed accountant) are not allowable under this section unless they provide advice and analysis directly applying their professional or technical expertise and unless the advice or analysis is rendered directly and solely in the preparation, submission or negotiation of a covered Federal action. Thus, for example, communications with the intent to influence made by a lawyer that do not provide legal advice or analysis directly and solely related to the legal aspects of his or her client's proposal, but generally advocate one proposal over another are not allowable under this section because the lawyer is not providing professional legal services. Similarly, communications with the intent to influence made by an engineer providing an engineering analysis prior to the preparation or submission of a bid or proposal are not allowable under this section since the engineer is providing technical services but not directly in the preparation, submission or negotiation of a covered Federal action.
(d) Requirements imposed by or pursuant to law as a condition for receiving a covered Federal award include those required by law or regulation, or reasonably expected to be required by law or regulation, and any other requirements in the actual award documents.
(e) Persons other than officers or employees of a person requesting or receiving a covered Federal action include consultants and trade associations.
(f) Only those services expressly authorized by this section are allowable under this section.
(a) Any person who makes an expenditure prohibited herein shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such expenditure.
(b) Any person who fails to file or amend the disclosure form (see Appendix B) to be filed or amended if required herein, shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such failure.
(c) A filing or amended filing on or after the date on which an administrative action for the imposition of a civil penalty is commenced does not prevent the imposition of such civil penalty for a failure occurring before that date. An administrative action is commenced with respect to a failure when an investigating official determines in writing to commence an investigation of an allegation of such failure.
(d) In determining whether to impose a civil penalty, and the amount of any such penalty, by reason of a violation by any person, the agency shall consider the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation, the effect on the ability of such person to continue in business, any prior violations by such person, the degree of culpability of such person, the ability of the person to pay the penalty, and such other matters as may be appropriate.
(e) First offenders under paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section shall be subject
(f) An imposition of a civil penalty under this section does not prevent the United States from seeking any other remedy that may apply to the same conduct that is the basis for the imposition of such civil penalty.
Agencies shall impose and collect civil penalties pursuant to the provisions of the Program Fraud and Civil Remedies Act, 31 U.S.C. sections 3803 (except subsection (c)), 3804, 3805, 3806, 3807, 3808, and 3812, insofar as these provisions are not inconsistent with the requirements herein.
The head of each agency shall take such actions as are necessary to ensure that the provisions herein are vigorously implemented and enforced in that agency.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(1) A grants officer wishing to request an exemption for a grant, cooperative agreement, or loan shall transmit such request through appropriate channels to: Director for Research, ODDR&E(R), 3080 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC. 20301-3080.
(2) Each such request shall explain why an exemption is in the national interest, a justification that must be transmitted to Congress for each exemption that is approved.
(a) The head of each agency shall collect and compile the disclosure reports (see appendix B) and, on May 31 and November 30 of each year, submit to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives a report containing a compilation of the information contained in the disclosure reports received during the six-month period ending on March 31 or September 30, respectively, of that year.
(b) The report, including the compilation, shall be available for public inspection 30 days after receipt of the report by the Secretary and the Clerk.
(c) Information that involves intelligence matters shall be reported only to the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate, the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives, and the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives in accordance with procedures agreed to by such committees. Such information shall not be available for public inspection.
(d) Information that is classified under Executive Order 12356 or any successor order shall be reported only to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives or the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives (whichever such committees have jurisdiction of matters involving such information) and to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives in accordance with procedures agreed to by such committees. Such information shall not be available for public inspection.
(e) The first semi-annual compilation shall be submitted on May 31, 1990, and shall contain a compilation of the disclosure reports received from December 23, 1989 to March 31, 1990.
(f) Major agencies, designated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), are required to provide machine-readable compilations to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives no later than with the compilations due on May 31, 1991. OMB shall provide detailed specifications in a memorandum to these agencies.
(g) Non-major agencies are requested to provide machine-readable compilations to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives.
(h) Agencies shall keep the originals of all disclosure reports in the official files of the agency.
(a) The Inspector General, or other official as specified in paragraph (b) of this section, of each agency shall prepare and submit to Congress each year, commencing with submission of the President's Budget in 1991, an evaluation of the compliance of that agency with, and the effectiveness of, the requirements herein. The evaluation may include any recommended changes that may be necessary to strengthen or improve the requirements.
(b) In the case of an agency that does not have an Inspector General, the agency official comparable to an Inspector General shall prepare and submit the annual report, or, if there is no such comparable official, the head of the agency shall prepare and submit the annual report.
(c) The annual report shall be submitted at the same time the agency submits its annual budget justifications to Congress.
(d) The annual report shall include the following: All alleged violations relating to the agency's covered Federal actions during the year covered by the report, the actions taken by the head of the agency in the year covered by the report with respect to those alleged violations and alleged violations in previous years, and the amounts of civil penalties imposed by the agency in the year covered by the report.
The undersigned certifies, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, that:
(1) No Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid, by or on behalf of the undersigned, to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of an agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with the awarding of any Federal contract, the making of any Federal grant, the making of any Federal loan, the entering into of any cooperative agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
(2) If any funds other than Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with this Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement, the undersigned shall complete and submit Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure Form to Report Lobbying,” in accordance with its instructions.
(3) The undersigned shall require that the language of this certification be included in the award documents for all subawards at all tiers (including subcontracts, subgrants, and contracts under grants, loans, and cooperative agreements) and that all subrecipients shall certify and disclose accordingly.
This certification is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when this transaction was made or entered into. Submission of this certification is a prerequisite for making or entering into this transaction imposed by section 1352, title 31, U.S. Code. Any person who fails to file the required certification shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such failure.
The undersigned states, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, that:
If any funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with this commitment providing for the United States
Submission of this statement is a prerequisite for making or entering into this transaction imposed by section 1352, title 31, U.S. Code. Any person who fails to file the required statement shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such failure.
5 U.S.C. 301 and 10 U.S.C. 113.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
The following are definitions of terms used in this part. Grants officers are cautioned that terms may be defined differently in this part than they are in other parts of the DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations, because this part implements OMB Circular A-110 and uses definitions as stated in that Circular. In such cases, the definition given in this section applies to the term as it is used in this part, and the definition given in other parts applies to the term as it is used in those parts. For example,
(1) Goods and other tangible property received;
(2) Services performed by employees, contractors, subrecipients, and other payees; and
(3) Other amounts becoming owed under programs for which no current services or performance is required.
(1) Earnings during a given period from:
(i) Services performed by the recipient; and
(ii) Goods and other tangible property delivered to purchasers.
(2) Amounts becoming owed to the recipient for which no current services or performance is required by the recipient.
(1) That have not been paid, if financial reports are prepared on a cash basis.
(2) For which an outlay has not been recorded, if reports are prepared on an accrued expenditure basis.
For awards subject to this part, all administrative requirements of codified program regulations, program manuals, handbooks and other nonregulatory materials which are inconsistent with the requirements of this part shall be superseded, except to the extent they are required by statute, or authorized in accordance with the deviations provision in § 32.4.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(i) With the written concurrence of the Office of the Management and Budget (OMB). The DDR&E, or his or her designee, shall provide written notification to OMB of the Department of Defense's intention to grant a class deviation; and
(ii) When exceptions are not prohibited by statute.
(2) DoD Components shall request approval for such deviations in accordance with 32 CFR 21.335(b) and 21.340. However, in the interest of maximum uniformity, exceptions from the requirements of this part shall be permitted only in unusual circumstances.
Unless sections of this part specifically exclude subrecipients from coverage, the provisions of this part shall be applied to subrecipients performing
Sections 32.11 through 32.17 prescribe application forms and instructions and other pre-award matters.
(a)
(i) In each instance, the Federal awarding agency shall decide on the appropriate award instrument (i.e., grant, cooperative agreement, or contract).
(ii) The Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act (31 U.S.C. 6301-6308) governs the use of grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts. Under that Act:
(A) A grant or cooperative agreement shall be used only when the principal purpose of a transaction is to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by Federal statute.
(B) Contracts shall be used when the principal purpose is acquisition of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government.
(C) The statutory criterion for choosing between grants and cooperative agreements is that for the latter, “substantial involvement is expected between the executive agency and the State, local government, or other recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated in the agreement.”
(2) In selecting the appropriate award instruments, DoD Components' grants officers shall comply with the DoD implementation of the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act at 32 CFR part 22, subpart B.
(b)
(a) DoD Components shall comply with the applicable report clearance requirements of 5 CFR part 1320, “Controlling Paperwork Burdens on the Public,” with regard to all forms used in place of or as a supplement to the Standard Form 424
(b) Applicants shall use the SF-424 series or those forms and instructions prescribed by DoD Components.
(c) For Federal programs covered by E.O. 12372 (3 CFR, 1982 Comp., p. 197), “Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs,” the applicant shall complete the appropriate sections of the SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance) indicating whether the application was subject to review by the State Single Point of Contact (SPOC). The name and address of the SPOC for a particular State can be obtained from the DoD Component or the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. The SPOC shall advise the applicant whether the program for which application is made has been selected by that State for review.
(d) DoD Components that do not use the SF-424 form should indicate whether the application is subject to review by the State under E.O. 12372.
DoD Components and recipients shall comply with the nonprocurement debarment and suspension common rule at 32 CFR part 25. This common rule restricts subawards and contracts with certain parties that are debarred, suspended or otherwise excluded from or ineligible for participation in Federal assistance programs or activities.
(a) DoD Components may impose additional requirements as needed, over and above those provided in this part, if an applicant or recipient:
(1) Has a history of poor performance;
(2) Is not financially stable;
(3) Has a management system that does not meet the standards prescribed in this part;
(4) Has not conformed to the terms and conditions of a previous award; or
(5) Is not otherwise responsible.
(b) Before imposing additional requirements, DoD Components shall notify the applicant or recipient in writing as to:
(1) The nature of the additional requirements;
(2) The reason why the additional requirements are being imposed;
(3) The nature of the corrective action needed;
(4) The time allowed for completing the corrective actions; and
(5) The method for requesting reconsideration of the additional requirements imposed.
(c) Any special conditions shall be promptly removed once the conditions that prompted them have been corrected.
(d) Grants officers:
(1) Should coordinate the imposition and removal of special award conditions with the cognizant grants administration office identified in 32 CFR 22.710.
(2) Shall include in the award file the written notification to the recipient, described in paragraph (b) of this section, and the documentation required by 32 CFR 22.410(b).
The Metric Conversion Act, as amended by the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act (15 U.S.C. 205) declares that the metric system is the preferred measurement system for U.S. trade and commerce, and for Federal agencies' procurements, grants, and other business-related activities. DoD grants officers shall comply with requirements concerning the use of the metric system at 32 CFR 22.530.
Recipients' procurements shall comply with applicable requirements of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), as described at § 32.49.
(a) OMB Circular A-110 authorizes and encourages each Federal agency, unless prohibited by statute or codified regulation, to allow recipients to submit certifications and representations required by statute, executive order, or regulation on an annual basis, if the recipients have ongoing and continuing relationships with the agency. The Circular further states that annual certifications and representations, when used, shall be signed by responsible officials with the authority to ensure recipients' compliance with the pertinent requirements.
(b) DoD grants officers shall comply with the provisions concerning certifications and representations at 32 CFR 22.510. Those provisions ease burdens on recipients to the extent possible, given current statutory and regulatory impediments to obtaining all certifications on an annual basis. The provisions thereby also comply with the intent of OMB Circular A-110, to use less burdensome methods for obtaining certifications and representations, as such methods become feasible.
Sections 32.21 through 32.28 prescribe standards for financial management systems, methods for making payments and rules for: satisfying cost sharing and matching requirements,
(a) DoD Components shall require recipients to relate financial data to performance data and develop unit cost information whenever practical. For awards that support research, it should be noted that it is generally not appropriate to develop unit cost information.
(b) Recipients' financial management systems shall provide for the following.
(1) Accurate, current and complete disclosure of the financial results of each federally-sponsored project or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in § 32.52. If a DoD Component requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient that maintains its records on other than an accrual basis, the recipient shall not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. These recipients may develop such accrual data for its reports on the basis of an analysis of the documentation on hand.
(2) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federally-sponsored activities. These records shall contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, obligations, unobligated balances, assets, outlays, income and interest.
(3) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property and other assets. Recipients shall adequately safeguard all such assets and assure they are used solely for authorized purposes.
(4) Comparison of outlays with budget amounts for each award. Whenever appropriate, financial information should be related to performance and unit cost data. As discussed in paragraph (a) of this section, unit cost data is generally not appropriate for awards that support research.
(5) Written procedures to minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds to the recipient from the U.S. Treasury and the issuance or redemption of checks, warrants or payments by other means for program purposes by the recipient. To the extent that the provisions of the Cash Management Improvement Act (CMIA) (Pub. L. 101-453) govern, payment methods of State agencies, instrumentalities, and fiscal agents should be consistent with CMIA Treasury-State Agreements or the CMIA default procedures codified at 31 CFR part 205, “Withdrawal of Cash from the Treasury for Advances under Federal Grant and Other Programs.”
(6) Written procedures for determining the reasonableness, allocability and allowability of costs in accordance with the provisions of the applicable Federal cost principles (see § 32.27) and the terms and conditions of the award.
(7) Accounting records including cost accounting records that are supported by source documentation.
(c) Where the Federal Government guarantees or insures the repayment of money borrowed by the recipient, the DoD Component, at its discretion, may require adequate bonding and insurance if the bonding and insurance requirements of the recipient are not deemed adequate to protect the interest of the Federal Government.
(d) The DoD Component may require adequate fidelity bond coverage where the recipient lacks sufficient coverage to protect the Federal Government's interest.
(e) Where bonds are required in the situations described above, the bonds shall be obtained from companies holding certificates of authority as acceptable sureties, as prescribed in 31 CFR part 223, “Surety Companies Doing Business with the United States.”
(a) Payment methods shall minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds from the United States Treasury and the issuance or redemption of checks, warrants, or payment by other means by the recipients. Payment methods of State agencies or instrumentalities shall be consistent with Treasury-State agreements under the Cash Management Improvement Act (CMIA) (31 U.S.C. 3335 and 6503) or default procedures in 31 CFR part 205.
(b) Recipients are to be paid in advance, provided they maintain or demonstrate the willingness to maintain:
(1) Written procedures that minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds and disbursement by the recipient; and
(2) Financial management systems that meet the standards for fund control and accountability as established in § 32.21. Cash advances to a recipient organization shall be limited to the minimum amounts needed and be timed to be in accordance with the actual, immediate cash requirements of the recipient organization in carrying out the purpose of the approved program or project. The timing and amount of cash advances shall be as close as is administratively feasible to the actual disbursements by the recipient organization for direct program or project costs and the proportionate share of any allowable indirect costs.
(c) Whenever possible, advances shall be consolidated to cover anticipated cash needs for all awards made by the DoD Component to the recipient.
(1) Advance payment mechanisms include, but are not limited to, Treasury check and electronic funds transfer.
(2) Advance payment mechanisms are subject to 31 CFR part 205.
(3) Recipients shall be authorized to submit requests for advances and reimbursements at least monthly when electronic fund transfers are not used.
(d) Requests for Treasury check advance payment shall be submitted on SF-270,
(e) Reimbursement is the preferred method when the requirements in paragraph (b) of this section cannot be met. DoD Components may also use this method on any construction agreement, or if the major portion of the construction project is accomplished through private market financing or Federal loans, and the Federal assistance constitutes a minor portion of the project.
(1) When the reimbursement method is used, the responsible DoD payment office generally makes payment within 30 calendar days after receipt of the billing by the office designated to receive the billing, unless the billing is improper (for further information about timeframes for payments, see 32 CFR 22.810(c)(3)(ii)).
(2) Recipients shall be authorized to submit requests for reimbursement at least monthly when electronic funds transfers are not used.
(f) If a recipient cannot meet the criteria for advance payments and the grants officer, in consultation with the program manager, has determined that reimbursement is not feasible because the recipient lacks sufficient working capital, the award may provide for cash on a working capital advance basis. Under this procedure, the award shall provide for advancing cash to the recipient to cover its estimated disbursement needs for an initial period generally geared to the awardee's disbursing cycle. Thereafter, the award shall provide for reimbursing the recipient for its actual cash disbursements. The working capital advance method of payment shall not be used for recipients unwilling or unable to provide timely advances to their subrecipient to meet the subrecipient's actual cash disbursements.
(g) To the extent available, recipients shall disburse funds available from repayments to and interest earned on a revolving fund, program income, rebates, refunds, contract settlements, audit recoveries and interest earned on such funds before requesting additional cash payments.
(h) Unless otherwise required by statute, grants officers shall not withhold payments for proper charges made by recipients at any time during the project period unless:
(1) A recipient has failed to comply with the project objectives, the terms and conditions of the award, or Federal reporting requirements; or
(2) The recipient or subrecipient is delinquent in a debt to the United States under OMB Circular A-129, “Managing Federal Credit Programs” (see definitions of “debt” and “delinquent debt,” at 32 CFR 22.105). Under such conditions, the grants officer
(i) Standards governing the use of banks and other institutions as depositories of funds advanced under awards are as follows:
(1) Except for situations described in paragraph (i)(2) of this section, DoD Components shall not require separate depository accounts for funds provided to a recipient or establish any eligibility requirements for depositories for funds provided to a recipient. However, recipients must be able to account for the receipt, obligation and expenditure of funds.
(2) Advances of Federal funds shall be deposited and maintained in insured accounts whenever possible.
(j) Consistent with the national goal of expanding the opportunities for women-owned and minority-owned business enterprises, recipients shall be encouraged to use women-owned and minority-owned banks (a bank which is owned at least 50 percent by women or minority group members).
(k) Recipients shall maintain advances of Federal funds in interest bearing accounts, unless:
(1) The recipient receives less than $120,000 in Federal awards per year;
(2) The best reasonably available interest bearing account would not be expected to earn interest in excess of $250 per year on Federal cash balances; or
(3) The depository would require an average or minimum balance so high that it would not be feasible within the expected Federal and non-Federal cash resources.
(l)(1) Interest earned on Federal advances deposited in interest bearing accounts shall be remitted annually to Department of Health and Human Services, Payment Management System, PO Box 6021, Rockville, MD 20852.
(2) In keeping with Electronic Funds Transfer rules (31 CFR part 206), interest should be remitted to the HHS Payment Management System through an electronic medium such as the FEDWIR Deposit System. Electronic remittances should be in the format and should include any data that are specified by the grants officer as being necessary to facilitate direct deposit in HHS' account at the Department of the Treasury.
(3) Recipients that do not have electronic remittance capability should use a check.
(4) Interest amounts up to $250 per year may be retained by the recipient for administrative expense.
(m) Except as noted elsewhere in this part, only the following forms shall be authorized for the recipients in requesting advances and reimbursements. DoD Components shall not require more than an original and two copies of these forms.
(1) SF-270, Request for Advance or Reimbursement. Each DoD Component shall adopt the SF-270 as a standard form for all nonconstruction programs when electronic funds transfer or predetermined advance methods are not used. DoD Components, however, have the option of using this form for construction programs in lieu of the SF-271,
(2) SF-271, Outlay Report and Request for Reimbursement for Construction Programs. Each DoD Component shall adopt the SF-271 as the standard form to be used for requesting reimbursement for construction programs. However, a DoD Component may substitute the SF-270 when the DoD Component determines that it provides adequate information to meet Federal needs.
(a) All contributions, including cash and third party in-kind, shall be accepted as part of the recipient's cost sharing or matching when such contributions meet all of the following criteria:
(1) Are verifiable from the recipient's records.
(2) Are not included as contributions for any other federally-assisted project or program.
(3) Are necessary and reasonable for proper and efficient accomplishment of project or program objectives.
(4) Are allowable under the applicable cost principles.
(5) Are not paid by the Federal Government under another award, except where authorized by Federal statute to be used for cost sharing or matching.
(6) Are provided for in the approved budget when required by the DoD Component.
(7) Conform to other provisions of this part, as applicable.
(b) Unrecovered indirect costs (see definition in § 32.2) may be included as part of cost sharing or matching.
(c) Values for recipient contributions of services and property shall be established in accordance with the applicable cost principles. If a DoD Component authorizes recipients to donate buildings or land for construction/facilities acquisition projects or long-term use, the value of the donated property for cost sharing or matching shall be the lesser of:
(1) The certified value of the remaining life of the property recorded in the recipient's accounting records at the time of donation; or
(2) The current fair market value. However, when there is sufficient justification, the DoD Component may approve the use of the current fair market value of the donated property, even if it exceeds the certified value at the time of donation to the project. The DoD Component may accept the use of any reasonable basis for determining the fair market value of the property.
(d) Volunteer services furnished by professional and technical personnel, consultants, and other skilled and unskilled labor may be counted as cost sharing or matching if the service is an integral and necessary part of an approved project or program. Rates for volunteer services shall be consistent with those paid for similar work in the recipient's organization. In those instances in which the required skills are not found in the recipient organization, rates shall be consistent with those paid for similar work in the labor market in which the recipient competes for the kind of services involved. In either case, paid fringe benefits that are reasonable, allowable, and allocable may be included in the valuation.
(e) When an employer other than the recipient furnishes the services of an employee, these services shall be valued at the employee's regular rate of pay (plus an amount of fringe benefits that are reasonable, allowable, and allocable, but exclusive of overhead costs), provided these services are in the same skill for which the employee is normally paid.
(f) Donated supplies may include such items as office supplies, laboratory supplies or workshop and classroom supplies. Value assessed to donated supplies included in the cost sharing or matching share shall be reasonable and shall not exceed the fair market value of the property at the time of the donation.
(g) The method used for determining cost sharing or matching for donated equipment, buildings and land for which title passes to the recipient may differ according to the purpose of the award, if the purpose of the award is to:
(1) Assist the recipient in the acquisition of equipment, buildings or land, the total value of the donated property may be claimed as cost sharing or matching; or
(2) Support activities that require the use of equipment, buildings or land, normally only depreciation or use charges for equipment and buildings may be made. However, the full value of equipment or other capital assets and fair rental charges for land may be allowed, provided that the DoD Component has approved the charges.
(h) The value of donated property shall be determined in accordance with the usual accounting policies of the recipient, with the following qualifications.
(1) The value of donated land and buildings shall not exceed its fair market value at the time of donation to the recipient as established by an independent appraiser (e.g., certified real property appraiser or General Services Administration representative) and certified by a responsible official of the recipient.
(2) The value of donated equipment shall not exceed the fair market value of equipment of the same age and condition at the time of donation.
(3) The value of donated space shall not exceed the fair rental value of comparable space as established by an independent appraisal of comparable space and facilities in a privately-owned building in the same locality.
(4) The value of loaned equipment shall not exceed its fair rental value.
(i) The following requirements pertain to the recipient's supporting records for in-kind contributions from third parties:
(1) Volunteer services shall be documented and, to the extent feasible, supported by the same methods used by the recipient for its own employees.
(2) The basis for determining the valuation for personal service and property shall be documented.
(a) DoD Components shall apply the standards set forth in this section in requiring recipient organizations to account for program income related to projects financed in whole or in part with Federal funds.
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (h) of this section, program income earned during the project period shall be retained by the recipient and, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award, shall be used in one or more of the following ways:
(1) Added to funds committed to the project by the DoD Component and recipient and used to further eligible project or program objectives.
(2) Used to finance the non-Federal share of the project or program.
(3) Deducted from the total project or program allowable cost in determining the net allowable costs on which the Federal share of costs is based.
(c) When a program regulation or award authorizes the disposition of program income as described in paragraphs (b)(1) or (b)(2) of this section, program income in excess of any limits stipulated shall be used in accordance with paragraph (b)(3) of this section.
(d) In the event that program regulations or the terms and conditions of the award do not specify how program income is to be used, paragraph (b)(3) of this section shall apply automatically to all projects or programs except research. For awards that support research, paragraph (b)(1) of this section shall apply automatically unless the terms and conditions specify another alternative or the recipient is subject to special award conditions, as indicated in § 32.14.
(e) Unless program regulations or the terms and conditions of the award provide otherwise, recipients shall have no obligation to the Federal Government regarding program income earned after the end of the project period.
(f) If authorized by program regulations or the terms and conditions of the award, costs incident to the generation of program income may be deducted from gross income to determine program income, provided these costs have not been charged to the award.
(g) Proceeds from the sale of property shall be handled in accordance with the requirements of the Property Standards (see §§ 32.30 through 32.37).
(h) Unless program regulations or the terms and condition of the award provide otherwise, recipients shall have no obligation to the Federal Government with respect to program income earned from license fees and royalties for copyrighted material, patents, patent applications, trademarks, and inventions produced under an award. Note that the Patent and Trademark Amendments (35 U.S.C. chapter 18) apply to inventions made under an experimental, developmental, or research award.
(a) The budget plan is the financial expression of the project or program as approved during the award process. It may include either the sum of the Federal and non-Federal shares, or only the Federal share, depending upon DoD Component requirements. It shall be related to performance for program evaluation purposes whenever appropriate.
(b) Recipients are required to report deviations from budget and program plans, and request prior approvals for budget and program plan revisions, in accordance with this section.
(c) For nonconstruction awards, recipients shall request prior approvals from the cognizant grants officer for one or more of the following program or budget related reasons.
(1) Change in the scope or the objective of the project or program (even if there is no associated budget revision requiring prior written approval).
(2) Change in a key person specified in the application or award document.
(3) The absence for more than three months, or a 25 percent reduction in time devoted to the project, by the approved project director or principal investigator.
(4) The need for additional Federal funding.
(5) The transfer of amounts budgeted for indirect costs to absorb increases in direct costs, or vice versa, if approval is required by the DoD Component. DoD Components should require this prior approval only in exceptional circumstances. The requirement in each such case must be stated in the award document.
(6) The inclusion, unless waived by the DoD Component, of costs that require prior approval in accordance with OMB Circular A-21,
(7) The transfer of funds allotted for training allowances (direct payment to trainees) to other categories of expense.
(8) Unless described in the application and funded in the approved awards, the subaward, transfer or contracting out of any work under an award. This provision does not apply to the purchase of supplies, material, equipment or general support services.
(9) If required by the DoD Component, the transfer of funds among direct cost categories that is described in paragraph (e) of this section.
(d) (1) Except for requirements listed in paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(4) of this section, OMB Circular A-110 authorizes DoD Components, at their option, to waive cost-related and administrative prior written approvals required by this part and OMB Circulars A-21 and A-122 (but see cautionary note at end of paragraph (c)(5) of this section).
(2) The two prior approvals listed in paragraphs (d)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section are automatically waived unless the award document states otherwise. DoD Components should override this automatic waiver and require the prior approvals, especially for research awards, only in exceptional circumstances. Absent an override in the award terms and conditions, recipients need not obtain prior approvals before:
(i) Incurring pre-award costs 90 calendar days prior to award (incurring pre-award costs more than 90 calendar days prior to award would still require the prior approval of the DoD Component). All pre-award costs are incurred at the recipient's risk (i.e., the DoD Component is under no obligation to reimburse such costs if for any reason the recipient does not receive an award or if the award is less than anticipated and inadequate to cover such costs).
(ii) Carrying forward unobligated balances to subsequent funding periods.
(3) Under certain conditions, a DoD Component may authorize a recipient to initiate, without prior approval, a one-time, no-cost extension (i.e., an extension in the expiration date of an award that does not require additional Federal funds) for a period of up to twelve months, as long as the no-cost extension does not involve a change in the approved objectives or scope of the project. The conditions for waiving this prior approval requirement are that the DoD Component must:
(i) Judge that the recipient's subsequently initiating a one-time, no-cost extension would not cause the DoD Component to fail to comply with DoD funding policies (for further information on the location of DoD funding policies, grants officers may refer to Appendix C to 32 CFR part 22).
(ii) Require a recipient that wishes to initiate a one-time, no-cost extension
(e) The DoD Component may, at its option, restrict the transfer of funds among direct cost categories, functions and activities for awards in which the Federal share of the project exceeds $100,000 and the cumulative amount of such transfers exceeds or is expected to exceed 10 percent of the total budget as last approved by the DoD Component. As a matter of DoD policy, requiring prior approvals for such transfers generally is not appropriate for grants to support research. No DoD Component shall permit a transfer that would cause any Federal appropriation or part thereof to be used for purposes other than those consistent with the original intent of the appropriation.
(f) For construction awards, recipients shall request prior written approval promptly from grants officers for budget revisions whenever:
(1) The revision results from changes in the scope or the objective of the project or program;
(2) The need arises for additional Federal funds to complete the project; or
(3) A revision is desired which involves specific costs for which prior written approval requirements may be imposed consistent with applicable OMB cost principles listed in § 32.27.
(g) When a DoD Component makes an award that provides support for both construction and nonconstruction work, the DoD Component may require the recipient to request prior approval from the grants officer before making any fund or budget transfers between the two types of work supported.
(h) No other prior approval requirements for specific items may be imposed unless a deviation has been approved, in accordance with the deviation procedures in § 32.4(c).
(i) For both construction and nonconstruction awards, DoD Components shall require recipients to notify the grants officer in writing promptly whenever the amount of Federal authorized funds is expected to exceed the needs of the recipient for the project period by more than $5000 or five percent of the Federal award, whichever is greater. This notification shall not be required if an application for additional funding is submitted for a continuation award.
(j) When requesting approval for budget revisions, recipients shall use the budget forms that were used in the application unless the grants officer indicates a letter of request suffices.
(k) Within 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of the request for budget revisions, the grants officer shall review the request and notify the recipient whether the budget revisions have been approved. If the revision is still under consideration at the end of 30 calendar days, the grants officer shall inform the recipient in writing of the date when the recipient may expect the decision.
(a) Recipients and subrecipients that are institutions of higher education or other non-profit organizations (including hospitals) shall be subject to the audit requirements contained in the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996 (31 U.S.C. 7501-7507) and revised OMB Circular A-133,
(b) State and local governments that are subrecipients shall be subject to the audit requirements contained in the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996 (31 U.S.C. 7501-7507) and revised OMB Circular A-133, “Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations.”
(c) Hospitals that are subrecipients and are not covered by the audit provisions of revised OMB Circular A-133 shall be subject to the audit requirements specified in award terms and conditions.
(d) For-profit organizations that are subrecipients shall be subject to the audit requirements specified in 32 CFR 34.16.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
Where a funding period is specified, a recipient may charge to the award only allowable costs resulting from obligations incurred during the funding period and any pre-award costs (see § 32.25(d)(2)(i)) authorized by the DoD Component.
Sections 32.31 through 32.37 set forth uniform standards governing management and disposition of property furnished by the Federal Government and property whose cost was charged to a project supported by a Federal award. DoD Components shall require recipients to observe these standards under awards and shall not impose additional requirements, unless specifically required by Federal statute. The recipient may use its own property management standards and procedures provided it observes the provisions of §§ 32.31 through 32.37.
Recipients shall, at a minimum, provide the equivalent insurance coverage for real property and equipment acquired with Federal funds as provided to property owned by the recipient. Federally-owned property need not be insured unless required by the terms and conditions of the award.
Each DoD Component that makes awards under which real property is acquired in whole or in part with Federal funds shall prescribe requirements for recipients concerning the use and disposition of such property. Unless otherwise provided by statute, such requirements, at a minimum, shall contain the following:
(a) Title to real property shall vest in the recipient subject to the condition that the recipient shall use the real property for the authorized purpose of the project as long as it is needed and shall not encumber the property without approval of the DoD Component.
(b) The recipient shall obtain written approval by the grants officer for the use of real property in other federally sponsored projects when the recipient
(c) When the real property is no longer needed as provided in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, the recipient shall request disposition instructions from the DoD Component or its successor Federal agency. The responsible Federal agency shall observe one or more of the following disposition instructions:
(1) The recipient may be permitted to retain title without further obligation to the Federal Government after it compensates the Federal Government for that percentage of the current fair market value of the property attributable to the Federal participation in the project.
(2) The recipient may be directed to sell the property under guidelines provided by the DoD Component and pay the Federal Government for that percentage of the current fair market value of the property attributable to the Federal participation in the project (after deducting actual and reasonable selling and fix-up expenses, if any, from the sales proceeds). When the recipient is authorized or required to sell the property, proper sales procedures shall be established that provide for competition to the extent practicable and result in the highest possible return.
(3) The recipient may be directed to transfer title to the property to the Federal Government or to an eligible third party provided that, in such cases, the recipient shall be entitled to compensation for its attributable percentage of the current fair market value of the property.
(a)
(2) If the DoD Component that made the award has no further need for the property, it shall be declared excess and either:
(i) Reported to the General Services Administration, in accordance with the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 483(b)(2)), as implemented by General Services Administration regulations at 41 CFR 101-47.202; or
(ii) Disposed of by alternative methods pursuant to other specific statutory authority. For example, DoD Components are authorized by the Federal Technology Transfer Act (15 U.S.C. 3710(i)), to donate research equipment to educational and non-profit organizations for the conduct of technical and scientific education and research activities—donations under this Act shall be in accordance with the DoD implementation of E.O. 12999 (3 CFR, 1996 Comp., p. 180), “Educational Technology: Ensuring Opportunity for All Children in the Next Century,” as applicable. Appropriate instructions shall be issued to the recipient by the DoD Component.
(b)
(2) As a matter of policy, DoD Components shall make maximum use of the authority of 31 U.S.C. 6306 to vest title to exempt property in institutions of higher education, without further obligation to the Government, to enhance the university infrastructure for future performance of defense research
(3) DoD Components may establish conditions, in regulation or in award terms and conditions, for vesting title to exempt property. Should a DoD Component not establish conditions, title to exempt property upon acquisition shall vest in the recipient without further obligation to the Federal Government.
(a) Title to equipment acquired by a recipient with Federal funds shall vest in the recipient, subject to conditions of this section.
(b) The recipient shall not use equipment acquired with Federal funds to provide services to non-Federal outside organizations for a fee that is less than private companies charge for equivalent services, unless specifically authorized by Federal statute, for as long as the Federal Government retains an interest in the equipment.
(c) The recipient shall use the equipment in the project or program for which it was acquired as long as needed, whether or not the project or program continues to be supported by Federal funds and shall not encumber the property without approval of the DoD Component that made the award. When no longer needed for the original project or program, the recipient shall use the equipment in connection with its other federally-sponsored activities, in the following order of priority:
(1) First, activities sponsored by the DoD Component that funded the original project.
(2) Second, activities sponsored by other DoD Components.
(3) Then, activities sponsored by other Federal agencies.
(d) During the time that equipment is used on the project or program for which it was acquired, the recipient shall make it available for use on other projects or programs if such other use will not interfere with the work on the project or program for which the equipment was originally acquired. First preference for such other use shall be given to other projects or programs sponsored by the DoD Component that financed the equipment; second preference shall be given to projects or programs sponsored by other DoD Components; and third preference shall be given to projects or programs sponsored by other Federal agencies. If the property is owned by the Federal Government, use on other activities not sponsored by the Federal Government shall be permissible if authorized by the DoD Component that financed the property. User charges shall be treated as program income.
(e) When acquiring replacement equipment, the recipient may use the equipment to be replaced as trade-in or sell the equipment and use the proceeds to offset the costs of the replacement equipment subject to the approval of the DoD Component that financed the equipment.
(f) The recipient's property management standards for equipment acquired with Federal funds and federally-owned property shall include all of the following:
(1) Records for equipment and federally-owned property shall be maintained accurately and shall include the following information:
(i) A description of the equipment or federally-owned property.
(ii) Manufacturer's serial number, model number, Federal stock number, national stock number, or other identification number.
(iii) Source of the equipment or federally-owned property, including the award number.
(iv) Whether title vests in the recipient or the Federal Government.
(v) Acquisition date (or date received, if the property was furnished by the Federal Government) and cost.
(vi) Information from which one can calculate the percentage of Federal participation in the cost of the equipment (not applicable to property furnished by the Federal Government).
(vii) Location and condition of the equipment or federally-owned property and the date the information was reported.
(viii) Unit acquisition cost.
(ix) Ultimate disposition data, including date of disposal and sales price or the method used to determine current fair market value where a recipient compensates the DoD Component that made the award for its share.
(2) Property owned by the Federal Government shall be identified to indicate Federal ownership.
(3) A physical inventory of equipment and federally-owned property shall be taken and the results reconciled with the equipment records at least once every two years. Any differences between quantities determined by the physical inspection and those shown in the accounting records shall be investigated to determine the causes of the difference. The recipient shall, in connection with the inventory, verify the existence, current utilization, and continued need for the equipment or federally-owned property.
(4) A control system shall be in effect to insure adequate safeguards to prevent loss, damage, or theft of the equipment or federally-owned property. Any loss, damage, or theft of equipment or federally-owned property shall be investigated and fully documented; if the property was owned by the Federal Government, the recipient shall promptly notify the DoD Component.
(5) Adequate maintenance procedures shall be implemented to keep the equipment or federally-owned property in good condition.
(6) Where the recipient is authorized or required to sell the equipment, proper sales procedures shall be established which provide for competition to the extent practicable and result in the highest possible return.
(g) When the recipient no longer needs the equipment, the equipment may be used for other activities in accordance with the following standards.
(1) For equipment with a current per unit fair market value of $5,000 or more, the recipient may retain the equipment for other uses provided that compensation is made to the DoD Component that originally made the award or its successor. The amount of compensation shall be computed by applying the percentage of Federal participation in the cost of the original project or program to the current fair market value of the equipment.
(2) If the recipient has no need for the equipment, the recipient shall request disposition instructions from the DoD Component. The DoD Component shall issue instructions to the recipient no later than 120 calendar days after the recipient's request and the following procedures shall govern:
(i) The grants officer, in consultation with the program manager, shall judge whether the age and nature of the equipment warrant a screening procedure to determine whether the equipment is useful to a DoD Component or other Federal agency. If a screening procedure is warranted:
(A) The DoD Component shall determine whether the equipment can be used to meet DoD requirements.
(B) If no DoD requirement exists, the availability of the equipment shall be reported to the General Services Administration by the DoD Component to determine whether a requirement for the equipment exists in other Federal agencies.
(ii) If so instructed or if disposition instructions are not issued within 120 calendar days after the recipient's request, the recipient shall sell the equipment and reimburse the DoD Component that made the award an amount computed by applying to the sales proceeds the percentage of Federal participation in the cost of the original project or program. However, the recipient shall be permitted to deduct and retain from the Federal share $500 or ten percent of the proceeds, whichever is less, for the recipient's selling and handling expenses.
(iii) If the recipient is instructed to ship the equipment elsewhere, the recipient shall be reimbursed by the Federal Government by an amount which is computed by applying the percentage of the recipient's participation in the cost of the original project or program to the current fair market value of the equipment, plus any reasonable shipping or interim storage costs incurred.
(iv) If the recipient is instructed to otherwise dispose of the equipment, the recipient shall be reimbursed by the DoD Component that made the award for such costs incurred in its disposition.
(h) The DoD Component may reserve the right to transfer the title to the Federal Government or to a third party named by the Federal Government when such third party is otherwise eligible under existing statutes. Such
(1) The equipment shall be appropriately identified in the award or otherwise made known to the recipient in writing. For exempt property, in accordance with § 32.33(b)(3), note that this identification must occur by the time of award, or title to the property vests in the recipient without further obligation to the Government.
(2) The DoD Component shall issue disposition instructions within 120 calendar days after receipt of a final inventory. The final inventory shall list all equipment acquired with award funds and federally-owned property. If the DoD Component fails to issue disposition instructions for equipment within the 120 calendar day period, the recipient shall apply the standards of paragraph (g) of this section.
(3) When the DoD Component exercises its right to take title, the equipment shall be subject to the provisions for federally-owned property.
(a) Title to supplies shall vest in the recipient upon acquisition. If there is a residual inventory of unused supplies exceeding $5,000 in total aggregate value upon termination or completion of the project or program and the supplies are not needed for any other federally-sponsored project or program, the recipient shall retain the supplies for use on non-Federal sponsored activities or sell them, but shall, in either case, compensate the Federal Government for its share. The amount of compensation shall be computed in the same manner as for equipment.
(b) The recipient shall not use supplies acquired with Federal funds to provide services to non-Federal outside organizations for a fee that is less than private companies charge for equivalent services, unless specifically authorized by Federal statute as long as the Federal Government retains an interest in the supplies.
(a) The recipient may copyright any work that is subject to copyright and was developed, or for which ownership was purchased, under an award. DoD Components reserve a royalty-free, nonexclusive and irrevocable right to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work for Federal purposes, and to authorize others to do so.
(b) Recipients are subject to applicable regulations governing patents and inventions, including Governmentwide regulations issued by the Department of Commerce at 37 CFR part 401, “Rights to Inventions Made by Nonprofit Organizations and Small Business Firms Under Government Grants, Contracts and Cooperative Agreements.”
(c) The Federal Government has the right to:
(1) Obtain, reproduce, publish or otherwise use the data first produced under an award; and
(2) Authorize others to receive, reproduce, publish, or otherwise use such data for Federal purposes.
(d)(1) In addition, in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for research data relating to published research findings produced under an award that were used by the Federal Government in developing an agency action that has the force and effect of law, the DoD Component that made the award shall request, and the recipient shall provide, within a reasonable time, the research data so that they can be made available to the public through the procedures established under the FOIA. If the DoD Component that made the award obtains the research data solely in response to a FOIA request, the agency may charge the requester a reasonable fee equaling the full incremental cost of obtaining the research data. This fee should reflect costs incurred by the agency, the recipient, and applicable subrecipients. This fee is in addition to any fees the agency may assess under the FOIA (5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(A)).
(2) The following definitions apply for purposes of this paragraph (d):
(i)
(A) Trade secrets, commercial information, materials necessary to be held confidential by a researcher until they are published, or similar information which is protected under law; and
(B) Personnel and medical information and similar information the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, such as information that could be used to identify a particular person in a research study.
(ii)
(A) Research findings are published in a peer-reviewed scientific or technical journal; or
(B) A Federal agency publicly and officially cites the research findings in support of an agency action that has the force and effect of law.
(iii)
(e) Title to intangible property and debt instruments acquired under an award or subaward (rather than developed or produced under the award or subaward) vests upon acquisition in the recipient. The recipient shall use that property for the originally-authorized purpose, and the recipient shall not encumber the property without approval of the DoD Component that made the award. When no longer needed for the originally authorized purpose, disposition of the intangible property shall occur in accordance with the provisions of § 32.34(g).
Real property, equipment, intangible property and debt instruments that are acquired or improved with Federal funds shall be held in trust by the recipient as trustee for the beneficiaries of the project or program under which the property was acquired or improved. DoD Components may require recipients to record liens or other appropriate notices of record to indicate that personal or real property has been acquired or improved with Federal funds and that use and disposition conditions apply to the property.
Sections 32.41 through 32.48 set forth standards for use by recipients in establishing procedures for the procurement of supplies and other expendable property, equipment, real property and other services with Federal funds. These standards are furnished to ensure that such materials and services are obtained in an effective manner and in compliance with the provisions of applicable Federal statutes and executive orders.
The standards contained in this section do not relieve the recipient of the contractual responsibilities arising under its contract(s). The recipient is the responsible authority, without recourse to the DoD Component that made the award, regarding the settlement and satisfaction of all contractual and administrative issues arising out of procurements entered into in support of an award or other agreement. This includes disputes, claims, protests of award, source evaluation or other matters of a contractual nature. Matters concerning violation of statute are to be referred to such Federal, State or local authority as may have proper jurisdiction.
The recipient shall maintain written standards of conduct governing the performance of its employees engaged in the award and administration of contracts. No employee, officer, or agent shall participate in the selection, award, or administration of a contract supported by Federal funds if a real or apparent conflict of interest would be involved. Such a conflict would arise when the employee, officer, or agent, any member of his or her immediate family, his or her partner, or an organization which employs or is about to employ any of the parties indicated herein, has a financial or other interest
All procurement transactions shall be conducted in a manner to provide, to the maximum extent practical, open and free competition. The recipient shall be alert to organizational conflicts of interest as well as noncompetitive practices among contractors that may restrict or eliminate competition or otherwise restrain trade. In order to ensure objective contractor performance and eliminate unfair competitive advantage, contractors that develop or draft specifications, requirements, statements of work, invitations for bids and/or requests for proposals shall be excluded from competing for such procurements. Awards shall be made to the bidder or offeror whose bid or offer is responsive to the solicitation and is most advantageous to the recipient, price, quality and other factors considered. Solicitations shall clearly set forth all requirements that the bidder or offeror shall fulfill in order for the bid or offer to be evaluated by the recipient. Any and all bids or offers may be rejected when it is in the recipient's interest to do so.
(a) All recipients shall establish written procurement procedures. These procedures shall provide, at a minimum, that:
(1) Recipients avoid purchasing unnecessary items;
(2) Where appropriate, an analysis is made of lease and purchase alternatives to determine which would be the most economical and practical procurement; and
(3) Solicitations for goods and services provide for all of the following:
(i) A clear and accurate description of the technical requirements for the material, product or service to be procured. In competitive procurements, such a description shall not contain features which unduly restrict competition.
(ii) Requirements which the bidder/offeror must fulfill and all other factors to be used in evaluating bids or proposals.
(iii) A description, whenever practicable, of technical requirements in terms of functions to be performed or performance required, including the range of acceptable characteristics or minimum acceptable standards.
(iv) The specific features of “brand name or equal” descriptions that bidders are required to meet when such items are included in the solicitation.
(v) The acceptance, to the extent practicable and economically feasible, of products and services dimensioned in the metric system of measurement.
(vi) Preference, to the extent practicable and economically feasible, for products and services that conserve natural resources and protect the environment and are energy efficient.
(b) Positive efforts shall be made by recipients to utilize small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women's business enterprises, whenever possible. Recipients of Federal awards shall take all of the following steps to further this goal:
(1) Ensure that small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women's business enterprises are used to the fullest extent practicable.
(2) Make information on forthcoming opportunities available and arrange time frames for purchases and contracts to encourage and facilitate participation by small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women's business enterprises.
(3) Consider in the contract process whether firms competing for larger contracts intend to subcontract with small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women's business enterprises.
(4) Encourage contracting with consortiums of small businesses, minority-
(5) Use the services and assistance, as appropriate, of such organizations as the Small Business Administration and the Department of Commerce's Minority Business Development Agency in the solicitation and utilization of small businesses, minority-owned firms and women's business enterprises.
(c) The type of procuring instruments used (e.g., fixed price contracts, cost reimbursable contracts, purchase orders, and incentive contracts) shall be determined by the recipient but shall be appropriate for the particular procurement and for promoting the best interest of the program or project involved. The “cost-plus-a-percentage-of-cost” or “percentage of construction cost” methods of contracting shall not be used.
(d) Contracts shall be made only with responsible contractors who possess the potential ability to perform successfully under the terms and conditions of the proposed procurement. Consideration shall be given to such matters as contractor integrity, record of past performance, financial and technical resources or accessibility to other necessary resources. In certain circumstances, contracts with certain parties are restricted by the DoD implementation, in 32 CFR part 25, of E.O.s 12549 (3 CFR, 1986 Comp., p. 189) and 12689 (3 CFR, 1989 Comp., p. 235), “Debarment and Suspension.”
(e) Recipients shall, on request, make available for the DoD Component's pre-award review, procurement documents such as request for proposals or invitations for bids, independent cost estimates, etc., when any of the following conditions apply:
(1) A recipient's procurement procedures or operation fails to comply with the procurement standards in this part.
(2) The procurement is expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold fixed at 41 U.S.C. 403 (11) (currently $100,000) and is to be awarded without competition or only one bid or offer is received in response to a solicitation.
(3) The procurement, which is expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold, specifies a “brand name” product.
(4) The proposed award over the simplified acquisition threshold is to be awarded to other than the apparent low bidder under a sealed bid procurement.
(5) A proposed contract modification changes the scope of a contract or increases the contract amount by more than the amount of the simplified acquisition threshold.
Some form of cost or price analysis shall be made and documented in the procurement files in connection with every procurement action. Price analysis may be accomplished in various ways, including the comparison of price quotations submitted, market prices and similar indicia, together with discounts. Cost analysis is the review and evaluation of each element of cost to determine reasonableness, allocability and allowability.
Procurement records and files for purchases in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold shall include the following at a minimum:
(a) Basis for contractor selection;
(b) Justification for lack of competition when competitive bids or offers are not obtained; and
(c) Basis for award cost or price.
A system for contract administration shall be maintained to ensure contractor conformance with the terms, conditions and specifications of the contract and to ensure adequate and timely follow up of all purchases. Recipients shall evaluate contractor performance and document, as appropriate, whether contractors have met the terms, conditions and specifications of the contract.
The recipient shall include, in addition to provisions to define a sound and complete agreement, the following provisions in all contracts. The following provisions shall also be applied to subcontracts:
(a) Contracts in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold shall contain contractual provisions or conditions that allow for administrative, contractual, or legal remedies in instances in which a contractor violates or breaches the contract terms, and provide for such remedial actions as may be appropriate.
(b) All contracts in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold shall contain suitable provisions for termination by the recipient, including the manner by which termination shall be effected and the basis for settlement. In addition, such contracts shall describe conditions under which the contract may be terminated for default as well as conditions where the contract may be terminated because of circumstances beyond the control of the contractor.
(c) Except as otherwise required by statute, an award that requires the contracting (or subcontracting) for construction or facility improvements shall provide for the recipient to follow its own requirements relating to bid guarantees, performance bonds, and payment bonds unless the construction contract or subcontract exceeds $100,000. For those contracts or subcontracts exceeding $100,000, the DoD Component may accept the bonding policy and requirements of the recipient, provided the grants officer has made a determination that the Federal Government's interest is adequately protected. If such a determination has not been made, the minimum requirements shall be as follows:
(1) A bid guarantee from each bidder equivalent to five percent of the bid price. The “bid guarantee” shall consist of a firm commitment such as a bid bond, certified check, or other negotiable instrument accompanying a bid as assurance that the bidder shall, upon acceptance of his bid, execute such contractual documents as may be required within the time specified.
(2) A performance bond on the part of the contractor for 100 percent of the contract price. A “performance bond” is one executed in connection with a contract to secure fulfillment of all the contractor's obligations under such contract.
(3) A payment bond on the part of the contractor for 100 percent of the contract price. A “payment bond” is one executed in connection with a contract to assure payment as required by statute of all persons supplying labor and material in the execution of the work provided for in the contract.
(4) Where bonds are required in the situations described in §§ 32.40 through 32.49, the bonds shall be obtained from companies holding certificates of authority as acceptable sureties pursuant to 31 CFR part 223, “Surety Companies Doing Business with the United States.”
(d) All negotiated contracts (except those for less than the simplified acquisition threshold) awarded by recipients shall include a provision to the effect that the recipient, the Department of Defense, the Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives, shall have access to any books, documents, papers and records of the contractor which are directly pertinent to a specific program for the purpose of making audits, examinations, excerpts and transcriptions.
(e) All contracts, including those for amounts less than the simplified acquisition threshold, by recipients and their contractors shall contain the procurement provisions of Appendix A to this part, as applicable.
Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) (section 6002, Pub. L. 94-580, 42 U.S.C. 6962), any State agency or agency of a political subdivision of a State which is using appropriated Federal funds must comply with section 6002. Section 6002 requires that preference be given in procurement programs to the purchase of specific products containing recycled materials identified in guidelines developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (40 CFR parts 247-254). Accordingly, State and local institutions of higher education, hospitals, and non-profit organizations that receive direct Federal awards or other Federal funds shall give preference in their procurement programs funded with Federal funds to the purchase of
Sections 32.51 through 32.53 set forth the procedures for monitoring and reporting on the recipient's financial and program performance and the necessary standard reporting forms. They also set forth record retention requirements.
(a) Recipients are responsible for managing and monitoring each project, program, subaward, function or activity supported by the award. Recipients shall monitor subawards to ensure subrecipients have met the audit requirements as delineated in § 32.26.
(b) The award terms and conditions shall prescribe the frequency with which the performance reports shall be submitted. Except as provided in paragraph (f) of this section, performance reports shall not be required more frequently than quarterly or less frequently than annually. Annual reports shall be due 90 calendar days after the award year; quarterly or semi-annual reports shall be due 30 calendar days after the reporting period. DoD Components may require annual reports before the anniversary dates of multiple year awards in lieu of these requirements. The final performance reports are due 90 calendar days after the expiration or termination of the award.
(c) If inappropriate, a final technical or performance report shall not be required after completion of the project.
(d) When required, performance reports shall generally contain, for each award, brief information on each of the following:
(1) A comparison of actual accomplishments with the goals and objectives established for the period, the findings of the investigator, or both. Whenever appropriate and the output of programs or projects can be readily quantified, such quantitative data should be related to cost data for computation of unit costs. However, unit costs are generally inappropriate for research (see § 32.21 (a) and (b)(4)).
(2) Reasons why established goals were not met, if appropriate.
(3) Other pertinent information including, when appropriate, analysis and explanation of cost overruns or high unit costs.
(e) Recipients shall not be required to submit more than the original and two copies of performance reports.
(f) Recipients shall immediately notify the grants officer of developments that have a significant impact on the award-supported activities. Also, notification shall be given in the case of problems, delays, or adverse conditions which materially impair the ability to meet the objectives of the award. This notification shall include a statement of the action taken or contemplated, and any assistance needed to resolve the situation.
(g) DoD Components' representatives may make site visits, as needed.
(h) DoD Components shall comply with applicable clearance requirements of 5 CFR part 1320 when requesting performance data from recipients.
(a) The following forms or such other forms as may be approved by OMB are authorized for obtaining financial information from recipients:
(1)
(ii) The DoD Component shall prescribe whether the report shall be on a cash or accrual basis. If the award requires accrual information and the recipient's accounting records are not normally kept on the accrual basis, the
(iii) The DoD Component shall determine the frequency of the Financial Status Report for each project or program, considering the size and complexity of the particular project or program. However, the report shall not be required more frequently than quarterly or less frequently than annually. A final report shall be required at the completion of the award.
(iv) The DoD Component shall require recipients to submit the SF-269 or SF-269A (an original and no more than two copies) no later than 30 calendar days after the end of each specified reporting period for quarterly and semi-annual reports, and 90 calendar days for annual and final reports. Extensions of reporting due dates may be approved by the grants officer upon request of the recipient.
(2)
(ii) DoD Components may require forecasts of Federal cash requirements in the “Remarks” section of the report.
(iii) When practical and deemed necessary, DoD Components may require recipients to report in the “Remarks” section the amount of cash advances received in excess of three working days. Recipients shall provide short narrative explanations of actions taken to reduce the excess balances.
(iv) Recipients shall be required to submit not more than the original and two copies of the SF-272 15 calendar days following the end of each quarter. DoD Components may require a monthly report from those recipients receiving advances totaling $1 million or more per year.
(v) DoD Components may waive the requirement for submission of the SF-272 for any one of the following reasons:
(A) When monthly advances do not exceed $25,000 per recipient, provided that such advances are monitored through other forms contained in this section;
(B) If, in the grants officer's opinion, the recipient's accounting controls are adequate to minimize excessive Federal advances; or
(C) When electronic payment mechanisms or SF-270 forms provide adequate data.
(b) When the DoD Component needs additional information or more frequent reports, the following shall be observed:
(1) When additional information is needed to comply with legislative requirements, grants officers shall issue instructions to require recipients to submit such information under the “Remarks” section of the reports.
(2) When a grants officer, after consultation with the Federal agency assigned cognizance for a recipient's audit and audit resolution, determines that the recipient's accounting system does not meet the standards in § 32.21, additional pertinent information to further monitor awards may be obtained upon written notice to the recipient until such time as the system is brought up to standard. The grants officer, in obtaining this information, shall comply with applicable report clearance requirements of 5 CFR part 1320.
(3) Grants officers are encouraged to shade out any line item on any report if not necessary.
(4) DoD Components are encouraged to accept the identical information from the recipients in machine readable format or computer printouts or electronic outputs in lieu of prescribed formats.
(5) DoD Components may provide computer or electronic outputs to recipients when it expedites or contributes to the accuracy of reporting.
(a) This section sets forth requirements for record retention and access
(b) Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other records pertinent to an award shall be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report. The only exceptions are the following:
(1) If any litigation, claim, or audit is started before the expiration of the 3-year period, the records shall be retained until all litigation, claims or audit findings involving the records have been resolved and final action taken.
(2) Records for real property and equipment acquired with Federal funds shall be retained for 3 years after final disposition.
(3) When records are transferred to or maintained by the DoD Component that made the award, the 3-year retention requirement is not applicable to the recipient.
(4) Indirect cost rate proposals, cost allocations plans, and related records, for which retention requirements are specified in paragraph (g) of this section.
(c) Copies of original records may be substituted for the original records if authorized by the grants officer.
(d) The grants officer shall request that recipients transfer certain records to DoD Component custody when he or she determines that the records possess long term retention value. However, in order to avoid duplicate recordkeeping, a grants officer may make arrangements for recipients to retain any records that are continuously needed for joint use.
(e) DoD Components, the Inspector General, Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives, have the right of timely and unrestricted access to any books, documents, papers, or other records of recipients that are pertinent to the awards, in order to make audits, examinations, excerpts, transcripts and copies of such documents. This right also includes timely and reasonable access to a recipient's personnel for the purpose of interview and discussion related to such documents. The rights of access in this paragraph are not limited to the required retention period, but shall last as long as records are retained.
(f) Unless required by statute, no DoD Component shall place restrictions on recipients that limit public access to the records of recipients that are pertinent to an award, except when the DoD Component can demonstrate that such records shall be kept confidential and would have been exempted from disclosure pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) if the records had belonged to the DoD Component making the award.
(g) Indirect cost rate proposals, cost allocations plans, etc. Paragraphs (g)(1) and (g)(2) of this section apply to the following types of documents, and their supporting records: indirect cost rate computations or proposals, cost allocation plans, and any similar accounting computations of the rate at which a particular group of costs is chargeable (such as computer usage chargeback rates or composite fringe benefit rates).
(1)
(2)
(h) If the information described in this section is maintained on a computer, recipients shall retain the computer data on a reliable medium for the time periods prescribed. Recipients may transfer computer data in machine readable form from one reliable
Sections 32.61 and 32.62 set forth uniform suspension, termination and enforcement procedures.
(a) Awards may be terminated in whole or in part only as follows:
(1) By the grants officer, if a recipient materially fails to comply with the terms and conditions of an award;
(2) By the grants officer with the consent of the recipient, in which case the two parties shall agree upon the termination conditions, including the effective date and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated; or
(3) By the recipient upon sending to the grants officer written notification setting forth the reasons for such termination, the effective date, and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated. The recipient must provide such notice at least 30 calendar days prior to the effective date of the termination. However, if the grants officer determines in the case of partial termination that the reduced or modified portion of the award will not accomplish the purposes for which the award was made, he or she may terminate the award in its entirety.
(b) If costs are allowed under an award, the responsibilities of the recipient referred to in § 32.71, including those for property management as applicable, shall be considered in the termination of the award, and provision shall be made for continuing responsibilities of the recipient after termination, as appropriate.
(a)
(1) Temporarily withhold cash payments pending correction of the deficiency by the recipient or more severe enforcement action by the grants officer and DoD Component.
(2) Disallow (that is, deny both use of funds and any applicable matching credit for) all or part of the cost of the activity or action not in compliance.
(3) Wholly or partly suspend or terminate the current award.
(4) Withhold further awards for the project or program.
(5) Take other remedies that may be legally available.
(b)
(c)
(1) Result from obligations which were properly incurred by the recipient before the effective date of suspension or termination, are not in anticipation of it, and in the case of a termination, are noncancellable; and
(2) Would be allowable if the award were not suspended or expired normally at the end of the funding period in which the termination takes effect.
(d)
Sections 32.71 through 32.73 contain closeout procedures and other procedures for subsequent disallowances and adjustments.
(a) Recipients shall submit, within 90 calendar days after the date of completion of the award, all financial, performance, and other reports required by the terms and conditions of the award. The grants officer may approve extensions when requested by the recipient.
(b) Unless the grants officer authorizes an extension, a recipient shall liquidate all obligations incurred under the award not later than 90 calendar days after the funding period or the date of completion as specified in the terms and conditions of the award or in agency implementing instructions.
(c) The responsible grants officer and payment office shall expedite completion of steps needed to close out awards and make prompt, final payments to a recipient for allowable reimbursable costs under the award being closed out.
(d) The recipient shall promptly refund any balances of unobligated cash that the DoD Component has advanced or paid and that is not authorized to be retained by the recipient for use in other projects. OMB Circular A-129
(e) When authorized by the terms and conditions of the award, the grants officer shall make a settlement for any upward or downward adjustments to the Federal share of costs after closeout reports are received.
(f) The recipient shall account for any real and personal property acquired with Federal funds or received from the Federal Government in accordance with §§ 32.31 through 32.37.
(g) In the event a final audit has not been performed prior to the closeout of an award, the DoD Component shall retain the right to recover an appropriate amount after fully considering the recommendations on disallowed costs resulting from the final audit.
(a) The closeout of an award does not affect any of the following:
(1) The right of the Department of Defense to disallow costs and recover funds on the basis of a later audit or other review.
(2) The obligation of the recipient to return any funds due as a result of later refunds, corrections, or other transactions.
(3) Audit requirements in § 32.26.
(4) Property management requirements in §§ 32.31 through 32.37.
(5) Records retention as required in § 32.53.
(b) After closeout of an award, a relationship created under an award may be modified or ended in whole or in part with the consent of the grants officer and the recipient, provided the responsibilities of the recipient referred to in § 32.73(a), including those for property management as applicable, are considered and provisions made for continuing responsibilities of the recipient, as appropriate.
(a) Any funds paid to a recipient in excess of the amount to which the recipient is finally determined to be entitled under the terms and conditions of the award constitute a debt to the Federal Government.
(b) OMB Circular A-110 informs each Federal agency that:
(1) If a debt is not paid within a reasonable period after the demand for payment, the Federal agency may reduce the debt by:
(i) Making administrative offset against other requests for reimbursement.
(ii) Withholding advance payments otherwise due to the recipient.
(iii) Taking other action permitted by statute.
(2) Except as otherwise provided by law, the Federal awarding agency shall charge interest on an overdue debt in accordance with 4 CFR Chapter II, “Federal Claims Collection Standards.”
(c) DoD grants officers shall follow the procedures in 32 CFR 22.820 for issuing demands for payment and transferring debts to DoD payment offices for collection. Recipients will be informed about pertinent procedures and timeframes through the written notices of grants officers' decisions and demands for payment.
All contracts awarded by a recipient, including those for amounts less than the simplified acquisition threshold, shall contain the following provisions as applicable:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
5 U.S.C. 301; 10 U.S.C. 113.
This part establishes uniform administrative rules for Federal grants and cooperative agreements and subawards
This subpart contains general rules pertaining to this part and procedures for control of exceptions from this part.
As used in this part:
(1) Goods and other tangible property received;
(2) Services performed by employees, contractors, subgrantees, subcontractors, and other payees; and
(3) Other amounts becoming owed under programs for which no current services or performance is required, such as annuities, insurance claims, and other benefit payments.
(1) Earnings during a given period from services performed by the grantee and goods and other tangible property delivered to purchasers, and
(2) Amounts becoming owed to the grantee for which no current services or performance is required by the grantee.
(1) With respect to a grant, the Federal agency, and
(2) With respect to a subgrant, the party that awarded the subgrant.
(1) For nonconstruction grants, the SF-269 “Financial Status Report” (or other equivalent report);
(2) For construction grants, the SF-271 “Outlay Report and Request for Reimbursement” (or other equivalent report).
(1) Temporary withdrawal of the authority to obligate grant funds pending corrective action by the grantee or subgrantee or a decision to terminate the grant, or
(2) An action taken by a suspending official in accordance with agency regulations implementing E.O. 12549 to immediately exclude a person from participating in grant transactions for a period, pending completion of an investigation and such legal or debarment proceedings as may ensue.
(1) Withdrawal of funds awarded on the basis of the grantee's underestimate of the unobligated balance in a prior period;
(2) Withdrawal of the unobligated balance as of the expiration of a grant;
(3) Refusal to extend a grant or award additional funds, to make a competing or noncompeting continuation, renewal, extension, or supplemental award; or
(4) Voiding of a grant upon determination that the award was obtained fraudulently, or was otherwise illegal or invalid from inception.
(a)
(1) Grants and subgrants to State and local institutions of higher education or State and local hospitals.
(2) The block grants authorized by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 (Community Services; Preventive Health and Health Services; Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Services; Maternal and Child Health Services; Social Services; Low-Income Home Energy Assistance; States' Program of Community Development Block Grants for Small Cities; and Elementary and Secondary Education other than programs administered by the Secretary of Education under title V, subtitle D, chapter 2, section 583—the Secretary's discretionary grant program) and titles I-III of the Job Training Partnership Act of 1982 and under the Public Health Services Act (section 1921), Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment and Rehabilitation Block Grant and part C of title V, Mental Health Service for the Homeless Block Grant).
(3) Entitlement grants to carry out the following programs of the Social Security Act:
(i) Aid to Needy Families with Dependent Children (title IV-A of the Act, not including the Work Incentive Program (WIN) authorized by section 402(a)19(G); HHS grants for WIN are subject to this part);
(ii) Child Support Enforcement and Establishment of Paternity (title IV-D of the Act);
(iii) Foster Care and Adoption Assistance (title IV-E of the Act);
(iv) Aid to the Aged, Blind, and Disabled (titles I, X, XIV, and XVI-AABD of the Act); and
(v) Medical Assistance (Medicaid) (title XIX of the Act) not including the State Medicaid Fraud Control program authorized by section 1903(a)(6)(B).
(4) Entitlement grants under the following programs of The National School Lunch Act:
(i) School Lunch (section 4 of the Act),
(ii) Commodity Assistance (section 6 of the Act),
(iii) Special Meal Assistance (section 11 of the Act),
(iv) Summer Food Service for Children (section 13 of the Act), and
(v) Child Care Food Program (section 17 of the Act).
(5) Entitlement grants under the following programs of The Child Nutrition Act of 1966:
(i) Special Milk (section 3 of the Act), and
(ii) School Breakfast (section 4 of the Act).
(6) Entitlement grants for State Administrative expenses under The Food Stamp Act of 1977 (section 16 of the Act).
(7) A grant for an experimental, pilot, or demonstration project that is also supported by a grant listed in paragraph (a)(3) of this section;
(8) Grant funds awarded under subsection 412(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1522(e)) and subsection 501(a) of the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980 (Pub. L. 96-422, 94 Stat. 1809), for cash assistance, medical assistance, and supplemental security income benefits to refugees and entrants and the administrative costs of providing the assistance and benefits;
(9) Grants to local education agencies under 20 U.S.C. 236 through 241-1(a), and 242 through 244 (portions of the Impact Aid program), except for 20 U.S.C. 238(d)(2)(c) and 240(f) (Entitlement Increase for Handicapped Children); and
(10) Payments under the Veterans Administration's State Home Per Diem Program (38 U.S.C. 641(a)).
(b)
All other grants administration provisions of codified program regulations, program manuals, handbooks and other nonregulatory materials which are inconsistent with this part are superseded, except to the extent they are required by statute, or authorized in accordance with the exception provision in § 33.6.
(a) For classes of grants and grantees subject to this part, Federal agencies may not impose additional administrative requirements except in codified regulations published in the
(b) Exceptions for classes of grants or grantees may be authorized only by OMB.
(c) Exceptions on a case-by-case basis and for subgrantees may be authorized by the affected Federal agencies.
(a)
(2) This section applies only to applications to Federal agencies for grants,
(b)
(2) Applicants are not required to submit more than the original and two copies of preapplications or applications.
(3) Applicants must follow all applicable instructions that bear OMB clearance numbers. Federal agencies may specify and describe the programs, functions, or activities that will be used to plan, budget, and evaluate the work under a grant. Other supplementary instructions may be issued only with the approval of OMB to the extent required under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980. For any standard form, except the SF-424 facesheet, Federal agencies may shade out or instruct the applicant to disregard any line item that is not needed.
(4) When a grantee applies for additional funding (such as a continuation or supplemental award) or amends a previously submitted application, only the affected pages need be submitted. Previously submitted pages with information that is still current need not be resubmitted.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(1) Cite by number the statutory or regulatory provisions requiring the assurances and affirm that it gives the assurances required by those provisions,
(2) Repeat the assurance language in the statutes or regulations, or
(3) Develop its own language to the extent permitted by law.
(d)
(a) A grantee or subgrantee may be considered “high risk” if an awarding agency determines that a grantee or subgrantee:
(1) Has a history of unsatisfactory performance, or
(2) Is not financially stable, or
(3) Has a management system which does not meet the management standards set forth in this part, or
(4) Has not conformed to terms and conditions of previous awards, or
(5) Is otherwise not responsible; and if the awarding agency determines that an award will be made, special conditions and/or restrictions shall correspond to the high risk condition and shall be included in the award.
(b) Special conditions or restrictions may include:
(1) Payment on a reimbursement basis;
(2) Withholding authority to proceed to the next phase until receipt of evidence of acceptable performance within a given funding period;
(3) Requiring additional, more detailed financial reports;
(4) Additional project monitoring;
(5) Requiring the grantee or subgrantee to obtain technical or management assistance; or
(6) Establishing additional prior approvals.
(c) If an awarding agency decides to impose such conditions, the awarding official will notify the grantee or subgrantee as early as possible, in writing, of:
(1) The nature of the special conditions/restrictions;
(2) The reason(s) for imposing them;
(3) The corrective actions which must be taken before they will be removed and the time allowed for completing the corrective actions and
(4) The method of requesting reconsideration of the conditions/restrictions imposed.
(a) A State must expand and account for grant funds in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for its own funds. Fiscal control and accounting procedures of the State, as well as its subgrantees and cost-type contractors, must be sufficient to—
(1) Permit preparation of reports required by this part and the statutes authorizing the grant, and
(2) Permit the tracing of funds to a level of expenditures adequate to establish that such funds have not been used in violation of the restrictions and prohibitions of applicable statutes.
(b) The financial management systems of other grantees and subgrantees must meet the following standards:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(c) An awarding agency may review the adequacy of the financial management system of any applicant for financial assistance as part of a preaward review or at any time subsequent to award.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(2) Except as provided in paragraph (f)(1) of this section, grantees and subgrantees shall disburse program income, rebates, refunds, contract settlements, audit recoveries and interest earned on such funds before requesting additional cash payments.
(g)
(i) The grantee or subgrantee has failed to comply with grant award conditions or
(ii) The grantee or subgrantee is indebted to the United States.
(2) Cash withheld for failure to comply with grant award condition, but without suspension of the grant, shall be released to the grantee upon subsequent compliance. When a grant is suspended, payment adjustments will be made in accordance with § 33.43(c).
(3) A Federal agency shall not make payment to grantees for amounts that are withheld by grantees or subgrantees from payment to contractors to assure satisfactory completion of work. Payments shall be made by the Federal agency when the grantees or subgrantees actually disburse the withheld funds to the contractors or to escrow accounts established to assure satisfactory completion of work.
(h)
(2) A grantee or subgrantee shall maintain a separate bank account only when required by Federal-State agreement.
(i)
(a)
(1) The allowable costs of the grantees, subgrantees and cost-type contractors, including allowable costs in the form of payments to fixed-price contractors; and
(2) Reasonable fees or profit to cost-type contractors but not any fee or profit (or other increment above allowable costs) to the grantee or subgrantee.
(b)
(a)
(b)
(a)
(1) Allowable costs incurred by the grantee, subgrantee or a cost-type contractor under the assistance agreement. This includes allowable costs borne by non-Federal grants or by others cash donations from non-Federal third parties.
(2) The value of third party in-kind contributions applicable to the period to which the cost sharing or matching requirements applies.
(b)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(ii) Some third party in-kind contributions are goods and services that, if the grantee, subgrantee, or contractor receiving the contribution had to pay for them, the payments would have been an indirect costs. Costs sharing or matching credit for such contributions shall be given only if the grantee, subgrantee, or contractor has established, along with its regular indirect cost rate, a special rate for allocating to individual projects or programs the value of the contributions.
(iii) A third party in-kind contribution to a fixed-price contract may count towards satisfying a cost sharing or matching requirement only if it results in:
(A) An increase in the services or property provided under the contract (without additional cost to the grantee or subgrantee) or
(B) A cost savings to the grantee or subgrantee.
(iv) The values placed on third party in-kind contributions for cost sharing or matching purposes will conform to the rules in the succeeding sections of this part. If a third party in-kind contribution is a type not treated in those sections, the value placed upon it shall be fair and reasonable.
(c)
(2)
(d)
(2) If a third party donates the use of equipment or space in a building but retains title, the contribution will be valued at the fair rental rate of the equipment or space.
(e)
(1)
(2)
(i) If approval is obtained from the awarding agency, the market value at the time of donation of the donated equipment or buildings and the fair rental rate of the donated land may be counted as cost sharing or matching. In the case of a subgrant, the terms of the grant agreement may require that the approval be obtained from the Federal agency as well as the grantee. In all cases, the approval may be given only if a purchase of the equipment or rental of the land would be approved as an allowable direct cost. If any part of the donated property was acquired with Federal funds, only the non-Federal share of the property may be counted as cost-sharing or matching.
(ii) If approval is not obtained under paragraph (e)(2)(i) of this section, no amount may be counted for donated land, and only depreciation or use allowances may be counted for donated equipment and buildings. The depreciation or use allowances for this property are not treated as third party in-kind contributions. Instead, they are treated as costs incurred by the grantee or subgrantee. They are computed and allocated (usually as indirect costs) in accordance with the cost principles specified in § 33.22, in the same way as depreciation or use allowances for purchased equipment and buildings. The amount of depreciation or use allowances for donated equipment and buildings is based on the property's market value at the time it was donated.
(f)
(g)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(1)
(2)
(3)
(h)
(a)
(b)
(1) Determine whether State or local subgrantees have met the audit requirements of the Act and whether subgrantees covered by OMB Circular A-
(2) Determine whether the subgrantee spent Federal assistance funds provided in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. This may be accomplished by reviewing an audit of the subgrantee made in accordance with the Act, Circular A-110, or through other means (e.g., program reviews) if the subgrantee has not had such an audit;
(3) Ensure that appropriate corrective action is taken within six months after receipt of the audit report in instance of noncompliance with Federal laws and regulations;
(4) Consider whether subgrantee audits necessitate adjustment of the grantee's own records; and
(5) Require each subgrantee to permit independent auditors to have access to the records and financial statements.
(c)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(i) Any revision which would result in the need for additional funding.
(ii) Unless waived by the awarding agency, cumulative transfers among direct cost categories, or, if applicable, among separately budgeted programs, projects, functions, or activities which exceed or are expected to exceed ten percent of the current total approved budget, whenever the awarding agency's share exceeds $100,000.
(iii) Transfer of funds allotted for training allowances (i.e., from direct payments to trainees to other expense categories).
(2)
(3)
(d)
(1) Any revision of the scope or objectives of the project (regardless of whether there is an associated budget revision requiring prior approval).
(2) Need to extend the period of availability of funds.
(3) Changes in key persons in cases where specified in an application or a grant award. In research projects, a
(4) Under nonconstruction projects, contracting out, subgranting (if authorized by law) or otherwise obtaining the services of a third party to perform activities which are central to the purposes of the award. This approval requirement is in addition to the approval requirements of § 33.36 but does not apply to the procurement of equipment, supplies, and general support services.
(e)
(f)
(2) A request for a prior approval under the applicable Federal cost principles (see § 33.22) may be made by letter.
(3) A request by a subgrantee for prior approval will be addressed in writing to the grantee. The grantee will promptly review such request and shall approve or disapprove the request in writing. A grantee will not approve any budget or project revision which is inconsistent with the purpose or terms and conditions of the Federal grant to the grantee. If the revision, requested by the subgrantee would result in a change to the grantee's approved project which requires Federal prior approval, the grantee will obtain the Federal agency's approval before approving the subgrantee's request.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(1)
(2)
(3)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(2) The grantee or subgrantee shall also make equipment available for use on other projects or programs currently or previously supported by the Federal Government, providing such use will not interfere with the work on the projects or program for which it was originally acquired. First preference for other use shall be given to other programs or projects supported by the awarding agency. User fees should be considered if appropriate.
(3) Notwithstanding the encouragement in § 33.25(a) to earn program income, the grantee or subgrantee must not use equipment acquired with grant funds to provide services for a fee to compete unfairly with private companies that provide equivalent services, unless specifically permitted or contemplated by Federal statute.
(4) When acquiring replacement equipment, the grantee or subgrantee may use the equipment to be replaced as a trade-in or sell the property and use the proceeds to offset the cost of the replacement property, subject to the approval of the awarding agency.
(d)
(1) Property records must be maintained that include a description of the property, a serial number or other identification number, the source of property, who holds title, the acquisition date, and cost of the property, percentage of Federal participation in the cost of the property, the location, use and condition of the property, and any ultimate disposition data including the date of disposal and sale price of the property.
(2) A physical inventory of the property must be taken and the results reconciled with the property records at least once every two years.
(3) A control system must be developed to ensure adequate safeguards to prevent loss, damage, or theft of the property. Any loss, damage, or theft shall be investigated.
(4) Adequate maintenance procedures must be developed to keep the property in good condition.
(5) If the grantee or subgrantee is authorized or required to sell the property, proper sales procedures must be established to ensure the highest possible return.
(e)
(1) Items of equipment with a current per-unit fair market value of less than $5,000 may be retained, sold or otherwise disposed of with no further obligation to the awarding agency.
(2) Items of equipment with a current per unit fair market value in excess of $5,000 may be retained or sold and the awarding agency shall have a right to an amount calculated by multiplying the current market value or proceeds from sale by the awarding agency's share of the equipment.
(3) In cases where a grantee or subgrantee fails to take appropriate disposition actions, the awarding agency may direct the grantee or subgrantee to take excess and disposition actions.
(f)
(1) Title will remain vested in the Federal Government.
(2) Grantees or subgrantees will manage the equipment in accordance with Federal agency rules and procedures, and submit an annual inventory listing.
(3) When the equipment is no longer needed, the grantee or subgrantee will request disposition instructions from the Federal agency.
(g)
(1) The property shall be identified in the grant or otherwise made known to the grantee in writing.
(2) The Federal awarding agency shall issue disposition instruction within 120 calendar days after the end of the Federal support of the project for which it was acquired. If the Federal awarding agency fails to issue disposition instructions within the 120 calendar-day period the grantee shall follow § 33.32(e).
(3) When title to equipment is transferred, the grantee shall be paid an amount calculated by applying the percentage of participation in the purchase to the current fair market value of the property.
(a)
(b)
The Federal awarding agency reserves a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable license to reproduce, publish or otherwise use, and to authorize others to use, for Federal Government purposes:
(a) The copyright in any work developed under a grant, subgrant, or contract under a grant or subgrant; and
(b) Any rights of copyright to which a grantee, subgrantee or a contractor purchases ownership with grant support.
Grantees and subgrantees must not make any award or permit any award (subgrant or contract) at any tier to any party which is debarred or suspended or is otherwise excluded from or ineligible for participation in Federal assistance programs under Executive Order 12549, “Debarment and Suspension.”
(a)
(b)
(2) Grantees and subgrantees will maintain a contract administration system which ensures that contractors perform in accordance with the terms, conditions, and specifications of their contracts or purchase orders.
(3) Grantees and subgrantees will maintain a written code of standards of conduct governing the performance of their employees engaged in the award and administration of contracts. No
(i) The employee, officer or agent,
(ii) Any member of his immediate family,
(iii) His or her partner, or
(iv) An organization which employs, or is about to employ, any of the above, has a financial or other interest in the firm selected for award. The grantee's or subgrantee's officers, employees or agents will neither solicit nor accept gratuities, favors or anything of monetary value from contractors, potential contractors, or parties to subagreements. Grantee and subgrantees may set minimum rules where the financial interest is not substantial or the gift is an unsolicited item of nominal intrinsic value. To the extent permitted by State or local law or regulations, such standards or conduct will provide for penalties, sanctions, or other disciplinary actions for violations of such standards by the grantee's and subgrantee's officers, employees, or agents, or by contractors or their agents. The awarding agency may in regulation provide additional prohibitions relative to real, apparent, or potential conflicts of interest.
(4) Grantee and subgrantee procedures will provide for a review of proposed procurements to avoid purchase of unnecessary or duplicative items. Consideration should be given to consolidating or breaking out procurements to obtain a more economical purchase. Where appropriate, an analysis will be made of lease versus purchase alternatives, and any other appropriate analysis to determine the most economical approach.
(5) To foster greater economy and efficiency, grantees and subgrantees are encouraged to enter into State and local intergovernmental agreements for procurement or use of common goods and services.
(6) Grantees and subgrantees are encouraged to use Federal excess and surplus property in lieu of purchasing new equipment and property whenever such use is feasible and reduces project costs.
(7) Grantees and subgrantees are encouraged to use value engineering clauses in contracts for construction projects of sufficient size to offer reasonable opportunities for cost reductions. Value engineering is a systematic and creative anaylsis of each contract item or task to ensure that its essential function is provided at the overall lower cost.
(8) Grantees and subgrantees will make awards only to responsible contractors possessing the ability to perform successfully under the terms and conditions of a proposed procurement. Consideration will be given to such matters as contractor integrity, compliance with public policy, record of past performance, and financial and technical resources.
(9) Grantees and subgrantees will maintain records sufficient to detail the significant history of a procurement. These records will include, but are not necessarily limited to the following: rationale for the method of procurement, selection of contract type, contractor selection or rejection, and the basis for the contract price.
(10) Grantees and subgrantees will use time and material type contracts only—
(i) After a determination that no other contract is suitable, and
(ii) If the contract includes a ceiling price that the contractor exceeds at its own risk.
(11) Grantees and subgrantees alone will be responsible, in accordance with good administrative practice and sound business judgment, for the settlement of all contractual and administrative issues arising out of procurements. These issues include, but are not limited to source evaluation, protests, disputes, and claims. These standards do not relieve the grantee or subgrantee of any contractual responsibilities under its contracts. Federal agencies will not substitute their judgment for that of the grantee or subgrantee unless the matter is primarily a Federal concern. Violations of law will be referred to the local, State, or Federal authority having proper jurisdiction.
(12) Grantees and subgrantees will have protest procedures to handle and
(i) Violations of Federal law or regulations and the standards of this section (violations of State or local law will be under the jurisdiction of State or local authorities) and
(ii) Violations of the grantee's or subgrantee's protest procedures for failure to review a complaint or protest. Protests received by the Federal agency other than those specified above will be referred to the grantee or subgrantee.
(c)
(i) Placing unreasonable requirements on firms in order for them to qualify to do business,
(ii) Requiring unnecessary experience and excessive bonding,
(iii) Noncompetitive pricing practices between firms or between affiliated companies,
(iv) Noncompetitive awards to consultants that are on retainer contracts,
(v) Organizational conflicts of interest,
(vi) Specifying only a “brand name” product instead of allowing “an equal” product to be offered and describing the performance of other relevant requirements of the procurement, and
(vii) Any arbitrary action in the procurement process.
(2) Grantees and subgrantees will conduct procurements in a manner that prohibits the use of statutorily or administratively imposed in-State or local geographical preferences in the evaluation of bids or proposals, except in those cases where applicable Federal statutes expressly mandate or encourage geographic preference. Nothing in this section preempts State licensing laws. When contracting for architectural and engineering (A/E) services, geographic location may be a selection criteria provided its application leaves an appropriate number of qualified firms, given the nature and size of the project, to compete for the contract.
(3) Grantees will have written selection procedures for procurement transactions. These procedures will ensure that all solicitations:
(i) Incorporate a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements for the material, product, or service to be procured. Such description shall not, in competitive procurements, contain features which unduly restrict competition. The description may include a statement of the qualitative nature of the material, product or service to be procured, and when necessary, shall set forth those minimum essential characteristics and standards to which it must conform if it is to satisfy its intended use. Detailed product specifications should be avoided if at all possible. When it is impractical or uneconomical to make a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements, a “brand name or equal” description may be used as a means to define the performance or other salient requirements of a procurement. The specific features of the named brand which must be met by offerors shall be clearly stated; and
(ii) Identify all requirements which the offerors must fulfill and all other factors to be used in evaluating bids or proposals.
(4) Grantees and subgrantees will ensure that all prequalified lists of persons, firms, or products which are used in acquiring goods and services are current and include enough qualified sources to ensure maximum open and free competition. Also, grantees and subgrantees will not preclude potential bidders from qualifying during the solicitation period.
(d)
(2) Procurement by
(i) In order for sealed bidding to be feasible, the following conditions should be present:
(A) A complete, adequate, and realistic specification or purchase description is available;
(B) Two or more responsible bidders are willing and able to compete effectively and for the business; and
(C) The procurement lends itself to a firm fixed price contract and the selection of the successful bidder can be made principally on the basis of price.
(ii) If sealed bids are used, the following requirements apply:
(A) The invitation for bids will be publicly advertised and bids shall be solicited from an adequate number of known suppliers, providing them sufficient time prior to the date set for opening the bids;
(B) The invitation for bids, which will include any specifications and pertinent attachments, shall define the items or services in order for the bidder to properly respond;
(C) All bids will be publicly opened at the time and place prescribed in the invitation for bids;
(D) A firm fixed-price contract award will be made in writing to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder. Where specified in bidding documents, factors such as discounts, transportation cost, and life cycle costs shall be considered in determining which bid is lowest. Payment discounts will only be used to determine the low bid when prior experience indicates that such discounts are usually taken advantage of; and
(E) Any or all bids may be rejected if there is a sound documented reason.
(3) Procurement by
(i) Requests for proposals will be publicized and identify all evaluation factors and their relative importance. Any response to publicized requests for proposals shall be honored to the maximum extent practical;
(ii) Proposals will be solicited from an adequate number of qualified sources;
(iii) Grantees and subgrantees will have a method for conducting technical evaluations of the proposals received and for selecting awardees;
(iv) Awards will be made to the responsible firm whose proposal is most advantageous to the program, with price and other factors considered; and
(v) Grantees and subgrantees may use competitive proposal procedures for qualifications-based procurement of architectural/engineering (A/E) professional services whereby competitors' qualifications are evaluated and the most qualified competitor is selected, subject to negotiation of fair and reasonable compensation. The method, where price is not used as a selection factor, can only be used in procurement of A/E professional services. It cannot be used to purchase other types of services though A/E firms are a potential source to perform the proposed effort.
(4) Procurement by
(i) Procurement by noncompetitive proposals may be used only when the award of a contract is infeasible under small purchase procedures, sealed bids or competitive proposals and one of the following circumstances applies:
(A) The item is available only from a single source;
(B) The public exigency or emergency for the requirement will not permit a delay resulting from competitive solicitation;
(C) The awarding agency authorizes noncompetitive proposals; or
(D) After solicitation of a number of sources, competition is determined inadequate.
(ii) Cost analysis, i.e., verifying the proposed cost data, the projections of the data, and the evaluation of the specific elements of costs and profits, is required.
(iii) Grantees and subgrantees may be required to submit the proposed procurement to the awarding agency for pre-award review in accordance with paragraph (g) of this section.
(e)
(2) Affirmative steps shall include:
(i) Placing qualified small and minority businesses and women's business enterprises on solicitation lists;
(ii) Assuring that small and minority businesses, and women's business enterprises are solicited whenever they are potential sources;
(iii) Dividing total requirements, when economically feasible, into smaller tasks or quantities to permit maximum participation by small and minority business, and women's business enterprises;
(iv) Establishing delivery schedules, where the requirement permits, which encourage participation by small and minority business, and women's business enterprises;
(v) Using the services and assistance of the Small Business Administration, and the Minority Business Development Agency of the Department of Commerce; and
(vi) Requiring the prime contractor, if subcontracts are to be let, to take the affirmative steps listed in paragraphs (e)(2) (i) through (v) of this section.
(f)
(2) Grantees and subgrantees will negotiate profit as a separate element of the price for each contract in which there is no price competition and in all cases where cost analysis is performed. To establish a fair and reasonable profit, consideration will be given to the complexity of the work to be performed, the risk borne by the contractor, the contractor's investment, the amount of subcontracting, the quality of its record of past performance, and industry profit rates in the surrounding geographical area for similar work.
(3) Costs or prices based on estimated costs for contracts under grants will be allowable only to the extent that costs incurred or cost estimates included in negotiated prices are consistent with Federal cost principles (see § 33.22). Grantees may reference their own cost principles that comply with the applicable Federal cost principles.
(4) The cost plus a percentage of cost and percentage of construction cost methods of contracting shall not be used.
(g)
(2) Grantees and subgrantees must on request make available for awarding agency pre-award review procurement documents, such as requests for proposals or invitations for bids, independent cost estimates, etc. when:
(i) A grantee's or subgrantee's procurement procedures or operation fails to comply with the procurement standards in this section; or
(ii) The procurement is expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold and is to be awarded without competition or only one bid or offer is received in response to a solicitation; or
(iii) The procurement, which is expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold, specifies a “brand name” product; or
(iv) The proposed award is more than the simplified acquisition threshold and is to be awarded to other than the apparent low bidder under a sealed bid procurement; or
(v) A proposed contract modification changes the scope of a contract or increases the contract amount by more than the simplified acquisition threshold.
(3) A grantee or subgrantee will be exempt from the pre-award review in paragraph (g)(2) of this section if the awarding agency determines that its procurement systems comply with the standards of this section.
(i) A grantee or subgrantee may request that its procurement system be reviewed by the awarding agency to determine whether its system meets these standards in order for its system to be certified. Generally, these reviews shall occur where there is a continuous high-dollar funding, and third-party contracts are awarded on a regular basis.
(ii) A grantee or subgrantee may self-certify its procurement system. Such self-certification shall not limit the awarding agency's right to survey the system. Under a self-certification procedure, awarding agencies may wish to rely on written assurances from the grantee or subgrantee that it is complying with these standards. A grantee or subgrantee will cite specific procedures, regulations, standards, etc., as being in compliance with these requirements and have its system available for review.
(h)
(1)
(2)
(3)
(i)
(1) Administrative, contractual, or legal remedies in instances where contractors violate or breach contract terms, and provide for such sanctions and penalties as may be appropriate. (Contracts more than the simplified acquisition threshold)
(2) Termination for cause and for convenience by the grantee or subgrantee including the manner by which it will be effected and the basis for settlement. (All contracts in excess of $10,000)
(3) Compliance with Executive Order 11246 of September 24, 1965, entitled “Equal Employment Opportunity,” as amended by Executive Order 11375 of October 13, 1967, and as supplemented in Department of Labor regulations (41 CFR chapter 60). (All construction contracts awarded in excess of $10,000 by grantees and their contractors or subgrantees)
(4) Compliance with the Copeland “Anti-Kickback” Act (18 U.S.C. 874) as supplemented in Department of Labor regulations (29 CFR Part 3). (All contracts and subgrants for construction or repair)
(5) Compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 276a to 276a-7) as supplemented by Department of Labor regulations (29 CFR Part 5). (Construction contracts in excess of $2000 awarded by grantees and subgrantees when required by Federal grant program legislation)
(6) Compliance with Sections 103 and 107 of the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act (40 U.S.C. 327-330) as supplemented by Department of Labor regulations (29 CFR Part 5). (Construction contracts awarded by grantees and subgrantees in excess of $2000, and in excess of $2500 for other contracts which involve the employment of mechanics or laborers)
(7) Notice of awarding agency requirements and regulations pertaining to reporting.
(8) Notice of awarding agency requirements and regulations pertaining to patent rights with respect to any discovery or invention which arises or is developed in the course of or under such contract.
(9) Awarding agency requirements and regulations pertaining to copyrights and rights in data.
(10) Access by the grantee, the subgrantee, the Federal grantor agency, the Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives to any books, documents, papers, and records of the contractor which are directly pertinent to that specific contract for the purpose of making audit, examination, excerpts, and transcriptions.
(11) Retention of all required records for three years after grantees or subgrantees make final payments and all other pending matters are closed.
(12) Compliance with all applicable standards, orders, or requirements issued under section 306 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 1857(h)), section 508 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1368), Executive Order 11738, and Environmental Protection Agency regulations (40 CFR part 15). (Contracts, subcontracts, and subgrants of amounts in excess of $100,000)
(13) Mandatory standards and policies relating to energy efficiency which are contained in the state energy conservation plan issued in compliance with the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (Pub. L. 94-163, 89 Stat. 871).
(a)
(1) Ensure that every subgrant includes any clauses required by Federal statute and executive orders and their implementing regulations;
(2) Ensure that subgrantees are aware of requirements imposed upon them by Federal statute and regulation;
(3) Ensure that a provision for compliance with § 33.42 is placed in every cost reimbursement subgrant; and
(4) Conform any advances of grant funds to subgrantees substantially to the same standards of timing and
(b)
(1) Ensure that every subgrant includes a provision for compliance with this part;
(2) Ensure that every subgrant includes any clauses required by Federal statute and executive orders and their implementing regulations; and
(3) Ensure that subgrantees are aware of requirements imposed upon them by Federal statutes and regulations.
(c)
(1) Section 33.10;
(2) Section 33.11;
(3) The letter-of-credit procedures specified in Treasury Regulations at 31 CFR part 205, cited in § 33.21; and
(4) Section 33.50.
(a)
(b)
(1) Grantees shall submit annual performance reports unless the awarding agency requires quarterly or semi-annual reports. However, performance reports will not be required more frequently than quarterly. Annual reports shall be due 90 days after the grant year, quarterly or semi-annual reports shall be due 30 days after the reporting period. The final performance report will be due 90 days after the expiration or termination of grant support. If a justified request is submitted by a grantee, the Federal agency may extend the due date for any performance report. Additionally, requirements for unnecessary performance reports may be waived by the Federal agency.
(2) Performance reports will contain, for each grant, brief information on the following:
(i) A comparison of actual accomplishments to the objectives established for the period. Where the output of the project can be quantified, a computation of the cost per unit of output may be required if that information will be useful.
(ii) The reasons for slippage if established objectives were not met.
(iii) Additional pertinent information including, when appropriate, analysis and explanation of cost overruns or high unit costs.
(3) Grantees will not be required to submit more than the original and two copies of performance reports.
(4) Grantees will adhere to the standards in this section in prescribing performance reporting requirements for subgrantees.
(c)
(d)
(1) Problems, delays, or adverse conditions which will materially impair the ability to meet the objective of the award. This disclosure must include a statement of the action taken, or contemplated, and any assistance needed to resolve the situation.
(2) Favorable developments which enable meeting time schedules and objectives sooner or at less cost than anticipated or producing more beneficial results than originally planned.
(e) Federal agencies may make site visits as warranted by program needs.
(f)
(2) The grantee may waive any performance report from a subgrantee when not needed. The grantee may extend the due date for any performance report from a subgrantee if the grantee will still be able to meet its performance reporting obligations to the Federal agency.
(a)
(i) Submitting financial reports to Federal agencies, or
(ii) Requesting advances or reimbursements when letters of credit are not used.
(2) Grantees need not apply the forms prescribed in this section in dealing with their subgrantees. However, grantees shall not impose more burdensome requirements on subgrantees.
(3) Grantees shall follow all applicable standard and supplemental Federal agency instructions approved by OMB to the extend required under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 for use in connection with forms specified in paragraphs (b) through (e) of this section. Federal agencies may issue substantive supplementary instructions only with the approval of OMB. Federal agencies may shade out or instruct the grantee to disregard any line item that the Federal agency finds unnecessary for its decisionmaking purposes.
(4) Grantees will not be required to submit more than the original and two copies of forms required under this part.
(5) Federal agencies may provide computer outputs to grantees to expedite or contribute to the accuracy of reporting. Federal agencies may accept the required information from grantees in machine usable format or computer printouts instead of prescribed forms.
(6) Federal agencies may waive any report required by this section if not needed.
(7) Federal agencies may extend the due date of any financial report upon receiving a justified request from a grantee.
(b)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(c)
(ii) These reports will be used by the Federal agency to monitor cash advanced to grantees and to obtain disbursement or outlay information for each grant from grantees. The format of the report may be adapted as appropriate when reporting is to be accomplished with the assistance of automatic data processing equipment provided that the information to be submitted is not changed in substance.
(2)
(3)
(4)
(d)
(2)
(3) The frequency for submitting payment requests is treated in § 33.41(b)(3).
(e)
(ii) The frequency for submitting reimbursement requests is treated in § 33.41(b)(3).
(2)
(ii) When a construction grant is paid by Treasury check advances based on periodic requests from the grantee, the advances will be requested on the form specified in § 33.41(d).
(iii) The Federal agency may substitute the Financial Status Report specified in § 33.41(b) for the Outlay Report and Request for Reimbursement for Construction Programs.
(3)
(a)
(i) Required to be maintained by the terms of this part, program regulations or the grant agreement, or
(ii) Otherwise reasonably considered as pertinent to program regulations or the grant agreement.
(2) This section does not apply to records maintained by contractors or subcontractors. For a requirement to place a provision concerning records in certain kinds of contracts, see § 33.36(i)(10).
(b)
(2) If any litigation, claim, negotiation, audit or other action involving the records has been started before the expiration of the 3-year period, the records must be retained until completion of the action and resolution of all issues which arise from it, or until the end of the regular 3-year period, whichever is later.
(3) To avoid duplicate recordkeeping, awarding agencies may make special arrangements with grantees and subgrantees to retain any records which are continuously needed for joint use. The awarding agency will request transfer of records to its custody when it determines that the records possess long-term retention value. When the records are transferred to or maintained by the Federal agency, the 3-year retention requirement is not applicable to the grantee or subgrantee.
(c)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(i)
(ii)
(d)
(e)
(2)
(f)
(a)
(1) Temporarily withhold cash payments pending correction of the deficiency by the grantee or subgrantee or more severe enforcement action by the awarding agency,
(2) Disallow (that is, deny both use of funds and matching credit for) all or part of the cost of the activity or action not in compliance,
(3) Wholly or partly suspend or terminate the current award for the grantee's or subgrantee's program,
(4) Withhold further awards for the program, or
(5) Take other remedies that may be legally available.
(b)
(c)
(1) The costs result from obligations which were properly incurred by the grantee or subgrantee before the effective date of suspension or termination, are not in anticipation of it, and, in the case of a termination, are noncancellable, and,
(2) The costs would be allowable if the award were not suspended or expired normally at the end of the funding period in which the termination takes effect.
(d)
Except as provided in § 33.43 awards may be terminated in whole or in part only as follows:
(a) By the awarding agency with the consent of the grantee or subgrantee in which case the two parties shall agree upon the termination conditions, including the effective date and in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated, or
(b) By the grantee or subgrantee upon written notification to the awarding agency, setting forth the reasons for such termination, the effective date, and in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated. However, if, in the case of a partial termination, the awarding agency determines that the remaining portion of the award will not accomplish the purposes for which the award was made, the awarding agency may terminate the award in its entirety under either § 33.43 or paragraph (a) of this section.
(a)
(b)
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(c)
(d)
(2) The grantee must immediately refund to the Federal agency any balance of unobligated (unencumbered) cash advanced that is not authorized to be retained for use on other grants.
The closeout of a grant does not affect:
(a) The Federal agency's right to disallow costs and recover funds on the basis of a later audit or other review;
(b) The grantee's obligation to return any funds due as a result of later refunds, corrections, or other transactions;
(c) Records retention as required in § 33.42;
(d) Property management requirements in §§ 33.31 and 33.32; and
(e) Audit requirements in § 33.26.
(a) Any funds paid to a grantee in excess of the amount to which the grantee is finally determined to be entitled under the terms of the award constitute a debt to the Federal Government. If not paid within a reasonable period after demand, the Federal agency may reduce the debt by:
(1) Making an adminstrative offset against other requests for reimbursements,
(2) Withholding advance payments otherwise due to the grantee, or
(3) Other action permitted by law.
(b) Except where otherwise provided by statutes or regulations, the Federal agency will charge interest on an overdue debt in accordance with the Federal Claims Collection Standards (4 CFR Ch. II). The date from which interest is computed is not extended by litigation or the filing of any form of appeal.
5 U.S.C. 301 and 10 U.S.C. 113.
(a) This part prescribes administrative requirements for awards to for-profit organizations.
(b) Applicability to prime awards and subawards is as follows:
(1)
(i) In accordance with the deviation procedures or special award conditions in § 34.3 or § 34.4, respectively; or
(ii) As required by Federal statute, Executive order, or Federal regulation implementing a statute or Executive order.
(2)
(ii) For-profit organizations that receive prime awards covered by this part shall apply to each subaward the administrative requirements that are applicable to the particular type of subrecipient (e.g., 32 CFR part 33 specifies requirements for subrecipients that are States or local governments, and 32 CFR part 32 contains requirements for universities or other nonprofit organizations).
The following are definitions of terms as used in this part. Grants officers are cautioned that terms may be defined differently in this part than they are in other parts of the DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations (DoDGARs).
(1) A procurement contract made by a recipient under a DoD Component's award or by a subrecipient under a subaward; or
(2) A procurement subcontract under a contract awarded by a recipient or subrecipient.
(1) Tangible, having physical existence (i.e., equipment and supplies); or
(2) Intangible, having no physical existence, such as patents, copyrights, data and software.
(1) The date on which all work under an award is completed; or
(2) The date on which Federal sponsorship ends, as given on the award document or any supplement or amendment thereto.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(a) Grants officers may impose additional requirements as needed, over and above those provided in this part, if an applicant or recipient:
(1) Has a history of poor performance;
(2) Is not financially stable;
(3) Has a management system that does not meet the standards prescribed in this part;
(4) Has not conformed to the terms and conditions of a previous award; or
(5) Is not otherwise responsible.
(b) Before imposing additional requirements, DoD Components shall notify the applicant or recipient in writing as to:
(1) The nature of the additional requirements;
(2) The reason why the additional requirements are being imposed;
(3) The nature of the corrective action needed;
(4) The time allowed for completing the corrective actions; and
(5) The method for requesting reconsideration of the additional requirements imposed.
(c) Any special conditions shall be promptly removed once the conditions that prompted them have been corrected.
(d) Grants officers:
(1) Should coordinate the imposition and removal of special award conditions with the cognizant grants administration office identified in 32 CFR 22.710.
(2) Shall include in the award file the written notification to the recipient, described in paragraph (b) of this section, and the documentation required by 32 CFR 22.410(b).
Sections 34.11 through 34.17 prescribe standards for financial management systems; methods for making payments; and rules for cost sharing and matching, program income, revisions to budgets and program plans, audits, allowable costs, and fee and profit.
(a) Recipients shall be allowed and encouraged to use existing financial management systems established for
(1) Effective control of all funds. Control systems must be adequate to ensure that costs charged to Federal funds and those counted as the recipient's cost share or match are consistent with requirements for cost reasonableness, allowability, and allocability in the applicable cost principles (see § 34.17) and in the terms and conditions of the award.
(2) Accurate, current and complete records that document for each project funded wholly or in part with Federal funds the source and application of the Federal funds and the recipient's required cost share or match. These records shall:
(i) Contain information about receipts, authorizations, assets, expenditures, program income, and interest.
(ii) Be adequate to make comparisons of outlays with budgeted amounts for each award (as required for programmatic and financial reporting under § 34.41. Where appropriate, financial information should be related to performance and unit cost data. Note that unit cost data are generally not appropriate for awards that support research.
(3) To the extent that advance payments are authorized under § 34.12, procedures that minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds to the recipient from the Government and the recipient's disbursement of the funds for program purposes.
(4) The recipient shall have a system to support charges to Federal awards for salaries and wages, whether treated as direct or indirect costs. Where employees work on multiple activities or cost objectives, a distribution of their salaries and wages will be supported by personnel activity reports which must:
(i) Reflect an after the fact distribution of the actual activity of each employee.
(ii) Account for the total activity for which each employee is compensated.
(iii) Be prepared at least monthly, and coincide with one or more pay periods.
(b) Where the Federal Government guarantees or insures the repayment of money borrowed by the recipient, the DoD Component, at its discretion, may require adequate bonding and insurance if the bonding and insurance requirements of the recipient are not deemed adequate to protect the interest of the Federal Government.
(c) The DoD Component may require adequate fidelity bond coverage where the recipient lacks sufficient coverage to protect the Federal Government's interest.
(d) Where bonds are required in the situations described above, the bonds shall be obtained from companies holding certificates of authority as acceptable sureties, as prescribed in 31 CFR part 223, “Surety Companies Doing Business with the United States.”
(a)
(1)
(2)
(b)
(2) Advance payments, as described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, may be used in exceptional circumstances, subject to the following conditions:
(i) The grants officer, in consultation with the program official, must judge that advance payments are necessary or will materially contribute to the probability of success of the project contemplated under the award (e.g., as startup funds for a project performed by a newly formed company). The rationale for the judgment shall be documented in the award file.
(ii) Cash advances shall be limited to the minimum amounts needed to carry out the program.
(iii) Recipients and the DoD Component shall maintain procedures to ensure that the timing of cash advances is as close as is administratively feasible to the recipients' disbursements of the funds for program purposes, including direct program or project costs and the proportionate share of any allowable indirect costs.
(iv) Recipients shall maintain advance payments of Federal funds in interest-bearing accounts, and remit annually the interest earned to the administrative grants officer responsible for post-award administration (the grants officer shall forward the payment to the responsible payment office, for return to the Department of Treasury's miscellaneous receipts account), unless one of the following applies:
(A) The recipient receives less than $120,000 in Federal awards per year.
(B) The best reasonably available interest bearing account would not be expected to earn interest in excess of $250 per year on Federal cash balances.
(C) The depository would require an average or minimum balance so high that it would not be feasible within the expected Federal and non-Federal cash resources.
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(1) A recipient has failed to comply with project objectives, the terms and conditions of the award, or Federal reporting requirements, in which case the grants officer may suspend payments in accordance with § 34.52.
(2) The recipient is delinquent on a debt to the United States (see definitions of “debt” and “delinquent debt” in 32 CFR 22.105). In that case, the grants officer may, upon reasonable notice, withhold payments for obligations incurred after a specified date, until the debt is resolved.
(a)
(1) They are verifiable from the recipient's records.
(2) They are not included as contributions for any other federally-assisted project or program.
(3) They are necessary and reasonable for proper and efficient accomplishment of project or program objectives.
(4) They are allowable under § 34.17.
(5) They are not paid by the Federal Government under another award, except:
(i) Costs that are authorized by Federal statute to be used for cost sharing or matching; or
(ii) Independent research and development (IR&D) costs. In accordance with the for-profit cost principle in 48 CFR 31.205-18(e), use of IR&D as cost sharing is permitted, whether or not the Government decides at a later date to reimburse any of the IR&D as allowable indirect costs. In such cases, the IR&D must meet all of the criteria in paragraphs (a) (1) through (4) and (a) (6) through (8) of this section.
(6) They are provided for in the approved budget, when approval of the budget is required by the DoD Component.
(7) If they are real property or equipment, whether purchased with recipient's funds or donated by third parties, they must have the grants officer's prior approval if the contributions' value is to exceed depreciation or use charges during the project period (paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(4)(ii) of this section discuss the limited circumstances under which a grants officer may approve higher values). If a DoD Component requires approval of a recipient's budget (see paragraph (a)(6) of this section), the grants officer's approval of the budget satisfies this prior approval requirement, for real property or equipment items listed in the budget.
(8) They conform to other provisions of this part, as applicable.
(b)
(i) The certified value of the remaining life of the property recorded in the recipient's accounting records at the time of donation; or
(ii) The current fair market value. However, when there is sufficient justification, the grants officer may approve the use of the current fair market value of the donated property, even if it exceeds the certified value at the time of donation to the project. The grants officer may accept the use of any reasonable basis for determining the fair market value of the property.
(2)
(3)
(4)
(ii) Normally only depreciation or use charges for equipment and buildings may be applied. However, the fair rental charges for land and the full value of equipment or other capital assets may be allowed, when they will be consumed in the performance of the award or fully depreciated by the end of the award, provided that the grants officer has approved the charges. When use charges are applied, values shall be determined in accordance with the usual accounting policies of the recipient, with the following qualifications:
(A) The value of donated space shall not exceed the fair rental value of comparable space as established by an independent appraisal of comparable space and facilities in a privately-owned building in the same locality.
(B) The value of loaned equipment shall not exceed its fair rental value.
(5)
(i) Volunteer services shall be documented and, to the extent feasible, supported by the same methods used by the recipient for its own employees.
(ii) The basis for determining the valuation for personal services and property shall be documented.
(a) DoD Components shall apply the standards in this section to the disposition of program income from projects financed in whole or in part with Federal funds.
(b) Recipients shall have no obligation to the Government, unless the terms and conditions of the award provide otherwise, for program income earned:
(1) From license fees and royalties for copyrighted material, patents, patent applications, trademarks, and inventions produced under an award. Note, however, that the Patent and Trademark Amendments (35 U.S.C. Chapter 18), as implemented in § 34.25, apply to inventions made under a research award.
(2) After the end of the project period. If a grants officer anticipates that an award is likely to generate program income after the end of the project period, the grants officer should indicate in the award document whether the recipient will have any obligation to the Federal Government with respect to such income.
(c) If authorized by the terms and conditions of the award, costs incident to the generation of program income may be deducted from gross income to determine program income, provided these costs have not been charged to the award.
(d) Other than any program income excluded pursuant to paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, program income earned during the project period shall be retained by the recipient and used in one or more of the following ways, as specified in program regulations or the terms and conditions of the award:
(1) Added to funds committed to the project by the DoD Component and recipient and used to further eligible project or program objectives.
(2) Used to finance the non-Federal share of the project or program.
(3) Deducted from the total project or program allowable cost in determining the net allowable costs on which the Federal share of costs is based.
(e) If the terms and conditions of an award authorize the disposition of program income as described in paragraph (d)(1) or (d)(2) of this section, and stipulate a limit on the amounts that may be used in those ways, program income in excess of the stipulated limits shall be used in accordance with paragraph (d)(3) of this section.
(f) In the event that the terms and conditions of the award do not specify how program income is to be used, paragraph (d)(3) of this section shall apply automatically to all projects or programs except research. For awards that support research, paragraph (d)(1) of this section shall apply automatically unless the terms and conditions specify another alternative or the recipient is subject to special award conditions, as indicated in § 34.4.
(g) Proceeds from the sale of property that is acquired, rather than fabricated, under an award are not program income and shall be handled in
(a) The budget plan is the financial expression of the project or program as approved during the award process. It may include either the sum of the Federal and non-Federal shares, or only the Federal share, depending upon DoD Component requirements. It shall be related to performance for program evaluation purposes whenever appropriate.
(b) Recipients are required to report deviations from budget and program plans, and request prior approvals for budget and program plan revisions, in accordance with this section.
(c) Recipients shall immediately request, in writing, prior approval from the cognizant grants officer when there is reason to believe that within the next seven calendar days a programmatic or budgetary revision will be necessary for certain reasons, as follows:
(1) The recipient always must obtain the grants officer's prior approval when a revision is necessary for either of the following two reasons (i.e., these two requirements for prior approval may never be waived):
(i) A change in the scope or the objective of the project or program (even if there is no associated budget revision requiring prior written approval).
(ii) A need for additional Federal funding.
(2) The recipient must obtain the grants officer's prior approval when a revision is necessary for any of the following six reasons, unless the requirement for prior approval is waived in the terms and conditions of the award (i.e., if the award document is silent, these prior approvals are required):
(i) A change in a key person specified in the application or award document.
(ii) The absence for more than three months, or a 25 percent reduction in time devoted to the project, by the approved project director or principal investigator.
(iii) The inclusion of any additional costs that require prior approval in accordance with applicable cost principles for Federal funds and recipients' cost share or match, in § 34.17 and § 34.13, respectively.
(iv) The inclusion of pre-award costs. All such costs are incurred at the recipient's risk (i.e., the DoD Component is under no obligation to reimburse such costs if for any reason the recipient does not receive an award, or if the award is less than anticipated and inadequate to cover such costs).
(v) A “no-cost” extension of the project period that does not require additional Federal funds and does not change the approved objectives or scope of the project.
(vi) Any subaward, transfer or contracting out of substantive program performance under an award, unless described in the application and funded in the approved awards. This provision does not apply to the purchase of supplies, material, or general support services, except that procurement of equipment or other capital items of property always is subject to the grants officer's prior approval under § 34.21(a), if it is to be purchased with Federal funds, or § 34.13(a)(7), if it is to be used as cost sharing or matching.
(3) The recipient also must obtain the grants officer's prior approval when a revision is necessary for either of the following reasons, if specifically required in the terms and conditions of the award document (i.e., if the award document is silent, these prior approvals are not required):
(i) The transfer of funds among direct cost categories, functions and activities for awards in which the Federal share of the project exceeds $100,000 and the cumulative amount of such transfers exceeds or is expected to exceed 10 percent of the total budget as last approved by the DoD Component. No DoD Component shall permit a transfer that would cause any Federal appropriation or part thereof to be used for purposes other than those consistent with the original intent of the appropriation.
(ii) For awards that provide support for both construction and nonconstruction work, any fund or budget transfers between the two types of work supported.
(d) Within 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of the recipient's request for budget revisions, the grants officer shall review the request and notify the recipient whether the budget revisions have been approved. If the revision is still under consideration at the end of 30 calendar days, the grants officer shall inform the recipient in writing of the date when the recipient may expect the decision.
(a) Any recipient that expends $300,000 or more in a year under Federal awards shall have an audit made for that year by an independent auditor, in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section. The audit generally should be made a part of the regularly scheduled, annual audit of the recipient's financial statements. However, it may be more economical in some cases to have the Federal awards separately audited, and a recipient may elect to do so, unless that option is precluded by award terms and conditions, or by Federal laws or regulations applicable to the program(s) under which the awards were made.
(b) The auditor shall determine and report on whether:
(1) The recipient has an internal control structure that provides reasonable assurance that it is managing Federal awards in compliance with Federal laws and regulations, and with the terms and conditions of the awards.
(2) Based on a sampling of Federal award expenditures, the recipient has complied with laws, regulations, and award terms that may have a direct and material effect on Federal awards.
(c) The recipient shall make the auditor's report available to DoD Components whose awards are affected.
(d) The requirement for an annual independent audit is intended to ascertain the adequacy of the recipient's internal financial management systems and to curtail the unnecessary duplication and overlap that usually results when Federal agencies request audits of individual awards on a routine basis. Therefore, a grants officer:
(1) Shall consider whether the independent audit satisfies his or her requirements, before requesting any additional audits; and
(2) When requesting an additional audit, shall:
(i) Limit the scope of such additional audit to areas not adequately addressed by the independent audit.
(ii) Coordinate the audit request with the Federal agency with the predominant fiscal interest in the recipient, as the agency responsible for the scheduling and distribution of audits. If DoD has the predominant fiscal interest in the recipient, the Defense Contract Management Command (DCMC) is responsible for monitoring audits, ensuring resolution of audit findings, and distributing audit reports. When an additional audit is requested and DoD has the predominant fiscal interest in the recipient, DCMC shall, to the extent practicable, ensure that the additional audit builds upon the independent audit or other audits performed in accordance with this section.
(e) There may be instances in which Federal auditors have recently performed audits, are performing audits, or are planning to perform audits, of a recipient. In these cases, the recipient and its Federal cognizant agency should seek to have the non-Federal, independent auditors work with the Federal auditors to develop a coordinated audit approach, to minimize duplication of audit work.
(f) Audit costs (including a reasonable allocation of the costs of the audit of the recipient's financial statement, based on the relative benefit to the Government and the recipient) are allowable costs of DoD awards.
Allowability of costs shall be determined in accordance with the cost principles applicable to the type of entity incurring the costs, as follows:
(a)
(1) The for-profit cost principles in 48 CFR parts 31 and 231 (in the Federal Acquisition Regulation, or FAR, and the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement, or DFARS, respectively).
(2) The supplemental information on allowability of audit costs, in § 34.16(f).
(b)
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
In accordance with 32 CFR 22.205(b), grants and cooperative agreements shall not:
(a) Provide for the payment of fee or profit to the recipient.
(b) Be used to carry out programs where fee or profit is necessary to achieving program objectives.
Sections 34.21 through 34.25 set forth uniform standards for management, use, and disposition of property. DoD Components shall encourage recipients to use existing property-management systems, to the extent that the systems meet these minimum requirements.
(a)
(b)
(1) Use the real property or equipment for the authorized purposes of the project until funding for the project ceases, or until the property is no longer needed for the purposes of the project.
(2) Not encumber the property without approval of the grants officer.
(3) Use and dispose of the property in accordance with paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section.
(c)
(d)
(1) During the time that the real property or equipment is used on the project or program for which it was acquired, the recipient shall make it available for use on other projects or programs, if such other use will not interfere with the work on the project or program for which the real property or equipment was originally acquired. Use of the real property or equipment on other projects will be in the following order of priority:
(i) Activities sponsored by DoD Components' grants, cooperative agreements, or other assistance awards;
(ii) Activities sponsored by other Federal agencies' grants, cooperative agreements, or other assistance awards;
(iii) Activities under Federal procurement contracts, or activities not sponsored by any Federal agency. If so used, use charges shall be assessed to those activities. For real property or equipment, the use charges shall be at rates equivalent to those for which comparable real property or equipment may be leased. The use charges shall be treated as program income.
(2) After Federal funding for the project ceases, or when the real property or equipment is no longer needed for the purposes of the project, the recipient may use the real property or equipment for other projects, insofar as:
(i) There are Federally sponsored projects for which the real property or equipment may be used. If the only use for the real property or equipment is for projects that have no Federal sponsorship, the recipient shall proceed with disposition of the real property or equipment, in accordance with paragraph (e) of this section.
(ii) The recipient obtains written approval from the grants officer to do so. The grants officer shall ensure that there is a formal change of accountability for the real property or equipment to a currently funded, Federal award.
(iii) The recipient's use of the real property or equipment for other projects is in the same order of priority as described in paragraph (d)(1) of this section.
(e)
(i) If the property that is no longer needed is equipment (rather than real property), the recipient may wish to replace it with an item that is needed currently for the project. In that case, the recipient may use the original equipment as trade-in or sell it and use the proceeds to offset the costs of the replacement equipment, subject to the approval of the responsible agency (i.e., the DoD Component or the Federal agency to which the DoD Component delegated responsibility for administering the equipment).
(ii) The recipient may elect to retain title, without further obligation to the Federal Government, by compensating the Federal Government for that percentage of the current fair market value of the real property or equipment that is attributable to the Federal participation in the project.
(iii) If the recipient does not elect to retain title to real property or equipment (see paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this section), or request approval to use equipment as trade-in or offset for replacement equipment (see paragraph (e)(1)(i) of this section), the recipient shall request disposition instructions from the responsible agency.
(2) If a recipient requests disposition instructions, in accordance with paragraph (e)(1)(iii) of this section, the responsible grants officer shall:
(i) For equipment (but not real property), consult with the Federal program manager and judge whether the age and nature of the equipment warrant a screening procedure, to determine whether the equipment is useful to a DoD Component or other Federal agency. If a screening procedure is warranted, the responsible agency shall determine whether the equipment can be used to meet a DoD Component's requirement. If no DoD requirement is found, the responsible agency shall report the availability of the equipment
(ii) For either real property or equipment, issue instructions to the recipient for disposition of the property no later than 120 calendar days after the recipient's request. The grants officer's options for disposition are to direct the recipient to:
(A) Transfer title to the real property or equipment to the Federal Government or to an eligible third party provided that, in such cases, the recipient shall be entitled to compensation for its attributable percentage of the current fair market value of the real property or equipment, plus any reasonable shipping or interim storage costs incurred. If title is transferred to the Federal Government, it shall be subject thereafter to provisions for Federally owned property in § 34.22.
(B) Sell the real property or equipment and pay the Federal Government for that percentage of the current fair market value of the property that is attributable to the Federal participation in the project (after deducting actual and reasonable selling and fix-up expenses, if any, from the sale proceeds). When the recipient is authorized or required to sell the real property or equipment, proper sales procedures shall be established that provide for competition to the extent practicable and result in the highest possible return.
(3) If the responsible agency fails to issue disposition instructions within 120 calendar days of the recipient's request, as described in paragraph (e)(2)(ii) of this section, the recipient shall dispose of the real property or equipment through the option described in paragraph (e)(2)(ii)(B) of this section.
(a)
(b)
(2) Use on other activities will be in the following order of priority:
(i) Activities sponsored by DoD Components' grants, cooperative agreements, or other assistance awards;
(ii) Activities sponsored by other Federal agencies' grants, cooperative agreements, or other assistance awards;
(iii) Activities under Federal procurement contracts, or activities not sponsored by any Federal agency. If so used, use charges shall be assessed to those activities. For real property or equipment, the use charges shall be at rates equivalent to those for which comparable real property or equipment may be leased. The use charges shall be treated as program income.
(c)
(1) Use the property to meet another Federal Government need (e.g, by transferring accountability for the property to another Federal award to the same recipient, or by directing the recipient to transfer the property to a Federal agency that needs the property, or to another recipient with a currently funded award).
(2) Declare the property to be excess property and either:
(i) Report the property to the General Services Administration, in accordance with the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 483(b)(2)), as implemented by General Services Administration regulations at 41 CFR 101-47.202; or
(ii) Dispose of the property by alternative methods, if there is statutory authority to do so (e.g., DoD Components are authorized by 15 U.S.C. 3710(i), the Federal Technology Transfer Act, to donate research equipment to educational and nonprofit organizations for the conduct of technical and
The recipient's property management system shall include the following, for property that is Federally owned, and for equipment that is acquired in whole or in part with Federal funds, or that is used as matching share:
(a) Property records shall be maintained, to include the following information:
(1) A description of the property.
(2) Manufacturer's serial number, model number, Federal stock number, national stock number, or any other identification number.
(3) Source of the property, including the award number.
(4) Whether title vests in the recipient or the Federal Government.
(5) Acquisition date (or date received, if the property was furnished by the Federal Government) and cost.
(6) Information from which one can calculate the percentage of Federal participation in the cost of the property (not applicable to property furnished by the Federal Government).
(7) The location and condition of the property and the date the information was reported.
(8) Ultimate disposition data, including date of disposal and sales price or the method used to determine current fair market value where a recipient compensates the Federal Government for its share.
(b) Federally owned equipment shall be marked, to indicate Federal ownership.
(c) A physical inventory shall be taken and the results reconciled with the property records at least once every two years. Any differences between quantities determined by the physical inspection and those shown in the accounting records shall be investigated to determine the causes of the difference. The recipient shall, in connection with the inventory, verify the existence, current utilization, and continued need for the property.
(d) A control system shall be in effect to insure adequate safeguards to prevent loss, damage, or theft of the property. Any loss, damage, or theft of property shall be investigated and fully documented; if the property was owned by the Federal Government, the recipient shall promptly notify the Federal agency responsible for administering the property.
(e) Adequate maintenance procedures shall be implemented to keep the property in good condition.
(a) Title shall vest in the recipient upon acquisition for supplies acquired with Federal funds under an award.
(b) Upon termination or completion of the project or program, the recipient shall retain any unused supplies. If the inventory of unused supplies exceeds $5,000 in total aggregate value and the items are not needed for any other Federally sponsored project or program, the recipient shall retain the items for use on non-Federal sponsored activities or sell them, but shall, in either case, compensate the Federal Government for its share.
(a)
(1) Small business concerns shall comply with 35 U.S.C. Chapter 18, as implemented by 37 CFR part 401, which applies to inventions made under grants and cooperative agreements with small business concerns for research and development. 37 CFR 401.14 provides a standard clause that is required in such grants and cooperative agreements in most cases, 37 CFR 401.3 specifies when the clause shall be included, and 37 CFR 401.5 specifies how the clause may be modified and tailored.
(2) For-profit organizations other than small business concerns shall comply with 35 U.S.C. 210(c) and Executive Order 12591 (3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 220) (which codifies a Presidential Memorandum on Government Patent Policy, dated February 18, 1983).
(i) The Executive order states that, as a matter of policy, grants and cooperative agreements should grant to all for-profit organizations, regardless of size, title to patents made in whole or in part with Federal funds, in exchange for royalty-free use by or on behalf of the Government (i.e., it extends the applicability of 35 U.S.C. Chapter 18, to the extent permitted by law, to for-profit organizations other than small business concerns).
(ii) 35 U.S.C. 210(c) states that 35 U.S.C. Chapter 18 is not intended to limit agencies' authority to agree to the disposition of rights in inventions in accordance with the Presidential memorandum codified by the Executive order. It also states that such grants and cooperative agreements shall provide for Government license rights required by 35 U.S.C. 202(c)(4) and march-in rights required by 35 U.S.C. 203.
(b)
(1) The recipient may copyright any work that is subject to copyright and was developed under an award. DoD Components reserve a royalty-free, nonexclusive and irrevocable right to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work for Federal purposes, and to authorize others to do so.
(2) Unless waived by the DoD Component making the award, the Federal Government has the right to:
(i) Obtain, reproduce, publish or otherwise use for Federal Government purposes the data first produced under an award.
(ii) Authorize others to receive, reproduce, publish, or otherwise use such data for Federal purposes.
Section 34.31 sets forth requirements necessary to ensure:
(a) Compliance of recipients' procurements that use Federal funds with applicable Federal statutes and executive orders.
(b) Proper stewardship of Federal funds used in recipients' procurements.
The following requirements pertain to recipients' procurements funded in whole or in part with Federal funds or with recipients' cost-share or match:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(2) All contracts in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold shall contain suitable provisions for termination for default by the recipient or for termination due to circumstances beyond the control of the contractor.
(3) All negotiated contracts in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold shall include a provision permitting access of the Department of Defense, the Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives, to any books, documents, papers, and records of the contractor that are directly pertinent to a specific program, for the purpose of making audits, examinations, excerpts, and transcriptions.
(4) All contracts, including those for amounts less than the simplified acquisition threshold, awarded by recipients and their contractors shall contain the
Sections 34.41 and 34.42 prescribe requirements for monitoring and reporting financial and program performance and for records retention.
Grants officers may use the provisions of 32 CFR 32.51 and 32.52 for awards to for-profit organizations, or may include equivalent technical and financial reporting requirements that ensure reasonable oversight of the expenditure of appropriated funds. As a minimum, equivalent requirements must include:
(a) Periodic reports (at least annually, and no more frequently than quarterly) addressing both program status and business status, as follows:
(1) The program portions of the reports must address progress toward achieving program performance goals, including current issues, problems, or developments.
(2) The business portions of the reports shall provide summarized details on the status of resources (federal funds and non-federal cost sharing or matching), including an accounting of expenditures for the period covered by the report. The report should compare the resource status with any payment and expenditure schedules or plans provided in the original award; explain any major deviations from those schedules; and discuss actions that will be taken to address the deviations.
(3) When grants officers previously authorized advance payments, pursuant to § 34.12(a)(2), they should consult with the program official and consider whether program progress reported in the periodic report, in relation to reported expenditures, is sufficient to justify continued authorization of advance payments.
(b) Unless inappropriate, a final performance report that addresses all major accomplishments under the award.
(a) This section sets forth requirements for records retention and access to records for awards to recipients.
(b) Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other records pertinent to an award shall be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report. The only exceptions are the following:
(1) If any litigation, claim, or audit is started before the expiration of the 3-year period, the records shall be retained until all litigation, claims or audit findings involving the records have been resolved and final action taken.
(2) Records for real property and equipment acquired with Federal funds shall be retained for 3 years after final disposition.
(3) When records are transferred to or maintained by the DoD Component that made the award, the 3-year retention requirement is not applicable to the recipient.
(4) Indirect cost rate proposals, cost allocations plans, and related records, for which retention requirements are specified in § 34.42(g).
(c) Copies of original records may be substituted for the original records if authorized by the grants officer.
(d) The grants officer shall request that recipients transfer certain records to DoD Component custody when he or she determines that the records possess long term retention value. However, in order to avoid duplicate recordkeeping, a grants officer may make arrangements for recipients to retain any records that are continuously needed for joint use.
(e) DoD Components, the Inspector General, Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives, have the right of timely and unrestricted access to any books, documents, papers, or other records of recipients that are pertinent to the awards, in order to make audits, examinations, excerpts, transcripts and copies of such documents. This right also includes timely and reasonable access to a recipient's personnel for the purpose of interview and discussion related to such documents.
(f) Unless required by statute, no DoD Component shall place restrictions on recipients that limit public access to the records of recipients that are pertinent to an award, except when the DoD Component can demonstrate that such records shall be kept confidential and would have been exempted from disclosure pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) if the records had belonged to the DoD Component making the award.
(g) Indirect cost proposals, cost allocation plans, and other cost accounting documents (such as documents related to computer usage chargeback rates), along with their supporting records, shall be retained for a 3-year period, as follows:
(1) If a recipient is required to submit an indirect-cost proposal, cost allocation plan, or other computation to the cognizant Federal agency, for purposes of negotiating an indirect cost rate or other rates, the 3-year retention period starts on the date of the submission. This retention requirement also applies to subrecipients submitting similar documents for negotiation to the recipient.
(2) If the recipient or the subrecipient is not required to submit the documents or supporting records for negotiating an indirect cost rate or other rates, the 3-year retention period for the documents and records starts at the end of the fiscal year (or other accounting period) covered by the proposal, plan, or other computation.
(h) If the information described in this section is maintained on a computer, recipients shall retain the computer data on a reliable medium for the time periods prescribed. Recipients may transfer computer data in machine readable form from one reliable computer medium to another. Recipients' computer data retention and transfer procedures shall maintain the integrity, reliability, and security of the original computer data. Recipients shall also maintain an audit trail describing the data transfer. For the record retention time periods prescribed in this section, recipients shall not destroy, discard, delete, or write over such computer data.
Sections 34.51 through 34.53 set forth uniform procedures for suspension, termination, enforcement, and disputes.
(a) Awards may be terminated in whole or in part only in accordance with one of the following:
(1) By the grants officer, if a recipient materially fails to comply with the terms and conditions of an award.
(2) By the grants officer with the consent of the recipient, in which case the two parties shall agree upon the termination conditions, including the effective date and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated.
(3) By the recipient upon sending to the grants officer written notification setting forth the reasons for such termination, the effective date, and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated. The recipient must provide such notice at least 30 calendar days prior to the effective date of the termination. However, if the grants officer determines in the case of partial termination that the reduced or modified portion of the award will not accomplish the purposes for which the award was made, he or she may terminate the award in its entirety.
(b) If costs are allowed under an award, the responsibilities of the recipient referred to in § 34.61(b), including those for property management as applicable, shall be considered in the termination of the award, and provision shall be made for continuing responsibilities of the recipient after termination, as appropriate.
(a)
(1) Temporarily withhold cash payments pending correction of the deficiency by the recipient or more severe enforcement action by the grants officer and DoD Component.
(2) Disallow (that is, deny both use of funds and any applicable matching credit for) all or part of the cost of the activity or action not in compliance.
(3) Wholly or partly suspend or terminate the current award. In the case of termination, the recipient will be reimbursed for allowable costs incurred prior to termination, with the possible exception of those for activities and actions described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section.
(4) Withhold further awards for the project or program.
(5) Take other remedies that may be legally available.
(b)
(c)
(1) Result from obligations which were properly incurred by the recipient before the effective date of suspension or termination, are not in anticipation of it, and in the case of a termination, are noncancellable; and
(2) Would be allowable if the award were not suspended or expired normally at the end of the funding period in which the termination takes effect.
(d)
Recipients have the right to appeal certain decisions by grants officers. In resolving such issues, DoD policy is to use Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) techniques, to the maximum practicable extent. See 32 CFR 22.815 for standards for DoD Components' dispute resolution and formal, administrative appeal procedures.
Sections 34.61 through 34.63 contain procedures for closeout and for subsequent disallowances and adjustments.
(a) The cognizant grants officer shall, at least six months prior to the expiration date of the award, contact the recipient to establish:
(1) All steps needed to close out the award, including submission of financial and performance reports, liquidation of obligations, and decisions on property disposition.
(2) A schedule for completing those steps.
(b) The following provisions shall apply to the closeout:
(1) The responsible grants officer and payment office shall expedite completion of steps needed to close out awards and make prompt, final payments to a recipient for allowable reimbursable costs under the award being closed out.
(2) The recipient shall promptly refund any unobligated balances of cash that the DoD Component has advanced or paid and that is not authorized to be retained by the recipient for use in other projects. For unreturned amounts that become delinquent debts, see 32 CFR 22.820.
(3) When authorized by the terms and conditions of the award, the grants officer shall make a settlement for any upward or downward adjustments to the Federal share of costs after closeout reports are received.
(4) The recipient shall account for any real property and personal property acquired with Federal funds or received from the Federal Government in accordance with §§ 34.21 through 34.25.
(5) If a final audit is required and has not been performed prior to the closeout of an award, the DoD Component shall retain the right to recover an appropriate amount after fully considering the recommendations on disallowed costs resulting from the final audit.
(a) The closeout of an award does not affect any of the following:
(1) The right of the Department of Defense to disallow costs and recover funds on the basis of a later audit or other review.
(2) The obligation of the recipient to return any funds due as a result of later refunds, corrections, or other transactions.
(3) Audit requirements in § 34.16.
(4) Property management requirements in §§ 34.21 through 34.25.
(5) Records retention as required in § 34.42.
(b) After closeout of an award, a relationship created under an award may be modified or ended in whole or in part with the consent of the grants officer and the recipient, provided the responsibilities of the recipient referred to in § 34.61(a), including those for property management as applicable, are considered and provisions made for continuing responsibilities of the recipient, as appropriate.
Any funds paid to a recipient in excess of the amount to which the recipient is finally determined to be entitled under the terms and conditions of the award constitute a debt to the Federal Government. Procedures for issuing the demand for payment and pursuing administrative offset and other remedies are described in 32 CFR 22.820.
All contracts awarded by a recipient, including those for amounts less than the simplified acquisition threshold, shall contain the following provisions as applicable:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
5 U.S.C. 301 and 10 U.S.C. 113.
This part establishes uniform policies and procedures for the DoD Components' award and administration of technology investment agreements (TIAs).
No, this part covers only TIAs, some of which use the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371 (
TIAs are assistance instruments used to stimulate or support research. As discussed in appendix B to this part, a TIA may be either a kind of cooperative agreement or a type of assistance transaction other than a grant or cooperative agreement.
The ultimate goal for using TIAs, like other assistance instruments used in defense research programs, is to foster the best technologies for future defense needs. TIAs differ from and complement other assistance instruments available to agreements officers, in that TIAs address the goal by fostering civil-military integration (
(a) Reduce barriers to commercial firms' participation in defense research, to give the Department of Defense (DoD) access to the broadest possible technology and industrial base.
(b) Promote new relationships among performers in both the defense and commercial sectors of that technology and industrial base.
(c) Stimulate performers to develop, use, and disseminate improved practices.
Your office may award or administer TIAs if it has a delegation of the authorities in 10 U.S.C. 2371, as well as 10 U.S.C. 2358. If your office is in a Military Department, it must have a delegation of the authority of the Secretary of that Military Department under those statutes. If your office is in a Defense Agency, it must have a delegation of the authority of the Secretary of Defense under 10 U.S.C. 2358 and 2371. Your office needs those authorities to be able to:
(a) Enter into cooperative agreements to stimulate or support research, using the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2358, as well as assistance transactions other than grants or cooperative agreements, using the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371. The reason that both authorities are needed is that a TIA, depending upon its patent rights provision (
(b) Recover funds from a recipient and reuse the funds for program purposes, as authorized by 10 U.S.C. 2371 and described in § 37.580.
(c) Exempt certain information received from proposers from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, as authorized by 10 U.S.C. 2371 and described in § 37.420.
(a) You must have specific authorization to award or administer TIAs. Being authorized to award or administer grants and cooperative agreements is not sufficient; a grants officer is an agreements officer only if the statement of appointment also authorizes the award or administration of TIAs.
(b) You receive that authorization in the same way that you receive authority to award other assistance instruments, as described in 32 CFR 21.425 and 21.435 through 21.445.
(a) TIAs are explicitly covered in this part and part 21 of the DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations (DoDGARs). Part 21 (32 CFR part 21) addresses deviation procedures and other general matters that relate to the DoDGARs, to DoD Components' authorities and responsibilities for assistance instruments, and to requirements for reporting information about assistance awards.
(b) Two additional parts of the DoDGARs apply to TIAs, although they do not mention TIAs explicitly. They are:
(1) Part 25 (32 CFR part 25), on debarment, suspension, and drug-free workplace requirements, which applies because it covers nonprocurement instruments in general; and
(2) Part 28 (32 CFR part 28), on lobbying restrictions, which applies by law (31 U.S.C. 1352) to TIAs that are cooperative agreements and as a matter of DoD policy to all other TIAs.
(c) Portions of four other DoDGARs parts apply to TIAs only as cited by reference in this part. Those parts of the DoDGARs are parts 22, 32, 33, and 34 (32 CFR parts 22, 32, 33, and 34).
You must ensure that you use TIAs only in appropriate situations. To do so, you must conclude that the use of a TIA is justified based on:
(a) The nature of the project, as discussed in § 37.205;
(b) The type of recipient, addressed in § 37.210;
(c) The recipient's commitment and cost sharing, as described in § 37.215;
(d) The degree of involvement of the Government program official, as discussed in § 37.220; and
(e) Your judgment that the use of a TIA could benefit defense research objectives in ways that likely would not happen if another type of assistance instrument were used. Your answers to the four questions in § 37.225 should be the basis for your judgment.
You must:
(a) Conclude that the principal purpose of the project is stimulation or support of research (
(b) Decide that the basic, applied, or advanced research project is relevant to the policy objective of civil-military integration (
(c) Ensure that, to the maximum extent practicable, any TIA that uses the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371 (
(d) When your TIA is a type of assistance transaction other than a grant or cooperative agreement, satisfy the condition in 10 U.S.C. 2371 to judge that the use of a standard grant or cooperative agreement for the research project is not feasible or appropriate. As discussed in appendix B to this part:
(1) This situation arises if your TIA includes a patent provision that is less restrictive than is possible under the Bayh-Dole statute (because the patent provision is what distinguishes a TIA that is a cooperative agreement from a TIA that is an assistance transaction other than a grant or cooperative agreement).
(2) You satisfy the requirement to judge that a standard cooperative agreement is not feasible or appropriate when you judge that execution of the research project warrants a less restrictive patent provision than is possible under Bayh-Dole.
(a) As a matter of DoD policy, you may award a TIA only when one or more for-profit firms are to be involved either in the:
(1) Performance of the research project; or
(2) The commercial application of the research results. In that case, you must determine that the nonprofit performer has at least a tentative agreement with specific for-profit partners who plan on being involved when there are results to transition. You should review the agreement between the nonprofit and for-profit partners, because the for-profit partners' involvement is the basis for using a TIA rather than another type of assistance instrument.
(b) Consistent with the goals of civil-military integration, TIAs are most appropriate when one or more commercial firms (as defined at § 37.1250) are to be involved in the project.
(c) You are encouraged to make awards to consortia (a consortium may include one or more for-profit firms, as well as State or local government agencies, institutions of higher education, or other nonprofit organizations). The reasons are that:
(1) When multiple performers are participating as a consortium, they are more equal partners in the research performance than usually is the case with a prime recipient and subawards. All of them therefore are more likely to be directly involved in developing and revising plans for the research effort, reviewing technical progress, and overseeing financial and other business matters. That feature makes consortia well suited to building new relationships among performers in the defense and commercial sectors of the technology and industrial base, a principal objective for the use of TIAs.
(2) In addition, interactions among the participants within a consortium potentially provide a self-governance mechanism. The potential for additional self-governance is particularly good when a consortium includes multiple for-profit participants that normally are competitors within an industry.
(d) TIAs also may be used for carrying out research performed by single firms or multiple performers in prime award-subaward relationships. In awarding TIAs in those cases, however, you should consider providing for greater involvement of the program official or a way to increase self-governance (
(a) You should judge that the recipient has a strong commitment to and self-interest in the success of the project. You should find evidence of that commitment and interest in the proposal, in the recipient's management plan, or through other means. A
(b) You must seek cost sharing. The purpose of cost share is to ensure that the recipient incurs real risk that gives it a vested interest in the project's success; the willingness to commit to meaningful cost sharing therefore is one good indicator of a recipient's self-interest. The requirements are that:
(1) To the maximum extent practicable, the non-Federal parties carrying out a research project under a TIA are to provide at least half of the costs of the project. Obtaining this cost sharing, to the maximum extent practicable, is a statutory condition for any TIA under the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371, and is a matter of DoD policy for all other TIAs.
(2) The parties must provide the cost sharing from non-Federal resources that are available to them unless there is specific authority to use other Federal resources for that purpose (
(c) You may consider whether cost sharing is impracticable in a given case, unless there is a non-waivable, statutory requirement for cost sharing that applies to the particular program under which the award is to be made. Before deciding that cost sharing is impracticable, you should carefully consider whether there are other factors that demonstrate the recipient's self-interest in the success of the current project.
(a) TIAs are used to carry out cooperative relationships between the Federal Government and the recipient, which requires a greater level of involvement of the Government program official in the execution of the research than the usual oversight of a research grant or procurement contract. For example, program officials will participate in recipients' periodic reviews of research progress and will be substantially involved with the recipients in the resulting revisions of plans for future effort. That increased programmatic involvement before and during program execution with a TIA can reduce the need for some Federal financial requirements that are problematic for commercial firms.
(b) Some aspects of their involvement require program officials to have greater knowledge about and participation in business matters that traditionally would be your exclusive responsibility as the agreements officer. TIAs therefore also require closer cooperation between program officials and you, as the one who decides business matters.
Before deciding that a TIA is appropriate, you also must judge that using a TIA could benefit defense research objectives in ways that likely would not happen if another type of assistance instrument were used (
(a) Will the use of a TIA permit the involvement in the research of any commercial firms or business units of firms that would not otherwise participate in the project? If so:
(1) What are the expected benefits of those firms' or divisions' participation (e.g., is there a specific technology that could be better, more readily available, or less expensive)?
(2) Why would they not participate if an instrument other than a TIA were
(b) Will the use of a TIA allow the creation of new relationships among participants at the prime or subtier levels, among business units of the same firm, or between non-Federal participants and the Federal Government that will help the DoD get better technology in the future? If so:
(1) Why do these new relationships have the potential for helping the DoD get technology in the future that is better, more affordable, or more readily available?
(2) Are there provisions of the TIA or features of the TIA award process that enable these relationships to form? If so, you should be able to identify specifically what they are. If not, you should be able to explain specifically why you think that the relationships could not be created if an assistance instrument other than a TIA were used.
(c) Will the use of a TIA allow firms or business units of firms that traditionally accept Government awards to use new business practices in the execution of the research that will help us get better technology, help us get new technology more quickly or less expensively, or facilitate partnering with commercial firms? If so:
(1) What specific benefits will the DoD potentially get from the use of these new practices? You should be able to explain specifically why you foresee a potential for those benefits.
(2) Are there provisions of the TIA or features of the TIA award process that enable the use of the new practices? If so, you should be able to identify those provisions or features and explain why you think that the practices could not be used if the award were made using an assistance instrument other than a TIA.
(d) Are there any other benefits of the use of a TIA that could help the Department of Defense better meet its objectives in carrying out the research project? If so, you should be able to identify specifically what they are, how they can help meet defense objectives, what features of the TIA or award process enable the DoD to realize them, and why the benefits likely would not be realized if an assistance instrument other than a TIA were used.
In accordance with 32 CFR 22.205(b), you may not use a TIA if any participant is to receive fee or profit. Note that this policy extends to all performers of the research project carried out under the TIA, including any subawards for substantive program performance, but it does not preclude participants' or subrecipients' payment of reasonable fee or profit when making purchases from suppliers of goods (
The fundamental difference between an expenditure-based and fixed-support TIA is that:
(a) For an expenditure-based TIA, the amounts of interim payments or the total amount ultimately paid to the recipient are based on the amounts the recipient expends on project costs. If a recipient completes the project specified at the time of award before it expends all of the agreed-upon Federal funding and recipient cost sharing, the Federal Government may recover its share of the unexpended balance of funds or, by mutual agreement with the recipient, amend the agreement to expand the scope of the research project. An expenditure-based TIA therefore is analogous to a cost-type procurement contract or grant.
(b) For a fixed-support TIA, the amount of assistance established at the time of award is not meant to be adjusted later if the research project is carried out to completion. In that sense, a fixed-support TIA is somewhat analogous to a fixed-price procurement contract (although “price,” a concept appropriate to a procurement contract for buying a good or service, is not appropriate for a TIA or other assistance
You may use a fixed-support TIA if:
(a) The agreement is to support or stimulate research with outcomes that are well defined, observable, and verifiable;
(b) You can reasonably estimate the resources required to achieve those outcomes well enough to ensure the desired level of cost sharing (
(c) Your TIA does not require a specific amount or percentage of recipient cost sharing. In cases where the agreement does require a specific amount or percentage of cost sharing, a fixed-support TIA is not practicable because the agreement has to specify cost principles or standards for costs that may be charged to the project; require the recipient to track the costs of the project; and provide access for audit to allow verification of the recipient's compliance with the mandatory cost sharing. You therefore must use an expenditure-based TIA if you:
(1) Have a non-waivable requirement (
(2) Have otherwise elected to include in the TIA a requirement for a specific amount or percentage of cost sharing.
In general, you must use an expenditure-based TIA under conditions other than those described in § 37.305. Reasons for any exceptions to this general rule must be documented in the award file and must be consistent with the policy in § 37.230 that precludes payment of fee or profit to participants.
In situations where the use of fixed-support TIAs is permissible (see §§ 37.305 and 37.310), their use may encourage some commercial firms' participation in the research. With a fixed-support TIA, you can eliminate or reduce some post-award requirements that sometimes are cited as disincentives for those firms to participate. For example, a fixed-support TIA need not:
(a) Specify minimum standards for the recipient's financial management system.
(b) Specify cost principles or standards stating the types of costs the recipient may charge to the project.
(c) Provide for financial audits by Federal auditors or independent public accountants of the recipient's books and records.
(d) Set minimum standards for the recipient's purchasing system.
(e) Require the recipient to prepare financial reports for submission to the Federal Government.
DoD policy is to award TIAs using merit-based, competitive procedures, as described in 32 CFR 22.315:
(a) In every case where required by statute; and
(b) To the maximum extent practicable in all other cases.
Your announcement, to be considered as part of a competitive procedure, must include the basic information described in 32 CFR 22.315(a). Additional elements for you to consider in the case of a program that may use TIAs are described in §§ 37.410 through 37.420.
Yes, once you consider the factors described in subpart B of this part and decide that TIAs are among the types of instruments that you may award pursuant to a solicitation, it is important for you to state that fact in the solicitation. You also should state that TIAs are more flexible than traditional Government funding instruments and that provisions are negotiable in areas such as audits and intellectual property rights that may cause concern for commercial firms. Doing so should increase the likelihood that commercial
To help ensure a competitive process that is fair and equitable to all potential proposers, you should state clearly in the solicitation:
(a) That, to the maximum extent practicable, the non-Federal parties carrying out a research project under a TIA are to provide at least half of the costs of the project (see § 37.215(b)).
(b) The types of cost sharing that are acceptable;
(c) How any in-kind contributions will be valued, in accordance with §§ 37.530 through 37.555; and
(d) Whether you will give any consideration to alternative approaches a proposer may offer to demonstrate its strong commitment to and self-interest in the project's success, in accordance with § 37.215.
Your solicitation should tell potential proposers that:
(a) For all TIAs, information described in paragraph (b) of this section is exempt from disclosure requirements of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)(codified at 5 U.S.C. 552) for a period of five years after the date on which the DoD Component receives the information from them.
(b) As provided in 10 U.S.C. 2371, disclosure is not required, and may not be compelled, under FOIA during that period if:
(1) A proposer submits the information in a competitive or noncompetitive process that could result in their receiving a cooperative agreement for basic, applied, or advanced research under the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2358 or any other type of transaction authorized by 10 U.S.C. 2371 (as explained in appendix B to this part, that includes all TIAs); and
(2) The type of information is among the following types that are exempt:
(i) Proposals, proposal abstracts, and supporting documents; and
(ii) Business plans and technical information submitted on a confidential basis.
(c) If proposers desire to protect business plans and technical information for five years from FOIA disclosure requirements, they must mark them with a legend identifying them as documents submitted on a confidential basis. After the five-year period, information may be protected for longer periods if it meets any of the criteria in 5 U.S.C. 552(b) (as implemented by the DoD in subpart C of 32 CFR part 286) for exemption from FOIA disclosure requirements.
(a) You must determine the qualification of the recipient, as described in §§ 37.510 and 37.515.
(b) As the business expert working with the program official, you also must address the financial aspects of the proposed agreement. You must:
(1) Determine that the total amount of funding for the proposed effort is reasonable, as addressed in § 37.520.
(2) Assess the value and determine the reasonableness of the recipient's proposed cost sharing contribution, as discussed in §§ 37.525 through 37.555.
(3) If you are contemplating the use of a fixed-support rather than expenditure-based TIA, ensure that its use is justified, as explained in §§ 37.560 and 37.565.
(4) Address issues of inconsistent cost accounting by traditional Government contractors, should they arise, as noted in § 37.570.
(5) Determine amounts for milestone payments, if you use them, as discussed in § 37.575.
Administrative agreements officers of the Defense Contract Management Agency and the Office of Naval Research can share lessons learned from administering other TIAs. Program officials can be a source of information
Prior to award of a TIA, your responsibilities for determining that the recipient is qualified are the same as those of a grants officer who is awarding a grant or cooperative agreement. Those responsibilities are described in subpart D of 32 CFR part 22. When the recipient is a consortium that is not formally incorporated, you have the additional responsibility described in § 37.515.
(a) When the prospective recipient of a TIA is a consortium that is not formally incorporated, your determination that the recipient meets the standard at 32 CFR 22.415(a) requires that you, in consultation with legal counsel, review the management plan in the consortium's collaboration agreement. The purpose of your review is to ensure that the management plan is sound and that it adequately addresses the elements necessary for an effective working relationship among the consortium members. An effective working relationship is essential to increase the research project's chances of success.
(b) The collaboration agreement, commonly referred to as the articles of collaboration, is the document that sets out the rights and responsibilities of each consortium member. It binds the individual consortium members together, whereas the TIA binds the Government and the consortium as a group (or the Government and a consortium member on behalf of the consortium, as explained in § 37.1015). The document should discuss, among other things, the consortium's:
(1) Management structure.
(2) Method of making payments to consortium members.
(3) Means of ensuring and overseeing members' efforts on the project.
(4) Provisions for members' cost sharing contributions.
(5) Provisions for ownership and rights in intellectual property developed previously or under the agreement.
In cooperation with the program official, you must assess the reasonableness of the total estimated budget to perform the research that will be supported by the agreement. Additional guidance follows for:
(a)
(1) Consult the administrative agreements officers or auditors identified in § 37.505.
(2) Compare loaded labor rates of for-profit firms that do not have expenditure-based Federal procurement contracts or assistance awards with a standard or average for the particular industry. Note that the program official may have knowledge about customary levels of direct labor charges in the particular industry that is involved. You may be able to compare associated indirect charges with Government-approved indirect cost rates that exist for many nonprofit and for-profit organizations that have Federal procurement contracts or assistance awards (note the requirement in § 37.630
(b)
You must:
(a) Determine that the recipient's cost sharing contributions meet the criteria for cost sharing and determine values for them, in accordance with §§ 37.530 through 37.555. In doing so, you must:
(1) Ensure that there are affirmative statements from any third parties identified as sources of cash contributions.
(2) Include in the award file an evaluation that documents how you determined the values of the recipient's contributions to the funding of the project.
(b) Judge that the recipient's cost sharing contribution, as a percentage of the total budget, is reasonable. To the maximum extent practicable, the recipient must provide at least half of the costs of the project, in accordance with § 37.215.
You may accept any cash or in-kind contributions that meet all of the following criteria:
(a) In your judgment, they represent meaningful cost sharing that demonstrates the recipient's commitment to the success of the research project. Cash contributions clearly demonstrate commitment and they are strongly preferred over in-kind contributions.
(b) They are necessary and reasonable for accomplishment of the research project's objectives.
(c) They are costs that may be charged to the project under § 37.625 and § 37.635, as applicable to the participant making the contribution.
(d) They are verifiable from the recipient's records.
(e) They are not included as cost sharing contributions for any other Federal award.
(f) They are not paid by the Federal Government under another award, except:
(1) Costs that are authorized by Federal statute to be used for cost sharing; or
(2) Independent research and development (IR&D) costs, as described at 32 CFR 34.13(a)(5)(ii), that meet all of the criteria in paragraphs (a) through (e) of this section. IR&D is acceptable as cost sharing, even though it may be reimbursed by the Government through other awards. It is standard business practice for all for-profit firms, including commercial firms, to recover their research and development (R&D) costs (which for Federal procurement contracts is recovered as IR&D) through prices charged to their customers. Thus, the cost principles at 48 CFR part 31 allow a for-profit firm that has expenditure-based, Federal procurement contracts to recover through those procurement contracts the allocable portion of its R&D costs associated with a technology investment agreement.
You rarely should accept values for cost sharing contributions of real property or equipment that are in excess of depreciation or reasonable use charges, as discussed in § 37.685 for for-profit participants. You may accept the full value of a donated capital asset if the real property or equipment is to be dedicated to the project and you expect that it will have a fair market value that is less than $5,000 at the project's end. In those cases, you should value the donation at the lesser of:
(a) The value of the property as shown in the recipient's accounting records (
(b) The current fair market value. You may accept the use of any reasonable basis for determining the fair market value of the property. If there is a justification to do so, you may accept the current fair market value even if it exceeds the value in the recipient's records.
You should limit the value of any contribution of a fully depreciated asset to a reasonable use charge. In determining what is reasonable, you must consider:
(a) The original cost of the asset;
(b) Its estimated remaining useful life at the time of your negotiations;
(c) The effect of any increased maintenance charges or decreased performance due to age; and
(d) The amount of depreciation that the participant previously charged to Federal awards.
No, you may not count any participant's costs of prior research as a cost sharing contribution. Only the additional resources that the recipient will provide to carry out the current project (which may include pre-award costs for the current project, as described in § 37.830) are to be counted.
(a) In most instances, you should not count costs of patents and other intellectual property (
(1) It is difficult to assign values to these intangible contributions;
(2) Their value usually is a manifestation of prior research costs, which are not allowed as cost share under § 37.545; and
(3) Contributions of intellectual property rights generally do not represent the same cost of lost opportunity to a recipient as contributions of cash or tangible assets. The purpose of cost share is to ensure that the recipient incurs real risk that gives it a vested interest in the project's success.
(b) You may include costs associated with intellectual property if the costs are based on sound estimates of market value of the contribution. For example, a for-profit firm may offer the use of commercially available software for which there is an established license fee for use of the product. The costs of the development of the software would not be a reasonable basis for valuing its use.
For types of participant contributions other than those addressed in §§ 37.535 through 37.550, the general rule is that you are to value each contribution consistently with the cost principles or standards in § 37.625 and § 37.635 that apply to the participant making the contribution. When valuing services and property donated by parties other than the participants, you may use as guidance the provisions of 32 CFR 34.13(b)(2) through (5).
(a) To use a fixed-support TIA, rather than an expenditure-based TIA, you must have confidence in your estimate of the expenditures required to achieve well-defined outcomes. Therefore, you must work carefully with program officials to select outcomes that, when the recipient achieves them, are reliable indicators of the amount of effort the recipient expended. However, your estimate of the required expenditures need not be a precise dollar amount, as illustrated by the example in paragraph (b) of this section, if:
(1) The recipient is contributing a substantial share of the costs of achieving the outcomes, which must meet the criteria in § 37.305(a); and
(2) You are confident that the costs of achieving the outcomes will be at least a minimum amount that you can specify and the recipient is willing to
(b) To illustrate the approach, consider a project for which you are confident that the recipient will have to expend at least $800,000 to achieve the specified outcomes. You must determine, in conjunction with program officials, the minimum level of recipient cost sharing that you want to negotiate, based on the circumstances, to demonstrate the recipient's commitment to the success of the project. For purposes of this illustration, let that minimum recipient cost sharing be 40% of the total project costs. In that case, the Federal share should be no more than 60% and you could set a fixed level of Federal support at $480,000 (60% of $800,000). With that fixed level of Federal support, the recipient would be responsible for the balance of the costs needed to complete the project.
(c) Note, however, that the level of recipient cost sharing you negotiate is to be based solely on the level needed to demonstrate the recipient's commitment. You may not use a shortage of Federal Government funding for the program as a reason to try to persuade a recipient to accept a fixed-support TIA, rather than an expenditure-based instrument, or to accept responsibility for a greater share of the total project costs than it otherwise is willing to offer. If you lack sufficient funding to provide an appropriate Federal Government share for the entire project, you instead should rescope the effort covered by the agreement to match the available funding.
Yes, for a research project that is to be carried out by a number of participants, you may award a TIA that provides for some participants to perform under fixed-support arrangements and others to perform under expenditure-based arrangements. This approach may be useful, for example, if a commercial firm that is a participant will not accept an agreement with all of the post-award requirements of an expenditure-based award. Before using a fixed-support arrangement for that firm's portion of the project, you must judge that it meets the criteria in § 37.305.
(a) If a participant has Federal procurement contracts that are subject to the Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) in part 30 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the associated FAR Appendix (48 CFR part 30 and 48 CFR 9903.201-1, respectively), you must alert the participant during the pre-award negotiations to the potential for a CAS violation, as well as the cognizant administrative contracting officer (ACO) for the participant's procurement contracts, if you learn that the participant plans to account differently for its own share and the Federal Government's share of project costs under the TIA. This may arise, for example, if a for-profit firm or other organization subject to the FAR cost principles in 48 CFR parts 31 and 231 proposes to charge:
(1) Its share of project costs as independent research and development (IR&D) costs to enable recovery of the costs through Federal Government procurement contracts, as allowed under the FAR cost principles; and
(2) The Federal Government's share to the project, rather than as IR&D costs.
(b) The reason for alerting the participant and the ACO is that the inconsistent charging of the two shares could cause a noncompliance with Cost Accounting Standard (CAS) 402. Noncompliance with CAS 402 is a potential issue only for a participant that has CAS-covered Federal procurement contracts (note that CAS requirements do not apply to a for-profit participant's TIAs).
(c) For for-profit participants with CAS-covered procurement contracts, the cognizant ACO in most cases will be an individual within the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA). You can identify a cognizant ACO at the DCMA by querying the contract administration team locator that
(a) If you select the milestone payment method (
(b) The Federal share at each milestone need not be the same as the Federal share of the total project. For example, you might deliberately set payment amounts with a larger Federal share for early milestones if a project involves a start-up company with limited resources.
(c) For an expenditure-based TIA, if you have minimum percentages that you want the recipient's cost sharing to be at the milestones, you should indicate those percentages in the agreement or in separate instructions to the post-award administrative agreements officer. That will help the administrative agreements officer decide when a project's expenditures have fallen too far below the original projections, requiring adjustments of future milestone payment amounts (
(d) For fixed-support TIAs, the milestone payments should be associated with the well-defined, observable and verifiable technical outcomes (
(a) Recovery of funds refers to the use of the authority in 10 U.S.C. 2371 to include a provision in certain types of agreements, including TIAs, that require a recipient to make payments to the Department of Defense or another Federal agency as a condition of the agreement. Recovery of funds is a good tool in the right circumstances, at the discretion of the agreements officer and the awarding organization, but its purpose is not to augment program budgets. It may be used to recover funds provided to a recipient through a TIA or another Federal procurement or assistance instrument, and the recovery should not exceed the amounts provided. Recovery of funds is distinct from program income, as described in § 37.835.
(b) In accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2371, as implemented by policy guidance from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), the payment amounts may be credited to an existing account of the Department of Defense and used for the same program purposes as other funds in that account.
(c) Before you use the authority to include a provision for recovery of funds, note that 10 U.S.C. 2371 requires you to judge that it would not be feasible or appropriate to use for the research project a standard grant or cooperative agreement (in this instance, a “standard cooperative agreement” means a cooperative agreement without a provision for recovery of funds). You satisfy that 10 U.S.C. 2371 requirement when you judge that execution of the research project warrants inclusion of a provision for recovery of funds.
This subpart addresses “systemic” administrative matters that place requirements on the operation of a participant's financial management, property management, or purchasing system. Each participant's systems are organization-wide and do not vary with each agreement. Therefore, all TIAs should address systemic requirements in a uniform way for each type of participant organization.
The general policy for expenditure-based TIAs is to avoid requirements that would force participants to use different financial management, property management, and purchasing systems than they currently use for:
(a) Expenditure-based Federal procurement contracts and assistance awards in general, if they receive them; or
(b) Commercial business, if they have no expenditure-based Federal procurement contracts and assistance awards.
If it is an expenditure-based award, your TIA must require participants to flow down the same financial management, property management, and purchasing systems requirements to a subrecipient that would apply if the subrecipient were a participant. For example, a for-profit participant would flow down to a university subrecipient the requirements that apply to a university participant. Note that this policy applies to subawards for substantive performance of portions of the research project supported by the TIA, and not to participants' purchases of goods or services needed to carry out the research.
(a) To avoid causing needless changes in participants' financial management systems, your expenditure-based TIAs will make for-profit participants that currently perform under other expenditure-based Federal procurement contracts or assistance awards subject to the same standards for financial management systems that apply to those other awards. Therefore, if a for-profit participant has expenditure-based DoD assistance awards other than TIAs, your TIAs are to apply the standards in 32 CFR 34.11. You may grant an exception and allow a for-profit participant that has other expenditure-based Federal Government awards to use an alternative set of standards that meets the minimum criteria in paragraph (b) of this section, if there is a compelling programmatic or business reason to do so. For each case in which you grant an exception, you must document the reason in the award file.
(b) For an expenditure-based TIA, you are to allow and encourage each for-profit participant that does not currently perform under expenditure-based Federal procurement contracts or assistance awards (other than TIAs) to use its existing financial management system as long as the system, as a minimum:
(1) Complies with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
(2) Effectively controls all project funds, including Federal funds and any required cost share. The system must have complete, accurate, and current records that document the sources of funds and the purposes for which they are disbursed. It also must have procedures for ensuring that project funds are used only for purposes permitted by the agreement (
(3) Includes, if advance payments are authorized under § 37.805, procedures to minimize the time elapsing between the payment of funds by the Government and the firm's disbursement of the funds for program purposes.
So as not to force system changes for any State, local government, institution of higher education, or other nonprofit organization, your expenditure-based TIA's requirements for the financial management system of any nonprofit participant are the same as those that apply to the participant's other Federal assistance awards. Specifically, the requirements are those in:
(a) 32 CFR 33.20 for State and local governments; and
(b) 32 CFR 32.21(b) for other nonprofit organizations, with the exception of Government-owned, contractor-operated (GOCO) facilities and Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) that are excepted from the definition of “recipient” in 32
(a) So as not to require any firm to needlessly change its cost-accounting system, your expenditure-based TIAs are to apply the Government cost principles in 48 CFR parts 31 and 231 to for-profit participants that currently perform under expenditure-based Federal procurement contracts or assistance awards (other than TIAs) and therefore have existing systems for identifying allowable costs under those principles. If there are programmatic or business reasons to do otherwise, you may grant an exception from this requirement and use alternative standards as long as the alternative satisfies the conditions described in paragraph (b) of this section; if you do so, you must document the reasons in your award file.
(b) For other for-profit participants, you may establish alternative standards in the agreement as long as that alternative provides, as a minimum, that Federal funds and funds counted as recipients' cost sharing will be used only for costs that:
(1) A reasonable and prudent person would incur in carrying out the research project contemplated by the agreement. Generally, elements of cost that appropriately are charged are those identified with research and development activities under the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (see Statement of Financial Accounting Standards Number 2, “Accounting for Research and Development Costs,” October 1974
(2) Are consistent with the purposes stated in the governing Congressional authorizations and appropriations. You are responsible for ensuring that provisions in the award document address any requirements that result from authorizations and appropriations.
In accordance with the general policy in § 37.605, you must require a for-profit participant that has Federally approved indirect cost rates for its Federal procurement contracts to use those rates to accumulate and report costs under an expenditure-based TIA. This includes both provisional and final rates that are approved up until the time that the TIA is closed out. You may grant an exception from this requirement if there are programmatic or business reasons to do otherwise (
So as not to force financial system changes for any nonprofit participant, your expenditure-based TIA will provide that costs to be charged to the research project by any nonprofit participant must be determined to be allowable in accordance with:
(a) OMB Circular A-87,
(b) OMB Circular A-21,
(c) 45 CFR part 74, appendix E, if the participant is a hospital.
(d) OMB Circular A-122, if the participant is any other type of nonprofit organization (the cost principles in 48 CFR parts 31 and 231 are to be used by any nonprofit organization that is identified in Circular A-122 as being subject to those cost principles).
If your TIA is an expenditure-based award, you must include in it an audit provision that addresses, for each for-profit participant:
(a) Whether the for-profit participant must have periodic audits, in addition to any award-specific audits, as described in § 37.645. Note that the DCAA or the Office of the Inspector General, DoD (OIG, DoD), can provide advice on the types and scope of audits that may be needed in various circumstances.
(b) Whether the DCAA or an independent public accountant (IPA) will perform required audits, as discussed in § 37.650.
(c) How frequently any periodic audits are to be performed, addressed in § 37.655.
(d) Other matters described in § 37.660, such as audit coverage, allowability of audit costs, auditing standards, and remedies for noncompliance.
You need to consider requirements for both periodic audits and award-specific audits (as defined in § 37.1325 and § 37.1235, respectively). The way that your expenditure-based TIA addresses the two types of audits will vary, depending upon the type of for-profit participant.
(a) For for-profit participants that are audited by the DCAA or other Federal auditors, as described in §§ 37.650(b) and 37.655, you need not add specific requirements for periodic audits because the Federal audits should be sufficient to address whatever may be needed. Your inclusion in the TIA of the standard access-to-records provision for those for-profit participants, as discussed in § 37.915(a), gives the necessary access in the event that you or administrative agreements officers later need to request audits to address award-specific issues that arise.
(b) For each other for-profit participant, you:
(1) Should require that the participant have an independent auditor (
(2) Must ensure that the award provides an independent auditor the access needed for award-specific audits, to be performed at the request of the cognizant administrative agreements officer if issues arise that require audit support. However, consistent with the government-wide policies on single audits that apply to nonprofit participants (see § 37.665), you should rely on periodic audits to the maximum extent possible to resolve any award-specific issues.
The auditor that you will identify in the expenditure-based TIA to perform periodic and award-specific audits of a for-profit participant depends on the circumstances, as follows:
(a) You may provide that an IPA will be the auditor for a for-profit participant that does not meet the criteria in paragraph (b) of this section, but only if the participant will not agree to give the DCAA access to the necessary books and records for audit purposes. Note that the allocable portion of the costs of the IPA's audit may be reimbursable under the TIA, as described in § 37.660(b). The IPA should be the one that the participant uses to perform
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, you must identify the DCAA as the auditor for any for-profit participant that is subject to DCAA audits because it is currently performing under a Federal award that is subject to the:
(1) Cost principles in 48 CFR part 31 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and 48 CFR part 231 of the Defense FAR Supplement; or
(2) Cost Accounting Standards in 48 CFR chapter 99.
(c) If there are programmatic or business reasons that justify the use of an auditor other than the DCAA for a for-profit participant that meets the criteria in paragraph (b) of this section, you may provide that an IPA will be the auditor for that participant if you obtain prior approval from the Office of the Inspector General, DoD. You must submit requests for prior approval to the Assistant Inspector General (Auditing), 400 Army-Navy Drive, Arlington, VA 22202. Your request must include the name and address of the business unit(s) for which IPAs will be used. It also must explain why you judge that the participant will not give the DCAA the necessary access to records for audit purposes (
If your expenditure-based TIA provides for periodic audits of a for-profit participant by an IPA, you must specify the frequency for those audits. You should consider having an audit performed during the first year of the award, when the participant has its IPA do its next financial statement audit, unless the participant already had a systems audit due to other Federal awards within the past two years. The frequency thereafter may vary depending upon the dollars the participant is expending annually under the award, but it is not unreasonable to require an updated audit every two to three years to reverify that the participant's systems are reliable (the audit then would cover the two or three-year period between audits). The DCAA is a source of advice on audit frequencies if your TIA provides for audits by IPAs.
If your expenditure-based TIA provides for audits of a for-profit participant by an IPA, you also must specify:
(a) What periodic audits are to cover. It is important that you specify audit coverage that is only as broad as needed to provide reasonable assurance of the participant's compliance with award terms that have a direct and material effect on the research project. Appendix C to this part provides guidance to for-profit participants and their IPAs that you may use for this purpose. The DCAA and the OIG, DoD, also can provide advice to help you set appropriate limits on audit objectives and scope.
(b) Who will pay for periodic and award-specific audits. The allocable portion of the costs of any audits by IPAs may be reimbursable under the TIA. The costs may be direct charges or allocated indirect costs, consistent with the participant's accounting system and practices.
(c) The auditing standards that the IPA will use. Unless you receive prior approval from the OIG, DoD, to do otherwise, you must provide that the IPA will perform the audits in accordance with the Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards.
(d) The available remedies for noncompliance. The agreement must provide that the participant may not
(e) The remedy if it later is found that the participant, at the time it entered into the TIA, was performing on a procurement contract or other Federal award subject to the Cost Accounting Standards at 48 CFR part 30 and the cost principles at 48 CFR part 31. Unless the OIG, DoD, approves an exception (see § 37.650(c)), the TIA's terms must provide that the DCAA will perform the audits for the agreement if it later is found that the participant, at the time the TIA was awarded, was performing under awards described in § 37.650(b) that gave the DCAA audit access to the participant's books and records.
(f) Where the IPA is to send audit reports. The agreement must provide that the IPA is to submit audit reports to the administrative agreements officer and the OIG, DoD. It also must require that the IPA report instances of fraud directly to the OIG, DoD.
(g) The retention period for the IPA's working papers. You must specify that the IPA is to retain working papers for a period of at least three years after the final payment, unless the working papers relate to an audit whose findings are not fully resolved within that period or to an unresolved claim or dispute (in which case, the IPA must keep the working papers until the matter is resolved and final action taken).
(h) Who will have access to the IPA's working papers. The agreement must provide for Government access to working papers.
Yes, expenditure-based TIAs are assistance instruments subject to the Single Audit Act (31 U.S.C. 7501-7507), so nonprofit participants are subject to their usual requirements under that Act and OMB Circular A-133.
(a) 32 CFR 33.26 for State and local governments; and
(b) 32 CFR 32.26 for other nonprofit organizations. Note that those requirements also are appropriate for Government-owned, contractor-operated (GOCO) facilities and Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) that are excluded from the definition of “recipient” in 32 CFR part 32, because nonprofit GOCOs and FFRDCs are subject to the Single Audit Act.
(a) Yes, in accordance with § 37.610, your expenditure-based TIA must require participants to flow down the same audit requirements to a subrecipient that would apply if the subrecipient were a participant.
(b) For example, a for-profit participant that is audited by the DCAA:
(1) Would flow down to a university subrecipient the Single Audit Act requirements that apply to a university participant.
(2) Could enter into a subaward allowing a for-profit participant, under the circumstances described in § 37.650(a), to use an IPA to do its audits.
(c) This policy applies to subawards for substantive performance of portions of the research project supported by the TIA, and not to participants' purchases of goods or services needed to carry out the research.
Yes, you must include that information with the data you provide for your DoD Component's annual submission to the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC), as provided in § 37.1030(c).
Yes, your expenditure-based TIA must require participants to report to you when they enter into any subaward allowing a for-profit subawardee to use an IPA, as described in § 37.670(b)(2). You must provide that information about the new subaward under the TIA for your DoD Component's annual submission to the DTIC, even though the TIA may have been reported in a prior year and does not itself have to be reported again.
(a) With the two exceptions described in paragraph (b) of this section, you must require a for-profit firm to purchase real property or equipment with its own funds that are separate from the research project. You should allow the firm to charge to an expenditure-based TIA only depreciation or use charges for real property or equipment (and your cost estimate for a fixed-support TIA only would include those costs). Note that the firm must charge depreciation consistently with its usual accounting practice. Many firms treat depreciation as an indirect cost. Any firm that usually charges depreciation indirectly for a particular type of property must not charge depreciation for that property as a direct cost to the TIA.
(b) In two situations, you may grant an exception and allow a for-profit firm to use project funds, which includes both the Federal Government and recipient shares, to purchase real property or equipment (
(1) Judge that the real property or equipment will be dedicated to the project and have a current fair market value that is less than $5,000 by the time the project ends; or
(2) Give prior approval for the firm to include the full acquisition cost of the real property or equipment as part of the cost of the project (see § 37.535).
(c) If you grant an exception in either of the circumstances described in paragraphs (b)(1) and (2) of this section, you must make the real property or equipment subject to the property management standards in 32 CFR 34.21(b) through (d). As provided in those standards, the title to the real property or equipment will vest conditionally in the for-profit firm upon acquisition. Your TIA, whether it is a fixed-support or expenditure-based award, must specify that any item of equipment that has a fair market value of $5,000 or more at the conclusion of the project also will be subject to the disposition process in 32 CFR 34.21(e), whereby the Federal Government will recover its interest in the property at that time.
For nonprofit participants, your TIA's requirements for vesting of title, use, management, and disposition of real property or equipment acquired under the award are the same as those that apply to the participant's other Federal assistance awards. Specifically, the requirements are those in:
(a) 32 CFR 33.31 and 33.32, for participants that are States and local governmental organizations.
(b) 32 CFR 32.32 and 32.33, for other nonprofit participants, with the exception of nonprofit GOCOs and FFRDCs that are exempted from the definition of “recipient” in 32 CFR part 32. Although it should occur infrequently, if a nonprofit GOCO or FFRDC is a participant, you must specify appropriate standards that conform as much as practicable with requirements in that participant's other Federal awards. Note also that:
(1) If the TIA is a cooperative agreement (see appendix B to this part), 31 U.S.C. 6306 provides authority to vest title to tangible personal property in a nonprofit institution of higher education or in a nonprofit organization whose primary purpose is conducting
(2) Your TIA therefore must specify any conditions on the vesting of title to real property or equipment acquired by any such nonprofit participant, or the title will vest in the participant without further obligation to the Federal Government, as specified in 32 CFR 32.33(b)(3).
If you provide Federally owned property to any participant for the performance of research under a TIA, you must require that participant to account for, use, and dispose of the property in accordance with:
(a) 32 CFR 34.22, if the participant is a for-profit firm.
(b) 32 CFR 33.32(f), if the participant is a State or local governmental organization. Note that 32 CFR 33.32(f) requires you to provide additional information to the participant on the procedures for managing the property.
(c) 32 CFR 32.33(a) and 32.34(f), if the participant is a nonprofit organization other than a GOCO or FFRDC (requirements for nonprofit GOCOs and FFRDCs should conform with the property standards that apply to their Federal procurement contracts).
Your expenditure-based TIA's provisions should permit participants to use their existing procedures to account for and manage supplies. A fixed-support TIA should not include requirements to account for or manage supplies.
(a) If your TIA is an expenditure-based award, it should require for-profit participants that currently perform under DoD assistance instruments subject to the purchasing standards in 32 CFR 34.31 to use the same requirements for TIAs, unless there are programmatic or business reasons to do otherwise (in which case you must document the reasons in the award file).
(b) You should allow other for-profit participants under expenditure-based TIAs to use their existing purchasing systems, as long as they flow down the applicable requirements in Federal statutes, Executive orders or Governmentwide regulations (see appendix E to this part for a list of those requirements).
(c) If your TIA is a fixed-support award, you need only require for-profit participants to flow down the requirements listed in appendix F to this part.
(a) So as not to force system changes for any nonprofit participant, your expenditure-based TIA will provide that each nonprofit participant's purchasing system comply with:
(1) 32 CFR 33.36, if the participant is a State or local governmental organization.
(2) 32 CFR 32.40 through 32.49 if the participant is a nonprofit organization other than a GOCO or FFRDC that is excepted from the definition of “recipient” in 32 CFR part 32. Although it should occur infrequently, if a nonprofit GOCO or FFRDC is a participant, you must specify appropriate standards that conform as much as practicable with requirements in that participant's other Federal awards.
(b) If your TIA is a fixed-support award, you need only require nonprofit participants to flow down the requirements listed in appendix E to this part.
This subpart addresses “non-systemic” administrative matters that do not impose organization-wide requirements on a participant's financial management, property management, or purchasing system. Because an organization does not have to redesign its systems to accommodate award-to-
Your TIA may provide for:
(a)
(b)
(c)
The procedure and frequency for payment requests depend upon the payment method, as follows:
(a) For either reimbursements or advance payments, your TIA must allow recipients to submit requests for payment at least monthly. You may authorize the recipients to use the forms or formats described in 32 CFR 34.12(d).
(b) If the payments are based on payable milestones, the recipient will submit a report or other evidence of accomplishment to the program official at the completion of each predetermined activity. The agreement administrator may approve payment to the recipient after receiving validation from the program manager that the milestone was successfully reached.
Your TIA must provide that the administrative agreements officer may withhold payments in the circumstances described in 32 CFR 34.12(g), but not otherwise.
If your expenditure-based TIA provides for either advance payments or payable milestones, the agreement must require the recipient to:
(a) Maintain in an interest-bearing account any advance payments or milestone payment amounts received in advance of needs to disburse the funds for program purposes unless:
(1) The recipient receives less than $120,000 in Federal grants, cooperative agreements, and TIAs per year;
(2) The best reasonably available interest-bearing account would not be expected to earn interest in excess of $1,000 per year on the advance or milestone payments; or
(3) The depository would require an average or minimum balance so high that it would not be feasible within the expected Federal and non-Federal cash resources for the project.
(b) Remit annually the interest earned to the administrative agreements officer.
If it is an expenditure-based award, your agreement must require the recipient to obtain the agreement administrator's prior approval if there is to
Pre-award costs, as long as they are otherwise allowable costs of the project, may be charged to an expenditure-based TIA only with the specific approval of the agreements officer. All pre-award costs are incurred at the recipient's risk (
Your TIA should apply the standards of 32 CFR 34.14 for program income that may be generated. Note the need to specify whether the recipient is to have any obligation to the Federal Government with respect to program income generated after the end of the project period (the period, as established in the award document, during which Federal support is provided). Doing so is especially important if the TIA includes a provision for the recipient to return any amounts to the Federal Government (see § 37.580).
(a) You should confer with program officials and legal counsel to develop an overall strategy for intellectual property that takes into account inventions and data that may result from the project and future needs the Government may have for rights in them. The strategy should take into account any intellectual property the Government is furnishing and any pre-existing proprietary information that the recipient is furnishing, as well as data and inventions that may be generated under the award (recognizing that new data and inventions may be less valuable without pre-existing information). All pre-existing intellectual property, both the Government's and the recipient's, should be marked to give notice of its status.
(b) Because TIAs entail substantial cost sharing by recipients, you must use discretion in negotiating Government rights to data and patentable inventions resulting from research under the agreements. The considerations in §§ 37.845 through 37.875 are intended to serve as guidelines, within which you necessarily have considerable latitude to negotiate provisions appropriate to a wide variety of circumstances that may arise. Your goal should be a good balance between DoD interests in:
(1) Gaining access to the best technologies for defense needs, including technologies available in the commercial marketplace, and promoting commercialization of technologies resulting from the research. Either of these interests may be impeded if you negotiate excessive rights for the Government. One objective of TIAs is to help incorporate defense requirements into the development of what ultimately will be commercially available technologies, an objective that is best served by reducing barriers to commercial firms' participation in the research. In that way, the commercial technology and industrial base can be a source of readily available, reliable, and affordable components, subsystems, computer software, and other technological products and manufacturing processes for military systems.
(2) Providing adequate protection of the Government's investment, which may be weakened if the Government's rights are inadequate. You should consider whether the Government may require access to data or inventions for Governmental purposes, such as a need to develop defense-unique products or processes that the commercial marketplace likely will not address.
(a) You should seek to obtain what you, with the advice of legal counsel, judge is needed to ensure future Government use of technology that emerges from the research, as long as doing so is consistent with the balance between DoD interests described in § 37.840(b). You should consider data in which you wish to obtain license rights and data that you may wish to be delivered; since TIAs are assistance instruments rather than acquisition instruments, however, it is not expected that data would be delivered in most cases. What generally is needed is an irrevocable, world-wide license for the Government to use, modify, reproduce, release, or disclose for Governmental purposes the data that are generated under TIAs (including any data, such as computer software, in which a recipient may obtain a copyright). A Governmental purpose is any activity in which the United States Government participates, but a license for Governmental purposes does not include the right to use, or have or permit others to use, modify, reproduce, release, or disclose data for commercial purposes.
(b) You may negotiate licenses of different scope than described in paragraph (a) of this section when necessary to accomplish program objectives or to protect the Government's interests. Consult with legal counsel before negotiating a license of different scope.
(c) In negotiating data rights, you should consider the rights in background data that are necessary to fully utilize technology that is expected to result from the TIA, in the event the recipient does not commercialize the technology or chooses to protect any invention as a trade secret rather than by a patent. If a recipient intends to protect any invention as a trade secret, you should consult with your intellectual property counsel before deciding what information related to the invention the award should require the recipient to report.
To protect the recipient's interests in data, your TIA should require the recipient to mark any particular data that it wishes to protect from disclosure with a legend identifying the data as licensed data subject to use, release, or disclosure restrictions.
Prior to releasing or disclosing data marked with a restrictive legend (as described in § 37.850) to third parties, you should require those parties to agree in writing that they will:
(a) Use the data only for governmental purposes; and
(b) Not release or disclose the data without the permission of the licensor (
(a) You should negotiate rights in inventions that represent a good balance between the Government's interests (
(1) You have the flexibility to negotiate patent rights provisions that vary from what the Bayh-Dole statute (Chapter 18 of Title 35, U.S.C.) requires in many situations. You have that flexibility because TIAs include not only cooperative agreements, but also assistance transactions other than grants or cooperative agreements.
(2) Your TIA becomes an assistance instrument other than a grant or cooperative agreement if its patent rights provision varies from what Bayh-Dole requires in your situation. However, you need not consider that difference in the type of transaction until the agreement is finalized, and it should not affect the provision you negotiate.
(b) As long as it is consistent with the balance between DoD interests described in § 37.840(b) and the recipient's interests, you should seek to obtain for the Government, when an invention is conceived or first actually reduced to practice under a TIA, a nonexclusive, nontransferrable, irrevocable, paid-up license to practice the invention, or to have it practiced, for or on behalf of
(c) To provide for the license described in paragraph (b) of this section, your TIA generally would include the patent-rights clause that 37 CFR 401.14 specifies to implement the Bayh-Dole statute's requirements. Note that:
(1) The clause is designed specifically for grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements awarded to small businesses and nonprofit organizations, the types of funding instruments and recipients to which the entire Bayh-Dole statute applies. As explained in appendix B to this part, only two Bayh-Dole requirements (in 35 U.S.C. sections 202(c)(4) and 203) apply to cooperative agreements with other performers, by virtue of an amendment to Bayh-Dole at 35 U.S.C. 210(c).
(2) You may use the same clause, suitably modified, in cooperative agreements with performers other than small businesses and nonprofit organizations. Doing so is consistent with a 1983 Presidential memorandum that calls for giving other performers rights in inventions from Federally supported research that are at least as great as the rights that Bayh-Dole gives to small businesses and nonprofit organizations (
(3) The clause provides for flow-down of Bayh-Dole patent-rights provisions to subawards with small businesses and nonprofit organizations.
(4) There are provisions in 37 CFR part 401 stating when you must include the clause (37 CFR 401.3) and, in cases when it is required, how you may modify and tailor it (37 CFR 401.5).
(d) You may negotiate Government rights of a different scope than the standard patent-rights provision described in paragraph (c) of this section when necessary to accomplish program objectives and foster the Government's interests. If you do so:
(1) With the help of the program manager and legal counsel, you must decide what best represents a reasonable arrangement considering the circumstances, including past investments, contributions under the current TIA, and potential commercial markets. Taking past investments as an example, you should consider whether the Government or the recipient has contributed more substantially to the prior research and development that provides the foundation for the planned effort. If the predominant past contributor to the particular technology has been:
(i) The Government, then the TIA's patent-rights provision should be at or close to the standard Bayh-Dole provision.
(ii) The recipient, then a less restrictive patent provision may be appropriate, to allow the recipient to benefit more directly from its investments.
(2) You should keep in mind that obtaining a nonexclusive license at the time of award, as described in paragraph (b) of this section, is valuable if the Government later requires access to inventions to enable development of defense-unique products or processes that the commercial marketplace is not addressing. If you do not obtain a license at the time of award, you should consider alternative approaches to ensure access, such as negotiating a priced option for obtaining nonexclusive licenses in the future to inventions that are conceived or reduced to practice under the TIA.
(3) You also may consider whether you want to provide additional flexibility by giving the recipient more time than the standard patent-rights provision does to:
(i) Notify the Government of an invention, from the time the inventor discloses it within the for-profit firm.
(ii) Inform the Government whether it intends to take title to the invention.
(iii) Commercialize the invention, before the Government license rights in the invention become effective.
Your TIA's patent rights provision should include the Bayh-Dole march-in
To protect the recipient's interest in inventions, your TIA should require the recipient to mark documents disclosing inventions it desires to protect by obtaining a patent. The recipient should mark the documents with a legend identifying them as intellectual property subject to public release or public disclosure restrictions, as provided in 35 U.S.C. 205.
(a) Consistent with the objective of enhancing the national security by increasing DoD reliance on the U.S. commercial technology and industrial bases, you must include a provision in the TIA that addresses foreign access to technology developed under the TIA.
(b) The provision must provide, as a minimum, that any transfer of the:
(1) Technology must be consistent with the U.S. export laws, regulations and policies (
(2) Exclusive right to use or sell the technology in the United States must, unless the Government grants a waiver, require that products embodying the technology or produced through the use of the technology will be manufactured substantially in the United States. The provision may further provide that:
(i) In individual cases, the Government may waive the requirement of substantial manufacture in the United States upon a showing by the recipient that reasonable but unsuccessful efforts have been made to transfer the technology under similar terms to those likely to manufacture substantially in the United States or that under the circumstances domestic manufacture is not commercially feasible.
(ii) In those cases, the DoD Component may require a refund to the Government of some or all the funds paid under the TIA for the development of the transferred technology.
(c) You may, but are not required to, seek to negotiate a domestic manufacture condition for transfers of nonexclusive rights to use or sell the technology in the United States, to parallel the one described for exclusive licenses in paragraph (b)(2) of this section, if you judge that nonexclusive licenses for foreign manufacture could effectively preclude the establishment of domestic sources of the technology for defense purposes.
Your TIA must include either:
(a) The requirements in 32 CFR 32.51 and 32.52 for status reports on programmatic performance and, if it is an expenditure-based award, on financial performance; or
(b) Alternative requirements that, as a minimum, include periodic reports addressing program and, if it is an expenditure-based award, business status. You must require submission of the reports at least annually, and you may require submission as frequently as
(1) The program portions of the reports must address progress toward achieving program performance goals, including current issues, problems, or developments.
(2) The business portions of the reports, applicable only to expenditure-based awards, must provide summarized details on the status of resources (federal funds and non-federal cost sharing), including an accounting of expenditures for the period covered by the report. The report should compare the resource status with any payment and expenditure schedules or plans provided in the original award; explain any major deviations from those schedules; and discuss actions that will be taken to address the deviations. You may require a recipient to separately identify in these reports the expenditures for each participant in a consortium and for each programmatic milestone or task, if you, after consulting with the program official, judge that those additional details are needed for good stewardship.
In addition to reports on progress to date, your TIA may include a provision requiring the recipient to annually prepare updated technical plans for the future conduct of the research effort. If your TIA does include a requirement for annual program plans, you also must require the recipient to submit the annual program plans to the agreements officer responsible for administering the TIA.
You need not require a final performance report that addresses all major accomplishments under the TIA. If you do not do so, however, there must be an alternative that satisfies the requirement in DoD Instruction 3200.14
(a) Whether your TIA requires a final performance report or uses an alternative means under § 37.890,
(1) Directly to the DTIC; or
(2) To the office that is administering the award (for subsequent transmission to the DTIC).
(b) If you specify that the recipient is to submit the report directly to the DTIC, you also:
(1) Must instruct the recipient to include a fully completed Standard Form 298, “Report Documentation Page,” with each document, so that the DTIC can recognize the document as being related to the particular award and properly record its receipt; and
(2) Should advise the recipient to provide a copy of the completed Standard Form 298 to the agreements officer responsible for administering the TIA.
You may tell a participant that:
(a) We may exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) a trade secret or commercial and financial information that a participant provides after the award, if the information is privileged or confidential information. The DoD Component that receives the FOIA request will review the information in accordance with DoD procedures at 32 CFR
(b) If the participant also provides information in the course of a competition prior to award, there is a statutory exemption for five years from FOIA disclosure requirements for certain types of information submitted at that time (see § 37.420).
If a final report is required, your TIA should make receipt of the report a condition for final payment. If the payments are based on payable milestones, the submission and acceptance of the final report by the Government representative will be incorporated as an event that is a prerequisite for one of the payable milestones.
Your TIA must require participants to keep records related to the TIA (for which the agreement provides Government access under § 37.915) for a period of three years after submission of the final financial status report for an expenditure-based TIA or final programmatic status report for a fixed-support TIA, with the following exceptions:
(a) The participant must keep records longer than three years after submission of the final financial status report if the records relate to an audit, claim, or dispute that begins but does not reach its conclusion within the 3-year period. In that case, the participant must keep the records until the matter is resolved and final action taken.
(b) Records for any real property or equipment acquired with project funds under the TIA must be kept for three years after final disposition.
(a) If a for-profit participant currently grants access to its records to the DCAA or other Federal Government auditors, your TIA must include for that participant the standard access-to-records requirements at 32 CFR 34.42(e). If the agreement is a fixed-support TIA, the language in 32 CFR 34.42(e) may be modified to provide access to records concerning the recipient's technical performance, without requiring access to the recipient's financial or other records. Note that any need to address access to technical records in this way is in addition to, not in lieu of, the need to address rights in data (
(b) For other for-profit participants that do not currently give the Federal Government direct access to their records and are not willing to grant full access to records pertinent to the award, there is no set requirement to include a provision in your TIA for Government access to records. If the audit provision of an expenditure-based TIA gives an IPA access to the recipient's financial records for audit purposes, the Federal Government must have access to the IPA's reports and working papers and you need not include a provision requiring direct Government access to the recipient's financial records. For both fixed-support and expenditure-based TIAs, you may wish to negotiate Government access to recipient records concerning technical performance. Should you negotiate a provision giving access only to specific Government officials (
Your TIA must include for any nonprofit participant the standard access-to-records requirement at:
(a) 32 CFR 33.42(e), for a participant that is a State or local governmental organization.
(b) 32 CFR 32.53(e), for a participant that is a nonprofit organization. The same requirement applies to any nonprofit GOCO or FFRDC, even though nonprofit GOCOs and FFRDCs are exempted from the definition of “recipient” in 32 CFR part 32.
Your TIA must apply the standards of 32 CFR 34.51 for termination, 32 CFR 34.52 for enforcement, and your organization's procedures implementing 32 CFR 22.815 for disputes and appeals.
At the time of the award, you must:
(a) Ensure that the award document contains the appropriate terms and conditions and is signed by the appropriate parties, in accordance with §§ 37.1005 through 37.1015.
(b) Document your analysis of the agreement in the award file, as discussed in § 37.1020.
(c) Provide information about the award to offices responsible for reporting, as described in §§ 37.1025 through 37.1035.
(d) Distribute copies of the award document, as required by § 37.1045.
You are responsible for ensuring that the award document is complete and accurate. Your objective is to create a document that:
(a) Addresses all issues;
(b) States requirements directly. It is not helpful to readers to incorporate statutes or rules by reference, without sufficient explanation of the requirements. You generally should not incorporate clauses from the Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR parts 1-53) or Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (48 CFR parts 201-253), because those provisions are designed for procurement contracts that are used to acquire goods and services, rather than for TIAs or other assistance instruments.
(c) Is written in clear and concise language, to minimize potential ambiguity.
You necessarily will design and negotiate a TIA individually to meet the specific requirements of the particular project, so the complete list of substantive issues that you will address in the award document may vary. Every award document must address:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(1) Show the total amount of the agreement and the total period of performance.
(2) If the TIA is an expenditure-based award, state the Government's and recipient's agreed-upon cost shares. The award document should identify values for any in-kind contributions, determined in accordance with §§ 37.530 through 37.555, to preclude later disagreements about them.
(3) Specify the amount of Federal funds obligated and the performance period for those obligated funds.
(4) State, if the agreement is to be incrementally funded, that the Government's obligation for additional funding is contingent upon the availability of funds and that no legal obligation on the part of the Government exists until additional funds are made available and the agreement is amended. You also must include a prior approval requirement for changes in plans requiring additional Government funding, in accordance with § 37.825.
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
(l)
(m)
(n)
(o)
(p)
(q)
(a) If the recipient is a consortium that is not formally incorporated and the consortium members prefer to have the agreement signed by all of them individually, you may execute the agreement in that manner.
(b) If they wish to designate one consortium member to sign the agreement on behalf of the consortium as a whole, you should not decide whether to execute the agreement in that way until you review the consortium's articles of collaboration with legal counsel.
(1) The purposes of the review are to:
(i) Determine whether the articles properly authorize one participant to sign on behalf of the other participants and are binding on all consortium members with respect to the research project; and
(ii) Assess the risk that otherwise could exist when entering into an agreement signed by a single member on behalf of a consortium that is not a legal entity. For example, you should assess whether the articles of collaboration adequately address consortium members' future liabilities related to the research project (
(2) After the review, in consultation with legal counsel, you should determine whether it is better to have all of the consortium members sign the agreement individually or to allow them to designate one member to sign on all members' behalf.
You should include in your award file an agreements analysis in which you:
(a) Briefly describe the program and detail the specific military and commercial benefits that should result from the project supported by the TIA. If the recipient is a consortium that is not formally incorporated, you should attach a copy of the signed articles of collaboration.
(b) Describe the process that led to the award of the TIA, including how you and program officials solicited and evaluated proposals and selected the one supported through the TIA.
(c) Explain how you decided that a TIA was the most appropriate instrument, in accordance with the factors in Subpart B of this part. Your explanation must include your answers to the relevant questions in § 37.225(a) through (d).
(d) Explain how you valued the recipient's cost sharing contributions, in accordance with §§ 37.530 through 37.555. For a fixed-support TIA, you must document the analysis you did (
(e) Document the results of your negotiation, addressing all significant issues in the TIA's provisions. For example, this includes specific explanations if you:
(1) Specify requirements for a participant's systems that vary from the standard requirements in §§ 37.615(a), 37.625(a), 37.630, or 37.705(a) in cases where those sections provide flexibility for you to do so.
(2) Provide that any audits are to be performed by an IPA, rather than the
(i) The names and addresses of business units for which IPAs will be the auditors;
(ii) Estimated amounts of Federal funds expected under the award for those business units; and
(iii) The basis (
(3) Include an intellectual property provision that varies from Bayh-Dole requirements.
(4) Determine that cost sharing is impracticable.
Yes, you must give the necessary information about the award to the office in your organization that is responsible for preparing DD Form 2566, “DoD Assistance Award Action Report,” reports for the Defense Assistance Award Data System, to ensure timely and accurate reporting of data required by 31 U.S.C. 6101-6106 (
(a) For any TIA, you must give your answers to the questions in § 37.225(a) through (d) to the office in your DoD Component that is responsible for providing data on TIAs to the DTIC. Contact DTIC staff either by electronic mail at
(b) If the TIA uses the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371, as described in § 37.1035, your information submission for the DTIC under paragraph (a) of this section must include the additional data required for the DoD's annual report to Congress.
(c) If, as permitted under § 37.650, the TIA includes a provision allowing a for-profit participant to have audits performed by an IPA, rather than the DCAA, you must report that fact with the other information you submit about the TIA. Note that you also must include information about any use of IPAs permitted by subawards that participants make to for-profit firms, as provided in § 37.670. Information about a subaward under the TIA must be reported even if you receive the information in a subsequent year, when information about the TIA itself does not need to be reported.
(d) The requirements in this section to report information to the DTIC should not be confused with the post-award requirement to forward copies of technical reports to the DTIC, as described at §§ 37.890 and 37.895. The reporting requirements in this section are assigned the Report Control Symbol DD-AT&L(A) 1936.
As explained in appendix B to this part, a TIA uses the authority of 10 U.S.C. 2371 and therefore must be included in the DoD's annual report to Congress on the use of 10 U.S.C. 2371 authorities if it:
(a) Is an assistance transaction other than a grant or cooperative agreement, by virtue of its patent rights provision; or
(b) Includes a provision to recover funds from a recipient, as described at § 37.580.
Information that you report, in accordance with § 37.1030, to the office that your DoD Component designates as the central point for reporting to the DTIC must be:
(a) Submitted by the dates that your central point establishes (which is consistent with the schedule DTIC specifies to DoD Components).
(b) In the format that your central point provides (which is consistent with the format that the DTIC specifies to DoD Components).
You must send a copy of the award document to the:
(a) Recipient. You must include on the first page of the recipient's copy a prominent notice about the current DoD requirements for payment by electronic funds transfer (EFT).
(b) Office you designate to administer the TIA. You are strongly encouraged to delegate post-award administration to the regional office of the Defense Contract Management Agency or Office of Naval Research that administers awards to the recipient. When delegating, you should clearly indicate on the cover sheet or first page of the award document that the award is a TIA, to help the post-award administrator distinguish it from other types of assistance instruments.
(c) Finance and accounting office designated to make the payments to the recipient.
As the administrative agreements officer for a TIA, you have the responsibilities that your office agreed to accept in the delegation from the office that made the award. Generally, you will have the same responsibilities as a post-award administrator of a grant or cooperative agreement, as described in 32 CFR 22.715. Responsibilities for TIAs include:
(a) Advising agreements officers before they award TIAs on how to establish award terms and conditions that better meet research programmatic needs, facilitate effective post-award administration, and ensure good stewardship of Federal funds.
(b) Participating as the business partner to the DoD program official to ensure the Government's substantial involvement in the research project. This may involve attendance with program officials at kickoff meetings or post-award conferences with recipients. It also may involve attendance at the consortium management's periodic meetings to review technical progress, financial status, and future program plans.
(c) Tracking and processing of reports required by the award terms and conditions, including periodic business status reports, programmatic progress reports, and patent reports.
(d) Handling payment requests and related matters. For a TIA using advance payments, that includes reviews of progress to verify that there is continued justification for advancing funds, as discussed in § 37.1105(b). For a TIA using milestone payments, it includes making any needed adjustments in future milestone payment amounts, as discussed in § 37.1105(c).
(e) Coordinating audit requests and reviewing audit reports for both single audits of participants' systems and any award-specific audits that may be needed, as discussed in §§ 37.1115 and 37.1120.
(f) Responding, after coordination with program officials, to recipient requests for permission to sell or exclusively license intellectual property to entities that do not agree to manufacture substantially in the United States, as described in § 37.875(b). Before you grant approval for any technology, you must secure assurance that the Government will be able to use the technology (
(g) Notifying the agreements officer who made the award if a participant informs you about a subaward allowing a for-profit subrecipient to have audits performed by an IPA, rather than the DCAA. You should alert the awarding official that he or she must report the information, as required by § 37.1030(c).
Your additional post-award responsibilities as an administrative agreements officer for an expenditure-based TIA with advance payments or payable milestones are to ensure good cash management. To do so, you must:
(a) For any expenditure-based TIA with advance payments or payable milestones, forward to the responsible payment office any interest that the recipient remits in accordance with § 37.820(b). The payment office will return the amounts to the Department of the Treasury's miscellaneous receipts account.
(b) For any expenditure-based TIA with advance payments, consult with the program official and consider whether program progress reported in periodic reports, in relation to reported expenditures, is sufficient to justify your continued authorization of advance payments under § 37.805(b).
(c) For any expenditure-based TIA using milestone payments, work with the program official at the completion of each payable milestone or upon receipt of the next business status report to:
(1) Compare the total amount of project expenditures, as recorded in the payable milestone report or business status report, with the projected budget for completing the milestone; and
(2) Adjust future payable milestones, as needed, if expenditures lag substantially behind what was originally projected and you judge that the recipient is receiving Federal funds sooner than necessary for program purposes. Before making adjustments, you should consider how large a deviation is acceptable at the time of the milestone. For example, suppose that the first milestone payment for a TIA you are administering is $50,000, and that the awarding official set the amount based on a projection that the recipient would have to expend $100,000 to reach the milestone (
If you are the administrative agreements officer, you have the responsibilities described in 32 CFR 22.810(c), regardless of the payment method. You also must ensure that you do not withhold payments, except in one of the circumstances described in 32 CFR 34.12(g).
For audits of for-profit participant's systems, under §§ 37.640 through 37.660, you are the focal point within the Department of Defense for ensuring that participants submit audit reports and for resolving any findings in those reports. Nonprofit participants send their single audit reports to a Governmentwide clearinghouse. For those participants, the Office of the Assistant Inspector General (Auditing) should receive any DoD-specific findings from the clearinghouse and refer them to you for resolution, if you are the appropriate official to do so.
Guidance on when and how you should request additional audits for expenditure-based TIAs is identical to the guidance for grants officers in 32 CFR 34.16(d). If you require an award-specific examination or audit of a for-profit participant's records related to a TIA, you must use the auditor specified in the award terms and conditions, which should be the same auditor who
A payment made to a recipient before the recipient disburses the funds for program purposes. Advance payments may be based upon recipients' requests or predetermined payment schedules.
Research that creates new technology or demonstrates the viability of applying existing technology to new products and processes in a general way. Advanced research is most closely analogous to precompetitive technology development in the commercial sector (
An official with the authority to enter into, administer, and/or terminate TIAs (
Efforts that attempt to determine and exploit the potential of scientific discoveries or improvements in technology such as new materials, devices, methods and processes. It typically is funded in Research, Development, Test and Evaluation programs within Budget Activity 2, Applied Research (also known informally as research category 6.2) programs. Applied research normally follows basic research but may not be fully distinguishable from the related basic research. The term does not include efforts whose principal aim is the design, development, or testing of specific products, systems or processes to be considered for sale or acquisition; these efforts are within the definition of “development.”
An agreement among the participants in a consortium that is not formally incorporated as a legal entity, by which they establish their relative rights and responsibilities (
The transfer of a thing of value to a recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States (
An audit of a single TIA, usually done at the cognizant agreements officer's request, to help resolve issues that arise during or after the performance of the research project. An award-specific audit of an individual award differs from a periodic audit of a participant (as defined in § 37.1325).
Efforts directed toward increasing knowledge and understanding in science and engineering, rather than the practical application of that knowledge and understanding. It typically is funded within Research, Development, Test and Evaluation programs in Budget Activity 1, Basic Research (also known informally as research category 6.1).
A recipient's cash expenditures made as contributions toward cost sharing, including expenditures of money that third parties contributed to the recipient.
A for-profit firm or segment of a for-profit firm (
A group of research-performing organizations that either is formally incorporated or that otherwise agrees to jointly carry out a research project (see definition of “articles of collaboration,” in § 37.1225).
A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6305, is used to enter into the same kind of relationship as a grant (see definition of “grant,” in § 37.1295), except that substantial involvement is expected between the Department of Defense and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the cooperative agreement. The term does not include “cooperative research and development agreements” as defined in 15 U.S.C. 3710a.
A portion of project costs that are borne by the recipient or non-Federal third parties on behalf of the recipient, rather than by the Federal Government.
Recorded information, regardless of form or method of recording. The term includes technical data, which are data of a scientific or technical nature, and computer software. It does not include financial, cost, or other administrative information related to the administration of a TIA.
The Office of the Secretary of Defense, a Military Department, a Defense Agency, or a DoD Field Activity.
Tangible property, other than real property, that has a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit.
A Federal Government contract or assistance award for which the amounts of interim payments or the total amount ultimately paid (
Charges made to the project or program. They may be reported either on a cash or accrual basis, as shown in the following table:
A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6304, is used to enter into a relationship:
(a) The principal purpose of which is to transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States, rather than to acquire property or services for the Department of Defense's direct benefit or use.
(b) In which substantial involvement is not expected between the Department of Defense and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the grant.
The value of non-cash contributions made by a recipient or non-Federal third parties toward cost sharing.
An educational institution that:
(a) Meets the criteria in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001); and
(b) Is subject to the provisions of OMB Circular A-110, “Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations,” as implemented by the Department of Defense at 32 CFR part 32.
Inventions, data, works of authorship, and other intangible products of intellectual effort that can be owned by a person, whether or not they are patentable or may be copyrighted. The term also includes mask works, such as those used in microfabrication, whether or not they are tangible.
(a) Any corporation, trust, association, cooperative or other organization that:
(1) Is operated primarily for scientific, educational, service, or similar purposes in the public interest.
(2) Is not organized primarily for profit; and
(3) Uses its net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the operations of the organization.
(b) The term includes any nonprofit institution of higher education or nonprofit hospital.
A consortium member or, in the case of an agreement with a single for-profit entity, the recipient. Note that a for-profit participant may be a firm or a segment of a firm (
An audit of a participant, performed at an agreed-upon time (usually a regular time interval), to determine whether the participant as a whole is managing its Federal awards in compliance with the terms of those awards. Appendix C to this part describes what such an audit may cover. A periodic audit of a participant differs from an award-specific audit of an individual award (as defined in § 37.1235).
A Federal Government procurement contract. It is a legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6303, reflects a relationship between the Federal Government and a State, a local government, or other recipient when the principal purpose of the instrument is to acquire property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government. See the more detailed definition of the term “contract” at 48 CFR 2.101.
Gross income earned by the recipient or a participant that is generated by a supported activity or earned as a direct result of a TIA. Program income includes but is not limited to: income from fees for performing services; the use or rental of real property, equipment, or supplies acquired under a TIA; the sale of commodities or items fabricated under a TIA; and license fees and royalties on patents and copyrights. Interest earned on advances of Federal funds is not program income.
A Federal Government program manager, scientific officer, or other individual who is responsible for managing the technical program being carried out through the use of a TIA.
Real property, equipment, supplies, and intellectual property, unless stated otherwise.
Land, including land improvements, structures and appurtenances thereto, but excluding movable machinery and equipment.
An organization or other entity that receives a TIA from a DoD Component. Note that a for-profit recipient may be a firm or a segment of a firm (e.g., a division or other business unit).
Basic, applied, and advanced research, as defined in this subpart.
Tangible property other than real property and equipment. Supplies have a useful life of less than one year or an acquisition cost of less than $5,000 per unit.
The cancellation of a TIA, in whole or in part, at any time prior to either:
(a) The date on which all work under the TIA is completed; or
(b) The date on which Federal sponsorship ends, as given in the award document or any supplement or amendment thereto.
A special class of assistance instruments used to increase involvement of commercial firms in defense research programs and for other purposes (described in appendix A to this part) related to integrating the commercial and defense sectors of the nation's technology and industrial base. A technology investment agreement may be a cooperative agreement with provisions