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§ 600.123 Cost sharing or matching.

(a) All cost sharing or matching contributions, including cash and third party in-kind, shall 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.

(7) Conform to other provisions of this subpart, as applicable.

(b) Unrecovered indirect costs 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 DOE 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 either paragraph (c)(1) or (2) of this section.

(1) The certified value of the remaining life of the property recorded in the recipient's accounting records at the time of donation.

(2) The current fair market value. However, when there is sufficient justification, DOE 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.

(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 either paragraph (g)(1) or (2) of this section apply.

(1) If the purpose of the award is to 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.

(2) If the purpose of the award is to 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 DOE 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 inde

pendent 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.

(1) 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, material, equipment, buildings and land shall be documented.

(j) DOE shall specify in the solicitation or in the program rule, if any, any cost sharing requirement. The award document shall be specific as to whether the cost sharing is based on a minimum amount for the recipient or on a percentage of total costs.

(k) If DOE requires that a recipient provide cost sharing which is not required by statute or which exceeds a statutory minimum, DOE shall state in the program rule or solicitation the reasons for requiring such cost sharing, recommended or required levels of cost sharing, and the circumstances under which the requirement for cost sharing may be waived or adjusted during any negotiation.

(1) Whenever DOE negotiates the amount of cost sharing, DOE may take into account such factors as the use of program income (see $600.124), patent rights, and rights in data. Foregone fee or profit shall not be considered in establishing the extent of cost sharing.

§ 600.124 Program income.

(a) The standards set forth in this section shall be used to account for program income related to projects fi

nanced in whole or in part with DOE 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 program regulations or 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 and used to further eligible project objectives.

(2) Used to finance the non-DOE share of the project.

(3) Deducted from the total project allowable cost in determining the net allowable costs on which the share of costs is based.

(c) When DOE 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 the 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 award indicates another alternative in the terms and conditions, the recipient is subject to special award conditions, as indicated in § 600.114, or the recipient is a commercial organization.

(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) Unless program regulations or the terms and conditions of the award provide otherwise, 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 §§ 600.130 through 600.137).

(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. However, Patent and Trademark Amendments (35 U.S.C. Chapter 18) apply to inventions made under an experimental, developmental, or research award.

$600.125 Revision of budget and program plans.

(a) The budget plan is the financial expression of the project or program as approved during the award process. It includes the sum of the Federal and non-Federal share when there are cost sharing 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 DOE 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) If required by program regulations, the transfer of amounts budgeted for indirect costs to absorb increases in direct costs, or vice versa.

(6) The inclusion, unless waived by program regulations or the terms and conditions of award, of costs that require prior approval in accordance with OMB Circular A-21, "Cost Principles for Institutions of Higher Education," OMB Circular A-122, "Cost Principles

for Non-Profit Organizations," or 45 CFR part 74 Appendix E, "Principles for Determining Costs Applicable to Research and Development under Grants and Contracts with Hospitals," or 48 CFR part 31, "Contract Cost Principles and Procedures," as applicable.

(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.

(d) No other prior approval requirements for specific items may be imposed unless a deviation has been approved in accordance with §600.4.

(e) Except for requirements listed in paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(4) of this section, program regulations may waive cost-related and administrative prior written approvals required by this subpart and its Appendices. Such waivers may include authorizing recipients to do any one or more of the following.

(1) Incur pre-award costs 90 calendar days prior to award without prior approval or more than 90 calendar days with the prior approval of DOE. All pre-award costs are incurred at the recipient's risk (i.e., DOE 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).

(2) Initiate a one-time extension of the expiration date of the final budget period of the project of up to 12 months unless one or more of the following conditions apply.

(i) The terms and conditions of award prohibit the extension.

(ii) The extension requires additional Federal funds.

(iii) The extension involves any change in the approved objectives or scope of the project.

(iv) The extension is being exercised merely for the purpose of using unobligated balances. For one-time extensions, the recipient must notify the DOE in writing with the supporting reasons and revised expiration date at

least 10 days before the expiration date specified in the award.

(3) Carry forward unobligated balances to subsequent funding periods.

(4) For awards that support research, unless the terms and conditions of award provide otherwise, the prior approval requirements described in paragraph (e) of this section are automatically waived (i.e., recipients need not obtain such prior approvals) unless one of the conditions included in

§ 600.125(e)(2) applies.

(5) For continuation awards within a multiple year project in support of research, prior to receipt of continuation funding, preaward expenditures by recipients are not subject to the limitation or approval requirements of § 600.125(e)(1). Nevertheless, incurrence by the recipient does not impose any obligation on DOE if a continuation award is not subsequently made, or if an award is made for a lesser amount than the recipient expected.

(f) Program regulations may restrict the transfer of funds among direct cost categories or programs, functions and activities for awards in which DOE's 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 DOE. However, no program regulation 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.

(g) All other changes to nonconstruction budgets, except for the changes described in paragraph (j) of this section, do not require prior approval.

(h) For construction awards, recipients shall request prior written approval promptly from the Contracting Officer for budget revisions whenever paragraph (h) (1), (2) or (3) of this section apply.

(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.

(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 § 600.127.

(i) Except in accordance with the deviation procedures in 600.4 or as may be provided for in program regulations, no other prior approval requirements for specific items will be imposed by DOE.

(j) When DOE makes an award that provides support for both construction and nonconstruction work, DOE may require the recipient to request prior approval from DOE before making any fund or budget transfers between the two types of work supported.

(k) For both construction and nonconstruction awards, recipients shall notify DOE 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. (1) Requests for budget revisions may be made by letter.

(m) Within 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of the request for budget revisions, DOE 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, DOE shall inform the recipient in writing of the date when the recipient may expect the decision.

(n) DOE approval or disapproval of a request for a budget or project revision shall be in writing and signed by a DOE Contracting Officer.

(0) A request by a subrecipient for prior approval shall be addressed in writing to the recipient. The recipient shall promptly review such request and shall approve or disapprove the request in writing within 30 days from the date of the recipient's request for the revision. A recipient shall not approve any budget or project revision which is inconsistent with the purpose or terms and conditions of the DOE award. If the revision requested by the subrecipient would result in a change to the recipient's approved budget or approved project which requires DOE prior approval, the recipient shall obtain DOE approval before approving such revision.

§ 600.126 Non-Federal audits.

(a) Recipients and subrecipients that are institutions of higher education or other non-profit organizations shall be subject to the audit requirements contained in OMB Circular A-133, "Audits of Institutions of Higher Education and Other Non-Profit Institutions."

(b) State and local governments shall be subject to the audit requirements contained in the Single Audit Act (31 U.S.C. 7501-7) and Federal awarding agency regulations implementing OMB Circular A-128, "Audits of State and Local Governments."

(c) The Contracting Officer may audit, or cause to be audited, awards to hospitals not covered by the audit provisions of OMB Circular A-133 whenever and in the degree of detail he/she deems necessary. The Contracting Officer shall rely on available audit reports in determining the need for and scope of such audits. The hospital has similar authority in auditing subrecipients.

(d) The Contracting Officer may audit, or cause to be audited, awards to commercial organizations whenever and in the degree of detail he/she deems necessary. The Contracting Officer shall rely on available audit reports in determining the need for and scope of such audits. The commercial organization has similar authority in auditing subrecipients.

(e) The Contracting Officer may audit, or cause to be audited, awards to individuals whenever and in the degree of detail he/she deems necessary. The Contracting Officer shall rely on available audit reports in determining the need for and scope of such audits.

$600.127 Allowable costs.

(a) General. For each kind of recipient, there is a set of Federal principles for determining allowable costs. Allowability of costs shall be determined in accordance with the cost principles applicable to the entity incurring the costs. Thus, allowability of costs incurred by State, local or federally-recognized Indian tribal governments is determined in accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular A-87, "Cost Principles for State and Local Governments." The allowability of costs incurred by non-profit organizations is determined in accordance with the pro

visions of OMB Circular A-122, "Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations." The allowability of costs incurred by institutions of higher eduIcation is determined in accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular A21, "Cost Principles for Educational Institutions." The allowability of costs incurred by hospitals is determined in accordance with the provisions of Appendix E of 45 CFR part 74, "Principles for Determining Costs Applicable to Research and Development Under Grants and Contracts with Hospitals." The allowability of costs incurred by commercial organizations and those non-profit organizations listed in Attachment C to Circular A-122 is determined in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) at 48 CFR part 31.

(b) Indirect costs. Unless restricted by Federal statute or program rule, DOE shall provide for the reimbursement of appropriate indirect costs.

(1) DOE shall include an amount for indirect costs in an award only if the applicant requests reimbursement of such costs and

(i) Submits evidence that a cognizant Federal agency has been assigned to establish indirect cost rates for the applicant and indicates or provides evidence that

(A) A current agreement containing an applicable approved indirect cost rate(s) covering all or part of the budget period for which DOE may provide funding has been established; or

(B) An indirect cost proposal has been submitted to the cognizant agency in order to establish an applicable approved indirect cost rate(s) covering all or part of the budget period for which DOE may provide funding; or

(C) An indirect cost proposal covering all or part of the budget period and applicable to the activities for which DOE may provide funding will be submitted to the cognizant agency for approval no later than three months after the beginning date of the initial budget period of the DOE award or, for subsequent budget periods, in accordance with any schedule established by the cognizant agency; or

(ii) If not assigned to a cognizant agency, the applicant includes, in the application, data that is current, com

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