Someone working for a federally funded organization frequently asks the question: “Can we charge this to our grant?” And the answer is frequently: “It’s depends.” Recently revised federal cost policies in Title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations are intended to provide the answer. However, the policies are imbedded in “cost principles” for a good reason.
The cost principles are largely general statements that are supposed to be applied by state and local governments, colleges and universities and nonprofit organizations to the facts and circumstances surrounding the incurrence of a specific cost. Those facts and circumstances can vary, and so can the vantage points of the people who might weigh in on the decision.
There are very few costs that are listed in the new federal policies that are always allowable. Most of the 55 designated “Selected Items of Cost” that are addressed are allowable under certain circumstances. Differences in interpretation or of opinion often arise surrounding certain items where the regulatory language is detailed or where it’s unfortunately just muddy. The differences regularly bubble to the surface as a result of the review of award proposals or the monitoring and auditing that define federal award and subaward oversight.
This webinar will provide a “dive deep” into a dozen policy areas where experience has shown that arguments over allowability can be contentious:
- Advertising and public relations
- Conferences
- Employee health and welfare
- Idle facilities and idle capacity
- Interest
- Legal services
- Lobbying
- Maintenance and repair
- Meeting expenses
- Professional services
- Rearrangement and reconversion
- Rent of facilities
Highlighting conflicting interpretations that have surfaced during award and indirect cost rate negotiations and federal and nonfederal audits, Bob Lloyd, principal of Federal Fund Management Advisor™, will help you support your cost allowability decision-making.
Who Should Attend?
- Grant and contract managers
- Sponsored projects administrators
- Finance directors
- Accounting staff
- Principal research investigators
- Grant project directors
- Internal auditors
- External auditors
Hand-out Materials:
Attendees will receive presentation slides as well as access to background materials.
Allowable Charges
The costs of webinars sponsored by Federal Fund Management Advisor™ are allowable charges to your federal grants and subgrants. The cost principles issued by OMB under its uniform guidance (and applicable to all types of awardees) state, “The cost of training and education for employee development is allowable” (2 CFR 200.472).
Attend this Live Webinar and Earn up to 1.5 CPE Credits