Cost Share
Tufts University manages its cost sharing obligations in compliance with the Uniform Guidance regulations 2 CFR § 200.306 Cost Sharing or Matching and in accordance with the internal policy Cost Sharing on Sponsored Awards.
Cost Share DeptID
As of May 1, 2017, all new awards with committed cost sharing obligations (except those met by unrecovered F&A) will require a dedicated companion cost share account that is unique for each award. Cost sharing for multiple awards cannot be combined on one account. This requirement does not apply to DeptID used for NIH salary over the cap as salary over the cap is not classified as cost share.
Post-Award will request a Cost Share DeptID from the Budget Center at the time when the award account is set up. Naming convention for such DeptID is: Cost Sharing: PeopleSoft Award Account number (e.g. AID123). Cost Share DeptID will be open for the life of the associated award and close when the project reaches the end date.
Roles & Responsibilities
Local Research Administrators
LRAs assist investigators in preparing proposals free of voluntary committed cost sharing. If cost share is required by the sponsor, the LRAs facilitate approval at the school/center keeping in mind that the amount of committed cost share should not exceed the amount/ratio required by the agency. The LRAs work with the Principal Investigator (PI) to identify source(s) of any committed cost sharing and gather documentation for third-party or non-cash cost sharing.
After the project begins, LRAs ensure that relevant charges are posted to the Cost Share DeptID, monitor and manage the account, and submit documentation to Post-Award at the time of financial reports and at closeout. The template Interoffice Memo: Cost Share Report should be used for submitting cost share information to Post-Award.
Central Pre-Award
During the review of proposals, Pre-Award flags voluntary committed cost sharing or excessive matching commitments, cost sharing that is not approved, or in excess of what is approved by school/center. Prior to proposal submission, Pre-Award confirms allowability of cost-sharing sources, including third-party cost share.
Upon receipt of the notice of award, Pre-Award officials ensure that only cost sharing approved at the proposal stage is included, flag any unfunded requirements from Tufts that require financial outlays, and negotiate with the sponsor to achieve the least possible level of cost sharing.
During the award account set up, Post-Award reviews cost-sharing commitments on awards and requests Cost Share DeptID from the Budget Center. At the time of each financial report, Post-Award will request cost-sharing documentation from the LRA to confirm allowability of cost-shared expenses and compare actual cost-shared amounts to committed amounts. Final review of cost-sharing expenditures is completed by Post-Award at award closeout.