[Federal Register: June 27, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 124)]
[Notices]
[Page 38314-38315]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27jn03-53]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Office of the Secretary
Cost Sharing in Department of Defense Research Programs Using
Assistance Instruments
AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition,
Technology, and Logistics, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Defense (DoD) proposes to issue a DoD
Instruction on the use of cost sharing in basic, applied, and advanced
research projects carried out through grants and other assistance
instruments. The purposes of the DoD Instruction are to ensure that
cost sharing is used appropriately and to make awarding offices' cost
sharing policies and practices clear to potential proposers. The DoD
Instruction will provide consistent policies and procedures for
assistance instruments awarded under the many research programs of the
Army, Navy, Air Force, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and
other Defense Agencies. The draft DoD Instruction is available on the
Director of Defense Research and Engineering Web site located at
http://www.acq.osd.mil/ddre/research/draftcostsharing.pdf
.
DATES: Comments must be received by August 26, 2003.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to: Dr. Anne Matsuura, DoD
Basic Research Office, 4015 Wilson Blvd., Suite 216, Arlington, VA
22203. Comments may be submitted via e-mail (Anne_
Matsura@onr.navy.mil).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Anne Matsuura, DoD Basic Research
Office, at (703) 696-2530.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Over the past few years, research performers
have expressed concern to Federal awarding agencies about their cost
sharing policies and practices. In the late 1990s, for example, the
Committee of Science of the National Science and Technology Council
(NSTC) received commented on cost sharing when it conducted a review
designed to find ways to relieve unnecessary sources of stress on the
Government-university research partnership. Comments from universities
suggested a need for clearer and more consistent agency policies on
cost sharing practices and expectations. As a result of the NSTC
review, the President issued Executive Order 13185 in December 2000 to
establish guiding principles and operating principles for the research
partnership between universities and Federal agencies. (The Executive
order can be found at http://www.ostp.gov/html/011001_3.html. One
operating principle is that Federal ``agency cost sharing policies and
practices must be transparent.'' The Executive order refers to the full
explanation of this operating principle in the April 1999 NSTC report
entitled ``Renewing the Government-University Partnership:''
``As in any investment partnership, each partner cointributes to
the research endeavor. While the primary contribution of
universities is the intellectual capital of the researchers' ideas,
knowledge, and creativity, it is sometimes appropriate for
universities to share in the costs of the research (and in some
cases cost sharing is required by statute). Cost sharing can be
appropriate when there are compelling policy reasons for it, such as
in programs whose principal purpose is to build infrastructure and
enhance an awardee's institution's ability to compete for future
Federal awards. Cost sharing is rarely appropriate when an awardee
is acting solely as a supplier of goods or services to the
government since this would entail a university subsidy of goods
purchased by the government. If agency funds are not sufficient to
cover the costs of a research project, the agency and the university
should re-examine the scope of the project, unless there are
compelling policy reasons to require university cost sharing.
Agencies should be clear about their cost sharing policies and
announce when and how sharing will figure in selection processes,
including explicit information regarding the amount of cost sharing
expected.''
[[Page 38315]]
The cost sharing issue arose again after the Congress enacted the
Federal Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (Pub.
L. 106-107). That law requires Federal agencies to streamline and
simplify the award and administration of Federal grants. It also
mandates that agencies obtain input from the affected public. Comments
that Federal agencies received from grant applicants and recipients
pointed out a need for agency action on cost sharing, reinforcing the
earlier findings of the NSTC review.
The Department of Defense, which is active in the leadership of the
interagency streamlining efforts under Public Law 106-107 and helped
develop the guiding and operating principles set forth in Executive
Order 13185, proposes to address cost sharing for assistance
instruments through a DoD Instruction. This Instruction for assistance
instruments will parallel and complement action the Department already
has taken to address cost sharing issues for research and development
contracts (a DoD policy memorandum of May 16, 2001, established a
policy, since incorporated into paragraph E1.1.6 of DoD Directive
5000.1, that prohibits contractor cost sharing if there is no
reasonable probability of commercial applications).
The proposed Instruction for assistance instruments would
disseminate guidance for program managers and grants officers in
research program offices in the DoD Components. The guidance is drafted
in plain language, in a question-and-answer format. The intent is ot
establish an easily understood DoD-wide policy framework to help ensure
that proposers and research performers receive consistent, as well as
fair and equitable, treatment on cost sharing matters. We invite input
from potential proposers and performers of DoD basic, applied, and
advanced research efforts to help us improve the proposed Instryctuib
and better achieve this goal.
Dated: June 20, 2003.
Patricia L. Toppings,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 03-16251 Filed 6-26-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001-08-M