Facilities and Administrative (F&A or IDC) Rates
Application of F&A Rates to Sponsored Projects
Facility and Administrative Costs (sometimes referred to as indirect costs, overhead, administrative allowance, or occasionally, institutional allowance) are costs incurred in support of sponsored programs, in general, but not identifiable with any single project. Facility and Administrative Costs generally consist of sponsored program and general administration such as payroll and purchasing, and general institutional support services such as building maintenance, libraries, etc.
Reimbursement of Facility and Administrative Costs to educational institutions is predicated upon use of an indirect cost rate. This rate is developed in accordance with the cost principles specified by the Federal Government in 2 CFR Chapter I, Chapter II, Part 200, also known as the “Uniform Guidance” . The rate is reviewed and approved every four years by our cognizant audit agency, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The F&A costs will be charged to sponsored awards at the time of corresponding direct cost expenditures and utilizing the rate in effect at the time of Notice of Award. The Office of Grants Management conducts analysis throughout the life of all active awards to ensure correct recovery of the F&A charges in keeping with federal regulations.
Basics of F&A
The total cost of a sponsored program (be it research, education, or public service based) consists of both direct and indirect costs. Direct Costs are specifically and clearly identifiable and provide benefit to the specific project. At Stony Brook, direct costs include, but are not limited to, salaries and wages for project personnel, associated fringe benefits, equipment, consumable supplies, travel, technical services, etc. Direct costs are incurred at the discretion of the investigator, in accordance with sponsor regulations and University/Campus and Research Foundation policies and procedures.
Separate rates are developed for grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements that (1) support research and/or clinical activities and that (2) support training and other educational activities. F&A funding seeks to reimburse the RF and therefore the University for part of the cost of doing business during the course of a sponsored project. Since expenses are incurred through the performance of a sponsored project, a percentage is charged back to the agency or organization funding the sponsored project. A more detailed explanation of F&A costs are provided by accessingFacilities and Administrative (F&A) Costs Basics on our website.
Facilities & Administrative Cost Rates Determination
Stony Brook University in conjunction with The Research Foundation for The State University of New York applies each year for rate renewal and approval through its cognizant agency, The Department of Health and Human Services. In order to determine the appropriate F&A rate, the sponsor solicitation must be read carefully. If there is a limitation on F&A, the program guidelines or announcement will list the rate that should be used. Except where specifically identified in a program solicitation or other published sponsor guidelines, the applicable DHHS approved F&A rate should be used in computing F&A for a proposal.
F&A Rate Types and Definitions
The most common are: Total Direct Cost (TDC), Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC), Other Sponsored Programs (includes evaluative testing), Instruction, Interpersonnel Agreement (IPA), Administrative and Clinical Trials rates. Some sponsors may have their own policy on indirect cost recovery. In such instances, be sure to include documentation on the rate allowed in myResearch Grants.
Unless there is a written F&A sponsor policy, full F&A recovery must be included in proposal budgets.
Depending on the type of project, there are different F&A rates and codes. A detailed description of NACUBO Codes and examples of applicability can be accessed here.
Federally Negotiated Rates
The Federally negotiated F&A rates apply to:
- Organized Research
- Other Sponsored Programs
- Instruction
- Research DOD Contract
- IPA
Other Recognized Rates
Rates apply to:
- Industry-sponsored clinical trials
- Administrative
Memo and Policy - the F&A (IDC) Rates memo dated April 15, 2024 can be accessed here.
| Rate Type | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Research |
Year |
On Campus |
Off Campus |
|
|
7/1/17 - 6/30/18 |
59.0% |
26.0% |
|
|
7/1/18 - 6/30/25 |
59.5% |
26.0% |
|
Instruction |
Year |
On Campus |
Off Campus |
|
|
7/1/15 - 6/30/25 |
52.0% |
26.0% |
|
DOD Contracts |
Year |
On Campus |
Off Campus |
|
|
7/1/17 - 6/30/18 |
62.0% |
29.0% |
|
|
7/1/18 - 6/30/25 |
62.5% |
29.0% |
|
Other Sponsored Programs |
Year |
On Campus |
Off campus |
|
|
7/1/15 - 6/30/25 |
42.0% |
26.0% |
|
Interpersonnel Agreement |
Year |
On Campus |
Off campus |
|
|
7/1/15 - 6/30/25 |
9.0% |
9.0% |
|
Clinical Trials |
Year |
On Campus |
Off campus |
|
|
7/1/15 - 10/31/20 11/1/20 - 6/30/25 |
25.0% 30% |
25.0% 30% |
|
Administrative |
Year |
On Campus |
Off campus |
|
|
7/1/15 - 6/30/25 |
15.0% |
15.0% |
The rates above may be used when the below criteria(s) apply:
Organized Research MTDC Rate will be applied to contracts/cooperative agreements and grants in support of Evaluative Research, and Organized Research activities such as basic, applied, developmental, or other scientific research sponsored by federal and non-federal agencies and organizations.
An evaluative research agreement for which the Organized Research Rate applies is defined as any agreement with a private sponsor with a protocol developed by either Sponsor, University Principal Investigator, University Principal Investigator with direction from Sponsor or Sponsor with direction from University Principal Investigator; the protocol is moderately specific and leaves room for the University Principal Investigator to experiment or interject his or her own ideas; where the type of work required is characterized as testing of the private sponsor’s proprietary product (e.g. a new or investigational device, drug, material or compound) and the deliverable will be provided to sponsor in the form of expert data analysis and interpretation from University.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Other Sponsored Programs MTDC Rate will be applied on both federal and non-federal projects for which the activity is other than research and instruction such as Evaluative Testing, as defined below, General Administration, Operations and Maintenance, Sponsored Projects Administration and other public service projects and federally-sponsored Clinical Trials.
An evaluative testing agreement for which the Other Sponsored Programs Rate applies is defined as any agreement with a private sponsor providing a company-developed protocol that specifies all procedures in detail and leaves no room for the University Principal Investigator to experiment on his or her own; where the type of work required is characterized as testing of the private sponsor’s proprietary product (e.g. a new or investigational device, drug, material or compound) and the deliverable must be raw data which cannot include any interpretation. Such testing or studies cannot involve contact with human subjects.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Instruction MTDC Rate will be applied to both federal (including federal flow-through) and non-federal sponsored projects for programs whose principal purpose is instruction.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Interpersonnel Agreement (IPA) MTDC Rate will be applied to federal funds received to support expenses incurred by the institution when faculty are involved in an assignment to that federal entity. These awards typically reimburse the institution for salaries, fringe benefits and travel expenses.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Clinical Trials TDC Rate will be applied to all Clinical Trials funded by private sponsors. A clinical trial agreement for which the Clinical Trial Rate applies is a controlled, clinical testing in human subjects of investigational new drugs, devices, treatments, or diagnostics, or comparisons of approved drugs, devices, treatments, or diagnostics, to assess their safety, efficacy, benefits, costs, adverse reactions, and/or outcomes. Such studies may be conducted under an industry-developed protocol or an investigator-developed protocol.
- The objective of the study is either:
- testing of a drug, device, diagnostic, treatment, intervention, or preventive measures including testing for an unapproved indication or
- data collection, or review of data generated or acquired in a clinical setting, to increase knowledge that would lead to enhanced safety and efficacy of a drug or device.
- The study must involve contact with human subjects or the review of patient care clinical data
- The study must be performed primarily in patient care or clinical space
- The study must be industry-funded.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Administrative TDC Rate will be applied to unrestricted gifts and other funds received in support of organized research or training activities where the sponsor provides the funds in advance and without further obligation on the part of the institution: i.e., no constraints on how the funds may be used, no financial or technical reporting requirements, and no deliverables.
This rate will also be applied to funds from: External Sources deposited to Service and Facility Accounts; Materials Transfer Agreements; NYS Industrial Contracts affiliated with Centers for Advanced Technology, Center for Biotechnology, Center of Excellence Wireless and Information Technology (CEWIT), Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center (AERTC) and the SPIR Program; Phase 1 subcontracts as part of STTR/SBIR awards; non-Federal Fellowship Awards unless a rate is specified by the non-Federal sponsor; and awards made specifically and solely for support of a conference, seminar, or workshop to be held at the Stony Brook Campus.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) = all direct salaries and wages, applicable fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to the first $25,000 of each subaward (regardless of the period of performance of the subawards under the award). MTDC excludes equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, rental costs for off-site facilities, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs and the portion of each subaward in excess of $25,000. This definition was taken directly from the Uniform Guidance, Section 200.68. Alterations/Renovations are defined as having a cost of $15,000 or more per alteration or renovation. Costs of less than $15,000 are considered a miscellaneous expense. Most federal programs use this rate.
In addition, MTDC on training grants and fellowships exclude tuition, fees and health insurance. Non-federal sponsors may require F&A costs to be computed on a different base.
Total Direct Cost (TDC) includes all direct costs associated with a sponsored project including those items excluded in Modified Total Direct Cost. It will apply to all awards where indirect cost is capped by sponsors to a rate other than the federally-negotiated and approved rate.
Clinical Trials:
- For federally-sponsored clinical trial site activity, use the Other Sponsored Programs rate based on modified total direct costs (MTDC).
- For industry-sponsored clinical trial site activity, use the Clinical Trial rate based on the total direct costs (TDC).
Off Campus Determination
The Off Campus rate applies when all or greater than 50% of project personnel effort will take place at an off-campus location over the full period of performance or for longer than 50% of the award period. Note that convenience, telecommuting, conferences, and incidental travel do not qualify for the off-campus determination.
The following locations should be considered off-campus when making your determination of using the on/off-campus rate:. Projects conducted in whole at the following Stony Brook locations are considered off campus: BNL, Mind-Body Clinical Research Center (CRC), Flax Pond Lab, Tech Park, University Hospital, Veterans Home, Clinical Practice Patient Space and off-site clinical offices.
Facilities and Administrative/Indirect Cost (F&A/IDC) Off-Campus Rate Request Form must be completed for all off campus rate requests. PI’s Chair and Dean’s approval is required in such cases.
Detailed Guidance for On/Off Campus F&A Rates Procedures can be accessed here.
F&A (IDC) WAIVERS
The campus does not waive F&A (IDC) costs. Since they are a legitimate expense to the campus in support of sponsored project activity, F&A costs must be recovered from sponsored projects in accordance with the campus' F&A cost policy.
Projects conducted in whole at the following Stony Brook locations are considered off campus: Hospital, Technology Park, GCRC, and off-site clinical offices.