(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.306(d) specifies:
(1) That values for recipients' and subrecipients' contributions of services or property toward cost sharing or matching must be established in accordance with the cost principles in Subpart E of 2 CFR part 200; and
(2) Types of projects or programs under which recipients' or subrecipients' donations of buildings or land are allowable as cost sharing or matching, with the prior approval of the Federal awarding agency, and how the donations are to be valued in those cases.
(b) DoD implementation. DoD implements the guidance in 2 CFR 200.306(d) through award terms and conditions, with the following clarifications:
(1) Cost principles to be used for valuation. (i) Values for recipients' and subrecipients' contributions of services or property toward cost sharing or matching must be established in accordance with the cost principles applicable to the entity making the contribution.
(ii) Consistent with the cost principles, what generally should be charged to awards for real property and equipment is depreciation rather than allowing a recipient's or subrecipient's donation of the property (i.e., counting the full value of the property toward cost sharing or matching). However, depreciation included in a recipient's or subrecipient's indirect costs is not appropriate for counting as cost sharing or matching under an individual award.
(2) Donations of property to projects or programs under awards. (i) In addition to donations of buildings or land described in 2 CFR 200.306(d), recipients and subrecipients may, with the prior approval of the DoD Component, donate other capital assets described in the cost principles in 2 CFR 200.439(b)(1) through (3). The basis for clarifying that recipients may donate other capital assets to projects or programs under awards is that, with the DoD Component's approval:
(A) Capital expenditures to acquire those types of capital assets are allowable as direct charges to awards; and
(B) The costs therefore satisfy the allowability criterion in 2 CFR 200.306(b)(4) and can qualify as cost sharing or matching if they meet the other criteria listed in 2 CFR 200.306(b).
(ii) However, when there are alternative ways for recipients to meet requirements for cost sharing or matching, DoD Components should not approve donations of capital assets to projects or programs under awards. Inclusion of the full value of a donated asset as project costs in the approved budget of an award is analogous to inclusion of the acquisition cost for an asset that is purchased under the award. Through the donation, the Federal Government acquires an interest in the donated asset that must be resolved at time of disposition of the asset, which is best avoided if possible.
(iii) Whenever a DoD Component permits a recipient to donate a capital asset to a project or program under an award, the DoD Component should inform the cognizant Federal agency that negotiates the indirect cost rate for that recipient. Doing so enables the cognizant agency to take the donation into account when it establishes the recipient's indirect cost rate, given that the recipient may not include depreciation for the donated asset as indirect costs that enter into the computation of that rate.
(c) Award terms and conditions—(1) General. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must use the wording appendix F to this part provides as Section E of FMS Article VI.
(2) Exception. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions may reserve paragraph E.2 of the wording appendix F to this part provides if the DoD Component does not allow recipients to donate buildings, land, or other capital assets to projects or programs under awards using those terms and conditions.
