Unpublished Sponsor F&A Limitations
In addition to incurring the direct costs (e.g., personnel, travel, supplies, etc.) of conducting an externally funded project, East Carolina University also incurs associated overhead costs. The University periodically negotiates an overhead rate with the federal government that is based on actual costs of operations. This rate is called “Facilities & Administration (F&A)” or “Indirect Cost” rate.
By University policy, the federally negotiated F&A rate is applied consistently to federally-funded and non-federally funded projects alike unless the funding entity has a published policy that limits or precludes inclusion of F&A costs in the project budget or cost quote.
If a non-federal funding entity does not have a published overhead/F&A policy and extraordinary circumstances prevent the inclusion of full F&A costs, special approval for an ECU policy exception is required. This form should be completed and signed by the funding entity’s authorized representative and returned to ECU’s Office of Research Administration (ORA) for consideration.