Do you know what your obligations are related to indirect costs as a pass-through entity of federal funds?  Did you know that Title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 200.332 requires that pass-through entities accept a subrecipients federally approved Indirect Cost Rate, allow for use of the de minimis, or must negotiate an Indirect Cost Rate if requested by the subrecipient? Do you want to know how to develop a cost allocation plan so that the true costs of delivering services are captured? Do you want more clarity on the different methodologies for establishing an indirect cost rate?   

This training is designed for SAAs and subrecipients who want to gain foundational knowledge and the skills to successfully create a cost allocation plan and negotiate an indirect cost rate agreement.

At the end of this training participants will:

·     Understand 2 CFR 200 requirements related to indirect costs,

·     Know the necessary components of an IDC proposal packet and cost allocation plan,

·     Be able to articulate why it’s important to charge indirect costs to cover all costs for services provided,

·     Understand the various types of indirect cost rates and methodologies for determining each one,

·     Recognize when it might be best to apply the de minimis rate,

·     Know what goes into building a cost allocation plan and indirect cost rate proposals, and

·     Know where to go for additional helpful tools and resources to develop cost allocation plans and indirect cost rates.

Session 1: Introduction to Cost Allocation Plans and Indirect Cost Rates will address an introduction to cost allocation plans and the development of an indirect cost rate packet. This session will go through the key definitions, what a cost allocation plan and indirect cost rate proposal includes, and provides clarification regarding the requirements under the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200). During this session, participants will take a deeper look at the different types and methodology for allocating costs including direct costs, shared costs, indirect costs, and administrative costs how those costs factor into the indirect cost rate proposal process.

Session 2: How to Develop a Cost Allocation Plan– will look at what’s included and how to go about developing a cost allocation plan.  Participants will learn how cost allocation plans differ for institutes of higher education, nonprofits, and states and local governments. Participants will learn how to take various agency expenses to create a cost allocation plan that will ultimately outline and substantiate an organization’s methodology for allocating costs. 

Session 3:  How to develop an indirect cost rate enables participants to build on the previous session and review a cost allocation to determine and develop an indirect cost rate that ensures a fair and equitable allocation of essential costs. During this session, participants will review the various types of indirect cost rates and examine the required documentation for developing an indirect cost rate proposal package. Participants will also gain an understanding of the process and time frames for negotiating an indirect cost rate with their cognizant agency. 

About the presenter:  Wendy Heath, CFE, is the Assistant Director of the Fiscal Unit for the State of Tennessee, Office of Criminal Justice Programs.  Ms. Heath has worked for State Government for 22 years and for the vast majority of those years, has been in the audit field. Her audit experience goes back to being an auditor for the State of Tennessee Comptroller of Treasury Office. During her years as an auditor, she gained a lot of experience with federal grants and performing single audits. After 16 years, she took a position as the Finance Director for the Tennessee Department of Education. Her main function was to over see the Achievement School Districts budget. In this position she managed federal funding and all expenses for the school district. She held that position for a few years and moved to her current position. This position is the perfect fit for Ms. Heath’s combination of audit and finance experience. Ms. Heath has the primary responsibility for developing OCJP’s IDC rate. Through years of training and other lessons learned, Ms. Heath has become well versed in creating indirect cost plan proposals and reviewing subrecipient indirect cost rate proposals, as well as communicating with their federal cognizant agency during the process. She has a passion for this work and looks forward to bringing her knowledge to help others develop their own process.