Allowable and Non-Allowable Costs Guidance

Allowable and Non-Allowable Costs


3. Specific Cost Guidance by Category

3.41. Specialized service facilities

Ref: 2 CFR Part 200, §200.468. 

The costs of services provided by highly complex or specialized facilities operated by the College, such as computing facilities, wind tunnels, and reactors are allowable, provided the charges for the services meet the conditions of either paragraphs (b) or (c) of this section, and, in addition, take into account any items of income or Federal financing that qualify as applicable credits under §200.406 Applicable credits. 

The costs of such services, when material, must be charged directly to applicable awards based on actual usage of the services on the basis of a schedule of rates or established methodology that: 

  1. Does not discriminate between activities under Federal awards and other activities of the College, including usage by the College for internal purposes, and 
  2. Is designed to recover only the aggregate costs of the services. The costs of each service must consist normally of both its direct costs and its allocable share of all indirect (F&A) costs. Rates must be adjusted at least biennially, and must take into consideration over/under applied costs of the previous period(s). 
Where the costs incurred for a service are not material, they may be allocated as indirect (F&A) costs. 

Under some extraordinary circumstances, where it is in the best interest of the Federal Government and the College to establish alternative costing arrangements, such arrangements may be worked out with the Federal cognizant agency for indirect costs.