Skip to main content

Cost Sharing ("Match")

PPD-0209

PPD Number: 0209
Title: Cost Sharing (“Match”)
Responsible Office: Sponsored Programs
Effective Date: 08/01/2025
Last Updated: First Version

I. Scope

This policy and procedure document (PPD) applies to William & Mary’s Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences (Batten School) & Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS). It applies to all members of the Batten School & VIMS community, including faculty, staff, and students. It applies to all Batten School & VIMS campuses, including the Eastern Shore Laboratory (ESL) and the Kauffman Aquaculture Center (KAC).

II. Purpose & Policy Statement

The intent of this policy is to define the Batten School & VIMS cost sharing (match) policy for sponsored programs. Batten School & VIMS will make a cost sharing commitment when required by the sponsor or by the competitive nature of the award and to the extent necessary to meet the specific requirements of the sponsored project.  Cost sharing commitments to the maximum extent possible will be recorded in the Batten School & VIMS enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.  Cost sharing commitments that cannot be recorded in the ERP system (e.g., committed cost sharing of organizations awarded sub-agreements by Batten School & VIMS, volunteers on sponsored agreements, etc.) must be documented in the project file maintained by the Batten School & VIMS Office of Sponsored Programs for fiscal management of the project.

Further, this policy serves the following purposes:

  1. To provide guidance regarding the circumstances for which committed cost sharing is permitted by Batten School & VIMS, including what kind of services, expenditures, or assets may be cost shared.
  2. To inform the Batten School & VIMS community regarding the contractual, financial and administrative implications that result from the commitment to cost share.
  3. To inform the Batten School & VIMS community regarding the procedures by which Batten School & VIMS can identify the cost sharing commitments it makes as a condition of obtaining external sponsorship and by which Batten School & VIMS demonstrates that it has fulfilled such commitments.
  4. To inform the Batten School & VIMS community regarding the procedures for recording cost shared expenditures both in the Batten School & VIMS ERP system and/or third-party system to identify cost sharing as required by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200).

III. Rationale and Approval Flow Description

For many years, the federal government and most charitable foundations, otherwise known as sponsors, have considered the role of universities and/or institutes such as ours to conduct research, training, and other activities.  These sponsors support universities and/or institutes in fulfilling their role through the issuance of awards for projects; however, many awards do not cover 100 percent of the cost of the projects.  The difference between the award amount and the total cost of the project must be provided by the university and/or institute, a third party, or a combination of the two; this is called “cost sharing”, and, although it is sometimes a required condition of receiving awards, per OMB Uniform Guidance, it should not enter the determination of receiving the award.  Cost sharing can range from 1 percent to over 50 percent of the sponsor funding request.  Cost sharing is sometimes referred to as “matching”. 

Given that Batten School & VIMS resources are widely and fully utilized, Batten School & VIMS requires that every effort be made to minimize cost sharing requirements.  Projects requiring more than fifty percent (50%) of cost share, or those that include voluntary cost share, must be reviewed and approved by the Associate Dean for Research and Advisory Services and the OSP Executive Director.  

IV. Types of Cost Sharing

Mandatory Committed Cost Sharing – Costs required as a condition of the award which must be tracked and may require reporting. This category of cost sharing represents cases where the sponsor requires match, and it must be included in the proposal.

Voluntary Committed Cost Sharing – Costs not required by the sponsor as a condition of receiving the award. The costs are proposed by Batten School & VIMS on a voluntary basis which is quantified in either the proposal budget and/or narrative. These become a binding requirement of the award, must be tracked, and may require reporting.

In-Kind Cost Sharing – In-kind cost sharing are those contributions wherein the value can be readily determined, verified, documented, and justified but where no actual cash is transacted in securing the good or service comprising the contribution. When applicable, an estimated value of the in-kind cost sharing should be determined and documented based on the fair market value at the time of the accepting award.  In-kind cost sharing must be tracked manually by the Office of Sponsored Programs managing the award.

Subrecipient Cost Sharing – Commitments, expenses, or in-kind cost sharing made by subrecipients where Batten School & VIMS is the prime awardee. Cost share is included in the subrecipient’s proposal and documented in the subaward agreement.  These types of cost sharing commitments cannot be tracked in Batten School & VIMS’ systems; therefore, the commitments must be verified manually by the Office of Sponsored Programs managing the award through subrecipient invoices.

V. Procedure

Including Cost Sharing in a Proposal

When cost sharing is specifically required under the terms of a particular sponsored program, the principal investigator (PI) must include the required committed cost sharing amounts in the proposal and in the proposed budget.  Similarly, when cost sharing is explicitly volunteered in the proposal, the PI must include the committed voluntary cost sharing amounts in the proposal and in the proposed project budget.  This includes in-kind cost share committed by collaborators.  An internal agreement on the funding source of the cost sharing commitments must be reached among all parties involved prior to the proposal’s submission.  All committed cost sharing must be recorded in the Batten School & VIMS research administration management system.  All applicable cost sharing agreements become a part of the proposal file.  All applicable cost sharing must be reported to the sponsor as required by the award document.

Accounting for Cost Sharing During the Project

When the award includes either mandatory or voluntary committed cost share, separate account(s) are required to be created during the ERP system grant creation process and charged accordingly.  A separate cost share account is not required to be created at the time of the ERP system grant creation but may be created later if voluntary cost share is decided to be used and charged accordingly.