Equipment

Property acquired under a financial assistance award or subaward (where some or all of the cost is a direct charge or a part of any required cost sharing), as well as property furnished to Auburn University ("AU"), are subject to the Sponsor's property management requirements.

The Office of Sponsored Programs has a role in ensuring that the necessary terms and conditions for acquisition, ownership (title), use, and disposition of property are followed to ensure appropriate management of property during the period of support.

A major responsibility of OSP with regard to property management is the review/approval of equipment Purchase Requisitions prior to their submission to Procurement and Payment Services. The definition of "equipment" would include all items having a unit price of $5,000 or more and a useful life of one year or more. Additionally, Purchase Requisitions for items that do not meet this threshold but are expenditures associated with building a piece of capital equipment or upgrading existing equipment (extending useful life) would also require OSP approval.

Such reviews entail matching the project's equipment budget to the Purchase Requisition and determining ownership. Typically title to property acquired under financial assistance is vested in AU, however, title can be retained by the Government or the Sponsor.

There are important distinctions in treatment between property purchased under an award in which title is vested in AU and title vesting in the Government, in terms of the Government rights to that property and the reporting requirements. For example, AU must report annually on Federally-owned equipment or equipment furnished by the Government. For equipment in which the title is vested in AU, a listing of equipment acquired under the award needs be provided only at closeout. The property management standards require that AU maintain records, available for Government review, concerning property acquired with Government funds. OSP has a property administrator who monitors compliance with requirements for Federally-owned property, where applicable.

Auburn University Equipment Inventory Form

Sponsor Requirements

Office of Naval Research (ONR)
Department of Defense (DoD) - Manual for the Performance of Contract Property Administration
DOD - DD1662 Form
DOD - Item Unique Identification of Government Property Guidebook
Federal Property Management Regulations (FPMR)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) - Contractor Property Reporting Information
NASA Contract Property Contacts by Center
DOE Property Management Regulations
Oak Ridge National Laboratory Property Management
NASA Property in the Custody of Contractors (NF 1018)

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