Blanket Justification for Arts Endowment Funding Application Guidelines and Requirements for Government Agencies

Partnership Agreement Budget Instructions
Earliest start date July 1.

Please review the General Terms and Conditions for Partnership Agreements, which incorporates the
modifications and 2 CFR. While our General Terms provides a summary of requirements, it is your
responsibility to review the source documents directly.
Use the Project Budget Form available on the NEA website at https://www.arts.gov/grants/manage-youraward. Scroll down to the middle of the webpage to find the form.
We encourage you to keep your project budgets as simple as possible with easy to document allowable,
allocable, and reasonable costs. You must maintain documentation of all costs charged to your NEA award.
(1) Show only the required 1:1 cost share/match.
Many SAAs and RAOs can and do ultimately exceed the required cost share/match, but to streamline
review of your application, we ask you to limit the cost share/match to just the required 1:1 for this
budget. In other words, if your award is $200,000 show a total project cost of $400,000.
It is important to remember that all costs—whether paid for with NEA funds or the cost share/match—
included in this budget (and on subsequent payment requests and financial reports for this award) must
be allowable per the General Terms and Conditions for Partnership Agreements for your award and 2 CFR
200.
(2) This budget cannot include overlapping project costs with any other Federal award, including previous
years’ Partnership Agreements.
(3) All costs included in this budget must be incurred within the allowable period of performance, which
may begin no earlier than July 1.
Enter your grant period in the period of performance boxes, and be sure to account for sufficient time to
advertise, review, award, and close out all subawards made with NEA and/or required cost share/matching
funds.
You may request a Period of Performance that differs from the one included on your Grants.gov
application form (SF-424) if it better aligns with your agency’s work.
Note that all activities supported under this award must be related to the State Arts or Regional Arts Plan
that was approved in your FY22 application. Funds cannot be "rolled over" for future use.
(4) Any subawards reflected on this budget must be made in accordance with the requirements of 2 CFR
200.332.
This includes specific requirements regarding applicant eligibility, required review criteria, award notice
requirements, subrecipient monitoring and closeout, and other national policy requirements. Review the
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General Terms and Conditions for Partnership Agreements for more detail.
If you are a State Arts Agency, Regional Arts Organization, or Local Arts Agency, please include the
following information for any subgranting program:
• Name of the subgranting program(s),
• Type of recipient (organization/individuals/both),
• Indicate if funded with NEA funds, the required cost share/match, or a mix of both
(5) Provide budget numbers.
Round all numbers to the nearest $100. Describe like costs on a single line if necessary to fit the space
provided.

DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS
ORGANIZATION.
Enter your SAA’s or RAO’s legal name. There is no need to enter an address. The NEA is required to use the
physical address on file with your SAM.gov entity registration.
APPLICATION/AWARD #.
Enter your offered application number.
DATE.
Enter the date your Authorizing Official approved this budget. Post-Award: If you are submitting a revision,
remember to update this field to the current date.
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE REQUESTED.
Enter the start and end date of your requested project period. Note that all costs in the budget must be
incurred within the Period of Performance. The earliest allowable start date is July 1. Periods of performance
must start on the first of the month and end on the last day of the month.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION.
Enter the date you will begin making subawards to expedite processing by the NEA for DATA Act compliance
and for entering required subgrants into the FSRS.
The period of performance should reflect the time necessary to plan, execute, and close out
your project and all subawards.
PARTICIPANTS.
This section gives you the opportunity to add or change the “participants” on the application. Consider who
will need to have access to the REACH system to manage the application and award, and update as needed.
Reminder: this must be done separately for each annual Partnership Agreement as “participation” in a
previous Partnership Agreement does not carry over to subsequent awards. Provide the following information:

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

Authorizing Official.
Enter the full name and contact information for the person who has the legal authority to obligate your
organization and approve this budget on behalf of your organization.



Project Director.
Enter the full name and contact information for the person in charge of administering your partnership
agreement.



Primary Contact.
Enter the full name and contact information for the person who can answer specific questions about this
budget.

PROJECT COSTS
The PROJECT COSTS section of the project budget form must show how the total project costs – i.e., the
combined NEA funds and your cost share/matching funds – will be spent. Direct costs are those that are
identified specifically with the Partnership Agreement. These costs must be allocable and allowable under 2
CFR 200 and the General Terms and Conditions for Partnership Agreements.

A. DIRECT COSTS
DIRECT COSTS are those that are directly allocable to the approved project and that will be incurred during the
period of performance. They must also be allowable.

 Salaries and Wages

List compensation for personnel, both administrative and artistic, who are paid on a salary basis. These
people usually receive a W-2.
Fees for contractual personnel/consultants and compensation for artists who are paid on a fee basis (these
people usually receive a 1099) should be listed under Direct Costs: Other Costs and not here.
Indicate the title and/or type of personnel, the number of personnel, and the percentage of time that will be
allocated to the Partnership Agreement on an annual basis. List key staff positions, and combine similar
functions.
EXAMPLE:

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Salaries and wages for performers and related or supporting personnel must be estimated at rates no less
than the prevailing minimum compensation as required by the Department of Labor Regulations. (See "Legal
Requirements" for details - see https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/textidx?SID=3f31ae73d7c3a076e59796519a2357d8&mc=true&node=pt29.3.505&rgn=div5 for details.)
Reminder:
Per 2 CFR 200.442(a), costs for fundraising activities that are necessary to meet the objectives of the Federal
award are allowable. You may include pro-rated salaries for personnel who undertake fundraising activity if
their work is directly allocable to approved Partnership Agreement activity.
Fringe benefits are those costs other than wages or salary that are attributable to an employee, as in the form
of pension, insurance, vacation and sick leave, etc. They may be included here only if they are not included as
indirect costs.

 Travel

All travel costs must be estimated according to your organization's established written travel policies and
must directly relate to the approved activity outlined in your strategic plan/application.

Airfare costs charged to the award may not exceed the cost of the least expensive class (e.g. coach) available.
Include subsistence costs (e.g., hotels, meals) as part of the amount listed for each trip, as appropriate.
Foreign/international travel. If you are including foreign/international travel in this budget, you must specify
the country of origin and destination and must conform to government regulations, including those of the
U.S. Treasury Department Office of Foreign Asset Control and the Fly America Act. See the General Terms and
Conditions for Partnership Agreements for additional information.
Indicate travel costs according to the example below. Unless travel is to foreign countries, you do not need to
specify destinations; simply indicate whether travel is within your state or out of state. List all trips – both
foreign and domestic – individually.
EXAMPLE
# of Travelers

From

To

Amount

10
4
1

In State (various)
Out of State (Domestic)
France

In State (various)
State Capital
State Capital

$6,000
$4,000
$2,000

 Other

List subawards, consultant and artist fees, contractual services, promotion, acquisition fees, rights,
evaluation and assessment fees, access accommodations (e.g., audio description, sign-language
interpretation, translation, closed or open captioning, large-print brochures/labeling), internet access,
telephone, copying, postage, supplies and materials, publication, distribution, transportation of items other
than personnel, rental of space or equipment, and other project-specific costs.
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List artist compensation here if artists are paid on a fee basis.
Subawards: If your budget includes subaward activity, you must include the following:
 Name of the subgranting program(s),
 Type of recipient (organization/individuals/both),
 Indicate if funded with NEA funds, the required cost share/match, or a mix of both.
Equipment: If you intend to purchase any equipment that costs $5,000 or more per item (or your State’s or
organization’s capitalization level) and that has an estimated useful life of more than one year, you must
specifically identify that item here, and provide a justification for the expenditure on this form or in an
attachment. Clearly identify the rental or purchase of equipment.


For equipment purchases, you must provide specific written justification for items with a unit value of
$5,000 or more and a useful life of more than one year.



Computing devices with a unit cost of $5,000 or less are considered supplies, regardless of the length
of useful life.

Provide detailed information for any large line items.
EXAMPLE:
Creativity Grants, subgrants to nonprofit organizations (NEA funds and State Cost Share)

$200,000

Contractual Services (web design, marketing)

$35,000

Administration (% of rent, supplies, communications)

$50,000

Equipment (purchase of high def audio/visual system for state-wide webcasts) – separate
components that total =
Access Accommodations

$7,500
$10,000

Do NOT include the following unallowable costs in your NEA project budget. All costs in the budget—
whether funded with NEA funds or your cost share/matching funds—must be allowable. See 2 CFR 200
Subpart E.
The following costs are unallowable and may not be supported with Federal or cost share/matching funds.
(1)
Alcoholic beverages.
(2)
Audit costs not directly related to a federally required Single Audit.
(3)
Cash reserves or endowments.
(4)
Concessions including food, beverages, T-shirts, posters, and other items for resale (retail activities).
This includes costs for workers selling such items.
(5)
Contingencies, miscellaneous, or “other” costs.
(6)
Contributions or donations to other entities.
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(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)
(14)
(15)
(16)
(17)

Costs incurred before or after the approved period of performance. This includes subgranting
activity.
Fines and penalties, bad debt costs, or deficit reduction.
General fundraising for your organization.
Gifts and prizes. This includes cash prizes, gift certificates/cards, or any other items with monetary
value.
Hospitality costs and costs related to social functions such as receptions, parties, and galas, as well as
food/meals that conclude a program or event.
Land purchase costs, construction, or renovation of building structures.
Lobbying.
Marketing expenses not directly related to the project.
Rental costs for home office workspace owned by individuals or entities affiliated with your
organization.
Vehicle purchase costs.
Visa costs paid to the U.S. government.

Procurement / Acquisition:
 For units of state government, follow the same procurement policies and procedures you use for nonfederal Funds (2 CFR 200.317).


For nonprofits, all acquisitions must be carried out in accordance with your organization's written
established procurement policy which must be consistent with 2 CFR 200.318 - .327.

 TOTAL DIRECT COSTS = SALARIES/WAGES/FRINGE + TRAVEL + OTHER.

B. INDIRECT COSTS
Indirect costs are overhead or administrative expenses that are not readily identifiable with fulfilling the
Partnership Agreement. The costs of operating and maintaining facilities and equipment, depreciation or use
allowances, and administrative salaries and supplies are typical examples of indirect costs.
You must upload a copy of your most recent federally-negotiated indirect cost rate agreement and/or
Statewide Cost Allocation Plan (SWCAP) to the Documents Tab for your offer via REACH.
For SAAs
You may include costs required under a SWCAP here. However, you must provide a copy of the allocation plan
and details on how the SWCAP amount was calculated.
For RAOs/NASAA
In order to claim indirect costs on this line, you must have a rate negotiated with the NEA or another federal
agency. (If so, provide a copy of your current rate agreement with this budget.)

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DE MINIMIS RATE
 If your organization has never received a federally negotiated indirect cost rate, you may elect to
charge a de minimis rate of 10% on modified total direct costs (MTDC) which may be used indefinitely.
For more information, see 2 CFR Part 200.414(f). Simply check the box next to “de minimis.”


A non-federal entity that had a past indirect cost rate agreement that is now expired may elect to
charge the de minimis indirect cost rate (see 2 CFR Part 200.414(f) and 85 FR 49506) . The de minimis
rate may be used indefinitely.

Note: If you do not have an ICRA and do not choose the de minimis option, you may still claim
administrative/overhead costs as direct costs under Direct Costs: Other. However, you cannot claim both.

 Total INDIRECT COSTS (if applicable).
 TOTAL PROJECT COSTS = TOTAL DIRECT COSTS + INDIRECT COSTS (if applicable).
TOTAL PROJECT COSTS should equal your TOTAL PROJECT INCOME.

PROJECT INCOME
Cost Share/Match Requirement. The total cost share/match for the project must be equal to the National
Endowment for the Arts’ Offered Amount below (unless you are receiving NEA funds that do not require a
cost share/match).
Your cost share or match may be all cash or a combination of cash and in-kind contributions as detailed below.

 ORGANIZATION SHARE: CASH

List cash donations (including items or services that are provided by the applicant organization),
appropriated funds, grants, and/or other revenues that are expected or received for the Partnership
Agreement.
For SAAs
The NEA’s legislative requirements for cost share/match states that “The non-Federal funds required…to pay
50 percent of the cost of a program or production shall be provided from funds directly controlled and
appropriated by the State involved and directly managed by the State agency of such State.”
For RAOs/NASAA
Funds proposed as cost share/match must be allowable per the General Terms and Conditions for Partnership
Agreements and the General Terms and Conditions for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to Organizations.
Do not include NEA or other federal funds that are anticipated or received here.

 THIRD-PARTY, IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS

List goods or services donated by third-party individuals/entities outside your organization.

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For SAAs
In-kind cost share/match cannot be used to meet the minimum matching requirement for your award. This
section must be blank and equal $0.
For RAOs/NASAA
In-kind can include donated space, supplies, and/or volunteer services – i.e., goods and services that are
donated by individuals or organizations other than the applicant. To qualify as matching resources, these same
items also must be listed under direct costs. The dollar value of these non-cash donations should be calculated
at their verifiable fair-market value. Identify sources. Proper documentation must be maintained for all items
noted as "in-kind."

 TOTAL RECIPIENT SHARE FOR THIS PROJECT (Total Project Income). TOTAL CASH + TOTAL
IN-KIND.
 NEA AMOUNT = Enter the total amount of funding offered per the accompanying
notification.
 TOTAL PROJECT INCOME. TOTAL RECIPIENT SHARE + NEA AMOUNT.

PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT STATEMENT
The public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated at an average of one hour per response. This includes the
time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and
reviewing the collection of information. We welcome any suggestions that you might have on improving the guidelines and making
them as easy to use as possible. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information,
including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: [email protected], Attention: Reporting Burden.
Note: Applicants/awardees are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently valid U.S. Office
of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.

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