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Matching means the value of the third party in-kind contributions and the portion of the costs of a federally assisted project or program not borne by the Federal Government. The National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Science Foundation are two agencies that use this mechanism for some of its awards (specifically the Presidential Young Investigator Award from NSF). The Principal Investigator and the department or administrative area to which the Principal Investigator belongs, are responsible for acquiring the matching funds. There are specific guidelines for appropriate matching funds from each agency that requires a matching commitment.
If a Principal Investigator fails to raise sufficient matching funds, there are three courses of action open to the Principal Investigator who is in this situation.
- The Principal Investigator may appeal to the sponsor for additional funding. This approach can be particularly effective if the Principal Investigator is able to prove that a good faith effort was put forth to raise the matching funds.
- The Principal Investigator can initiate steps to rebudget at a lower funding level and re-evaluate the objectives of the project, in light of the reduced budget. The Principal Investigator must work closely with both Office of Sponsored Projects staff and the sponsor as this option clearly changes the scope of the project, an action that can not normally be taken without prior approval from the sponsor.
- The Principal Investigator takes no action and continues to make expenditures based on the belief that matching funds will eventually be raised. At a certain level of over- spending, the OSP will freeze the project's budget. The Principal Investigator's department, Dartmouth College, and occasionally the Principal Investigator are responsible for covering the expenditure. This is NOT an acceptable or fiscally responsible method for handling problems in raising matching funds.
Quick Reference
- Value of 3rd party
- Ratio 1:1 or 2:1, etc.
An example of the matching format is as follows:
Office of Sponsored Projects receives a notice of award from NEH. The award is for $25,000 outright with $10,000 in matching. Therefore the total possible budget is $45,000.
$25,000 base
10,000 from outside sources matched by
10,000 from NEH.
Office of Sponsored Projects will set up the initial account budget for $25,000.
When the matching funds are obtained the Office of Sponsored Projects will submit required matching forms to the NEH. The Office of Sponsored Projects will then receive a revised notice of award from NEH, increasing the funding level. The budget will be increased in our financial system as the revised award(s) arrive.
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