By applying for any Albany County Legislative Grants and contracting with Albany County, the applicant organization agrees to the following:
(a) The applicant organization, subsequently referred to as the contracting organization (contractor), is responsible for the efficient and effective administration of the Legislative Grant award through sound management practices.
(b) The contractor is responsible for administering grant funds in a manner consistent with the terms and conditions of the grant contract as well as all information provided by Albany County regarding the parameters of the grant and/or subsequent award.
(c) The accounting practices of the contractor must be consistent with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and include adequate supplemental documentation to verify costs charged to the legislative grant award.
(e) When reviewing, negotiating, and approving costs being charged to the grant, the contractor should ensure that the reasonableness of such costs is fully considered and adhered to. Where wide variations exist in the treatment of a given cost item relative to accepted market-rate pricing (prices for comparable costs in the area), the contractor should provide detailed information to explain the need for the additional expense.
(f) The contractor must not earn or keep any profit resulting from the grant award. When the required program activities are completed in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award, the unexpended funds retained by the contractor are not considered profit. Still, legislative guidance should be sought for the treatment or use of surplus grant funds.
(g) Compensation for personal services is not allowed. This includes all remuneration, paid or accrued for services rendered by employees of the contractor during the period of contract performance under the legislative award, including, but not limited to, wages and salaries. Fringe benefits to employees also constitute compensation and are not reimbursable under legislative grants
(h) Sub-contracting for the performance of approved programming is only permitted with prior written approval by the Legislature. Payments to subcontracting entities must be “arms-length” transactions that don’t benefit the contractor's principals (including payments for labor costs). Subcontractors must include 1099 Forms in addition to invoices for the work performed under the legislative grant.
Allowability of Costs
Costs must meet the following criteria to be allowable under the legislative grant:
(a) Be necessary and reasonable for the performance of the award;
(b) Conform to any limitations or exclusions regarding acceptable expenses under the legislative grant award,
(c) Be consistent with policies and procedures that apply uniformly to both Albany County finances and other activities of the contractor.
(d) Be accorded consistent treatment. For example, a cost must not be assigned to the legislative grant award as a direct cost if any other cost incurred for the same purpose in like circumstances has been allocated to other funding assistance, including State and Federal sources.
(e) Be determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and adequately documented.
(h) All costs must be incurred during the approved contracting period. At its discretion, the Legislature is authorized to waive any prior written approvals and carry forward unobligated award balances to subsequent periods. Such a waiver must be in writing and issued by the Legislature.
Reasonable Costs
A cost is reasonable if it does not exceed an amount that a prudent person would incur under the circumstances prevailing when the decision was made to incur the cost. In determining the reasonableness of a given cost, consideration must be given to the following:
(a) Whether the cost is generally recognized as ordinary and necessary for the contractor’s performance of the legislative award;
(b) The restraints or requirements imposed by such factors as sound business practices, arm's-length bargaining, and the terms and conditions of the legislative grant award; (c) Market prices for comparable costs for the geographic area;
(d) Whether the procuring individuals concerned acted with prudence in the circumstances, considering their responsibilities to the contractor and the County Legislature;
(e) Whether the cost represents a deviation from the contractor’s established written policies and procedures for incurring costs
Cost Allocation
Allocable costs in general: A cost is allocable to the legislative award if it is incurred for the contracted program and all of the relative benefits accrue entirely to the program. This standard is met if the cost is incurred specifically to accomplish the approved program within the approved financial plan. If a cost is incurred for which the benefit is shared between the legislatively approved program and other programming, then the direct cost allocation principles must be applied.
Direct cost allocation principles: If a cost benefits two or more projects or activities in proportions that can be determined without undue effort or cost, the cost must be allocated to the project’s benefits. However, when those proportions cannot be determined, interrelationships of the work involved, costs may be allocated or transferred to the benefited projects on any reasonable documented basis or methodology.
Note: Grant awards do not allow for the purchase of equipment or other capital assets unless explicitly authorized by written approval of the Legislature.
Prior written approval (prior approval)
The reasonableness and allocability of certain costs under legislative awards may be difficult to determine. To avoid subsequent disallowance or dispute based on unreasonableness or non-allocability, the contractor may seek the Legislature's prior written approval before incurring the cost. The absence of prior written approval for any element of cost will not, in itself, affect the reasonableness or allocability of that cost unless prior approval is specifically required for allowability under the terms of the contract.
Collection of unallowable costs
Payments made for costs determined by the Legislature to be unallowable must be refunded. The Legislature will determine the terms of repayment on a case-by-case basis as necessary.
Required Certifications
Financial reports must include a certification, signed by an official who is authorized to legally bind the recipient, which reads as follows:
“By signing this report, I certify to the best of my knowledge and belief that the report is true, complete, and accurate, and the expenditures, disbursements and cash receipts are for the purposes and objectives outlined in the terms and conditions of the Legislative award. I am aware that any false, fictitious, or fraudulent information, or the omission of any material fact, may subject me to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties for fraud, false statements, false claims, or otherwise.”
