NEH General Application Guide.pdf

General Application Guide for Awards to Organizations Published February 27, 2026. Version 1.0

Table of Contents

Step 1: Review the funding opportunity

Learn about NEH programs

Read the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)

Step 2: Prepare to apply

Create or update your registrations

Confirm your organization’s eligibility to apply

Step 3: Create your application

Review the application requirements

Create your attachments

Complete Grants.gov forms

Step 4: Prepare your budget and budget justification

Budget Restrictions

Subrecipients and subawards

Indirect costs

Completing the Research and Related (R&R) Budget form

Step 5: Review policy requirements

Administrative and national policy requirements

Policies relating to NEH proposals

Step 6: Submit your application for reviewn this section:

Submit your application in Grants.gov

Review and selection process

Assessment of risk and other pre-award activities

Foreword The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency created in 1965. It is one of the largest funders of humanities programs in the United States and makes awards to cultural institutions such as museums, archives, libraries, colleges, universities, public television and radio stations, and to individual scholars.

NEH offers several grant programs, each with its own objectives and intended audience, explained in a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). The general guidelines in this document provide standard instructions that apply to all NEH funding programs for organizations.

Program-specific requirements, review criteria, page limits, and allowable activities are set forth exclusively in the NOFO. Together, the general guidelines and the specific NOFO for the program to which you apply provide all the information you need to complete and submit your application. NEH will update this guidance periodically.

In the case of a discrepancy between these guidelines and a program NOFO, the program NOFO takes precedence.

The purpose of this document is to introduce prospective applicants to the NEH award process. It will help you choose a grant program, prepare to apply, and submit your application through Grants.gov.

These guidelines are for NOFOs published on or after February 27, 2026.

Foreword

Review the funding opportunity In this section:

Learn about NEH programs

• Consult with program staff

• Read the FAQs and review examples of successful projects

• Subscribe to receive updates from Grants.gov

Read the Notice of Funding Opportunity

(NOFO)

• What the program funds

• Funding and award duration

• Who can apply

• What to include in your application Application review, relevant policies, agency contacts, and other information

For questions about grant activities, contact the NEH program division listed in the NOFO.

For questions about administrative requirements or allowable costs, contact the Office of Grant Management at grantmanagement@ neh.gov or 202-606-8494.

If you are deaf or hard of hearing, contact NEH using telecommunications relay service at 7-1-1.

Step 1: Review the funding opportunity mailto:grantmanagement@neh.gov

Learn about NEH programs NEH programs are administered by divisions that work with prospective applicants from a wide range of humanities organizations.

You can view current and anticipated grant programs at https://www.neh.gov/grants/listing. Each grant program has a resource page on NEH’s website.

Choosing a program that closely matches your project’s goals and activities is one of the most important steps in preparing a strong application.

Consult with program staff Program staff can answer questions about grant programs and help you determine which program is the best fit for your project. However, division staff cannot predict funding outcomes. See Section H: Agency Information in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), or contact the division that manages the grant program.

Read the FAQs and review examples of past successful projects The program resource webpage may have an FAQ document, sample applications, and a link to a saved search of previously funded projects.

Using the Funded Projects Query form, you can search past NEH awards and filter by division, grant program, year, or other factors.

Subscribe to receive updates from Grants.gov Most NEH programs have one deadline a year. If the deadline has passed, you can read the previous NOFO on the NEH website, which will also tell you the next anticipated deadline.

NEH posts NOFOs on Grants.gov. If a program is not currently accepting applications, the award may be posted as a Forecast. You can subscribe to receive email updates by clicking the red “Subscribe” button on the Grants.gov page, or by following these instructions.

Have a project in mind?

Use our tool to match it with an NEH grant program.

There are four program divisions at NEH:

• Collections and

Infrastructure

• Federal/State Partnership

• Lifelong Learning

• Research

Before applying:

1. Read the entire NOFO

2. Check your eligibility

3. Register with SAM.gov

4. Register with Grants.gov

Step 1: Review the funding opportunity https://www.neh.gov/divisions-offices https://www.neh.gov/grants/listing https://apps.neh.gov/publicquery/main.aspx https://apply07.grants.gov/help/html/help/Connect/SubscribeToOpportunities.htm https://www.neh.gov/grants/match-your-project https://www.neh.gov/grants/match-your-project https://www.neh.gov/grants/match-your-project https://www.neh.gov/divisions/collections https://www.neh.gov/divisions/collections https://www.neh.gov/divisions/fedstate https://www.neh.gov/divisions/lifelong-learning https://www.neh.gov/divisions/research

Read the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) You are responsible for reviewing and following all requirements in the NOFO and in these guidelines. In the case of any discrepancy between the NOFO and these guidelines, the NOFO takes precedence.

All NEH NOFOs follow a standard structure and include the sections described below.

Executive summary The executive summary provides a concise overview of the funding opportunity, including award amounts, application deadlines, anticipated project start dates, and who is eligible to apply.

Program description and scope of funding Section A: Program Description describes the program’s goals, supported activities, and funding restrictions. This section is specific to each program.

Funding and award duration Section B: Federal Award Information summarizes the type and amount of funding you may request. This section also explains the allowable period of performance, which is the time during which you may incur expenses to carry out your project.

Who can apply Section C: Eligibility Information explains who is eligible to apply and receive funding (see Step 2, below), and whether the program requires cost sharing, which is a non-federal contribution from the applicant.

What to include in your application Section D: Application Contents lists and describes the required parts of an application. It includes directions for what to write in your narrative and which materials (such as résumés and bibliographies) you need to provide, along with precise formatting instructions. The Application Component Table shows all required forms and attachments of a complete application.

Application review, relevant policies, agency contacts, and other information Sections E-I of the NOFO explain how NEH will review your proposal (Section E: Application Review Information, and Step 6, below) and provide information about how to manage an award if your application is successful (Section G: Award Notices, and Step 6, below). The NOFO also includes contacts for the program division and the Office of Grant Management (Section I: Agency Information) and additional information, such as related funding opportunities.

Read the NOFO from start to finish before drafting your application. Pay particular attention to sections A-D, which define what NEH will fund, the level of funding, who may apply, and application components.

For NEH to consider your application, you must follow the directions about application components and page limits in Section D.1 of the NOFO.

Step 1: Review the funding opportunity

Prepare to apply In this section:

Create or update your registrations

• Create your Login.gov account

• Register or update your organization’s SAM.gov account

• Register in Grants.gov

Check your organization’s eligibility

• Who can apply

• Resubmissions and multiple applications

• Applying as a consortium

Consult Login.gov help center for assistance with Login.gov.

Contact the Federal Service Desk for questions about registering or renewing your registration with SAM.gov.

Contact Grants.gov Applicant Support for help with registration or with submitting your application.

Obtain a case number when requesting help.

Step 2: Prepare to apply https://www.login.gov/help/ https://www.login.gov/help/ https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp https://www.grants.gov/support.html https://www.grants.gov/support.html

Create or update your registrations Create your Login.gov account

Login.gov is a secure sign-in service used by participating federal agencies. Each individual who will work in Grants.gov must have their own Login.gov account. Create an account at Login.gov.

Register or update your organization’s SAM.gov account You must have an active SAM registration in order to apply for and receive federal funding.

Entities registering in SAM.gov for the first time will submit information about their organization’s type and structure, financial information (such as dates of the fiscal year, banking information, and executive compensation), and points of contact. SAM.gov reviews and verifies this information and issues a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). This process may take several weeks.

You must renew your SAM registration annually. If it is not active at the time of Grants.gov submission, NEH cannot accept your application.

Register in Grants.gov Grants.gov is a clearinghouse to post federal funding opportunities and submit applications to NEH and other federal agencies. If you do not already have an account, you will need to register and link your Login.gov account to Grants.gov. Follow the Grants.gov Quick Start Guide for Applicants to register, create a Workspace, assign roles, find a funding opportunity, and troubleshoot issues.

Designate an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) Your institution’s Grants.gov E-Business Point of Contact must designate an authorized organization representative (AOR). The AOR is authorized to enter into legally binding contracts on behalf of your institution, and is responsible for certifying and submitting your NEH application. An AOR is typically from the Office of Sponsored Programs, or is an organization’s executive director, financial officer, or board chair. At larger institutions such as universities, there may be multiple AORs, and AORs can have different levels of responsibility within Grants.gov.

Start early: Allow several weeks to register with SAM.gov.

NEH will not grant a deadline extension due to an applicant’s failure to register in time with SAM.gov or Grants.gov.

For projects with subawards: Subrecipients must have a UEI but do not need full SAM registration.

https://www.login.gov/create-an-account/ https://www.gsa.gov/about-us/organization/federal-acquisition-service/fas-initiatives/integrated-award-environment/iae-systems-information-kit/unique-entity-id-is-here https://grantsgovprod.wordpress.com/2020/10/08/new-sign-in-to-grants-gov-with-your-login-gov-credentials/#Linking-Steps https://grantsgovprod.wordpress.com/2020/10/08/new-sign-in-to-grants-gov-with-your-login-gov-credentials/#Linking-Steps https://www.grants.gov/quick-start-guide/applicants https://www.grants.gov/quick-start-guide/applicants

Confirm your organization’s eligibility to apply Consult Section C: Eligibility Information in the NOFO to confirm that your organization meets the specific eligibility requirements for the program.

For-profit entities and foreign organizations are not eligible to apply for NEH funding.

Individuals are not eligible to apply for organizational awards. NEH offers separate grant programs specifically for individuals.

Resubmissions and multiple applications You may revise and resubmit an application not selected for funding.

Resubmissions must meet the application requirements and review criteria of the current competition.

Consult the NOFO to learn whether you may submit multiple applications for separate and distinct projects, and whether the same individual may serve as project director on more than one application.

Applying as a consortium You may apply on behalf of a consortium of collaborating eligible organizations. If NEH selects your proposal for funding, the applicant organization will be programmatically, legally, and fiscally responsible for the award.

Substantive Involvement The applicant organization must have substantive involvement in the programmatic activities that are necessary and integral to the project.

Applicant institutions must not function solely as a fiscal agent (an organization that provides only administrative services such as proposal submission, financial management, payment requests, reporting, or maintaining IRS status, but does not direct or carry out project activities). Fiscal sponsors (an eligible organization that applies on behalf of an ineligible organization) are not eligible to apply.

Confirm your eligibility before preparing an application. Applications submitted by ineligible organizations cannot be reviewed.

You can request evaluator comments from previously submitted applications to help inform revisions.

To be eligible as a lead applicant, your organization must be actively involved in the project’s intellectual or programmatic work, not just its administration or fiscal oversight.

Create your application

Review the application requirements in the

NOFO

Create your application elements

• Required content for the project narrative and other application components

• Formatting and page limit requirements

• Conditionally required attachments (if applicable)

Complete Grants.gov forms

• SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational

• Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Programs

• Project/Performance Site Location(s) form

• Attachments form

• Lobbying forms

In the next section:

Prepare your budget and budget justification

• Step 4 provides information about the Research and Related

(R&R) Budget form and budget justification.

You will create and submit your application in Grants.gov or in a Grants.gov system-to-system platform.

You will probably develop your application components simultaneously. They are interconnected and as a whole should present your project in a clear and compelling manner.

Step 3: Create your application

Review the application requirements Section D: Application Contents in the NOFO describes the required content of your proposal, including necessary components and writing prompts. Section D.1 is an Application Component Table listing the specific program attachments and required Grants.gov forms.

Review the funding restrictions in section A.2 of the NOFO for unallowable costs.

Create your application elements All applications require a project narrative and work plan, along with other components specified in the NOFO. The NOFO designates each document as required, optional, recommended, or conditionally required and provides detailed instructions for what each one must include.

NEH will reject your application as incomplete or nonresponsive if you omit required components or include elements other than those listed in the NOFO.

Format your application elements The NOFO provides mandatory or suggested page limits for most documents. NEH will reject your application if you exceed mandatory page limits.

Your application components must conform to the following formatting requirements, unless otherwise indicated:

• pages no larger than standard letter (8 ½" x 11”)

• margins of at least one inch on all sides

• single spacing a readable font such as Arial, Helvetica, or Times New Roman, no smaller than 11 points

You may use any standard citation style. Include citations in page counts.

Conditionally required documents You must include application elements designated as “conditionally required” when applicable. Below are conditionally required documents common to all NEH programs. The program to which you apply may have other conditionally required application components.

In Grants.gov, you will submit several application components using the Attachments form.

NEH will not review your application if:

• It exceeds mandatory page limits

• It is missing required or conditionally required documents

• You include extra materials

An application may be found incomplete if it is missing required elements or required information. An application may be found nonresponsive if the proposed project does not align with the program’s stated purpose or includes unallowable activities or costs, as described in the

NOFO.

Label your files clearly in accordance with the NOFO instructions.

Indirect cost rate agreement If your organization is claiming indirect costs and has a current federally negotiated indirect cost rate agreement (NICRA), provide a copy of the current agreement. See Step 4 for more about indirect costs.

Explanation of federal debt If your organization is delinquent in the repayment of any federal debt, you must explain why. Provide evidence that you have entered into a repayment agreement with the Internal Revenue Service, if applicable, and that you are current on all payments due. Examples of relevant debt include delinquent payroll or other taxes, audit disallowances, and benefit overpayments. See OMB Circular A-129.

Subrecipient budgets If your proposal includes subrecipients, you must include a budget and budget justification for each subaward. See Step 4 for information about subawards and subrecipients.

The NICRA must be fully executed.

https://whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/legacy_drupal_files/omb/circulars/A129/a-129.pdf

Complete Grants.gov forms This guide includes instructions for the Grants.gov forms that are mandatory for all applications to NEH. Some NEH programs require additional Grants.gov forms. To see all required Grants.gov forms for a specific program, consult the Application Component Table in section D.1. of the NOFO.

In the case of a discrepancy between these guidelines and a program NOFO, the program NOFO takes precedence.

SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational form This form requests basic information about your institution, the proposed project, and key contacts.

When you access this form in your Grants.gov Workspace, items 1, 2, and 4 will be automatically completed. Leave item 3 blank.

Applicant Information (section 5 of the SF-424) a-d. Provide your organization’s legal name, address, and web address. Select the applicant type that best describes your organization from the drop-down menu.

e-f. Provide your organization’s employer/taxpayer identification number (EIN/TIN), and Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) assigned by the System for Award Management (SAM.gov).

g. Provide your congressional district with your two-character state abbreviation followed by your three-character district number. For example, if your institution is located in the 5th congressional district of Alabama, enter “AL-005.” If your institution is in a state or U.S.

jurisdiction that does not have districts, enter “000” in place of the district number. If your institution is outside the U.S., enter “00-000.”

Project Information (section 6 of the SF-424)

a. Provide your project’s title. It should be brief (no more than 125 characters, including spaces), descriptive of the project, and easily understood by the general public.

b. Provide a brief description of your project (no more than 1,000 characters, including spaces). Write the description for a nonspecialist audience, clearly stating the importance of the proposed work and its relation to larger issues in the humanities. This description will appear on the cover sheet of your application. If funded, this description will also appear in NEH’s database of funded projects.

c. State the start and end dates of your project’s period of performance. Your project must start on the first day of a month and end on the last day of a month.

You will complete these forms in your Grants.gov Workspace.

The project title and description you provide in your SF-424 will appear on the cover sheet for your application.

Step 3: Create your application https://sam.gov/ https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative https://www.grants.gov/applicants/workspace-overview.html https://www.grants.gov/applicants/workspace-overview.html

Project director, grant administrator, and authorized organization representative (Sections 7-9 of the SF- 424) Provide name, title, and contact information for these three individuals:

Project Director The project director is responsible for the programmatic aspects and day-to-day management of the proposed project.

If the project director is not an employee of the recipient organization, there must be a formal written agreement that specifies an official relationship between the parties, even if the relationship does not involve a salary or other form of remuneration.

Primary Contact / Grant Administrator The institutional grant administrator (IGA) serves as the primary contact and must have authority to act on the organization’s behalf in matters related to the administration of NEH awards. The IGA is responsible for compliance with federal regulations and the terms and conditions of the award. They can request changes in personnel and modifications to the period of performance, reporting deadlines, project activity, and budget.

As a matter of NEH policy, the project director and primary contact/grant administrator must not be the same person.

Authorized Organization Representative The authorized organization representative (AOR) is a designated role in Grants.gov and is someone authorized to enter your institution into a legally binding contract. The AOR will submit the grant application through Grants.gov, even if other individuals prepared the proposal.

The AOR’s name and contact information must be manually entered into the SF-424 form, but the signature and date auto-populate in Grants.gov. Confirm the name you enter here is the AOR submitting the application.

The project director (programmatic oversight) and grant administrator (fiscal and compliance oversight) must be different individuals to ensure proper internal controls and accountability over federal funds.

Even though there is an option on the SF-424 form to make the grant administrator and the project director the same person, NEH requires two separate individuals.

Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs This form provides additional information for NEH, and some of it will populate the cover page of your application. Complete each section.

Project director Select the project director’s major field of study from the drop-down menu.

Institutional information Select your institution type from the drop-down menu.

Project funding Most NEH programs award outright funds only and do not offer matching funds. In this case, enter the amount you are requesting from NEH under “Outright Funds.” Do not enter anything under “Federal Match” or “Cost Sharing.”

If your application includes matching funds:

• Under “Outright Funds,” enter the amount of outright funds you are requesting.

• Under “Federal Match,” enter the amount of federal matching funds you are requesting.

• Under “Cost Sharing,” enter the required cost share you will provide to release the federal matching funds. Do not include voluntary cost share.

Application information Indicate whether you will submit complementary proposals to other NEH opportunities, government agencies, or private entities. If so, specify when and to whom. NEH will not consider this information when evaluating the merits of your proposal. Keep in mind that per 2 CFR § 200.403(f), NEH does not permit overlapping costs on two or more federal awards or approved federal award budgets. See Step 4 for information on overlapping costs.

For type of application, check “new.”

Select the project’s primary discipline from the drop-down menu. If applicable, select the project’s secondary and tertiary disciplines.

If matching or cost sharing is required, the NOFO will provide specific details on the match ratio, sources of funds, and period of eligibility.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.403#p-200.403(f)

Project/Performance Site Location(s) form Provide the primary location and any other locations where you will conduct project activities during the period of performance.

Enter congressional districts using the two-letter state abbreviation followed by your three-character district number. For example, if your institution is in the 5th congressional district of Alabama, enter “AL- 005.” If your institution is in a state or U.S. jurisdiction that does not have districts, enter “000” in place of the district number. If your institution is outside the U.S., enter “00-000.”

Attachments form You will upload your attachments to Grants.gov using this form.

Attachments must be in Portable Document Format (.pdf). Convert all non-PDF files (e.g. Word, Excel, images) to PDFs. Do not attach files that have been password-protected, encrypted, or digitally signed. Do not attach portfolios containing multiple PDFs. Grants.gov will reject applications containing files not converted to PDF or PDFs with security features.

Consult the Application Component Table in section D.1 of the NOFO to name and sequence your attachments.

Grants.gov may reject your application if:

file names exceed 50 characters multiple files have the same name file names include characters other than the following: A-Z, a-z, 0-

9, underscore, hyphen, space, period, parentheses, curly braces, square brackets, ampersand, tilde, exclamation point, comma, semicolon, apostrophe, at sign, number sign, dollar sign, percent sign, plus sign, and equal sign

Learn about Adobe software compatibility with Grants.gov and ensure that you have a compatible version of Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Lobbying forms (for awards greater than $100,000) If you are awarded more than $100,000 and do not submit completed lobbying forms at time of application, you must submit them before NEH issues your award.

Certification Regarding Lobbying Use this form to certify that no federal funds have or will be paid to persons to influence any federal funding decisions. Add this form to your application package in Grants.gov and it will autofill based upon information provided in the SF-424.

Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure of Lobbying Activities” If you have or will use non-federal funds for lobbying, you must submit Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure of Lobbying Activities” before NEH issues your award. Add this form to your application package in Grants.gov. See 2 CFR § 200.450

Grants.gov may accept and validate your application even if you are missing required components or have formatted them incorrectly.

You must ensure that you have formatted, attached, and submitted all required components correctly. If you have not, NEH may reject your application as incomplete or nonresponsive.

https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative https://grants.gov/applicants/adobe-software-compatibility https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.450

Prepare your budget and budget justification In this section:

• The Research and Related (R&R) Budget form and budget justification

• Outright funds vs. matching funds

• Cost sharing requirements

• Budget restrictions

• Conferences, events, and food

• Subrecipients and subawards

• Indirect costs

• Completing the Research and Related Budget form

Your budget and budget justification should mirror your project. They should provide a detailed picture of how you will spend grant funds and a clear breakdown of costs.

Step 4: Prepare your budget and justification

Prepare your budget and budget justification Most NEH programs require you use the Research and Related (R&R) Budget form for your budget. You must complete a separate budget justification to explain your budget costs. In your justification, you must describe how each item supports your proposed objectives, show the math for your cost calculations (e.g., $50/hour x 20 hours = $1,000), and provide supporting documentation. You will create the budget justification separately and attach it to the R&R Budget form as a PDF.

This section provides information about budget categories, eligible expenditures, what to include in your budget and justification, and specific directions on completing the R&R form.

All costs, whether supported by NEH funds or required cost sharing contributions, must be reasonable, necessary to accomplish project objectives, allowable in terms of 2 CFR 200 Subpart E - Cost Principles, auditable, and incurred during the period of performance. Costs are subject to audit, record retention, and other requirements set forth in 2 CFR 200 Subpart F - Audit Requirements.

Outright funds vs. matching funds NEH supports projects with outright funds, matching funds, or a combination of the two. Learn about the types of funds NEH offers.

If you are requesting only outright funds from NEH, enter just those funds in the R&R Budget form. This is the case for most NEH programs.

Unless the NOFO specifically requires cost sharing, do not include voluntary cost share in the R&R Budget form. NEH does not expect or consider voluntary cost share when reviewing applications.

If you wish to describe cost share that is not charged to the award, you may include a narrative in the budget justification.

If you request federal matching funds, your budget and justification must equal the total funding requested from NEH (outright and federal matching funds), plus any required cost share.

If you have questions about allowable costs, contact the Office of Grant Management at grantmanagement@ neh.gov or 202-606-8494.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=236bb02f01d2e050f7a5b60c88a67066&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#sp2.1.200.e https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200#subpart-F https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/types-funding

Cost sharing Cost sharing refers to project costs that are covered with non-federal funds. These are divided into two categories:

1. Voluntary cost share: Costs that exceed the amount awarded by NEH, which include:

• cash contributions that you or a third party make to the project

• in-kind contributions (non-cash contributions, such as supplies or services) that you or a third party contribute to the project

• unrecovered indirect costs

2. Required cost share: Financial contributions to a project for the purpose of releasing federal matching funds. The NOFO will specify allowable sources of cost share and other requirements. You must fully document these costs in your budget.

Budget Restrictions Section A of the NOFO describes activities for which you can request funding and lists funding restrictions - costs and activities that the grant program cannot support. Each program has specific unallowable costs. The following are prohibited for all NEH awards:

Restricted activities:

• promotion of a particular political, religious, or ideological point of view

• promotion of gender ideology

• promotion of discriminatory equity ideology

• support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) or diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives or activities

• environmental justice initiatives or activities

• advocacy of a particular program of social or political action

• support of specific public policies or legislation

• lobbying Programmatic exclusions

• projects that fall outside of the humanities

• the creation or performance of art

• creative writing, autobiographies, memoirs, and creative nonfiction

• policy studies

• social science research that does not address humanistic questions and/or utilize humanistic methods Unallowable costs

• costs for activities performed by federal entities or personnel

• fiscal agent and fiscal sponsor fees.

fiscal agent activities alone without substantive involvement (e.g., proposal submissions, reporting, financial oversight, maintaining IRS status)

You must maintain auditable records of the sources and use of cost share. See 2 CFR § 200.306.

Peer reviewers will not consider voluntary cost share in their evaluation of applications.

Step 4: Prepare your budget and justification https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.306 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.306

Conferences, events, and food 2 CFR § 200.432 defines a conference as a meeting, retreat, seminar, symposium, workshop, or event, the primary purpose of which is to disseminate technical information beyond the non-federal entity, and which is necessary and reasonable for successful performance under the federal award.

Per 2 CFR § 200.432, allowable conference costs include speakers’ fees, costs of meals and refreshments, and other incidental items.

You must exercise discretion and judgment to ensure that expenses are appropriate, necessary, and managed in a manner that minimize costs to the award.

See Allowability of Food Costs on NEH Awards for circumstances when you may purchase food with NEH funds. Food costs are not permitted in NEH awards unless authorized by the Office of Grant Management as part of the application budget, or as a prior approval request.

You may not use federal funds for meals or refreshments at receptions or networking events. Beverages and refreshments such as coffee/tea, pastries, and fruit may be provided when the event has several hours of instruction.

A full meal may be provided if there is substantive instruction both before and after the meal is served. You may serve a meal while a presentation is being given. You may not begin or end an event with a full meal.

If participants receive complimentary meals or refreshments during meetings, conferences, training, or other events while on NEH-supported travel, you must reduce the per diem you charge to the award. Per 2 CFR § 200.423, you must not use federal funds for alcohol.

Federally funded meetings and conferences must take place in properties that comply with the Hotel and Motel Fire Safety Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-391). Consult the U.S. Fire Administration’s National Master List for fire code–compliant hotels.

Food costs must be fundamental to the project and indispensable for carrying out the scope of the work.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.432 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.432 https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/allowability-of-food-costs https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.423 https://www.congress.gov/bill/101st-congress/house-bill/94/text https://www.congress.gov/bill/101st-congress/house-bill/94/text https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/hotel/

Additional cost restrictions

Overlapping costs Per 2 CFR § 200.403(f), NEH does not permit overlapping costs on two or more awards for federal funding and/or approved federal award budgets.

If you are submitting proposals to other NEH programs or government agencies, specify when and to whom in the Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs. NEH may disallow overlapping project costs. An individual’s level of effort cannot exceed 100% across multiple active federally funded awards.

Federal entities NEH does not issue awards to other federal entities. If your project is so closely intertwined with a federal entity that the project takes on characteristics of the federal entity’s own authorized activities, it is ineligible. Proposals to construct permanent improvements to lands or facilities that belong to another federal agency are typically ineligible for NEH support.

You may use funds from, or sites and materials controlled by, other federal entities in your project, but you may not use them as gifts to release federal matching funds.

Foreign entities NEH does not provide financial assistance to foreign institutions or organizations. If you are an eligible domestic entity, you may apply for collaborative projects involving foreign organizations provided you do not use NEH funds to issue subawards to any foreign organization, as defined in 2 CFR § 200.1 and .331(a).

You may obtain the services of foreign individuals and consultants to carry out programmatic activities on a fee-for-service basis, as specified in 2 CFR § 200.459. You may obtain goods and services from foreign vendors, such as in-country transportation services, in accordance with 2 CFR § 200.331(b).

Overlap is prohibited.

Overlap occurs when the same costs are paid for by two federal awards, or when the scope of activities is similar between current or expired awards, or when an individual’s total time commitment exceeds 100% across all active awards.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Foreign%20organization) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.331#p-200.331(a) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.459 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.331#p-200.331(b)

Subrecipients and subawards See the General Guidance for Pass-through Entities on Managing Subawards for definitions of subrecipients and contractors. A subrecipient must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) but does not need to be fully registered with SAM.gov.

Per 2 CFR § 200.1 and .331(a), a subaward is an award you issue to a subrecipient to carry out part of your federal award. Subawards do not include payments to contractors (as defined in 2 CFR § 200.1 and .331(b)) or payments to individuals who are beneficiaries of federal programs.

A subaward may be issued through any form of legal agreement, including an agreement you consider a contract and must include all requirements of the award, per 2 CFR § 200.332(b)(2). When determining if the third-party functions as subrecipient or contractor, the substance of the relationship between a pass-through entity and a third party is more important than the form of the agreement. See 2

CFR § 200.331.

Substantive involvement The applicant organization must engage in substantive involvement in programmatic activities that are necessary and integral to completing the project. Applicant institutions must not function solely as a fiscal agent or a fiscal sponsor. Organizations engaging solely in fiscal sponsorship activities may not apply as a lead applicant. See Section C: Eligibility Information in the NOFO.

Subrecipient budgets Each subrecipient must provide a separate budget using the Research and Related (R&R) Budget form. To do so, download and save a fillable PDF of the Research and Related Budget form.

Complete this form in Adobe Reader rather than in your web browser.

Prepare a budget and budget justification for each subrecipient using the same instructions that apply to the applicant’s budget. Enter the subrecipient’s UEI, organization name, and start and end dates for the period of performance (these fields do not prepopulate). For budget type, check “Subaward/Consortium.”

If your subrecipient has a federally negotiated indirect cost rate, the applicant organization must honor it. If they do not have a federally negotiated indirect cost rate, they may use the de minimis rate of 15% or negotiate a rate with the applicant organization consistent with 2

CFR § 200.414.

Convert the budget justification into a PDF and combine it with the R&R Budget form and the subrecipient’s NICRA (if applicable) before uploading it to the Attachments form.

Learn more about managing subawards.

Carefully determine whether each third party is a subrecipient or contractor. Misclassification can result in budget revisions or delays processing your award.

If your project includes subrecipients, you must provide an R&R Budget form and budget justification for each subaward.

https://www.neh.gov/general-guidance-pass-through-entities-managing-subawards https://www.neh.gov/general-guidance-pass-through-entities-managing-subawards https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Subaward) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.331#p-200.331(a) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Contractor) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.331#p-200.331(b) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200#p-200.332(b)(2) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.331 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.331 https://www.neh.gov/sites/default/files/inline-files/RR_Budget10_3_0-V3.0.pdf https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.414 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.414 https://www.neh.gov/general-guidance-pass-through-entities-managing-subawards

Indirect costs Indirect costs are costs your institution incurs for common objectives that you cannot readily identify with a specific project or activity.

Indirect costs include such expenses as the depreciation on buildings, equipment, and capital improvements; operations and maintenance expenses; accounting and legal services; and salaries of executive officers.

Calculate indirect costs by multiplying your institution’s applicable indirect cost rate by the direct costs included in the base (typically Modified Total Direct Costs) listed in your institution’s Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA).

Modified Total Direct Costs Per 2 CFR § 200.1, Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC) are direct salaries and wages, applicable fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to the first $50,000 of each subaward (regardless of the period of performance of the subaward). MTDC exclude equipment, capital expenditures, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs, and the portion of each subaward over $50,000.

For MTDC exclusions, you may use the $50,000 amount only if you 1) apply the de minimis rate or 2) if your NICRA identifies the threshold for each subaward as $50,000. NEH will apply the threshold in your most current NICRA.

Rate type Many institutions of higher education negotiate multiple rates, such as “research,” “instruction,” and “other sponsored activities.” An institution’s “research” rate is not the appropriate rate for inclusion in NEH project budgets, except in rare cases, since it is reserved for projects involving scientific research, not scholarly inquiry of the type most often supported by NEH.

Applicability Except as provided in 2 CFR § 200.414(c)(1), NEH must use the negotiated rate(s) in effect at the time it issues your award and will not adjust the rate(s) throughout the life of your award. NEH will not adjust your award amount due to changes to your negotiated rates, unless a NICRA is received within 90 days of the period of performance start date, subject to the availability of funds.

Miscalculation of indirect costs is one of the most common reasons for award reductions.

The maximum award amount listed in the NOFO is the sum of direct and indirect costs.

You do not have to claim indirect costs. If your institution is waiving indirect costs, provide a statement with your application.

Refer to NEH’s General Guidance on Calculating Indirect Costs for more information.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Modified%20Total%20Direct%20Cost%20(MTDC)) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.414#p-200.414(c)(1) https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/indirect-cost-guidance https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/indirect-cost-guidance https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/indirect-cost-guidance

Indirect costs (continued) If an institution does not have a negotiated rate when NEH issues an award (because it is a new recipient or the parties cannot reach agreement on a rate), but has a provisional rate, NEH must use the provisional rate until a final rate is negotiated and approved by the cognizant agency, except as provided in 2 CFR § 200.414. If the recipient fails to negotiate an indirect cost rate applicable to the period of performance within the period of performance, NEH may disallow indirect costs.

If your organization does not have a federally negotiated indirect cost rate, you may charge a de minimis rate of 15% applicable to MTDC, or provide a signed NICRA to NEH within 90 days of your award’s period of performance start date.

Applicants who do not have a federally negotiated indirect cost rate at time of application can:

• Charge the de minimis indirect cost rate

• Direct cost all administrative expenses (see Step 4: Other Personnel)

• Submit a negotiated rate within 90 days of the period of performance start date, pending availability of funds and programmatic funding level restrictions https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.414

Completing the Research and Related (R&R) Budget form You must submit a project budget using the Research and Related (R&R) Budget form included in the Grants.gov application package and attach a budget justification as a PDF in the designated space on the form.

How to use these budget instructions The information in this section is organized using a consistent three-part format for each cost category of the R&R Budget form:

1. Policy and guidance Explains what costs are allowable or unallowable in the budget category and identifies applicable rules and limitations.

2. Completing the R&R Budget form Provides instructions for entering information into the R&R Budget form in Grants.gov.

3. Budget justification guidance Describes what information to include in your budget justification to explain, itemize, and support the costs requested on the R&R Budget form.

General budget instructions

• Complete a single detailed budget for each 12-month span of the period of performance.

• The R&R Budget form will automatically generate a cumulative budget.

• Required fields appear in yellow.

• Round all costs to the nearest whole dollar.

• The inclusion of a budget category on the R&R Budget form does not automatically indicate that a cost is allowable. Allowability is governed by the federal regulations, NEH policy, and the NOFO.

General budget justification instructions When preparing your budget justification, use the same R&R Budget form section headings. For each requested cost, you must:

• Describe how each item supports your proposed objectives.

• Explain how you calculated each cost (e.g., $50/hour x 20 hours =

$1,000).

• Include supporting documentation such as price searches, vendor quotes, or contract estimates, as applicable.

If you provide voluntary cost share, you may describe it in the budget justification narrative. Do not include voluntary cost share on the R&R Budget form.

Before you complete the budget form, complete the SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational. It will auto populate some information in the R&R Budget form.

If you complete the R&R Budget form in your Grants.gov Workspace, it will auto-calculate.

Round all costs to the nearest whole dollar. If cents are less than 50, round down. If cents are 50 and higher, round up. Do not include cents in the R&R Budget form or your budget justification.

Budget justification (continued) If you request federal matching funds, identify which activities your required cost share supports and the expected source(s) of funding.

Introductory Fields In the Grants.gov Workspace, your SF-424 form should auto-populate introductory fields. If not, indicate your organization’s Unique Entity Identifier, name, and period of performance.

For budget type, check “project.”

A. Senior/Key Person

Policy and guidance Senior/key personnel are individuals employed by the applicant organization who serve in leadership or key roles on the project.

Requested salaries and wages must comply with 2 CFR § 200.430 and .466, and fringe benefits must comply with 2 CFR § 200.431. An individual’s level of effort cannot exceed 100% across multiple active federally funded awards.

Per 2 CFR § 200.431, fringe benefits are allowances and services you provide in addition to salaries and wages. Fringe benefits may include the costs of leave (e.g., vacation, family-related, sick, or military), employee insurance, pensions, and unemployment benefit plans.

Completing the R&R Budget form In the Senior/Key Person section, list each person, enter the base salary (annual compensation) and fringe benefits, and identify the number of months they will devote to the project. The form will calculate the requested salary and fringe benefits for each individual.

If you request funds for more than eight key personnel, list the additional personnel in a separate document using the same format.

Save the document as a PDF named additionalpersonnel.pdf and attach it in the designated “Additional/Senior Key Persons” space on the R&R Budget form. Enter the total funds requested for these individuals in the "Total Funds requested for all Senior/Key Persons in the attached file" field.

Budget justification requirements In your budget justification, list each person and briefly describe their role and qualifications for the project. Show the salary and wages calculation by either percentage of time over months (time and effort) or number of hours. Identify the fringe benefit rate and explain the base for each person.

If your organization follows an academic calendar, explain any differences in compensation between academic and summer months.

The project director’s name will auto-populate in the R&R Budget form with the information you provide in the SF-424. If the project director will not receive any funds, enter $0.

Sections A and B of the budget should include only your own employees.

Include costs for non-employees under F.3 Consultant Services or F.5 Subawards/Consortium/ Contractual Costs, as appropriate.

When completing sections A and B of the budget,…