S.Amdt. 3985

SA 3985. Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Mr. Cassidy) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 3951 submitted by Ms.
Collins and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R. 4016, making
appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2026, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on
the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. __. FACILITIES AND ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.

(a) Moratorium on Modifications to Current Indirect Costs
Methodology.--
(1) In general.--Except as authorized under this section,
during fiscal year 2026, and each fiscal year thereafter,
none of the funds made available in any division of this Act
or any other Act, including prior appropriations Acts, may be
used to modify, alter, or otherwise change, including through
amendments to part 200 of title 2, Code of Federal
Regulations, or any other regulations, guidance, or policy--
(A) the methodology of a covered agency for determining
rates for indirect costs or other costs for covered entities
for Federal research awards; or
(B) the negotiated rates of a covered agency for indirect
costs for Federal research awards made to covered entities,
as described in subsection (b)(1).
(2) Additional limitations on federal agencies.--The head
of a covered agency and any other Federal officer or employee
are prohibited from the following:
(A) Promulgating regulations or issuing guidance pursuant
to this section that limit financial reimbursement or
assistance by the head of a covered agency for the total
costs of Federal research awards or any components of such
costs specified in this section, except that the head of a
covered agency may issue a notice of funding opportunity for
a Federal research award that establishes limits, without
regard to the identity of the eventual recipient of the
award, on the amount of research performance costs for the
Federal research award.
(B) Using the total costs of a Federal research award as a
criterion for determining the recipients of a Federal
research award by the head of a covered agency.
(C) Using criteria other than the total costs of a Federal
research award to determine the amount of the essential
research performance support costs to be paid to a covered
entity under a Federal research award by the head of a
covered agency.
(b) Continuation of Current Rates for Indirect Costs.--
(1) In general.--Until the effective date specified in
subsection (f), the head of each covered agency shall
continue to reimburse each covered entity at the negotiated
rates for indirect costs for Federal research awards in the
same manner as such rates were applied in the third quarter
of fiscal year 2024, notwithstanding any expiration date with
respect to such rates.
(2) Clarification.--For a project for which a covered
entity receives a Federal research award from a covered
agency before the effective date specified in subsection (f),
the negotiated rates described in paragraph (1) of this
subsection shall apply for the duration of such Federal
research award.
(c) Determination of Reimbursement Amount.--
(1) In general.--The head of each covered agency shall
reimburse a covered entity for the total cost of a Federal
research award by--
(A) reimbursing general research operations costs at a
fixed rate of 15 percent of the total costs of the Federal
research award; and
(B) at the election and sole discretion of a covered
entity--
(i) reimbursing the covered entity for research performance
costs and essential research performance support costs that
the covered entity assigns to the project-specific activities
funded under the Federal research award; or
(ii)(I) reimbursing the covered entity for research
performance costs and award management, oversight, reporting,
and regulatory compliance costs that the covered entity
assigns to the project-specific activities funded under the
Federal research award; and
(II) reimbursing research information and data services
costs and essential research performance facilities costs at
a fixed rate of 10 percent of the total costs of the Federal
research award.
(2) Applicability of elections.--An election made by a
covered entity under paragraph (1)(B) shall apply to all
Federal research awards received from a covered agency by the
covered entity for the fiscal year in which the election is
made.
(d) Maintenance of Effort.--Each covered entity shall
attest that the covered entity will maintain non-Federal
expenditures for activities, infrastructure, and services
that contribute to the ability of the covered entity to carry
out Federally-funded research at a level that is not less
than the level of such expenditures during the fiscal year
immediately preceding the date of enactment of this Act.
(e) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
(1) Award management, oversight, reporting, and regulatory
compliance costs.--The term ``award management, oversight,
reporting, and regulatory compliance costs'' means costs
incurred to administer and oversee a Federal research award
in a manner that complies with the terms and conditions of
the Federal research award and related Federal law and
guidance.
(2) Covered agency.--The term ``covered agency'' means the
National Institutes of Health.
(3) Covered entity.--The term ``covered entity'' means an
institution of higher education, nonprofit organization, or
hospital, that--
(A) is subject to appendix III or IV to part 200, or
appendix IX to part 300, of title 2, Code of Federal
Regulations (as in effect on October 1, 2025); and
(B) receives 1 or more Federal research awards from a
covered agency.
(4) Essential research performance facility costs.--The
term ``essential research performance facility costs'' means
costs, which can be readily assigned to the project-specific
activities funded under a Federal research award, to
establish and maintain necessary space and major equipment,
including--
(A) utilities;
(B) maintenance activities and related personnel;
(C) depreciation;
(D) leases;
(E) rent; and
(F) insurance of such space and equipment.
(5) Essential research performance support costs.--The term
``essential research performance support costs'' means costs
that are necessary for, and can be readily assigned to,
project-specific activities related to--
(A) award management, oversight, reporting, and regulatory
compliance costs;
(B) essential research performance facility costs; and
(C) research information and data services costs.
(6) Federal research award.--The term ``Federal research
award'' means a grant or cooperative agreement awarded, or
other transaction entered into, by a covered agency for the
purpose of performing organized research, sponsored
instruction, and other sponsored activities.
(7) General research operations costs.--The term ``general
research operations costs'' means costs relating to the
provision of infrastructure or services that cannot be
readily assigned to the project-specific activities funded
under a Federal research award, but that are relevant and
necessary to carry out the Federal research award, including
costs relating to--
(A) procurement;
(B) institution-wide compliance and monitoring
requirements, such as conflict of interest disclosures;
(C) general finance;
(D) information technology; and
(E) legal services.
(8) Research information and data services costs.--The term
``research information and data services costs'' means costs
that can be readily assigned to the project-specific
activities funded under a Federal research award that are
incurred for information and data services to comply with the
terms and conditions of, or otherwise support, the Federal
research award, including--
(A) institutional repositories for publications and
databases, data management and sharing services, and
cybersecurity; and
(B) project-specific journal subscriptions and database
access necessary to carry out the activities funded under
such award.
(9) Research performance costs.--The term ``research
performance costs'' means costs associated with a Federal
research award directly attributable to conducting project-
specific activities.
(10) Total costs.--The term ``total costs'' means incurred
expenses of an activity, project, or purchase carried out
under, or that can be readily assigned to the project-
specific activities funded under, a Federal research award,
that are--
(A) auditable, allowable, reasonable, and consistently
treated, which shall be determined in accordance with part
200 of title 2, Code of Federal Regulations; and
(B) recorded in an institutional accounting system.
(11) Total costs of a federal research award.--The term
``total costs of a Federal

[[Page S8741]]

research award'' means the total costs incurred for--
(A) the research performance costs for the Federal research
award;
(B) the essential research performance support costs for
the Federal research award; and
(C) the general research operations costs for the Federal
research award.
(f) Effective Date.--The requirements under subsections (c)
and (d) of this section shall apply to any Federal research
award made by a covered agency to a covered entity on or
after the date that is 2 years after the date of enactment of
this Act.
(g) Rulemaking Authority.--
(1) In general.--For fiscal year 2026, and each fiscal year
thereafter, the head of a covered agency may issue
regulations as necessary to carry out this section.
(2) Notice and comment requirement.--
(A) In general.--Any regulations issued to carry out this
section shall be subject to the notice-and-comment rulemaking
requirements of section 553 of title 5, United States Code.
(B) Nonapplicability of exceptions.--The exceptions
provided in subsections (a)(2) and (b)(B) of section 553 of
title 5, United States Code, shall not apply to regulations
issued to carry out this section.
(h) Rule of Construction With Respect to the Federal
Acquisition Regulation.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to alter or supersede title 48 of the Code of
Federal Regulations, with respect to cost accounting
standards and processes for determining payments to a
contractor under the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
(i) Reporting.--Until the effective date specified in
subsection (f), the head of a covered agency shall provide
quarterly briefings on the progress in implementing this
section to--
(1) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate; and
(2) the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on
Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives.
______