REP Article I of the general terms and conditions specifies requirements related to recipient reporting on program performance. It thereby implements OMB guidance for grants and cooperative agreements in:

(a) 2 CFR 200.328; and

(b) Portions of 2 CFR 200.301 and 200.343(a) that relate to performance reporting.

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(c) notes that agencies rely heavily on onsite technical inspections and certified percentage of completion data to monitor progress under construction grants and cooperative agreements and states that agencies may require additional performance reports only when considered necessary.

(b) DoD implementation. DoD Components may require performance reports under construction awards only when necessary and, to reduce recipient burdens, should coordinate the performance reporting with financial reporting to the maximum extent practicable.

(c) Award terms and conditions. (1) If a DoD Component has general terms and conditions specifically for construction awards and does not need performance reports for those awards, it:

(i) Should reserve Sections A through D of REP Article I in those terms and conditions;

(ii) Must follow the specifications in §§ 1134.135 and 1134.145 to include the wording appendix A to this part provides for Sections E and G of REP Article I in those terms and conditions, in order to require recipients to promptly report significant developments and reserve the DoD Component's right to make site visits.

(iii) Must follow the specifications in § 1134.140 to insert wording in Section F of REP Article I in those terms and conditions, to tell recipients where and how to submit any reports of significant developments.

(2) If a DoD Component has general terms and conditions specifically for construction awards and determines that it needs performance reports for those awards:

(i) It may tailor the template and content that appendix A to this part provides for Sections A through D of REP Article I in those terms and conditions, as needed to specify the reporting requirements or, as appropriate, instead integrate those requirements into REP Article II on financial reporting. The form, format, or data elements that the DoD Component specifies for any of those performance reports must comply with requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, as implemented by OMB at 5 CFR part 1320, to use OMB-approved information collections if more than 9 recipients will be subject to the reporting requirement.

(ii) It must follow the specifications in §§ 1134.135 through 1134.145 concerning Sections E through G of REP Article I in those terms and conditions, as described in paragraphs (c)(1)(ii) and (iii) of this section.

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(f) states that an agency may waive any performance report that it does not need.

(b) DoD implementation—(1) Interim reports. DoD Components should waive requirements for interim performance reports under non-construction awards, including research awards, only when program managers have an alternative source for the information that the reports provide in support of the need for technical program oversight during the period of performance.

(2) Final reports—(i) Research. DoD Components may not waive requirements for final performance reports under research awards, even when program managers have other sources of the information they contain. A primary purpose of a final report under a research award is to document the overall project or program well enough to serve as a long-term reference from which others may understand the purpose, scope, approach, results or outcomes, and conclusions or recommendations of the research.

(ii) Non-construction awards other than research. DoD Components should consider the long-term value of final performance reports for documenting program outcomes, as well as any near-term value, before waiving requirements for final reports under other non-construction awards.

(c) Award terms and conditions. Appendix A to this part provides a template for REP Article I of the general terms and conditions of research awards or other non-construction awards under which performance reports are required. A DoD Component must either use the wording that appendix A provides or insert wording into the template, in accordance with §§ 1134.115 through 1134.145, to:

(1) Specify the content and form, format, or data elements recipients must use for interim and final performance reporting (see § 1134.115);

(2) Specify the reporting frequency, reporting periods, and due dates for interim performance reports (see § 1134.120);

(3) Specify the due dates and reporting periods for final performance reports (see § 1134.125);

(4) Specify that recipients may request extensions of due dates for performance reports (see § 1134.130);

(5) Require recipients to report significant developments (see § 1134.135);

(6) Specify reporting procedures (see § 1134.140); and

(7) Reserve the DoD Component's right to make site visits (see § 1134.145).

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in:

(1) 2 CFR 200.301 and 200.328(b)(2) state that Federal awarding agencies must require recipients to use standard OMB-approved information collections for reporting performance information.

(2) 2 CFR 200.328(b)(2)(i) through (iii) list types of information that performance reports under non-construction grants and cooperative agreements will contain, as appropriate, unless other collections are approved by OMB.

(b) DoD implementation. (1) The content of the information collections that a DoD Component's general terms and conditions specify for non-construction awards must include the elements listed in 2 CFR 200.328(b)(2)(i) through (iii) that are appropriate to the projects or programs subject to those general terms and conditions.

(2) Forms, formats, and data elements that a DoD Component's general terms and conditions specify for performance reporting under non-construction awards must comply with requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 to use OMB-approved information collections, as implemented by OMB at 5 CFR part 1320.

(3) To the maximum extent practicable, a DoD Component's general terms and conditions for non-construction awards must specify that recipients use Governmentwide standard forms, formats, and data elements that also are used by other Federal agencies for similar programs, recipients, and types of awards (e.g., the Research Performance Progress Report format or any successor to it that OMB clears for interim performance progress reports under research awards to institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations).

(c) Award terms and conditions. To implement the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, a DoD Component must insert wording in lieu of the reserved Section A of REP Article I of its general terms and conditions for non-construction awards to specify the form, format, or data elements that recipients must use for interim and final performance reports. Section A of REP Article I may specify a different requirement for final performance reports than interim reports.

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(b)(1) addresses performance reporting frequency under grants and cooperative agreements and due dates.

(1) Reporting frequency. The OMB guidance states that interim performance reports should be no less frequent than annually, nor more frequent than quarterly except in unusual circumstances (e.g., when more frequent reporting is necessary for effective program monitoring).

(2) Due dates. The OMB guidance states that due dates for interim performance reports must be:

(i) 30 calendar days after the end of the reporting period if interim reports are required quarterly or semiannually; and

(ii) 90 calendar days after the end of the reporting period if interim reports are required annually, unless the agency elects to require the annual reports before the anniversary dates of multiyear awards.

(b) DoD implementation. DoD implements the OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(b)(1) concerning frequency and due dates of interim performance reports through award terms and conditions, with the following clarifications and added specifications concerning reporting periods:

(1) Reporting frequency. DoD Components rarely, if ever, should require recipients to submit interim performance reports more often than annually for basic research awards. Before requiring interim performance reports more frequently than annually for other research awards, DoD Components should carefully consider whether the benefits of more frequent reporting are sufficient to offset the potential for slowing the rate of research progress, due to diversion of researchers' time from research performance to report preparation.

(2) Reporting periods. For research awards, a DoD Component should not require any recipient to submit interim performance reports on a cumulative basis—i.e., the second and any subsequent performance report should address only the most recent reporting period and not also address previous reporting periods covered by earlier interim performance reports.

(3) Due dates. If a DoD Component requires an interim report more frequently than quarterly due to unusual circumstances, as described in 2 CFR 200.328(a)(1) and paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the DoD Component must specify that the due date for the report is 30 days after the end of the reporting period. For all other interim reports, DoD Components must specify due dates in accordance with paragraph (a)(2) of this section.

(c) Award terms and conditions. A DoD Component must insert wording in lieu of the reserved Section B of REP Article I of its general terms and conditions for non-construction awards to specify:

(1) The frequency with which recipients must submit interim performance reports;

(2) The reporting period each interim performance report must cover; and

(3) The due date for each interim performance report, stated as the number of calendar days after the end of the reporting period.

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(b)(1) states that each final performance report will be due 90 calendar days after the end date of the period of performance. It also states that an agency may extend the due date if a recipient submits a justified request.

(b) DoD implementation—(1) Due dates. Consistent with 2 CFR 200.328(b)(1):

(i) General. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must specify that the due date for each recipient's submission of its final performance report is:

(A) 90 calendar days after the end of the period of performance for non-construction awards other than research.

(B) 120 calendar days after the end of the period of performance for research awards.

(ii) Exception. A DoD Component may pre-approve a 30-day extension to the due date in its general terms and conditions for non-construction awards other than research by specifying that each recipient's final performance report is due 120 calendar days after the end of the period of performance. Doing so would be especially helpful to recipients that have subawards and need time to assimilate subrecipient inputs into the final report for the project or program as a whole.

(2) Reporting periods—(i) Non-construction awards other than research. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions for non-construction awards other than research may require each recipient to submit a final report that is cumulative and covers the entire period of performance, as that may more effectively document the project or program for future reference.

(ii) Research. Final reports for research awards must be cumulative (i.e., each final report must cover the entire period of performance under the award and not just the period since the previous interim performance report) because a primary purpose of a final report for a research award is to document the overall project or program, as described in § 1134.110(b)(2).

(c) Award terms and conditions. To implement the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, a DoD Component in its general terms and conditions for non-construction awards:

(1) Must either:

(i) Specify that the due date for final performance reports is either 90 or 120 calendar days after the end of the period of performance, as indicated in paragraph (b)(1)(i), by including the wording that appendix A to this part provides for paragraph C.1 of REP Article I and modifying the bracketed language in that wording by removing the brackets and showing only the number of days (i.e., 90 or 120 calendar days) appropriate for the type of awards; or

(ii) Pre-approve a 30-day extension to the 90 calendar day due date, as described in paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section for non-construction awards other than research, by including the wording that appendix A to this part provides for paragraph C.1 of REP Article I and modifying the bracketed language in that wording by removing the brackets and showing only “120 calendar days” in lieu of “90 calendar days.”

(2) Must insert wording in lieu of the reserved paragraph C.2 of REP Article I, to specify the reporting period for final reports (e.g., that research awards require cumulative final reports).

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(b)(1) states that, if a recipient submits a justified request for an extension in the due date for any interim or final performance report under a grant or cooperative agreement, an agency may extend the due date.

(b) DoD implementation. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions for non-construction awards must specify that a recipient may request an extension of the due date for interim or final performance reports. DoD Components should grant requests that provide adequate justification. For a DoD Component that pre-approves a 30-day extension of due dates for final performance reports in its general terms and conditions, as described in § 1134.125(b)(1)(ii) and (c)(1)(ii), any award-specific extensions would be beyond the pre-approved 30-day extension.

(c) Award terms and conditions. To implement the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, a DoD Component's general terms and conditions for non-construction awards must include the wording that appendix A to this part provides for Section D of REP Article I on extensions of performance reporting due dates.

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(d) states that a recipient must promptly notify the awarding agency about significant developments under grants and cooperative agreements.

(b) DoD implementation. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must require recipients to report significant developments, as described in 2 CFR 200.328(d).

(c) Award terms and conditions. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must include the wording that appendix A to this part provides for Section E of REP Article I on reporting of significant developments.

(a) Requirement. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must inform recipients about performance reporting procedures.

(b) Award terms and conditions. To implement the requirement of paragraph (a) of this section, a DoD Component in its general terms and conditions must insert wording in Section F of REP Article I (which is reserved in the template for REP Article I that appendix A to this part provides), to specify:

(1) The office or offices to which a recipient must submit its interim and final performance reports, any requests in due dates for those reports, and any reports of significant developments; and

(2) How the recipient is to submit those reports and requests (e.g., email or other electronic submission method).

(3) For research awards, component must assure that the recipient final report complies with the distribution and marking requirements of DoD Manual 3200.14, Volume 1. This includes the requirement that all significant scientific or technological findings, recommendations, and results derived from DoD endeavors—which shall include the final performance report at a minimum—are recorded and provided to Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). Follow guidance in (b)(1) to inform recipients as the submission and distribution requirements (i.e. Component may choose to receive the report and submit to DTIC themselves or provide instructions to recipient on submission to DTIC).

(4) Access to Research Results

(i) For purposes of this term and condition, the following definition applies:

Final Peer-Reviewed Manuscript: The final version of a peer-reviewed article for a professional journal publication disclosing the results of scientific research which is authored or co-authored by the recipient or funded, in whole or in part, with funds from a DoD award, that includes all modifications from the publishing peer review process, and all graphics and supplemental material associated with the article.

(ii) The recipient shall ensure that any Final Peer-Reviewed Manuscript is submitted to the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) repository, currently at www.dtic.mil. Ensure that the Final Peer-Reviewed Manuscript is submitted when it is accepted for publication, and when the final title and date of publication are known.

(a) OMB guidance. OMB guidance in 2 CFR 200.328(e) states that a Federal awarding agency may make site visits as warranted by program needs.

(b) DoD implementation. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must state that the Federal Government reserves the right to make site visits as warranted.

(c) Award terms and conditions. A DoD Component's general terms and conditions must include the wording that appendix A to this part provides for Section G of REP Article I concerning site visits.