[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 48, Volume 7]
[Revised as of October 1, 2001]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 48CFR9905.501-50]

[Page 480-481]
 
            TITLE 48--FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATIONS SYSTEM
 
     CHAPTER 99--COST ACCOUNTING STANDARDS BOARD, OFFICE OF FEDERAL 
           PROCUREMENT POLICY, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
 
PART 9905--COST ACCOUNTING STANDARDS FOR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 9905.501-50  Techniques for application.

    (a) The standard allows grouping of homogeneous costs in order to 
cover those cases where it is not practicable to estimate contract costs 
by individual cost element. However, costs estimated for proposal 
purposes shall be presented in such a manner and in such detail that any 
significant cost can be compared with the actual cost accumulated and 
reported therefor. In any event, the cost accounting practices used in 
estimating costs in pricing a proposal and in accumulating and reporting 
costs on the resulting contract shall be consistent with respect to:
    (1) The classification of elements of cost as direct or indirect;
    (2) The indirect cost pools to which each element of cost is charged 
or proposed to be charged; and
    (3) The methods of allocating indirect costs to the contract.
    (b) Adherence to the requirement of 9905.501-40(a) of this standard 
shall be determined as of the date of award of the contract, unless the 
contractor has submitted cost or pricing data pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 
2306(a) or 41 U.S.C. 254(d) (Pub. L. 87-653), in which case adherence to 
the requirement of 9905.501-40(a) shall be determined as of the date of 
final agreement on price, as shown on the signed certificate of current 
cost or pricing data. Notwithstanding 9905.501-40(b), changes in 
established cost accounting practices during contract performance may be 
made in accordance with part 9903 (48 CFR part 9903).

[[Page 481]]

    (c) The standard does not prescribe the amount of detail required in 
accumulating and reporting costs. The basic requirement which must be 
met, however, is that for any significant amount of estimated cost, the 
contractor must be able to accumulate and report actual cost at a level 
which permits sufficient and meaningful comparison with its estimates. 
The amount of detail required may vary considerably depending on how the 
proposed costs were estimated, the data presented in justification or 
lack thereof, and the significance of each situation. Accordingly, it is 
neither appropriate nor practical to prescribe a single set of 
accounting practices which would be consistent in all situations with 
the practices of estimating costs. Therefore, the amount of accounting 
and statistical detail to be required and maintained in accounting for 
estimated costs has been and continues to be a matter to be decided by 
Government procurement authorities on the basis of the individual facts 
and circumstances.