Miscellaneous Receivables
Issued: 9/16/03
Updated: 6/10/08

Rationale for charging overhead on external users of Stanford’s resources

Activities undertaken using Stanford University’s resources primarily support the teaching and research mission of the university. The university provides valuable resources to support the indirect costs of performing those activities. Use of Stanford’s facilities involves operations, maintenance, and utilities costs that the university funds, as well as a wide variety of administrative and safety functions.

When Stanford’s resources are used by outside entities, such as other institutions of higher education or for-profit corporations, the university must recover some portion of the indirect costs incurred in the use of its facilities. Because the rates charged to these outside users do not include costs covered by the university centrally, an overhead rate is added to collect those costs.

The following indirect cost rate guidance is for non-sponsored receivables administrated by the Controller's Office.

Indirect Cost Rates for Non-sponsored Receivables

Expenditure type 56910 Facilities and Admin Charge is used to charge these rates.

For external users, the indirect cost rates will be:

1. 8% rate charged to external, higher-education users, including the Palo Alto Institute for Research and Education [PAIRE].
   
2. Current Fiscal Year ONR negotiated, research, on-campus rate charged to external users that are not higher education and are not affiliated users.
   This rate is changed annually as the negotiated rate changes.
   
3. Waived rate
   The Budget Office, at its discretion, may waive the indirect cost on Miscellaneous Receivables. This waiver must be in writing. The Budget Office has waived indirect costs on affiliated users:
   
   1. UCSF Stanford Health Care accounts (including LPCH)
   2. Stanford Health Services accounts
   3. Howard Hughes Medical Institute accounts
   4. SLAC (Stanford Linear Accelerator) accounts
   5. Carnegie Institution accounts
   6. The Post Office account
   7. ASSU (Associated Students of Stanford University)
      
4. The cost base in all cases is MTDC.
   
5. The burden schedules are as follows:

6. Miscellaneous Receivables are not subject to the infrastructure charge.

Note: No rate history will be brought forward. Adjustments to prior year's activity must be manually burdened via journal.

Definition of External Users verses Affiliated (users) Associations

"External Users": A person or company that is external to the University's mission who wishes to purchase a service center's service because of its unique equipment and/or its staff's expertise. An example is a commercial entity, such as a drug company; or a student, faculty or staff acting in a personal capacity (versus in their capacity as a student or employee of the University).

"Affiliated Associations": These are entities that are separate from the University, but are related to its academic mission. Such users include Stanford Hospital and Clinics (SHC), the Lucille Salter Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford (LPCH), and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).