Gifts and Contracts from Foreign Sources

UW-Green Bay Guidance on Complying with Sec. 117 of the HEA

Section 117 of the Higher Education Act (HEA) requires institutions which receive Title IV federal student aid to report to the Secretary of Education any: gifts received from; contracts with; and, any ownership interest in, a foreign source. As a standard of materiality, institutions must report contracts with or gifts from a single foreign source that have a value of greater than $250,000 within a single calendar year. Institutions must also report any ownership interests in, or control over the institution by, a foreign source.

As the annual $250,000 threshold may be triggered by the aggregate value of gifts and/or contracts from a single foreign source, the Controller’s Office must receive a report from any individual or operational area which includes information for all foreign source contracts and gifts received. The below process outlines how these reports should be made at UW-Green Bay.

Definitions

“Contract” means any agreement for the acquisition by purchase, lease, or barter of property or services by the foreign source, for the direct benefit or use of either of the parties

“Foreign source” means (A) a foreign government, including an agency of a foreign government; (B) a legal entity, governmental or otherwise, created solely under the laws of a foreign state or states; (C) an individual who is not a citizen or a national of the United States or a trust territory or protectorate thereof; or (D) an agent, including a subsidiary or affiliate of a foreign legal entity, acting on behalf of a foreign source

“Gift” means any gift of money or property provided without expectation of consideration or a deliverable

“Intermediary” is an entity other than an institution that receives a gift originating from a foreign source or enters into a contract with a foreign source that is for the benefit of the institution

“Restricted or conditional gift or contract” means any endowment, gift, grant, contract, award, present, or property of any kind which includes provisions regarding (A) the employment, assignment, or termination of faculty; (B) the establishment of departments, centers, research or lecture programs, or new faculty positions; (C) the selection or admission of students; or (D) the award of grants, loans, scholarships, fellowships, or other forms of financial aid restricted to students of a specified country, religion, sex, ethnic origin, or political opinion
Reporting

UW–Green Bay policy requires that any individual or operational area which receives a gift from or contracts with any foreign source, as defined above, is to submit information to the Controller’s Office through the Grants Accountant not later than August 31 each year. Each report must include all transactions which are reportable under these guidelines for the preceding fiscal year (July 1 to June 30).

Reporting

To submit a report, please complete this form and submit it to grantsaccounting@uwgb.edu.

Required Information:

Receipts from fee-for-service contracts must be included in support of the annual report. Although fee-for-service contracts are often held by the Controller’s Office and/or the Office of Grants and Research, it is still necessary for the individual or operational area engaging in the contract to provide any receipts or other proofs of payment they receive with the annual report.

Gifts from foreign sources, both monetary and in-kind, must be included in the annual report. If UW–Green Bay or an intermediary receives all or a portion of a pledge or bequest that meets the reporting threshold, that portion of a pledge or bequest must be reported even if the full pledge or gift is not yet received.

Due Diligence Requirement

In completing its obligations under Sec. 117 HEA, the institution is required to perform “reasonable due diligence” to determine if a party meets the definition of a foreign source. Each employee or operational area that receives payments from a foreign source must maintain documentation of how the foreign source designation was determined. Information should be prepared to identify foreign sources, including affiliated or subsidiary relationships with foreign entities that may not be clear on their face.

Intermediary organizations must perform due diligence to determine whether they have reportable gifts from or contracts with a foreign source. Intermediaries can elect to use the UW–Green Bay annual reporting process or submit their own documentation but are ultimately responsible for the manner in which due diligence is performed. Intermediaries are to retain documentation regarding foreign source designation should it ever be needed upon request.