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Cost Recovery Frequently Asked Questions

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  1. Does MCE have a policy on cost recovery? No, MCE developed “guidelines� for you to follow if you want to charge for your programs. If you charge for your programs, you are encouraged to use these guidelines as a compass.
  2. Do I have to charge for all my programs? No, however you are encouraged to charge whenever possible and follow the guidelines as described under the 3 categories of cost recovery, no cost recovery –partial –full cost recovery.
  3. If I am asked to teach in another county, do I charge the hosting county for my mileage under these cost recovery guidelines? NO, we do not want to create a system of employees charging employees for services, however if your county travel budget does not support this type of travel, you are encouraged to request the hosting county to include your travel expenses in the registration fee.
  4. If I award CEU’s for my teaching, do I have to follow the full cost recovery guidelines? When awarding CEU’s for classes you teach, you are encouraged to charge full cost recovery. However in some cases the audience may not be able to afford full cost recovery, thus you are justified not to charge them full cost recovery. In some cases to offset the full cost recovery charges, you may be able to have the teaching event underwritten by another organization through a grant or cooperative agreement thus still collecting full cost recovery funds but not charging the audience the full cost of the program.
  5. When do I charge full cost recovery vs. partial cost recovery? Most of MCE’s programs fall into the partial cost recovery category, where you collect fees to offset charges for meals, rooms, fact sheets, supplies and materials. These types of activities are usually a “public good.� However, if you develop a teaching event for a very specific audience that awards them CEU’s, credits for certification or licensing or a business or corporation that is not part of our “normal� extension activities you are encouraged to use the full cost recovery guidelines. Remember, full cost recovery is only for business, industry, organizations that are a “private good� not a “public good�.
  6. How do I determine if a person has “limited resources�? Not an easy decision to make, however this will be left up to the individual agent/educator developing the teaching event. Remember, as stated in our guidelines, no person can be deprived of attending our programs based on financial ability to pay, so if it appears as if the person wanting to attend can not afford to pay for the event, then arrangements need to be made to offset or underwrite their fees.
  7. Do I have to include a statement on brochures and registration materials that fees can be waived based on financial need? No, however you should include the AA/EEO statement on all of these materials. Once again, waiving fees based on need are situational and can be dealt with according to the specifics of each situation. You are encouraged to advertise discounted rates to groups we think may be price sensitive, such as students, seniors and low resource individuals.
  8. If I am interested in charging full cost recovery for my event, what do I have to do? You need to fill out the cost recovery worksheet and have it approved by your Department Chair, Regional Extension Director or Assistant Director for programs. The cost recovery worksheet should reflect your time spent on the event as well as any time your administrative assistant, graduate student or technician may be spending on this event. Hourly rates are listed in the work sheet for each category. You must also include any outside financial support you are receiving for this teaching event. This may include a business underwriting the event or grant funds use to support the event.
  9. What happens to the funds I collect using these cost recovery guidelines? The funds are to be kept and used locally to support programs the agent/educator develops. The funds are to be deposited into either an EAC or revolving account, following approved University and MCE business policies and procedures.
  10. When I charge full cost recovery, what happens to the funds collected for salaries and benefits for me and support staff? Any salary dollars used in the cost recovery calculation must be posted to the FRS account where the salary was paid. In order to retrieve these funds, you may then request salary savings from your Department Chair or Regional Director.
  11. How can funds collected from cost recovery be used? They can be used to support your local programs and activities in ways such as supplies, materials, equipment, publications, travel, telephone or salary and benefits for part time positions.
  12. Do all similar programs statewide have to charge the same fee? No, fees can vary by county and regions, based on program costs, salaries and outside support.
  13. Do I have to include cost recovery activities in my MCERS data? Yes, when you input your monthly activities into MCERS, you need to include your cost recovery revenues and expenses by each teaching event. MCERS will prompt you for this data.
  14. Will I be evaluated on the total funds I collected under the cost recovery guidelines? No, your evaluation will not be based on you collecting funds under cost recovery. However, if you have a tenure track position, you are expected to obtain outside grants and awards to support your programs, research and publicati

For more information, contact Bob Tjaden

Last updated: 04/13/2006