| (a) Purpose. The purpose of this program is to provide
matching funds to assist eligible public institutions in leveraging
private gifts for the enhancement of research productivity and faculty
recruitment.
(b) Authority.
(1) Texas Education Code, §62.122, establishes
the Texas Research Incentive Program to provide matching funds to
assist eligible public institutions in leveraging private gifts for
the enhancement of research productivity and faculty recruitment.
(2) Texas Education Code, §62.123, establishes
the rate of matching and authorizes the Board, to establish procedures
for the certification of gifts.
(3) Texas Education Code, §62.124, authorizes
the Board, to adopt rules for the administration of the program.
(c) Definitions.
(1) Administrative Correction--The submission of supplemental
information or supporting financial documentation to verify that the
gift as submitted is restricted to research purposes that meet the
requirements of an eligible gift.
(2) Board--The governing body of the agency known as
the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
(3) Bundled Gifts--Gifts from the same private source
that are combined to determine eligibility for matching grants. All
component gifts of a bundled gift must have deposit dates within ten
(10) calendar days of the first deposit.
(4) Certification--Board approval of the date of deposit
of a gift and its qualification as an eligible gift for purposes of
matching grants.
(5) Coordinating Board--The agency known as the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board, including agency staff.
(6) Coordinating Board Staff or Board Staff--Agency
staff acting under the direction of the Board and the Commissioner.
(7) Date of Certification--The date of the Board meeting
upon which certification occurs.
(8) Date of Deposit--The date the institution receives
cash or receives all proceeds of converting a non-cash gift to cash.
For gifts that are converted to cash over multiple days, the date
of deposit is when the entire gift has been converted to cash and
received by the institution. A single gift of stocks or bonds that
cannot be sold on a single day may be eligible if the sales are concluded
and the proceeds are deposited in the institution's account within
ten (10) calendar days from the start of sales.
(9) Date of Receipt--The date the Coordinating Board
receives the TRIP application for matching grants.
(10) Donor Agreement Form--A form approved by the Commissioner
that is required as part of the application for TRIP matching grants.
(11) Eligible Gifts --Cash or an endowment to an eligible
public institution from private sources in a state fiscal year for
the purpose of enhancing research activities at the institution, including
for endowed chairs, professorships, research facilities, research
equipment, program costs, graduate research stipends or fellowships,
or undergraduate research. Gifts or endowments that are not cash,
including those listed in Texas Education Code, §62.121(2), must
be converted to cash before they can be submitted as an eligible gift.
These include gifts that are bundled from a private source.
(12) Eligible Public Institution--An institution of
higher education designated as an emerging research university under
the Coordinating Board's Accountability System or a university affiliated
entity of an emerging research university.
(13) Ineligible Gifts--A gift that is not an eligible
gift under paragraph (11) of this subsection, which may include the
following:
(A) A gift or a bundled gift that is less than $100,000;
(B) A gift that has been pledged but has not been received
by the institution;
(C) A gift for undergraduate scholarships or undergraduate
financial aid grants;
(D) Any portion in excess of $10 million of gifts or
endowments received from a single source in a state fiscal year;
(E) A gift that is bundled by a university-affiliated
entity;
(F) In-kind gifts or discounts;
(G) A gift for which an institution has made a commitment
of resources or services to the benefit of the donor other than the
use of the gift in the manner the donor specifies; or
(H) A gift not originally donated for research purposes.
(14) Internal Review Committee--Coordinating Board
staff authorized by the Commissioner to review TRIP applications and
provide a recommendation on the eligibility of TRIP applications to
the Board.
(15) Matching Grant--State appropriations used to match
eligible gifts in the program and administered by the Coordinating
Board.
(16) Peer Review--The review of all institutional applications
by representatives from each eligible public institution for eligibility
criteria, including date of deposit and research enhancing activities.
Institutions report any challenges of eligibility to the Internal
Review Committee.
(17) Private Sources--Any individual or entity that
cannot levy taxes and is not directly supported by tax funds.
(18) Program--The Texas Research Incentive Program
(TRIP) established under Texas Education Code, Chapter 62, Subchapter
F.
(19) University-Affiliated Entity--An entity whose
sole purpose is to support the mission or programs of the university.
(d) Matching Grants. Eligible gifts will be matched
at the following rates:
(1) 50 percent of the amount if the amount of a gift
or endowment made by a donor on a certain date is at least $100,000,
but not more than $999,999;
(2) 75 percent of the amount if the amount of a gift
or endowment made by a donor on a certain date is at least $1 million
but not more than $1,999,999; or
(3) 100 percent of the amount if the amount of a gift
or endowment made by a donor on a certain date is $2 million but not
more than $10 million.
(e) Distribution of Matching Grants.
(1) The Coordinating Board will distribute matching
grants in order of the date of certification.
(2) If there are insufficient appropriations to provide
matching grants for eligible gifts with the same date of certification,
the Coordinating Board shall fund those eligible gifts in chronological
order of their date of receipt, and any remaining unmatched eligible
gifts shall be eligible for matching grants in the following fiscal
years using funds appropriated to the program, to the extent funds
are available.
(f) Application Requirements. An institution may only
submit an eligible gift via application to the Coordinating Board
to be certified by the Board as eligible for state matching funds.
(1) The application must contain the following information:
(A) Written documentation from the institution verifying
the amount, date of deposit, and source of the gift. Acceptable documentation
includes transaction receipts and statements from the institution's
bank that identify the donor, recipient institution, amount of the
transaction, and date of the transaction.
(B) A copy of the fully executed donor agreement form
provided by the Coordinating Board describing the purpose and the
restrictions of the gift meeting the definition of eligible gifts,
including the following information:
(i) The description of the purpose shall describe how
the gift would be used.
(ii) Gifts that are made as part of a pledge series
may use the first signed donor agreement for subsequent gifts in that
pledge series provided that the purpose is the same and a schedule
of pledged gifts is provided using the pledge schedule template provided
by the Coordinating Board.
(2) Applications shall exclude portions of a gift that
do not meet the requirements of an eligible gift.
(3) An institution shall submit the applications electronically
and shall include two versions of the application, one with and one
without redactions of personally identifiable information or other
information that is confidential by law. The redacted copy will be
made available to all eligible public institutions for the purpose
of eligibility peer review.
(4) The Coordinating Board may request administrative
corrections to facilitate review of applications.
(5) Each institution shall provide all information
to the Coordinating Board within sixty (60) days of the date of deposit.
(g) Returned Gifts. If an eligible institution returns
any portion of an eligible gift to the donor or the gift is no longer
eligible for matching grants, the institution shall take the following
actions within thirty (30) days of the change:
Cont'd... |
