LINKAGE—

INFRASTRUCTURE

EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Funding rules

 

for funding commencing in

 

2004


Linkage–Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities

Funding rules for applicants for funding commencing in 2004

 

 

1 Overview......................................................4

2 Objectives......................................................4

3 Definition of research infrastructure.................................4

4               Eligibility..........................................................4

4.1 Eligibility of the institution

4.2 Eligibility of the project

4.2.1 Key criteria

4.2.2 Integrated facilities

4.2.3 Ownership and location of equipment and facilities

4.2.4 Cash contribution by institutions

5               Funding...........................................................7

5.1 General funding issues

5.2              Goods and Services Tax (GST)

5.3              Areas of investigation not supported

5.4              Budget items not supported

6 Application process..............................................9

6.1 Applications

6.1.1        Submission of applications

6.1.2        Application format

6.1.3        Application form and instructions to applicants

6.1.3.1  Additional text

6.1.3.2  Supporting documentation and
     curricula vitae

6.2 Number of copies

6.3  Closing date for applications

6.4  How to submit applications

7 Selection and approval process.....................................12

7.1 Selection criteria

7.2 Selection procedure

7.3              Exclusion

7.4              Offer of financial assistance

7.5 Acceptance of Funding Agreement

8 Appeals process................................................13

9 Funding administration..........................................14

9.1    Funding Agreement

 9.1.1     Reporting requirements

 9.1.2     Failure to provide reports

 9.1.3     Varying the Funding Approval and Agreement

9.2 Financial management

9.3 Privacy

        9.3.1     Privacy of individuals

        9.3.2.    Privacy complaints and advice

9.4              Confidentiality

9.5              Intellectual Property

9.6              Incomplete or misleading information

9.7              Contact points

 

 

1               Eligible higher education institutions...................................17

2               Library and information infrastructure..................................18

 

 

The following acronyms are used throughout these Funding Rules.

 

ARC Australian Research Council

EAC Expert Advisory Committee

GAMS Grant Application Management System

GST Goods and Services Tax

LIEF  Linkage‑Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities Program

NCGP National Competitive Grants Program

NHMRC National Health and Medical Research Council

RIEF  Research Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities Scheme

 

 

Linkage‑Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities

Funding rules for applicants for funding commencing in 2004

 

The Australian Research Council’s infrastructure fund has existed continuously for more than ten years.  The ARC currently funds infrastructure through the Linkage‑Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Program, which is part of the National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP).  LIEF commenced in 2001, replacing the Research Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities (RIEF) Scheme.

 

LIEF provides funding to institutions for research infrastructure that will be used to support high quality research projects.  The Program is managed on an annual basis and funding is normally provided for one year only.  Applications for LIEF are submitted through the ARC’s Grant Administration and Management System (GAMS).

 

The objectives of the LIEF Program are to:

 

Research infrastructure consists of the institutional resources essential for mounting high-quality research projects in a particular field, including associated indirect costs.  It excludes any direct project costs that can be covered from other sources of funding.

 

Appendix 1 lists the higher education institutions eligible to administer LIEF funding.  Researchers will apply for LIEF funding through the administering institution.  In general, applications should involve two or more eligible higher education institutions.

 

A single university application is defined as an application whose list of participants includes only one eligible higher education institution, as outlined in Appendix 1.

 

In some circumstances applications from single universities for assistance to purchase a large item of equipment or major facility on a sole-use basis may be considered under the LIEF Program.  In such cases, the application must demonstrate clearly that:

 

Applications involving organisations that are not higher education institutions, such as government research organisations and businesses, are also encouraged, provided that:

 

 

If only one higher education institution is involved in an application, the application must be justified as a single university application.  This applies both to applications submitted by only one university and no collaborating organisations, and applications that involve a number of industry or government partners but only one university partner.

 

Peak bodies representing the higher education community may act as catalysts in developing cooperative arrangements.  In such cases, the peak body may apply on behalf of, and with the full written agreement of, the higher education institutions.  Such applications must identify the mechanism for accountability and distribution of the funding between the eligible higher education institutions.

 

Projects that demonstrate genuine collaboration between two or more eligible institutions are preferred.  Projects must relate to high-quality research activity and must be broadly in line with the research directions of the institution(s) involved.

 

Collaboration will typically involve the shared use of facilities on different projects and/or collaborative projects.  Where the equipment required will be located in more than one institution, the application must demonstrate clearly that:

 

 

Chief Investigators must have fulfilled all obligations from previous ARC grants (including final and end of year reports) before LIEF funding can be awarded.

 

The amount of funding sought from the ARC must exceed $100,000 (net of GST).  Funding may be sought only for expenditure related to research infrastructure and equipment and facilities such as:

 

LIEF supports major facilities and equipment.  Minor items of equipment are the responsibility of institutions.  However, there may be special circumstances in which a case can be made for an integrated facility consisting of a number of small items.  Such applications will be considered only where a convincing case can be made that an integrated facility is necessary to support research activities.

 

Ownership of shared facilities and equipment provided under LIEF is to be vested in the lead higher education institution identified on the application, listed in its assets register and located on campus.  Collaborating institutions must reach agreement on time-sharing and access to equipment or facilities before applying for funding.  Details of applicants’ time‑sharing and access arrangements must be included in their LIEF application.

 

It is recognised that it may be desirable, in very special circumstances, to fund and support the location of equipment or major national facilities outside a university campus, when access is provided to several institutions to better utilise research potential.  In these circumstances, the terms of access must be guaranteed and agreed to by the parties in a contract prior to application.  The costs of managing the equipment or facility should then be proportionally distributed across the users of the facility and agreed to prior to application.  In such cases, ownership of the equipment or facility is vested with the institution that receives the LIEF funding.  A copy of the signed agreement specifying location, access and sharing of recurrent costs must be attached to the application.

 

The cost of acquiring equipment or facilities must be itemised on the application form as cash and in-kind contributions by participating institutions.  The LIEF Program will fund up to a maximum of 75 per cent of the direct cost of purchasing the equipment or creating the facility (net of GST).

 

Salaries of support or academic staff and the cost of buildings or other infrastructure may not be counted as cash contributions towards the purchase of a new item of equipment or facility.  Such items may be included only as in-kind contributions.  Supplier discounts on infrastructure items must be included in the application but may not be identified as cash or in-kind contributions.

 

The Minister may approve a lesser amount of funding than that sought by an applicant.  In such cases, each participating institution is nonetheless required to contribute pro-rata to the funded items at the rate identified in the funding application, irrespective of where those items are to be located.  Institutions are required to submit at a minimum the pro-rata sum required, but may maintain the original level of commitment offered.

 

The minimum funding available for a grant under LIEF is $100,000.  A total budget of approximately $25 million is available for distribution to LIEF projects in 2004.  Additional allocations of expenditure cannot be accommodated once the Minister has approved the funding recommendations, as there are no additional funds available. 

 

Funding is normally for one year only and is not recurrent, except where international agreements and national facilities are involved.  All applicants must apply for funding each year.  Where the ARC has accepted a case for continuing funding, the applicant will be required to submit an application each year until review.

 

Where international agreements are involved, long-term funding will be available only if there are significant benefits to Australia by way of multi-year access to a major facility not otherwise available to Australians.  Under such circumstances, the maximum funding period sought must be identified in the text of the initial application.  If funding is required for more than five years, a review of the project will be conducted early in the fourth year, before any application for further funding is considered.

 

Where national facilities are involved, the maximum funding period sought must be identified in the text of the initial application for funding and, if funding is sought for more than three years, a review of the project will be conducted early in the third year and before any application for further funding is considered.  All bids for funding projects lasting more than one year must include a strategy for achieving sustainability following the period of LIEF funding.

 

Government-related entities do not pay GST on the funding transaction with the ARC.  However, non government-related entities which are liable to pay GST on the transaction with the ARC will receive base funding plus GST.

 

If the organisation is able to claim input tax credits for the GST component in the cost of goods and services purchased in the course of carrying out the Project, then the GST component of these costs should not be included in the Project cost.  The ARC will make GST adjustments to payments depending on whether the funding has been provided to a government-related or non-government-related entity.  Applicants are therefore required to provide their budgets exclusive of GST. 

 

 

The following items are not regarded as elements of research infrastructure, for the purposes of LIEF, and are not eligible for support:

 

 

Applications that seek non-capital works aspects of library or information infrastructure may include salaries and minor pieces of equipment to build an integrated facility if the entire project is a cohesive attempt to provide infrastructure support to research.  Please refer to Appendix 2 for further details.

 

 

The application must contain all the information necessary for assessment of the project without the need for further written or oral explanation, or reference to additional documentation (including the World Wide Web) , unless requested by the LIEF Advisory Committee.  All details in the application, particularly concerning any successful grants, must be current.

 

For successful applications, the ARC may publish details contained in the full application, including applicants’ names and institutions, application title, summary of proposal and research classifications.

 

Applicants should note that applications are considered by a committee that may include people who are not specialists in the field of the application.  Accordingly, the project and its expected outcomes should be described in a way that can be understood by all committee members, including specialists and non-specialists.

 

Applications under LIEF consist of two parts:

1 Application form.  Parts A, B, C, D and E of the application form are completed in GAMS and provided to the ARC in both electronic and paper copies.

2 Additional text (Part F of application form).  Part F includes supporting documentation and applicants’ curricula vitae.  Part F is provided to the ARC as a paper copy behind the associated application form.

 

All documents must be written in English and must comply strictly with the ARC’s format and submission requirements.

 

All pages must be in black type, use a single column and 12 point font size on white A4 paper, printed on one side only and unbound, with at least 2 cm margins on each side.  As applications are scanned electronically, applicants must use a highly legible font type, such as Arial, Courier, Palatino, Times New Roman and Helvetica.  Variants such as mathematical typesetting languages may also be used.  References may be reproduced in 10-point font size.  Colour graphs or colour photographs may be included but will be reproduced in black and white.

 

The pages of the additional text and supporting documentation must be numbered consecutively starting from page one of the additional text.  Pages in excess of the number stipulated for each part below will be removed from the application before it is assessed.

 

Applicants must complete the application form produced by the ARC’s web-based GAMS, available at www.arc.gov.au.

 

The application form is organised into six parts:

 

Part A Administrative summary

Part B Personnel

Part C Cost and usage

Part D Research support

Part E Collaborating organisation details

Part F Project and participant information

 

Applicants should note that a separate document, Linkage—Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities Instructions to Applicants for Funding Commencing in 2004, is available from www.arc.gov.au to assist in preparing applications.

 

The additional text is to be no longer than ten pages.  It should, within the required format, address the selection criteria listed in Section 7.1 of these Funding Rules and include the following details:

 

 

Applicants for library or information infrastructure must also address the issues identified in Appendix 2 of these Funding Rules.  Note that applicants must list the specific research projects that will use the resource created by this library or information infrastructure proposal.

 

All the documents listed below are mandatory except for the agreement on access.  These documents are not included in the quota of pages for the additional text.  Applicants must include:

 

 

An original and one identical copy only are required.  The application must be clipped with NAL-clips, not stapled, and submitted in the following order:

1               application form;

2               additional text; and

3               supporting documentation and curricula vitae.

 

Paper originals of LIEF applications must be received by the ARC, and the application form completed using GAMS must be submitted, by close of business (AEST) 2 May 2003. Applications may be withdrawn but may not be changed after submission.  Additions, deletions and modifications will not be accepted after submission.  Applications received after close of business (AEST) 2 May 2003 will not be considered for funding.

 

Applicants should submit their applications through the Research Office of the administering institution by the institution’s closing date.  University Research Offices have access to GAMS and will allocate GAMS UserIDs and passwords to enable applicants at their university to access the system and create application forms.  If an applicant has previously been allocated access to GAMS, her/his UserID and password should still be current.

 

University Research Offices should submit the application form in GAMS and forward the full paper application.  Applicants who require an alternative means to submitting the form online should contact their University’s Research Office.

 

Research Offices should send applications

 

by mail, to

Assistant Director - LIEF

Australian Research Council

GPO Box 2702

CANBERRA  ACT  2601

 

by courier, to

Assistant Director - LIEF

Australian Research Council

Geoscience Australia Building

cnr Jerrabomberra Ave and Hindmarsh Drive

SYMONSTON  ACT  2609

 

 

Applicants should note that a separate document, Linkage‑Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Instructions to Applicants for Funding Commencing in 2004, will be available on the ARC’s website www.arc.gov.au to assist in preparing applications.

 

Assessment will be based on the following criteria:

1                Need and level of demand for the proposed equipment or facilities in Australia.

The application should indicate the relevance of the proposed infrastructure to national needs and the availability of comparable infrastructure elsewhere in Australia.

2               Excellence of the researchers and research activity to be supported.

Evidence must be presented to show that the proposed research and the Chief Investigators’ track records are of high quality, including details of the research proposed, complemented in the attached curricula vitae of the principal proponents by details of recent relevant publications and competitive grants.  This evaluation will take into account the opportunities that have been made available to the researchers to date.

3                     Effectiveness of the cooperative arrangements between institutions, including access and resource sharing.

The application should detail the nature and degree of cooperation involved between the collaborating institutions.  Where possible (and relevant), applications should also detail past and present cooperation and collaboration between the institutions concerned.  Where the application seeks an extension of existing equipment facilities and/or additional equipment for a facility previously funded under LIEF or the Research Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities (RIEF) Scheme, then the extent of the current usage should be set out.

4                     The commitment of each collaborating institution.

The application must provide clear evidence of the extent of financial and other support from the collaborating institutions and partners, and must be consistent with the institutions’ research management plans.

 

Assessment of applications is undertaken by an Advisory Committee consisting of representatives from the ARC’s Expert Advisory Committees (EACs).  The Advisory Committee:

 

 

The ARC has procedures for managing any institutional and personal conflicts of interest experienced by Committee members, and for enabling members to withdraw from considering particular applications.

 

Exclusion of ineligible applications by the ARC or by the LIEF Advisory Committee may take place at any time during the selection process.  Applications may be excluded for contravening the Funding Rules in any way, for instance by:

 

 

Following the Minister’s approval of successful applications, the ARC will inform the successful administering institution in a letter of offer that will indicate the funding to be provided and will include the Funding Agreement.  Collaborating institutions will be advised of the details of relevant funding offers.  The Minister’s decision is final.

 

Applicants should familiarise themselves with the draft LIEF Funding Agreement, which will be available at www.arc.gov.au. 

 

Applicants who are offered financial assistance by the Commonwealth must accept the conditions outlined in the LIEF Funding Agreement.  The administering institution must sign the Agreement before funding payments can be made.  If the institution is administering more than one grant under the LIEF Program, only one Funding Agreement needs to be completed.

 

Appeals will be considered only against process issues and not against Committee decisions or comments.  Appeals must be made on the appeals form available on the ARC website www.arc.gov.au.

 


The form must be lodged through the institution’s research office and be received, within 28 days of the date on the letter notifying the outcome of applications, to:

The Appeals Officer, Australian Research Council

GPO Box 2702

CANBERRA  ACT  2601

 

Administering organisations should note that the Funding Agreement and post-award management cover the following matters.

 

Institutions are required to submit several reports to the Australian Research Council.  These comprise:

 

The ARC reserves the right to suspend payment of further instalments of any current funding until the appropriate reports have been received and assessed as satisfactory.

 

Where an institution fails to submit satisfactory reports, as required, the Minister may determine that funds have not been used in accordance with conditions applicable to the funding, and that all or part of the funding must be repaid.  In this case, the ARC may withhold the remainder of the institution’s payments for the current year or initiate recovery of paid funds.

 

Requests to vary the Funding Approval or the Funding Agreement must be forwarded in writing by the institution’s Research Office, or equivalent, to the ARC.  The Funding Approval may be varied where any of the following circumstances occur:

 

(a) the organisation’s involvement with the research program ends;

 

(b) the research program changes so that it is no longer consistent with the description in the Funding Approval;

 

(c) the person named in the funding approval as the person leading the research program ceases to lead the program;

 

(d) any of the collaborating partner institutions involved in the research program end their involvement with the program;

 

(e) there are significant alterations to the level of access to the funded equipment or facility granted to the partner institutions; and

 

(f) any other such circumstances as the ARC may, in its discretion, determine.

 

 

LIEF operates on a calendar year basis.  Subject to appropriations, payment of funds will be made to institutions in regular instalments, in accordance with approved payment arrangements made under the Australian Research Council Act 2001.  Funds must be used only for purposes approved under LIEF, otherwise they must be returned.

 

Documents containing personal information are handled and protected in accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act 1988 (the Privacy Act).  The Privacy Act sets the minimum standards for the collection, storage, access, use and disclosure of personal information by the ARC.

Persons, bodies and organisations involved in the ARC program must abide by the IPPs and the Privacy Act 1988 when handling personal information collected for the purposes of that program. In brief, persons, bodies and organisations must ensure that:

 

 

Complaints about breaches of privacy and requests for advice about privacy should be referred to the Chief Executive Officer of the ARC.  Privacy complaints can be made directly to the Federal Privacy Commissioner, but the Federal Privacy Commissioner prefers that the ARC be given an opportunity to deal with the complaint in the first instance.

 

Information contained in applications is regarded as confidential unless otherwise stated and will be received and treated as confidential by the ARC, institutions and assessors.

 

Applicants must agree to comply with the intellectual property statute of the administering organisation and the National Principles of Intellectual Property Management for Publicly Funded Research (available at www.arc.gov.au).

 

It is a serious offence to provide false or misleading information.  If an application is incomplete or contains information that is considered misleading, it will be excluded from any further consideration for funding.

 

If the ARC believes that omissions or inclusion of misleading information are intentional, or if there is evidence of malpractice, the ARC will refer the matter for appropriate legal advice.  The Commonwealth Government is committed to protecting its revenue, expenditure and property from any attempt, whether by members of the public, contractors, sub-contractors, agents, intermediaries or its own employees, to gain financial or other benefits by deceit.

 

Examples of malpractice include, but are not restricted to:

 

For further information, the institution’s Research Office should be contacted in the first instance.  Enquiries about LIEF may be addressed to:

 

LIEF Program Co-ordinator

Australian Research Council

GPO Box 2702

CANBERRA  ACT  2601

Email arc@arc.gov.au

Phone 02 6284 6600

Fax (02) 6284 6638


APPENDIX 1

 

 

Higher education institutions receiving Commonwealth funding on a triennial basis

 

New South Wales

Charles Sturt University

Macquarie University

Southern Cross University

The University of New England

The University of New South Wales

The University of Newcastle

The University of Sydney

University of Technology, Sydney

University of Western Sydney

University of Wollongong

 

Western Australia

Curtin University of Technology

Edith Cowan University

Murdoch University

The University of Notre Dame Australia

The University of Western Australia

 

South Australia

The Flinders University of South Australia

The University of Adelaide

University of South Australia

 

Victoria

Deakin University

La Trobe University

Monash University

RMIT University

Swinburne University of Technology

University of Ballarat

The University of Melbourne

Victoria University

 

Tasmania

University of Tasmania

Australian Maritime College

 

Northern Territory

Batchelor College

Northern Territory University

 

Queensland

Central Queensland University

Griffith University

James Cook University

Queensland University of Technology

The University of the Sunshine Coast

The University of Queensland

University of Southern Queensland

 

Australian Capital Territory

The Australian National University

University of Canberra

 

 

Multi-State

Australian Catholic University

 

 

 

Applications for library and information infrastructure must address the matters raised here in addition to the requirements specified in the body of these Funding Rules.

 

One of the aims of the LIEF Program is to fund the development of library and information infrastructure that enhances high-quality research projects.  Applications in this category must demonstrate that they will enhance specific high-quality research projects, and that they will benefit researchers and scholars nationally.  Applications must be collaborative in nature.

 

All applications for library and information infrastructure should demonstrate:

 

All applications for library and information infrastructure should address one or more of the following elements of the national library and information infrastructure:

 

Applications for library and information infrastructure must outline: