NASA Procedural Requirements

NPR 9770.1A Effective Date: November 17, 2020 Expiration Date: November 17, 2025

Subject: NASA Conference Approval and Reporting

Responsible Office: Office of the Chief Financial Officer

Chapter 4. Post Conference Reporting

4.1 Post-Conference Reporting

NASA is required to report on the total costs it incurred for both conference sponsorship and conference attendance. Annual appropriations acts and OMB Memorandum M-12-12, as amended by OMB Memorandum M-17-08, establish reporting requirements on Executive Branch organizations. The post- conference reporting provides information on actual costs, attendance data, contract features, and other conference-related information. This information is used for internal management reviews and made available for external reviews.

4.2 Post-Conference Report Forms (Including the NF 1785)

4.2.1 Purpose. Post-conference information is collected in NCTS and reported on NF 1785. The NF 1785 is the key summary document used to identify and summarize the costs of an individual conference. The NF 1785 form outlines the event actuals and final attendee count information. Conference POCs input NF 1785 data in NCTS for the overall conference, which is approved by the approving official electronically in NCTS as described below. It is not the entire report, but rather a summary of estimates developed in other parts of the report. All supporting documentation to justify costs is attached to the respective event in NCTS.

4.2.2 Required Use. An NF 1785 is required whenever an NF 1784 is required. The NCTS will display an alert for conferences with approved NF 1784s requiring approved NF 1785s, following the end date of an approved conference.

4.2.3 Approving Official. The Center Director or OIC of the HQ office that incurred the highest costs will review the NF 1785 and the required supporting documentation and, when satisfied with its accuracy and completeness, approve the NF 1785.

4.2.4 Forms and Instructions. Detailed instructions, samples, and templates (where practicable) for the Post- Conference Report, including the NF 1785 and other required displays, are available at https://ncts.nasa.gov.

4.2.5 Post-Conference Reports (including NF 1785s) of previous conferences are available at https://ncts.nasa.gov.

4.2.6 Report of NASA-Sponsored Conferences to the NASA OIG. Annual appropriations acts require NASA to provide additional information to NASA's OIG for NASA-sponsored conferences costing more than $20,000 within 15 days after the end of a quarter. These reports include the date, location, and number of employees attending such conference. This information will be provided using estimated data in NCTS.

4.3 Annual Report of NASA-Sponsored Conferences to the NASA OIG

4.3.1 Annual appropriations acts require NASA to submit an annual report to the OIG regarding the costs and contracting procedures related to each NASA-sponsored conference where the cost was more than $100,000. The annual OIG report includes the following:

a. Description of its purpose.

b. Number of participants attending.

c. Detailed statement of the costs to the United States Government, including:

(1) The cost of any food or beverages.

(2) The cost of any audio-visual services.

(3) The cost of employee or contractor travel to and from the conference.

(4) A discussion of the methodology used to determine which costs relate to the conference.

(5) Description of the contracting procedures used including:

(a) Whether contracts were awarded on a competitive basis.

(b) A discussion of any cost comparison conducted in evaluating potential contractors for the conference.

4.4 Annual Posting of NASA Conference Expenditures

4.4.1 In accordance with the annual appropriations acts and OMB Memorandum M-12-12, as amended by OMB Memorandum 17-08, the Agency Reviewer/Conference Reporting Coordinator shall coordinate the approval and posting by January 31 each year on its public Web site the following information concerning NASA's conference expenditures for the prior fiscal year:

a. Identification of each conference with total NASA costs in excess of $100,000, using the information obtained in NCTS for the approved NF 1784s and NF 1785s, including:

(1) Total conference expenses incurred by the Agency for the conference.

(2) The location and date of the conference.

(3) A brief explanation stating how the conference advanced the mission of the Agency.

(4) The total number of individuals whose travel or other conference expenses were paid by NASA.

b. The designated Agency Official's waiver and approval, identifying the exceptional circumstances that necessitated exceeding $500,000, for any conferences that exceeded that threshold.

c. Information about NASA's net conference expenses for the fiscal year, as well as a general report about conference activities throughout the year.

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