1.0 Administration of Property

1.1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Responsibility

1.1.1

The Institute is required to establish and maintain a system to control Government property in accordance with the provisions of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Part 45, the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulations (NASA/FAR) Supplement Part 18-45, and the Department of Energy Regulation (DEAR) Subparts 945.5 and 917.74 of April 1984.

1.1.2

To the extent of any inconsistency between these procedures and the terms of any contract or grant under which property is provided, the terms of the contract or grant shall govern. The institute shall be directly responsible and accountable for all Government property in accordance with the provisions of the contract or grant including property provided under the contract or grant which may be in the possession of or under the control of a subcontractor. The Institute shall maintain and make available such records as are required by the applicable regulations and must account for all Government property until relieved of accountability. Liability for loss, damage, or excessive use of property in a given instance will necessarily depend on all circumstances surrounding the particular case and must be considered in accordance with the provisions of the contract or grant. The Institute is obligated to furnish all necessary data to substantiate any request for relief of accountability.

1.1.3

The Institute is contractually responsible as well, for all property obtained in connection with sponsored research projects and, through the Property Office, assists project supervisors in fulfilling the property requirements of their specific contracts or grants.

1.1.4

In conjunction with the system used to control Government property and property purchased by specific research projects, the Institute maintains control of its own property utilizing the same techniques and property database.

1.1.5

The title to all MIT-owned property shall always be in the name of MIT rather than in the name of any particular school, department head, or individual. Title to any property purchased with contract or grant monies will be as specified in the relevant contract or grant.

1.1.6

Items of property purchased with ‘discretionary’ funds resulting from Industrial Liaison Program reimbursements or summer session “profit” distributions or other discretionary funds are Institute property and as such must have an Institute property number affixed thereto.

1.1.7

A property identification number is assigned to each item of capital equipment and corresponds to the number on the bar-code label that is affixed to the equipment. When it is not feasible to tag an item, it will be assigned a property identification number.

1.1.8

Personal items that may be mistaken as MIT property must be tagged with a personal property tag. These tags may be obtained from the Property Office or may be available from the Property Auditors or Property Inventory Auditors when they are performing inventories. The Department Head should advise the personnel in their department of the inventorying schedule for the respective department so that they will be aware of any forthcoming inventory.

1.1.9

In the case where items are off-campus, the name of the borrower should be made available to the Property Office so that a letter and tags will be sent to the user to tag the equipment and verify the location. The Property Manager must be notified by email when equipment is temporarily moved off-campus, (department approval required) and also when the equipment is returned to campus.

1.1.10

MIT provides limited insurance coverage and, in general, the Government provides none. Since home users of equipment are responsible for the equipment while it is being borrowed, the question of responsibility for theft, damage, or loss should be resolved with the lending department’s Administrative Officer before any equipment is borrowed. Clarification of insurance coverage should be addressed to the MIT Director of Insurance and Legal Affairs.