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  • 1.  Grant Licensing Language and Implications for Gift Counting

    Posted 05-08-2025 01:00 PM

    I'm seeking guidance on how others handle grants from private organizations with language paraphrased below.

    The Grantor is granted a worldwide, non-exclusive, perpetual, and royalty-free license under copyright law to use (1) final grant deliverables intended for public dissemination, and (2) project-related materials submitted by your organization to the Grantor, solely for purposes of promoting the project or furthering the Grantor's charitable mission. This use may include dissemination through the Grantor's website, social media, and any other media channels. The Grantor may only exercise this license with respect to a grant deliverable after it has been published by your organization, or if your organization does not publish it by the end of the grant term or within a reasonable time thereafter, as outlined in the grant proposal.

    The purpose of the grant is "to expand and document (our) model of bridging academic and community-held knowledge in the service of social justice".

    Does this clause exclude the the grant from being reportable since the grantor receives license to the work? Does it matter that the license may only be used to further the Grantor's charitable mission?

    Thank you for your thoughts on this!



    ------------------------------
    Patrick Hunt
    UC Merced
    phunt@UCMERCED.EDU
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: Grant Licensing Language and Implications for Gift Counting

    Posted 05-08-2025 01:20 PM
    On its surface, this feels okay. It's not dissimilar to language some funders use regarding patents and IP, where they ask for non-exclusive use. However, those grants usually reference a requirement that the deliverables be made available in the public domain.

    The Gates Foundation uses similar "public domain" language.

    As the grantor clearly states, "non-exclusive," I think you should be okay counting this. However, I'd ask Counsel and the CFO for confirmation.

    John

     

    John H. Taylor, Principal
    John H. Taylor Consulting, LLC
    2604 Sevier Street
    Durham, NC     27705

    919.816.5903 (cell/text)

    Serving the Advancement Community Since 1987






  • 3.  RE: Grant Licensing Language and Implications for Gift Counting

    Posted 05-08-2025 01:59 PM

    Thank you, John for your feedback. After posting my question I continued researching and pulled up the following from the CASE Global Reporting Standards:

    Exclusion Criteria: IP Rights
     
    Description: The agreement assigns to the funder any full or partial rights that may result from the program of activity. This exclusion extends to a provision of royalty-free licenses (whether exclusive or nonexclusive) to the funder, and also to granting the funder the first option or similar exclusive rights to purchase the rights to any subsequent commercial opportunities. If the written agreement includes any actual or potential future benefit of this kind, the funding must be excluded.
    Does this imply that granting any license to the donor constitutes a return benefit, or should I be specifically concerned only with licenses that provide a commercial benefit?


    ------------------------------
    Patrick Hunt
    UC Merced
    phunt@UCMERCED.EDU
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Grant Licensing Language and Implications for Gift Counting

    Posted 05-08-2025 02:05 PM
    If the funder receives any tangible benefit not available to anyone else, I'd think that would nix the ability to count the grant.

    John H. Taylor, Principal
    John H. Taylor Consulting, LLC
    2604 Sevier Street
    Durham, NC     27705

    919.816.5903 (cell/text)

    Serving the Advancement Community Since 1987





    Original Message


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