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[[underlined]] Federal Grants and Contracts [[/underlined]]

For the past thirty years funds received as Federal grants and contracts have been a significant factor in institutional operations.  Generally, Smithsonian personnel seek and receive grants and contracts from Government agencies and departments to assist in financing specific research and educational projects that are related to the mission of the Institution and in consonance with programs approved by the Board of Regents.  Occasionally, an agency or department requests the Smithsonian to perform specific kinds of work because of its expertise in a given area, the availability of key research people, or its ability to respond quickly to certain kinds of needs.  Such requests are honored and carried out by grant or contract when they can be accommodated within the limits of available time, personnel, and existing programmatic priorities.

Grant and contract funds are made available to the Smithsonian as an educational institution; administered as restricted trust funds; and expended for purposes of the individual grant or contract in accordance with terms and conditions required by law and regulation and as agreed to between the parties.  In 1976 Federal grant and contract funds accounted for 9% of the Smithsonian's operating budget.

[[underlined]] Trust Funds [[/underlined]]

[[underlined]] Restricted Trust Funds [[/underlined]] consist of gifts, grants, endowments, and other income designated for specific projects and purposes by the donor.  The Freer fund is the largest example in this category, being strictly controlled under the terms of the original gift and bequest for the sole use of the Gallery.

[[underlined]] Unrestricted Trust Funds [[/underlined]] are made available for the Institution's use from a variety of sources.  These sources include interest on the Smithson bequest; income from other endowment and current fund investments; concessions such as food service and parking; royalties from sales of Smithsonian products based on designs and objects in the collections; the Resident and National Associates' programs (including the [[underlined]] Smithsonian [[/underlined]] magazine), and the Museum Shops.  They also include unrestricted gifts or bequests of funds.