Instructions for the Certification of Gifts/Pledges Form

Instructions for the Certification of Gifts/Pledges (PDF)

You must submit the Federal Matching Report to NEH via eGMS Reach to certify gifts and donations in order to release offered Federal Matching Funds. Federal Matching Funds are optional for most programs, so the report may not appear on your reporting schedule by default and you will have to add it manually.

NEH will release matching funds only up to the amount specified in the offer letter. Certifying gifts for an amount greater than has been offered will not result in an increase of the offered or released matching funds.

Add the report to the schedule:

If the Federal Matching Report already appears on your award’s reporting schedule, skip ahead to the “Complete the report” section below.

In eGMS Reach, navigate to your award and select the Forms & Reports tab. Click the drop menu on the left labeled “Select a Report to Submit” and select “Federal Matching Report.” Click “Add.” The report will now appear on the schedule.

Complete the report: 

In eGMS Reach, navigate to your award and select the Forms & Reports tab. Click the pencil icon to the left of the Federal Matching Report to edit the report. The report will open, and the title “Certification of Gifts/Pledges for Federal Matching Funds” will appear at the top of the page.

The Donor Category column on the left lists the various types of donors from whom you may have received gifts. 

In the center column, Number of Donors, enter the number of donors of each category from whom you received gifts or donations. In the right column, Amount Given, enter the total amount of funding received from each type of donor.

If this report includes pledges, enter the total amount in the appropriate box. .

If your organization is certifying pledges, you must upload pledge letters to the report. Click on the “Documentation attached for pledges certified” box and upload PDF copies of the letters.

Only for State and Jurisdictional Humanities Councils’ General Operating Support awards:

Enter the total amount of offered Federal Matching Funds that will be allocated to regrants or other cost categories.

Note: by submitting this form, you certify that you have received the total amount in the form of a gift or gifts that have been donated to your organization; that the gifts meet the criteria for eligibility established by NEH; that they will be expended for grant purposes during the grant period; and that you will retain documentation that substantiates the amounts, sources, eligibility, and expenditure of the gifts for three years following the submission to NEH of the final financial report for this grant. If pledges are included in the total, you certify that (1) the pledges are legally enforceable, (2) the donors are obligated to pay the pledges during the grant period, and (3) the immediate release of matching funds is necessary to carry out grant activities.