quick resources

Service Agreements | Non-Disclosure/Confidentiality Agreements | Material Transfer Agreements | Unfunded Collaboration Agreement (MOU) | Leases/land Use Agreements |  Hotel and Facility Contracts | Independent Contractor Agreements | Other information

 

Service Agreements  (AgriLife hiring contractor & paying for services and/or goods)

When hiring a vendor to provide services (or purchase goods), the vendor sometimes requires that a written agreement be signed. The agreement may be in the form of a purchase or service agreement, a quote, or terms & conditions. If you receive such a document from a vendor and it requires a signature, it must be either reviewed and approved by the AgriLife Contract Office or it must be handled through Purchasing (if in excess of $25,000). Department Heads, PIs, and Business Administrators do not have authority to sign vendor agreements. Please submit all documents provided by the vendor to our office by emailing them to contracts@ag.tamu.edu. Please provide in your email correspondence the account number you will be using to pay for the purchase.

If you are hiring a vendor to provide a service and the vendor does not provide a written agreement but you would like something in writing to document the work to be done, the AgriLife Contract Office can prepare and provide you with an applicable services agreement for the vendor’s signature. Some examples of services when agreements are requested include: speaking engagements, web editing or development, and consulting services. Please email any request for a service agreement to contracts@ag.tamu.edu. Please include a brief summary of the services to be provided, name of vendor, amount to be paid, and account to be used for payment.

Please note – The above applies to purchases totaling $25,000 and under.

Non-Disclosure/Confidentiality Agreements

A Non-Disclosure Agreement (“NDA”) [also known as a Confidentiality Agreement] is needed when any AgriLife employee will be having discussion with an external entity that may involve disclosure/sharing of confidential or proprietary information. In addition, sometimes a PI is provided with a third-party’s NDA and asked to sign it in anticipation of confidential discussions/information exchange. Neither a PI nor a Department Head have authority to sign an NDA on behalf of the agency.

If you receive an NDA from a third-party please forward such document to the AgriLife Contract Office for review. Please note, the agency prefers to use its on System approved non-disclosure agreement, and therefore the AgriLife Contract Office may request that the third party consider the System approved NDA instead.

To request an NDA, submit a completed AG-113 form (Request for Non-Disclosure Agreement) to the AgriLife Contract Office at contracts@ag.tamu.edu. Upon receipt of AG-113, the AgriLife Contract Office will work with the external entity to create an approved mutual agreement of non-disclosure. If an NDA is included within an original awarded project agreement, the NDA will be processed by the Office of Sponsored Research Services.

Material Transfer Agreements

The AgriLife Contract Office processes both incoming and outgoing Material Transfer Agreements (“MTA”).  Neither Department Heads nor PIs have the authority to sign MTAs on behalf of AgriLife.

Incoming MTA:

If you will be receiving research materials and/or have received an MTA for execution, please complete the AG-125 form (Incoming Material Request Form) and submit same to contracts@ag.tamu.edu along with any MTA received from the providing institution.

If ordering materials from a repository that uses electronic MTAs please provide the following email address for processing of the MTA: contracts@ag.tamu.edu.

Outgoing MTA:

If you have received a request to share material or need to share material with a third-party please contact the AgriLife Contract Office to obtain an outgoing MTA. AgriLife materials should only be provided after an MTA is signed by the receiving institution and returned to the AgriLife Contract Office. To request an outgoing MTA, please complete the AG-124 form (Outgoing Material Transfer Questionnaire) and submit same to contracts@ag.tamu.edu. AgriLife Contract Office will coordinate your request with Risk & Compliance and Technology Transfer Office as needed.

 

Unfunded Collaboration Agreements (MOU)

Unfunded Collaboration Agreements are used to document when AgriLife is collaborating on project with another institution where each party is paying its own costs. The agreement documents each party’s responsibilities with regard to the project and how resulting research data will be handled. If you receive such an agreement from a collaborator please submit it to the AgriLife Contract Office by email to contracts@ag.tamu.edu. Neither Department Heads nor PIs have the authority to sign collaboration agreements on behalf of AgriLife. If you are collaborating on a project, a written collaboration agreement is not always required. Often an NDA and/or MTA will be sufficient for a collaboration in lieu of a collaboration agreement. Please contact the AgriLife Contracts Office at contracts@ag.tamu.edu if you have any questions regarding what documents may be needed for a collaboration.

MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) is an unfunded, non-binding agreement used to document a relationship between AgriLife and another institution to achieve a common goal. An MOU reflects the parties’ intent or desire to work together in the future but does not require them to do so. If the parties do agree to work on specific projects in the future, a separate written (binding) agreement may be needed. MOUs are generally used with other research institutions, non-profit/public service entities, and/or foreign entities. This type of agreement is not appropriate when issues of compensation (legal or monetary), intellectual property, non-disclosure, technology transfer, etc. may potentially be needed. If you need an MOU or have been requested to sign one, please contact the AgriLife Contract Office at contracts@ag.tamu.edu. Neither Department Heads nor PIs have the authority to sign MOUs on behalf of AgriLife.

The AgriLife Contract Office has available a collaborative MOU form for Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agents that provide free educational classes and collaborate with an institution that provides class location(s) and/or refer participants. If you are in need of such a MOU, please contact the AgriLife Contract Office at contracts@ag.tamu.edu.

 

Leases/land-use-agreements

AgriLife Contract Office assists with leases and land use agreements. Leases include leases of System/AgriLife property to third-parties or employees and leases of third-party property by AgriLife. Any exclusive use of System/AgriLife property by a third-party requires a written lease or license agreement. If an AgriLife employee or vising scholar is allowed to live on System/AgriLife property, a written Residential Lease Agreement must be signed by the employee/visiting scholar and approved by the Agency. The AgriLife Contract Office prepares such lease agreements. To request a lease, please send your request to contracts@ag.tamu.edu.

If you need to use property owned by a third party for AgriLife business, please complete the AG-127 form (Use of Third Party Property) and submit it to contracts@ag.tamu.edu.

Please note – If you are paying a third-party for the use of their property and that payment may or will exceed $25,000, this constitutes a purchase exceeding $25,000 and you will need to work with Purchasing to finalize this purchase.

 

Hotel and Facility Contracts

Contracts with a hotel or facility for room block reservations and/or conference room use may be signed by the Department Head PROVIDED THAT the total value of the agreement is less than $50,000 and the hotel/facility agrees to and signs the agency’s relevant agreement addendum. The Hotel Agreement Addendum is the AG-126H form and the Facility Use Agreement Addendum for is the AG-126F form.

The Hotel Contract Addendum (AG-126H) is to be used when the agency needs hotel accommodations and will be using the hotel’s standard contract and/or purchase order form. The Facility Use Agreement Addendum is to be used when the agency is granted a license by a third party to use space in the State of Texas (i.e. no guest room blocks).

Note: Please be sure to use the correct form and to select the correct agency in the drop down menus on each form. In addition, you will need to complete the missing information – (1) in the first paragraph of the form add the hotel/facility’s name, address and dates of event; and (2) in the Notice section add the contact information for the hotel/facility.

If a hotel/facility asks why the addendum is necessary or required, the appropriate response is as follows:

“As an agency of the State of Texas, AgriLife’s ability to contract is regulated and limited by statute. The Addendum helps to ensure that we comply with the requirements and provisions of Texas Law and to expedite the review and approval process for hotels and facilities. If you have specific questions or concerns about the Addendum, we are happy to put you in contact with our Contract Office to discuss.”

If a hotel/facility refuses to sign or requests changes to the applicable addendum or has any questions about the addendum, please contact the AgriLife Contract Office at contracts@ag.tamu.edu to handle the matter. Please submit to the AgriLife Contract Office the hotel/facility agreement and any correspondence received from the hotel/facility regarding the addendum.

If the total value of your hotel/facility agreement is $50,000 or greater, please ask the hotel/facility to review and sign the applicable addendum, then submit all documents to the AgriLife Contract Office for review, approval, and signature – contracts@ag.tamu.edu.

Please note – If your total payment to the hotel/facility will exceed $25,000, this constitutes a purchase exceeding $25,000. You will need to work with Purchasing to encumber the funds (submit a requisition in AggieBuy) and finalize this purchase with Purchasing.

 

Independent Contractor Agreements

If you are hiring an individual to provide a service for a fee, you need to complete and submit the AG-106 form (Independent Contractor Status Certification) for review and approval to the AgriLife Contract Office. The purpose of the form is to obtain a determination that the person and service qualify as an “independent contractor” under the IRS rules and the person does not have to be made an employee and put on payroll in order to be paid for the service being provided. Such a determination is required any time the agency makes payment to an individual for a service. Once completed, please submit the form by email to contracts@ag.tamu.edu. The form must be completed and submitted for review before the individual begins any work.   An AG-106 form is not required if you have a written service agreement with the individual for the work to be performed or if the payment will be made out to a company or d/b/a.

The AgriLife Contract Office does not process/approve independent contracts that will be paid from a sponsored research account. If you will be using a sponsored research account to pay an independent contractor, you will need to submit the request to your Project Administrator at SRS for review and approval.

Please note – If your payment to an independent contract will or may exceed $25,000 you will need to work with Purchasing to finalize this purchase. Please see Purchases over $25,000. You may not split up an individual’s services over multiple AG-106 forms to avoid the $25,000 limit. The $25,000 limit is a department wide limit for the fiscal year.

Purchases over $25,000

If you will be making payment to an individual, company, or another institution for goods and/or services in excess of $25,000, you need to advise Purchasing and encumber the funds that will be used for the payment. Specifically, please submit a Requisition through AggieBuy to Purchasing for your anticipated purchase and payment. Include any contracts/agreements provided by the vendor with your submission. Your Department’s Business Administrator should be able to assist you with this submission. See also: https://agrilifeas.tamu.edu/documents/purchasing-guidelines.pdf/

Other

AgriLife Providing a Service:

On rare occasion, a PI or Department may perform services for a customer that do not constitute sponsored research or testing services. Such services generally include educational services provided by AgriLife Extension or routine testing services provided by the department. The AgriLife Contract Office will prepare a service agreement if one is needed for such services. Please contact the AgriLife Contract Office at contracts@ag.tamu.edu if you need or have received a request for a service agreement. Services Agreements cannot be used to take the place of a sponsored research or testing agreement.

Please note – AgriLife should be compensated for any testing services provided to a for profit entity. A PI may not perform free testing or analysis services for a commercial entity.

Catering Agreements:

Catering agreements for food/beverage that do not contain any terms and conditions and only list the food items ordered and price to be paid may be signed by the Department Head. Catering agreements that contain terms and conditions must be submitted to the AgriLife Contract Office for review and approval and must be signed by an agency representative with delegated authority. Please submit such catering agreements to contracts@ag.tamu.edu.

Intrasystem Agreements:

Intrasystem Agreements are agreements between members of the Texas A&M University System. The AgriLife Contract Office processes and prepares Intrasystem Agreements. Intrasystem Agreements are used for various reasons including documentation of services to be provided by one member to another.

 

For questions, Paula Mathers at 979-314-2324 or email contracts@ag.tamu.edu