Definitions

The following definitions apply in regard to property management:
Acquisition Cost:
 The net invoice unit price of an item of purchased equipment, including the cost of modifications, attachments, accessories, or auxiliary apparatus necessary to make the property usable for the purpose for which it was acquired. Other charges, such as the cost of installation, transportation, taxes, duty, or protective in-transit insurance, must be included or excluded from the unit acquisition cost in accordance with the subgrantee’s regular accounting practices.
Controlled Assets:
 Assets that qualify as personal property but do not meet the equipment threshold of $5,000, but must be secured and tracked due to the nature of the items. Currently, Traffic Safety Controlled Inventory Assets include, but are not limited to:
  • Signs, portable message, trailer mounted.
  • Trailers up to 5400 lbs. Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR).
  • Personal computers and peripherals, regardless of cost.
  • Intoxilyzers.
Equipment:
 Tangible, non-expendable, personal property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost of $1,000 or more per unit.
Excess Property:
 Property under the control of any federal awarding agency that is no longer required for the agency’s needs or the discharge of its responsibilities, as determined by the head of the agency.
Exempt Property:
 Tangible personal property acquired in whole or in part with federal funds and where the federal awarding agency has statutory authority to vest title in the recipient without further obligation to the federal government.
Federally-Owned Personal Property:
 Property furnished by the federal government and whose title remains vested in the federal government. Federally-owned property does not include property purchased through traffic safety grants and agreements.
Subgrantees must manage the equipment in accordance with federal agency rules and procedures, and submit an annual inventory list of federally-owned property in their custody to the federal agency that furnished the property.
Federal Share (of real property, equipment, or supplies):
The percentage of the property’s acquisition costs and any improvement expenditures paid with federal funds.
Major Equipment:
 Tangible, non-expendable, personal property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit (as defined by the NHTSA
Highway Safety Grants Program Resources Guide
).
Personal Property:
 Property of any kind except real property. Personal property may be tangible (having physical existence) or intangible (having no physical existence), such as copyrights, patents, or securities.
Real Property:
 Land, including land improvements, structures, and appurtenances thereto, excluding movable machinery and equipment.
Supplies:
Personal property having a useful life of less than one year or an acquisition cost of less than $1,000 per unit.