Monitoring Federal Outlays
91.1. Purpose.
Cabinet departments and certain agencies will submit reports on
Federal outlays to assist in the monitoring of spending and to improve
Treasury Department forecasts of the Government's daily cash operating
balances; borrowing requirements; and debt subject to legal limits,
including trust fund investment activity. Realistic estimates,
particularly for the immediate six-month period, should enable
Treasury to borrow only amounts needed to finance Government
activities, thus reducing interest costs and overall cash balances
maintained in the Treasury.
91.2. Coverage.
Each department or agency listed in Exhibit 91A will prepare a
monthly outlay plan for each new fiscal year and will submit periodic
reports on and revisions to that plan. Coverage of the reports will be
identical to the coverage in the annual budget documents and will
include outlay information for all appropriations and funds
administered by the department or agency. A forecast of deposit fund
activity for specific agencies may be required by OMB and/or Treasury.
Affected agencies will be notified of this requirement.
91.3. Reporting requirements.
OMB needs reports on Federal outlays to monitor the deficit/surplus
and to assess the reliability of each agency's financial management
system. Treasury uses these reports to prepare forecasts of daily cash
balances, borrowing requirements, and the Federal debt, including
daily trust fund investment activity. It is essential that these plans
be as accurate as possible--an inability to forecast spending with
reasonable accuracy can be a weakness in program and financial
management. Problems of this nature need the attention of OMB and the
agencies alike.
Agencies will base estimates on their best current judgment of the
amount to be spent by month in the period(s) covered by the report.
These estimates should: (a) be consistent with the President's most
recent annual budget, as amended, and with subsequent actions of the
Congress, including both completed actions and those that are almost
certain to be completed, and (b) reflect recent trends and expected
events on a realistic basis. Between submission dates, agencies should
contact OMB and Treasury whenever there are significant changes in
outlay totals or patterns (such as those that may be associated with
an unanticipated increase in claims for an entitlement program).
Agencies should cooperate with OMB and Treasury by providing
additional details as requested.
All agencies are required to submit a brief summary with each outlay
report explaining the assumptions used in developing the outlay plan
and any unusual or special circumstances affecting the plan. The
summary will, for example, enumerate expected Congressional actions
that will raise or lower estimates, show the settlement dates of
specific asset sale programs, discuss any other events that have
caused or are expected to cause significant fluctuations in the normal
outlay pattern, and specify whether they have been included or
excluded from the plan.
Monthly totals should be footnoted, when applicable, to identify
large ($50 million or more), cash payments and receipts. The footnote
should include the following: description of payment or receipt,
amount(s), assumed payment date or deposit date(s), and an agency
contact name and telephone number. Examples of agencies and programs
for which large transactions should be footnoted are:
(a) Agency for International Development:
Economic support fund
(b) Agriculture:
Federal Crop Insurance Corp. Fund--Premium collections
Commodity Credit Corp. Price Support and Related Programs--Loan
disbursement or repayments
Commodity Credit Corp. Export Guarantee Financing
Account--Principal collections
Forest Service--Payments to States
(c) Defense Security Assistance Agency:
Foreign military financing program
(d) Interior:
Bureau of Land Management--Oregon and California Grant Lands
Payments in lieu of taxes
Territorial and International Affairs--
Compact of Free Association
Payments to U.S. Territories
(e) Labor:
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.--Premium collections
Interest received from States on Unemployment trust fund advances
(f) Treasury:
Presidential Election Campaign Fund disbursements
Financial Management Service--Payments to the Resolution Funding
Corporation Claims, judgements, and relief acts payments
Comptroller of the Currency--Assessment collections
Office of Thrift Supervision--Assessment collections
(g) U.S. Enrichment Corporation--Revenues
91.4. OMB and Treasury Department responsibilities.
Both OMB and Treasury will review the agency outlay plans for
reasonableness in the light of experience, consistency with the
President's policies and objectives, enacted appropriations and other
legislation, and other factors. When circumstances warrant, OMB and/or
Treasury may require that revisions be made in the outlay plans.
91.5. Timing of submissions.
Agencies will submit the initial report to OMB and simultaneously to
the Treasury (Office of the Fiscal Assistant Secretary) by October 1st
of each year in the format of Exhibit 91B. The report will provide
monthly outlay estimates for the fiscal year that begins on that date.
Updated reports are due throughout the current year, with coverage
expanded to include estimates for the budget year as shown below.
Estimates should be consistent with the latest published
Administration estimates. However, they should reflect the most
up-to-date outlay information available to the agency (i.e.,
congressional action or inaction, etc.)
The Monthly Treasury Statement of Receipts and Outlays of the United
States Government (MTS), as published, should be used as the source of
actual data reported. It is imperative that actual data reflect
amounts reported by the agency and recorded in the MTS. The actual
data should be followed by updated monthly outlay estimates for the
balance of the period(s). Reports are due to OMB (an original and one
copy) and to Treasury (one copy) as follows:
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Monthly outlay Monthly outlays
Reports due by actuals required estimates required
for the period for the period
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October 1st (current year). -- October thru September
(Explain differences from (current year).
latest public estimate.)*
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One week following October thru January thru September
transmittal of the budget. December (current year).
(Explain differences from (current
the current year amounts year).
contained in the budget.)
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As specified by OMB. October thru April thru September
(Explain differences from March (current (current year) and
the current year amounts year). October through December
contained in the budget.) (budget year).
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As specified by OMB, based October thru June thru September
on the timing of the May (current (current year) and
Mid-session Review of the year). October thru March
budget update (current (budget year).
year). (Explain differences
from current year amounts
contained in the
Mid-session Review of the
July budget update.)
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*Normally, the latest public estimate will be that in the most
recent Mid-session Review of the President's budget.
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Agencies will reconcile significant differences between previously
reported estimated outlays and revised estimates or actual outlays and
explain these changes in the accompanying statements. Additional
updated reports may be requested at other times.