Assessment Practices and Rates for Fiscal Year 2001
Note: This is a revision of WRD Policy Memorandum No. 2001.01 dated
12/4/00.
In Reply Refer To:
Branch of Administrative Services
Mail Stop 442
Sunset Date: January 2006
January 9, 2001
WATER RESOURCES DISCIPLINE POLICY MEMORANDUM NO. 2001.03
Subject: Assessment Practices and Rates for Fiscal Year 2001
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will implement a series of new
organizational structures and financial practices in fiscal year (FY) 2001
to work towards a more integrated bureau. A new business model for
funding indirect costs will be adopted with the goal of Common Business
Practices and a narrow range of assessment rates to be achieved by the
beginning of FY 2004.
The Water Resources Discipline (WRD) has set the division assessment rate
at 10.5 percent for FY 2001. To work toward the Director's goal of lower
assessment costs and a narrower range of assessment rates, WRD has
established a target maximum cost center assessment rate of 30 percent for
FY 2001. The purpose of the target maximum cost center assessment rate is
to reduce the variability of assessment rates and to encourage a reduction
in the highest rates. The cost center assessment rate is defined as gross
funding minus facilities, science support, and WOTSC. The computational
steps have not changed from those used in FY 2000.
Computational steps to determine net funds are as follows:
1. Facilities and Science Support funds are subtracted from gross
funds, as appropriate;
2. Division assessment of 10.5 percent is subtracted from the funds
remaining after the facilities and science support funds have been
removed; and
3. Cost center assessment is subtracted from the remaining funds,
resulting in an estimate of net funds available for project-specific work.
FACILITIES AND SCIENCE SUPPORT COSTS
Facilities costs will include all categories in the Bureau Operating
Plan. See attachment 1 for specifics.
Facilities costs for selected support units will continue to be funded
through the Division assessments. These units are the Branch of Quality
Systems (BQS), three regional offices, National Water Quality Laboratory
(NWQL), Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility (HIF), Office of Surface
Water-South, and the Cartographic and Publications Program (CAPP).
Facilities costs for other WRD organizational units, including district
offices, will be funded through a combination of USGS appropriations and
reimbursable funding.
Science Support refers to all bureau-level and a small portion of
division-level indirect costs. These costs are funded in total by a
bureau-level line item. There are no cost center costs included in the
Science Support line item at this time.
Facilities Assessment on Reimbursable Funding
The reimbursable customer's share of facilities costs is at a rate that is
cost center-specific.
A cost center's facilities assessment rate on reimbursable funding will be
equal to its estimated FY 2001 facilities costs divided by its FY 2000
final funding. The final FY 2000 funding does not include the augmented
Federal Cooperative Water Program matching funds for facilities and
science support. A final facilities table will be provided inclusive of
funding and costs used to calculate the FY 2001 reimbursable rate.
Facilities and Science Support Assessments on Augmented Coop Program
Federal Matching and Department of the Interior Cost Share Funds
WRD will continue the business practices begun in FY 2000 of matching
portions of the Facilities and Science Support line items in the
Federal-State Cooperative Water (Coop) and Department of the Interior
(DOI) Cost-Share Programs with cooperator offerings.
DIVISION ASSESSMENT RATE
The division assessment rate for FY 2001 will be 10.5 percent of all gross
assessable funds. Non-assessable funds include those allocated to the
Water Resources Research Institutes (WRRI); bureau-level facilities and
science support funds received by WRD including facilities and science
support matching funds associated with the Coop Program; reimbursable
funds used for facilities costs; Technical Support funding; funds
withdrawn from investment working capital funds; and direct services in
the Coop Program.
COST CENTER ASSESSMENT RATES
Cost center assessment rates will be accounted for by using the same
methodology used in FY 2000. The cost items that may be included in
assessments are listed in Attachment 3. This list is taken directly from
the memorandum dated October 30, 2000, subject: "FY 2001 Allocation to
Projects and Cost Center Accounts and Establishing Initial Common Business
Practices," from the Chief Financial Officer. The impact on how Water
Resources cost centers account for indirect costs is unchanged because the
policy presented in the Chief Financial Officers memorandum is in line with
past WRD assessment policies. The Water Resources policy on special rates,
as described in WRD Memorandum No. 98.30, remains in effect.
All agreements for work in FY 2001, both existing and new, will need to
reflect the new assessment rates and facilities costs.
/signed/
Robert M. Hirsch
Associate Director for Water
This memorandum supersedes WRD Policy Memorandum No. 2001.01, dated December 4, 2001.
2-Attachments
Distribution: A, B, DC, AO
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* Robert M. Hirsch
* Associate Director for Water
* 409 National Center rhirsch@usgs.gov
* U.S. Geological Survey 703-648-5215
* Reston, VA 20192 fax 703-648-7031
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