OPM Congressional Budget Justification and Annual Performance Plan

U.S. Office of Personnel Management

FY 2000
Budget Justification/Performance Plan

(Advances and Reimbursements - continued)
*Additional Information Available on the Next Page*

OBLIGATIONS BY OBJECT CLASS (dollar amounts in thousands)
OBJECT CLASS		FY 1999 Estimate	FY 2000 Request	Change
Personnel Compensation		$5,336	$5,567	$231
Personnel Benefits		1,033	1,082	49
Benefits for Former Personnel		0	0	0
Travel and Transportation of Persons		137	137	0
Transportation of Things		5	5	0
Rental Payments to GSA		0	0	0
Communications and Utilities		450	450	0
Printing and Reproduction		119	119	0
Advisory and Assistance Services		0	0	0
Other Services		1,208	1,003	(205)
Supplies and Materials		159	159	0
Equipment		722	647	(75)
Land and Structures		50	50	0
	Total Obligations	$9,219	$9,219	$0
Internal A&R		(7,469)	(7,469)	0
	Total	$1,750	$1,750	$0

RETIREMENT AND INSURANCE SERVICE
(dollar amounts in thousands)

RESOURCES	FY 1998 Actual	FY 1999 Estimate	FY 2000 Request	FY 2000 Change
Obligations	$663	$750	$750	---
Full-Time Equivalents	2	5	5	---

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY

The Retirement and Insurance Service provides reimbursable services to other agencies under the authority of the Economy Act as a service to agencies that can no longer store certain retirement records, and when OPM possesses special skills and technical expertise that either are more readily available or are more economical than other public or private sources.

OPM STRATEGIC PLAN GOAL III: Provide advice and assistance to help federal agencies improve their human resources management programs to effectively operate within the economy, demographics and environment of the 21st century.

FY 2000 Resource Summary:

Obligations (000): $750

Full-Time Equivalents: 5

Provide models, guidance, and technical assistance to promote agency use of existing personnel flexibilities and tools to help them achieve human resources management goals in support of their mission. (Continuing)

By the year 2002, become the acknowledged leading source for effective, efficient technical assistance for a full range of flexible human resources management programs, as well as for those areas where uniform, Government wide systems are in place.

RIS Goal 15 FY 1999/2000:	Agency staff are more knowledgeable about the administration of the earned benefit programs by attending the Annual Benefits Officers Conference, attending pre-conference training, and/or the annual Fall Festival of Training.

		Conduct the Fall Festival of Training to provide agency benefits officers with an expanded array of workshops designed to increase their knowledge and counseling skills and to broaden their understanding of the interactions and integration of the benefits programs administered by other agencies such as the Social Security Administration and the Federal Thrift Savings Investment Board.
		Continue to use feedback from benefits officers and other agency staff to develop interesting and appropriate agendas for the annual benefits officers conferences and other training programs.
		Promote these initiatives by doing mailings, advertising on the OPM web site, communicating through IAG meetings, etc. to ensure awareness and attendance.
		Conduct the Annual Benefits Officer Conference, continuing to expand the attendance to include more field office staff. Continue the pre-conference training and workshops to improve agency benefits officers understanding of various aspects of benefits administration in the changing environment as we enter the new millennium.
		Expand the use of satellite technology to provide information to employees and benefits officers. Continue to work in consultation with the Interagency Network of Benefits Officers to disseminate information and receive feedback on the initiatives undertaken.

		Formal feedback collected during conferences and training seminars, and from OPM Customer Satisfaction Survey indicates agency personnel find that these training programs and informational materials improve their knowledge of the benefit programs. The FY 1998 Annual Benefits Officers Conference was attended by 378 participants, the largest turnout ever, with approximately 40% of attendees coming from outside the Washington area. The nine pre-conference training sessions provided 350 student days of training. Following the theme Benefits Round Up, the conference covered the broad spectrum of Federal benefits, going beyond the retirement and insurance programs to include social security, thrift savings, and workers’ compensation benefits, and the relationship these benefits have toward one another. Conference attendees were also briefed on the status of the many proposals circulating on the Hill that could affect Federal employee benefits. Over 150 attendees participated in one or more of the 10 training courses offered during the first RIS Fall Festival of Training. The Fall Festival provided over 400 student-days of Federal benefits training to human resource specialists from Washington area and field office locations. The results of the recent OPM customer Satisfaction Survey indicate that 75% of HR specialists working in the retirement and insurance benefits field find OPM sponsored conferences, such as the Benefits Officers’ Conference, useful. In addition, 86% of these people found OPM briefings useful. By FY 2000, RIS expects these indicators to increase to 80% and 90%, respectively. Also, as an indicator of the extent to which conferences and training seminars increase the knowledge of agency human resource staff regarding the employee benefit programs, the FY 2000 Survey will be enhanced to include questions that evaluate whether these staff agree that this is true.

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Web Page Created 14 May 1999