Notes from NADD’s WDC Visit June 15 & 16, 2005
Compiled by Kaylyn Talbot, Secretary/Treasurer
Heidi Ware, Chief, Administrative Expense Branch
Heidi has been with the agency 26 years and has never seen the agency is such dire straights. The agency currently has a 5.9 million dollar shortfall. In the past years when all funds were not expended, they were turned back to Treasury with the understanding the money was a type of savings account. If the agency ever fell short of needed funds, they planned to request the shortfall from WDC. This year marks the first time a request of this nature has been made. Unfortunately, Treasury turned down the request. FSA is continuing to negotiate with Treasury. A 1.5% increase was seen in the FY05 budget but Heidi noted that rents generally average a 4.5% increase annually and in her words, “rent is killing us!”
National has held several teleconferences with states to assess available funds. They anticipate requesting excess S&E funds be returned to WDC. National currently has $800 k in requests for GS travel. They anticipate getting $200K from Type (60) funds. One example of the use of Type 60 funds is the follow-up training to the Farm Business Plan They don’t plan to request outstanding GS travel be returned.
NADD asked why we are being forced to use FedTravel and Purchase cards when we are in dire straits with the budget. DDs have experienced multiple examples of airfare and items purchased with the cards to be much higher than if they were purchased locally or online. Heidi explained USDA is requiring the usage of these two items. The reason for FedTraveler is they provide refundable tickets, but past evaluations indicate travelers rarely have to cancel flights. Her division plans to pursue other viable options. There is a new system being implemented called Integrated Acquisition Systems that will help resolve the purchase card issues.
NADD asked the status of workload/work measurement. She said due to the derailment of MIDAS the plan to count workload through the web will be delayed. They are looking at a system of counting workload that ties to the T&A so that the amount of time spent on workload is captured. This may result in every employee counting their time and essentially they will all be work measurement counties. There is also the concern that unpaid time cannot be counted in the new system. NADD expressed their concern that employees can’t get their current work down and questioned how National expects this to be added to understaffed offices.
FSA is $70 - $75 million short for CCE modernization plus basic operating costs.
Relocation expenses are presently available but given the current shortage of administrative funds, relocation costs could be stopped at any moment.
Heidi was asked what message could NADD carry back to the field and her one word answer was “Frugality”.
Jim Little, Administrator
Mike Yost, Associate Administrator
NADD asked the status of FSA of Tommorow. Mr. Little indicated this is a concept much like eGov. We are not going forward with FSA Tommorow, but the budget deficit of 5.9M this year and an expected $70 M for next year will force us to implement portions of this plan.
They are currently assessing all avenues to balance the budget for this year. For 2006, the House has already proposed a $36M reduction of S&E along with $63M reduction of CCE money, of which $29 is FSAs portion. If this CCE cut happens it will derail MIDAS. To make up the anticipated $36M cut in S&E we will be moving forward with a buyout and early out offer. A teleconference will be held at 3:00 pm with all SEDs. They will be informed of the budget issues and they will be required to submit a plan outlining their strategy for implementing the number of buyouts they must attained. They will be informed the number of GS and CO employees targeted for the buyout. There will be 612 buyouts needed to makeup the 2006 deficit of which 103 are GS. NADD requested SEDs be encouraged to include DDs in the planning process as they will be instrumental in creating an effective plan.
NADD recognizes County Offices will have to be closed due to no employees. They also pointed out there are offices currently without any staff that remain open. There are also states that have requested offices to be closed, but nothing has been done. Mr. Little explained their hands have been tied on office closures. Congressional Offices strongly object to office closures. However, budget will force the issue.
Mr. Little requested NADD submit a letter of support to the Administrator recognizing the need for office streamlining as we cannot continue to provide efficient service with the budget reductions. He also suggested sending a letter to the House and Authorizing Committees.
NADD inquired about the status of FSAs involvement with Animal Identification and Homeland Security, particularly locating feed, seed, and fertilizer facilities with GPS units. Mr. Little said there has been little discussion about this issue. He does recognize FSA is a viable source for this project. Mr. Little added that FSA would need increased compensation to become more involved in these areas.
NADD asked about the 5 tier performance management program. Mr. Little explained all employees will be required to change to this plan October 1. He said supervisors will be trained how to implement the new plan. NADD explained the DDs have been the resource to train the COCs and CEDs on the Pass/Fail system. They are the resource who ensures the plans are completed and data loaded in Icams. NADD said if they want accountability and to ensure linkage between the Presidents Management Initiative and FSAs Strategic Plan, they need to make the DDs the person responsible for conducting the CEDs performance review. Many COCs put very little effort into the reviews, due to lack of time and involvement in the office.
NADD asked what message they would like taken to the field. Mr. Little said FSA will be faced with significant challenges in the future. Its time to change the way we do business. We have been dancing around these issues. We have time between now and the new farm bill to make these changes happen. He also thanked everyone for a job well done.
John Williams, Deputy Administrator of Management
Patricia Farmer, Director of Human Resource Division
John asked how things were going. NADD explained morale is down with everything going on. NADD proposed the idea of a district resource person as being another tool an SED can use for planning. This person might be displaced due to the buyout, but is a very valuable person and has expertise in a particular program that may have minimal participation in all offices in a district. The person could be responsible for one or more programs for the entire district. Mr. Williams said he didn’t know if this was an option.
Pat Farmer explained implementation and training for the of the 5 tier performance plan. She said all supervisors will be trained and each employee will be required to have generic elements in their plan. NADD suggested DDs be the people who train the supervisors. This will be much more cost effective to bring 235 people who can be trained to be trainers and then they can go to their districts and train all of their supervisors. Pat and John both recognized this was a great idea, but we needed to convince DAFO of the idea.
They also talked about how the intent of re-implementing the 5 tier program is to reward outstanding employees. NADD again emphasized the need of DDs being responsible for performance reviews for CEDs. If the administration wants accountability with the 5 Tier plan, the DDs are the people to deliver this.
John said that Google will be the resource we will be using for our online handbooks.
NADD expressed the frustration with ICams. Pat reported Icams will be taken over by NFC Oct. 1. FSA plans to retain a group of current Icams people in Beltsville as liaisons to NFC. The KC help desk will be dissolved.
NADD asked John what message they would like NADD to take back to the field. John said to be positive and realize 95% of will remain employed. This is difficult agency to try and manage because we have to get permission to do everything.
NADD asked what forethought had been given to training those who remain? The leaner we get the meaner we must become. Mean being better trained. John said he anticipates little change from 05 with the cuts expected in the budget for 06. He does expect that most leadership training will continue though.
Mr. Williams also said that budget cuts are FSA's part of government tightening; the reductions are not because the agency is seen as not doing the job. I think this is an important point for morale and our perception of the future.
Doug Frago, Deputy Administrator of Field Operations
John Chott, Assistant to the Deputy Administrator
Arlene Moncalieri, Program Specialist
Patrick Spalding, Program Coordination Specialist
NADD asked if DAFO will continue with the current process of approving new hires. All present indicated he current process will continue considering the budget situation. The philosophy in DAFO is the gainers (understaffed states) will gain and the non gainers (overstaffed states) will not gain. Relocation expenses are allowed on a case by case basis.
NADD inquired about budgeted ceiling and staff ceiling. DAFO explained the staff ceiling is based on workload. The workload is calculated with A and C, two years history with 1 year projections. The budgeted ceiling is the funding given for the number of employees on board. For example the GS staff ceiling is 3677, but the budgeted ceiling is 3684 employees. The CO staff ceiling is 9145 and the budget ceiling is 9250.
DAFO talked about the current budget situation and told NADD they were holding a conference call with the SEDs at 3:00 pm on 6/16 to inform them of the buyout plan. The SED will be given the number of employees they will need to get to accept the buyout and they will have 30 days to submit their plan. The plan will incorporate rightsizing, tobacco, and EQIP. The buyouts will be targeted and cannot be backfilled. They will be identified as CO and GS employees. The buyout will be offered to FLP employees as well. There had been initial speculation that Carolyn Cooksie wanted FLP employees exempt from the buyout offers but DAFO explained that this was not allowable. The plan is for the buyouts to take effect by 11/3/05. If not enough buyouts are requested in a state to meet the necessary reductions, RIF’s will be the next option that states will need to take. The future status of temps is also in peril with temps the first to go to make immediate spending cuts.
The level of cuts in a state may be a driving force to consolidate and close offices and DAFO indicated that states will be supported in any office closures that make sound, efficient business sense
The SED regional meetings will begin next week to discuss implementation of their plans and the criteria of the buy/early out. Details of the buyout were not complete as more information has to be sent to OPM before they have final approval to implement it. FSA had originally submitted the request to OPM to implement buyout and “early outs” but the request was returned to FSA for more details.
NADD inquired as to the use of district wide positions. An example was a district with minimal NAP activity having one PT in the district being responsible for NAP. Doug Frago agreed that this could be done.
Considerable discussion took place on the new “5 Tier” Performance Evaluation System. First and foremost in NADD’s discussion was the role of the DD in the performance evaluation of the CED. NADD’s position is that COC’s are not in the best position to effectively evaluate a CED’s performance and NADD feels that the DD is in the best position to perform this evaluation. Doug Frago agreed that DAFO needs to look at the DD’s role in performance evaluations and supervision of the CED’s and instructed John Chott to follow through on this. October 1st is the target date to begin implementation of the “5 Tier” system. A teleconference for all employees will kick off the training and be followed with a 2 to 5 hour net meeting for all supervisors. NADD emphasized the key role that DD’s can/will play in the implementation of the “5 Tier” system. NADD was invited to assist with development of elements and standards.
Also, he said District PT's are a 'tool for SED's'. I think DD's need to be involved in state plans and push District PT's if applicable.
John Johnson, Deputy Administrator, Farm Programs (DAFP)
Mr. Johnson when asked by NADD what effect the current budget situation will have on MIDAS responded that it has a very negative effect. In fact, he voiced his worry that the delivery of the next Farm Bill will be on the System 36 because of the budget woes.
Mr. Johnson just had gotten off a conference call with the SED’s and he asked the SED’s to convene a group within each state to come up with a list of items that DAFP can eliminate or streamline to cut down on the amount of work in the field. He emphasized that any proposed changes must maintain program integrity. He asked that state summaries be submitted to Steve Connelly, Deputy DAFP by 7/15/05. The NADD members present offered several changes at this meeting including establishing the deadline for DCP signatures be the same date as acreage certification in a state. This would eliminate at least one trip for a producer to visit a COF. Another suggestion was to get the OFAV queries out to the field at least 30 days prior to 10/1/05. Last year the queries were received in mid-October and this caused overpayments which could have been prevented if the queries had been received by the COF’s prior to 10/1.
Mr. Johnson noted the efforts to combine the CCC-633 and CCC-709 for LDP’s and hoped that this would be out in the field shortly. He also noted the possibility of waiving lien search and/or lien filing fees for Marketing Assistance Loans under $25,000.
Mr. Johnson was asked about current status of STORM> STORM if you recall, was to be an online system for reporting natural disaster occurrences and would replace the USDA Flash Situation Reports. Mr. Johnson noted that STORM needs software testing and because of the limited funding and resources, STORM is not that high of a priority.
Mr. Johnson was asked if there has been a signup deadline established for the Crop Disaster Program. He noted that because the program provides funding for 2005 crops in the southeastern states, a signup deadline cannot be established until the 2005 marketings in those states are completed. He noted that the likely signup deadline will be sometime in the fall.
NADD asked what words Mr. Johnson would like NADD to convey back to the field and he replied, “Keep plugging away!” He also expressed his appreciation for what we do in the field and encouraged us to send in ideas of how to do it better.
Steve Sanders, Acting Director, ITSD
Steve provided an update on how IT convergence is working. The process has been broken down into ‘Day 1’ and ‘Day 2.’ Basically, ‘Day 1’ is status quo until the organizational structure is in place (hiring state, regional and national IT managers). ‘Day 2’ involves redirection of people in the new management structure and formal accountability in ITS for the helpdesk and other operations. It is targeted for the beginning of FY06.
402 employees remain in FSA’s ITSD, all in WDC, Kansas City, and St. Louis. Their core mission is software development. In the converged IT environment, Steve has learned that ITSD needs to be more forward-thinking to let OCIO know what’s coming in FSA. The tobacco buyout is an example. OCIO isn’t focused on FSA’s programs, and needs to prepare for help desk calls and other activities generated by FSA programs.
NADD inquired about the process for testing new software. Software development is a cooperative process involving program sponsors who define their needs and programmers. Steve explained that program sponsors want a small beta test, GIS is the biggest pilot undertaken. Eligibility software problems were caused by a lack of understanding between IT and the program sponsors about what was needed and defining how they wanted it to work. Problems with the tobacco buyout software are occurring because IT is unable to keep up with the numerous policy changes in the program—over 40 notices have been issued since January.
The future should improve as we learn from these mistakes. In the MIDAS project, funds were spent on contractors to glean what program sponsors wanted so problems like eligibility and tobacco don’t happen again. He cautioned, however, that the web-based environment is a ‘different animal’—it has many pieces, is complex, and is public-facing. Program policies must be simple for customers to be able to do alone—we can’t have 40 notices. Up to now, employees have been the glue in program administration, “automation could get by on mediocrity.” That won’t work anymore; policies have to be more thought-out. FSA needs to change how we do business.
Steve is hopeful MIDAS will be a better experience because they have put so much up-front effort into it. The American Indian Livestock Feed program will be the first rollout under MIDAS. It will use national payment service and software will enforce policy on how payments are supposed to be certified—a systematic, individual review of payments.
When asked about the date all programs will be off the System 36, Steve replied that he would like not to request funds to support the 36 in FY07. However, budget cuts jeopardize this timeframe. The MIDAS effort is estimated to cost $243 million. ITSD needs an additional 130-210 employees for the development effort plus the 269 contractors already on the legacy system. House action to cut both CCE funding and FSA’s FY06 budget are counter to this need.
We also discussed telecommunications capacity. Steve explained that a telecommunications ‘pipeline’ that expands and contracts is being installed this summer. Additional investment will be needed to hook service centers to the pipeline because existing routers and other equipment don’t fit. This will occur in the 1st and 2nd quarters of FY06, ITSD is currently working on the plan. Once complete, data communications will be like a cell phone bill—a certain amount plus overage. 29 agencies currently share a $6 million bill. The new ‘pipeline’ will have a base rate of $10 million plus overage charges.
When asked what message he would like us to convey to the field, Steve replied that ITSD knows “it’s a mess” but we need to focus on how we will work together to get through it because this is the path we’re on. They are working hard to sort it out but it won’t be done in the immediate term. All of us in the field need to follow the process—call the help desk. By doing so, we provide documentation and information about what the problems are. ITS’s centralized monitoring tools are not there yet so there is no alert system—they need us to call.
Carolyn Cooksie, Deputy Administrator, Farm Loan Programs
Bill Cobb, Special Programs Coordinator
Phase 2 of Farm Business Plan is being released. Included are additional reports which should be useful to DD’s. Each state is being funded for 2 days of training. They were also close on making FBP available to farmers but additional funding is needed for firewalls, etc. Carolyn emphasized that her first priority is making sure employees are comfortable with FBP before it is released to the public.
FY05 funding looks good through the end of the year. A small surplus in OL-Direct will be redirected to FO-Direct. This will eliminate most of the backlog.
FLP Risk Assessment (FLPRA) will be replacing the NIR process. FLPRA looks for early indicators rather than picking apart what employees have done. They have completed 2 reviews and received positive feedback. It will be fully implemented in FY06.
The DD oversight process will need to be overhauled next year because FBP and FLP-ITS enable DD’s to run reports and streamlining will change program requirements. There are still some DD’s not doing oversight.
The lack of travel money is a big concern because we can’t do security checks, NAD appeals, file liens, and other operations vital to our jobs.
Carolyn expressed her concern about the buyout/early out. States need to have a good plan on who will go. FLM/FLO attrition is already 28%.
Bill updated us on the status of streamlining. The proposed rule was published on 2/9/04. 592 people submitted 1583 comments. The final rule has been drafted and is at OGC. It must also be approved by OMB. Goal is for it to be published by the end of calendar year. When the final rule is published, an FLP notice will be issued and conference calls will be held with state offices. To ease the transition, 1-FLP will include: exhibits listing all existing Instruction Manuals and the handbook that covers the issues addressed in the Instruction; and all existing FLP forms and either the new form number or a notation that the form was made obsolete.
Karen Malkin, Director, Strategic Performance and Evaluation Staff
Connie Byler-Hsu, Management Analyst
Stephen Crisp, Personnel Management Specialist
Stephen discussed the 5-tier performance evaluation system. Under the President’s management’s initiatives, agencies are required to identify and reward top performers. In the new system, supervisors will choose 3-5 elements. New standards will be developed (the current standards will not work—the agency lost a court case because they are too vague.) Performance evaluations will be signed by the rater and the reviewer. If they disagree, the reviewer has the final say.
NADD again emphasized the DD’s role in constructive performance evaluation of the CED. This decision, however, rests with DAFO. Stephen thought DD’s would be reviewers for PT’s.
They plan to start putting information about the new system out in the FSA Courier and on the BPMS website (http://bpms.wdc.usda.gov/bpms.htm). Web-based training will be conducted in August/September. All employees will be trained with additional training for supervisors.
FSA is going to start surveying customers for customer satisfaction. Names will be pulled from SCIMS and the survey conducted by telephone. The agency needs to do its own employee satisfaction survey because the OPM survey does not include CO employees. A partner survey will follow.
This group asked us to relay to the field that BPMS is about telling our story. We can’t just do our job and get funded, we have to show results—that’s how the government works now. These efforts will help us get ahead of the game with the next farm bill because we’ll have the information to be pro-active. Employees will not be held accountable for what is beyond their control, i.e. hurricanes, external factors like funding.
Document name: nadd.wdc.6.15.05.doc