# Presentation: 037635

## Transition to FY2007: Focus on Critical Year End ProTracts Activities

**September 7, 2006**
**2-4 PM EDT**

**Call:  888-455-0032     PASSCODE:  8630021**
**Please use *6 or Mute during recording**

## Agenda

**Introduction (Vrana)**
**ProTracts ‘Shutdown’ (All)**
**Roll-over of the Adjusted Gross Income and Eligibility databases (Oaks) **
**End of FY Obligations (Grande)**
**Cost-overrun Accounts (Vrana)**
**New Appendix (Slawter)**

## Agenda

**New Contract Numbers (Grande)**
**Crops & Livestock Data Entry (Brzostek)**
**New Home Page (Grande)**
**Revised Contracting Forms (Ramsey)**
**Contract Modifications (Slawter)**
**WHIP Prior Year Contracts (Cerna)**
**Questions and Answers (Vrana)**

## ProTracts ‘Shutdown’

- The whole gang

## Roll Over Activities: NB 440-6-10

- Obligations
**Bulletin: No new obligations will be processed in ProTracts after 9/15.**
- Sign Contract Button will be disabled.
- Need to close the fund accounts for FY2006 and closing new obligations is the first step in tiered activities to close the fiscal year books.

## Roll Over Activities: NB 440-6-10

- Modifications
**Bulletin: Modifications are discouraged after 9/15/06.**
- Modifications that aren’t needed to make payments should be delayed until FY07.
**Bulletin: All (non-CSP) modifications, not approved in ProTracts by **_**9/25/06**_**, will be “rolled back” to their pre-modification status.**
- Modify Contracts will be disabled onn 9/25.
- These modifications can be re-entered in ProTracts, beginning 10/9/06.

## Roll Over Activities: NB 440-6-10

- Payments
**Bulletin: No payments will be approved in ProTracts from 10/1/06 to 10/8/06.**
- 9/25 at 4:30 MST last obligations and payments transmitted to FFIS from ProTracts
-  9/ 26 to 9/27 States process payment approvals in FFIS.
-  9/27 Last day for payments to be approved and transmitted from FFIS to treasury for payment this FY.
- Payment and Certification will be disabled in ProTracts as of 4 pm MST 9/25 to facilitate transmission of data to FFIS to meet the 9/27 deadline.

## ‘Shutdown’ is scheduled
ProTracts will be shutdown for all activities on September 30.
Full ProTracts operations will resume October 9, 2006.

**ProTracts will be shutdown for **_**all**_** activities on September 30.**
**Full ProTracts operations will resume October 9, 2006.**

- Roll Over Activities: NB 440-6-10

## Roll Over Activities: 440-6-10

- Eligibility
- FSA will begin roll-over of eligibility data on 9/22. 9/6 Newsflash not applicable.
-  Roll-over defaults in the  2006 data into 2007 where continuous certification is in effect. Exceptions generally include entity members.
- FSA system 36 will likely be ‘live’ again for 2007 data entry by the resumption of ProTracts activity on 10/9.

## Changes in FY 2007 for CSP

|  | Upload from Toolkit | Application Approval | Contract Obligation | Payment Approval | Modification Approval |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| EQIP | Application status must be eligible or pre-approved to upload | Blocked for HEL/WC, AGI, or Payment Limitations | Blocked for HEL/WC, AGI, or Payment Limitations | Blocked for HEL/WC or Payment Limitations | Blocked for HEL/WC or Payment Limitations |
| WHIP | Application status must be eligible or pre-approved to upload | Blocked for HEL/WC or AGI | Blocked for HEL/WC or AGI | Blocked for HEL/WC | Blocked for HEL/WC |
| CSP | Application status must be eligible to upload | Blocked for HEL/WC or AGI | Blocked for HEL/WC or AGI | Blocked for HEL/WC | Blocked for HEL/WC |
| AMA | No warning or block | No warning or block | No warning or block | No warning or block | No warning or block |

**Changes**** in FY 2007 for CSP**

## Eligibility Matrix

**AMA**

**CSP**

**EQIP**

**WHIP**

## End of Year Obligations and 2007 Cost Over Accounts

- Mary Grande
- Jon Vrana

- Fund Manager Reports

## Fund Manager Reports

- Access to these Fund Manager reports is through the State Fund Manager role.
- This role can be granted by the state IAS coordinator through their IAS role access management menu or if they are not available contract _[mary.grande@ftc.usda.gov](mailto:mary.grande@ftc.usda.gov)__ and provide user id (s) that need this expanded Fund Manager access._

## Obligation Support Assistance

- Send critical 2006 obligation assistance requests to FundManagerSupport@ftc.usda.gov
- With subject line:
*<state abbreviation>* Critical Obligation *<contract number>*

## Access to ProTracts

- ProTracts will be off line on Saturday, September 9 for a critical system update.

## Cost-overrun Accounts

**At end of FY06, State-specific un-obligated funds, by program, will be rolled over to FY06 State-specific cost-overrun accounts.**
**Account amounts will be reviewed and minor adjustments may be made between States.**
**Cost-run accounts will be available for use when ProTracts is available on Oct. 9****th****.**

## Cost-overrun Accounts

**Accounts will be monitored by NHQ.**
**Final adjustments to program-specific cost-overrun accounts will be made after year-end balancing of the books in November.**
**Emphasis is to minimize the need for States to request changes to funds.**

## Preparation for 2007

- Mary Grande

## Prepare for FY 2007

**Prepare all cost lists in preparation for processing FY 2007 applications per NB 440-6-11.**
- Cost type is AC or FR for practice codes 100, 300-799 and unit cost is greater than zero.
- Cost type is AM only for practice codes 910, 911,912,913 and unit cost equals zero.
- Items CCIA and CCIB are not permitted.
- AA is not permitted.
- NC is permitted in WHIP cost lists only.
- Cost lists can be uploaded for 2007 starting 10/9.

## New Incentive Payment Option

- Choice by practice – keep existing method of annual payments for up to 3 years or use new payment option.
- New Option: Single payment for period of adoption.
- Front loading entire incentive practice payment for encouragement of capital investment by participant and to streamline NRCS administrative burden on mgt. practices.
- Memo forthcoming with details.

## New Incentive Payment Option

- These front loaded incentive payments will need to be included in the cost list prior to upload for 2007.
- They are entered in the cost list as a component with the appropriate cost for the front loaded payment using component name that clearly states it is a multiple year period of adoption item.

## Prepare for FY 2007

**Coordinate the activation of new or replacement practice codes in Conservation Practice Standards (CPS) that will be used in FY 2007 ProTracts contracting activities with appropriate State staff.**
- States need to be moving to the new residue management series codes 329, 345, and 346 that will expire on Dec 8, 2006.  This could be an issue for setting up ranking tools and cost lists for the entire fiscal year.

## Prepare for FY 2007

- Customize ProTracts letters for submission to ProTracts Support.
- States will need to download the new letterhead template attached to the NB 260-6-5_ before_ you send your optional custom letters to ProTracts for the following Application Status: Pending, Pre-Approved, Ineligible or Deferred.

## Prepare for FY 2007

- Initiate revisions to Program Ranking Criteria.
- Permission button to Manage Ranking Criteria have been re-activated for DC role.
- Permission is defaulted to “no”.
- States must control access to this permission and provide training on appropriate changes to ranking criteria (local issues).

## Enter Estimated Cost

- Estimated cost must be manually entered for all applications to show potential commitment of funds.

## Program Changes for 2007

- Harry Slawter
- Mary Grande

## Changes in ProTracts in 2007

**Posting of new appendices for each program with greater consistency between programs.**
- EQIP and WHIP will be identical
- AMA
- CSP
- New appendix must be signed for FY07

## Changes in ProTracts in 2007

**Implementation of new modification procedures for minor changes and major modifications over $10,000 or 20% of contract obligation (AMA, WHIP & EQIP).**
- See CPM 512.50
- Phased in changes with minor** **_change_ at payment implemented today
- Change = No Signature
- Modifications will implement approval check for “major” modifications
- Major Modifications over  $10,000 or 20% of contract obligation will require state program manager approval.

## Contract Changes for EQIP, AMA, & WHIP

- Deployed on 9/7:
- $1000 cost change at payment
- Changes to be deployed in FY07:
- Change of contract item
- Change planned year or extent
- Change practice component extent
- Add/delete a component

## If the applied amount of the practice is greater than the amount planned, the applied amount of the component (s) may be changed using the Change button.

- If the applied amount of the practice is greater than the amount planned, the applied amount of the _component (s)_ may be changed using the Change button.

**Payment ****Change**** up to $1000**

## Minor Changes at Payment

**Payment ****Change**** up to $1000**

**Statement relates to unlinked data for NCP integration reporting of practice completion not that the payment is not accepted.**

**Indicates the “minor change at payment” is accepted and additional $540 for extra practice units is being added at payment.**

## Payment Change up to $1000

- Can only be done once per contract item number.
- Additional changes must be by modification.
- Changes are stored in database and incremented 1,2,3. Will be visible in upcoming History Module.
- Training issue for voucher examiners.

## New Contract Numbers

- ‘Y7K problem’: 748D437A123: Is this a 1997 contract or a 2007 contract?
- New numbering schemas be as follows:
- 2 digit program code
- 4 digit GSA Requisition Number
- 2 digit fiscal year for contract
- 3 digit contract number (letters & numbers)

## New Contract Numbers

-      748D43**7**A123 is a 1997 contract
-      748D43**07**AA1 is a 2007 contract
- Applications already entered for 2007 will follow previous convention and will not need to be changed.
- New applications will follow new schema.

## TA Funds in Contracts

- CPM 512.63 states "All work to be performed by a TSP must be "substantially complete" during the same fiscal year that funds are obligated in a CPC for TSP assistance."
- Use a "zero" placeholder to reflect a participant's future interest in using TSP assistance—do not enter NTE rates for future years.
- In 2007 this will be enforced in ProTracts but remains a training issue that needs to be addressed at the state level.

## Slide 41

## Data Collection on Crops and Livestock 

- Ed Brzostek

## Data Collection

- It is very important that both livestock and crops data tables have entries completed for all FY 2007 applications.
- WHY?
- The Department has requested that NRCS track crop type in addition to livestock type ( required by statute) to assess the types of producers that USDA programs are assisting.

## Data Collection

**Data will be required to be completed before application **
**approval.**
**AMA, CSP, EQIP, and WHIP will all use the same livestock and crops tables.**
**AMA, EQIP, and WHIP will only require the predominant crop type to be checked.**
**CSP will require crop type, acres and organics to be filled in.**

## Crop Type – Instructions for AMA,EQIP and WHIP

- Crop type will be determined by the one predominant crop type that the program contract is assisting.
- Where multiple crops are grown in rotation, report the crop with the largest acres under contract in the year the contract is signed.
- This will be a very high cut tracking, the conservationist should use their best judgment on this decision and not conduct a detailed analysis.

## Livestock Types – AMA,CSP,EQIP,WHIP

- In order to reduce excessive numbers of the “other livestock” type being reported, a few additional types will be added for FY 2007.
- New Livestock types (17):
- Aquaculture, Beef, Bees, Bison, Dairy, Deer, Elk, Goats, Horses, Poultry, Llamas, Mules, Other Livestock, Rabbits, Sheep and Swine
- No Livestock

## Livestock Type - Instructions

- Livestock type will be determined by the one predominant type of livestock that the program contract is assisting.
- Where multiple livestock types are being assisted; the one with the largest number of animal units will be used.
- Again the conservationist should use their best judgment without a detailed analysis.

## Modified Forms

- Chip Ramsey

## MODIFIED CONTRACTING FORMS

**NRCS-CPA-152 Conservation Program Contract Transfer Agreement**
**NRCS-CPA-153 Agreement Covering Non-Compliance with Provisions of Contract**
**NRCS-CPA-1155  Conservation Plan or Schedule of Operations**
**NRCS-CPA-1156  Revision of Plan/Schedule of Operations or Modification of a Contract**
**NRCS-CPA-1200  Conservation Program Contract Application**
**NRCS-CPA-1202  Conservation Program Contract**
**NRCS-CPA-1236  Assignment of Payment**
**NRCS-CPA-1245  Practice Approval and Payment Application**

## APPROVED FOR USE BY OMB

NRCS-CPA-1200 Is An E-Form

EXPIRATION DATE OF 9/30/09

- NRCS-CPA-1200 Is An E-Form
- EXPIRATION DATE OF 9/30/09

## Slide 51

## Slide 52

## Slide 53

## Slide 54

## Prior Year WHIP ContractMigration

- Albert Cerna

## WHIP Contract Migration

- There were 5,921 WHIP contracts as of 8/29/06.
**“****Entry of prior-year WHIP contracts per National Bulletin 440-6-6” (61F fund code) = NO**
- ProTracts will not be programmed until possibly 2nd Quarter.
- Until then payments will continue outside of ProTracts.

## WHIP Contract Migration

- Any attempts at loading contracts prior to notification that ProTracts is ready for prior year WHIP entry will probably be lost.
- Tentative process will is to back-fed from FFIS all available data (contract number, unpaid obligation, vendor, fund code).
- Input into ProTracts recommended to be done by State Teams for consistency.
- States should work to complete as many contracts as possible prior to entry.

## Field Focus Team 

-     Zona Beatty, Alabama
-     Mark Parsons, California
-     Jim Dunaway, Indiana
-     Richard Martin, New York
-     Monica Holley, Michigan
-     Drenda Williams, Missouri

## Questions

**Questions**