# Presentation: 037631

## Minor Contract Change from ProTracts Certification & Payment Screen

- Streamlining Practice Payments

## Facilitates Existing Contract Policy

**512.50(b)Modifications Where No Signatures Required**
- Modifications that do not require participant signatures include—
- Scheduling changes within the original length of the contract.
- Increasing contract cost resulting from quantity variations or other “cost overruns” when the payment amount is not increased by more than $1,000 per conservation practice, component, or activity. This is being implemented in ProTracts as one change per Contract Item Number.

## What is a minor Change in ProTracts

- Change = No Signature by producer
- Change requires no approval in ProTracts as is instrumented in with a permission controlled process for modifications.
- Field users have ability to implement specific changes without a second level approval.

## Contract Changes for EQIP, AMA, & WHIP

- Deployed in ProTracts on 9/7/06:
- $1000 cost change at payment per contract item number (CIN)
- Payment change must be result of increased quantity that was necessary to complete practice under existing program criteria and is within contract scope.
- Ability to do minor Changes in ProTracts later in FY07 for additional reasons including:
- Change planned amount of contract item.
- Change planned year or extent.
- Change practice component extent.
- Add/delete a component.

## Using “Change” Button

- Access to the “Change” button is controlled by the permission Calculate Payment and the associated permission Certify Practice.
- “Change” button is accessed on the payment calculation portion of the Certification and Payment screen.

## The menu language:
The data field Required Amount has been removed. 
Data field Actual Amount Performed was renamed to Applied Amount; enter the amount necessary to meet the specifications.
Data field Actual Cost was renamed Participant’s  cost.

- The data field Required Amount has been removed.
- Data field Actual Amount Performed was renamed to Applied Amount; enter the amount necessary to meet the specifications.
- Data field Actual Cost was renamed Participant’s  cost.

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

**New Button**

## Practice Applied Amount Increase

**Illustration of Applied Amount Field being greater than Planned Amount to meet practice specifications.**

## If the applied amount of the practice is greater than the amount planned and is needed to meet NRCS specifications, the applied amount of the component (s) may be changed using the Change button if the increase payment is $1000 or less.

- If the applied amount of the practice is greater than the amount planned and is needed to meet NRCS specifications, the applied amount of the _component (s)_ may be changed using the Change button if the increase payment is $1000 or less.

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

## Payment Change up to $1000

**Increased units required by the design to meet the practice specifications  are entered as applied. Warning message indicates the units have increased. This is for information only.**

## Payment Change up to $1000

**Select Change Button prior to entering Payment data. Note how menu choices are different on next slide when “Change” is activated.**

## Payment Change up to $1000

**Enter increased applied amount and participant cost for those applied units from submitted bills. Note increase of cost share earned over initial obligation amount. Use Submit Change from the menu bar when figures are complete and reviewed for accuracy.**

## Payment Change up to $1000

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

**Enter the basis for the change in applied units. Select OK.**

## Payment Change up to $1000

**Indicates the “minor change at payment” is accepted and additional $468 for extra practice units is being added at payment.**

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

## Payment Change up to $1000

- Change button may only be done _once_ per contract item number (CIN).
- Has to be change of applied units, not the unit cost or cost share rate.
- Increases primarily for component units of acres, feet, cubic yards, etc. May have limited utility for practices where the components are number (no).
- Future changes to contract item must be by modification due to once per CIN limit.
- Changes that exceed $1000 at payment must be done through modification.

## Funding Payment Change up to $1000

- Changes to prior year contracts are funded directly from the cost over run account.
- Changes to current year contracts are funded directly from the current year sub-account for the contract.
- Ability to successfully “Submit Change” is directly related to the availability of funding for the payment increase in the appropriate account and whether a $1000 or less payment change is being submitted.

## After selection of  “Submit Change” the sum of the payment changes is calculated.  
If the sum of the change is greater than $1000, ProTracts rejects the “Change” and displays                                           this message:

Next step is to be automatically sent to the Manage Contract screen in ‘modify mode’ to increase the practice units.  Modify is set to Submit for Approval to complete the modification initiated from “Change”.

**After selection of  “Submit Change” the sum of the payment changes is calculated.  **
**If the sum of the change is greater than $1000, ProTracts rejects the “Change” and displays                                           this message:**
** **
**Next step is to be automatically sent to the Manage Contract screen in ‘modify mode’ to increase the practice units.  Modify is set to Submit for Approval to complete the modification initiated from “Change”.**

## Funding Payment Change up to $1000

**Message when funds are not available in the appropriate sub-account for the requested payment increase.**

## Changes are stored in database and incremented 1,2,3... Will be visible in upcoming History Module and can be monitored on a contract basis.
Training issue for voucher examiners to understand this payment change process.

- Training issue for voucher examiners to understand this payment change process.

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