Department of Education

SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Request

CONTENTS

Page

Introduction............................................................................................................................W-1

FY 2018 Budget Request ..........................................................................................................W-2

Participation In Governmentwide E-Government Initiatives....................................................W-7

Budget Authority by Account..................................................................................................W-9

Budget Authority by Object Classification.............................................................................W-10

Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Employment (Staff Years) by Account........................................W-11

Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Employment by Office................................................................W-12

Detail of Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Employment................................................................W-13

Organization Chart...............................................................................................................W-14

Locations of Major Administrative Contracts and Current Contractors..................................W-15

Report on the Budget Formulation and Execution Line of Business .....................................W-16
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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INTRODUCTION

This Overview summarizes the administrative costs and staffing for all Department of Education

accounts. Departmental administrative costs and full-time equivalent (FTE) employment are 

supported in the FY 2018 budget request from funding in the following accounts: Program 

Administration (PA), Student Aid Administration (SAA), Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Office of 

Inspector General (OIG), College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans Program (CHAFL), 

Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program (HBCUCF), and Institute of 

Education Sciences (IES). Greater detail on the funds supporting administrative costs and 

staffing is provided separately in each account’s justification materials.

Key programs administered by the Department include Title I of the Elementary and Secondary

Education Act (ESEA), for which the Department’s FY 2018 request would provide $15.9 billion 

to help more than 25 million students in high-poverty schools make progress toward State 

academic standards; and $11.9 billion for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part B 

Grants to States to help States and school districts meet the special education needs of 

6.8 million students with disabilities. Key programs also include Federal Pell Grants, which 

would make available $28.8 billion in need-based grants to 7.3 million students enrolled in 

postsecondary institutions; and the postsecondary student loan programs, which would help 

provide roughly $153 billion in new and consolidated Direct Loans to help students and families 

pay for college.

In addition to staff, operational activities necessary for the everyday work of the Department 

include expenses for:

• Facilities management, including rent for office space and guard services;

• Telephone and computer network services;

• Operation and maintenance of the Department’s websites (e.g., www.ed.gov and 

www.studentaid.gov);

• Grants payment processing; and

• Program oversight and enforcement of education laws.

Cybersecurity is one of the most pressing current management concerns. Protecting the 

personally identifiable information in the Department’s and its contractors’ Information 

Technology (IT) systems is critical.

The Department also strives for continuous improvement in other key management areas. 

Specific management priorities in the FY 2018 budget request include:

• Information technology, including improving the capability to collect educational data and a 

continued focus on data security;

• Financial management, including projects designed to ensure accountability for 

departmental assets, improve grants management, and provide better financial data to 

managers;
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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• Administering Pell Grants and servicing student loans;

• Using evidence about program success and performance to inform decision making and 

focus limited resources on programs that work, and reforming or eliminating programs that 

do not;

• Improving recruitment, retention, performance, and development of staff, informed by 

employee feedback on the Governmentwide Employee Viewpoint Survey;

• Improving the acquisition process through development of the acquisition workforce and 

reducing reliance on high-risk contract vehicles; and

• Continuing to improve timeliness in resolving internal and external audits.

In addition to these management priorities, the Department is working hard to maintain 

administrative efficiencies as directed in Executive Order 13589: Promoting Efficient Spending, 

and OMB Memorandum M-12-12: Promoting Efficient Spending to Support Agency Operations. 

The FY 2018 budget request continues to control spending on travel, printing, supplies, and 

advisory assistance through the prudent use of a mix of technological efficiencies and strategic 

acquisition efforts. The following table provides percent changes for these areas from FY 2010.

Reductions in Spending by Category:

FY 2010 to FY 2018

(dollars in millions)

Category

2010 

Obligations

2018

Request

Percent Change 

from 2010

Travel $11.2 $6.6 -41%

Printing 5.1 0.9 -82

Supplies 1.7 0.9 -49

Advisory and Assistance 18.6 8.1 -56

Total 36.6 16.5 -55

FY 2018 BUDGET REQUEST

The FY 2018 Salaries and Expenses discretionary budget request totals $2.313 billion, or 

7.3 percent more than the FY 2017 annualized level. A full year 2017 appropriation was not 

enacted at the time the FY 2018 Budget was prepared; therefore, the Budget assumes the 

Department is operating under the Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2017 (P.L. 114-254). 

The amounts included for 2017 reflect the annualized level provided by the continuing 

resolution. The Department of Education Appropriations Act, 2017, provided $2.185 billion, an

increase of $26 million, or 1.2 percent more than the 2016 level for all the Salaries and 

Expenses accounts. A summary of increases by funding account is provided on page W-9.

The requested FY 2018 increase focuses on key departmental policy and management 

priorities. These include improvements to the Department’s IT security to ensure the integrity of 

Department of Education and student loan borrower data as well as to prevent potential IT 

security breaches, more resources for loan servicing due to the increase in the number of 
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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borrowers and the shift of existing borrowers from in-school to more expensive, in-repayment, 

statuses, costs associated with the transition from the current computer network services and IT 

infrastructure contract (EDUCATE), which expires in November 2017, to the new Portfolio of 

Integrated Value-Oriented Technologies (PIVOT) contract,; a proposed pay raise; and increases 

in employee benefits.

The following chart provides detail on the total Salaries and Expenses request of $2.313 billion 

by category.

STAFFING AND NON-PERSONNEL COSTS SUMMARY

Staffing

The Department’s programs and responsibilities have grown substantially over the past decade. 

Some of the growth has resulted from legislation that added responsibilities or changed 

requirements, including the SAFRA Act and 100 percent Direct Lending, the Workforce 

Innovation and Opportunity Act, and the Federal Information Technology Reform Act (FITARA). 

Carrying out the existing Higher Education Act and ensuring institutions comply with regulations 

to protect student and taxpayer interests has meant an increased workload. In addition, the 

reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) by the Every Student 

Succeeds Act (ESSA) significantly increased demands on the Department to develop and 

disseminate program guidance and provide substantial technical assistance to State and local 

education agencies to ensure a smooth transition to and implementation of the new statute. 

Other workload has increased as the Department strives to improve its oversight of its programs 

and data.

The Department of Education has the smallest staff of the 15 Cabinet Agencies, but its 

discretionary budget alone is the third largest, behind only the Department of Defense and the 

Department of Health and Human Services. The Department’s administrative funds are 

approximately 1 percent of the total annual program appropriations and new loan volume 

administered by the Department. The FY 2018 budget request includes funding to support

4,002 FTE addressing the Department’s most important work, a decrease of 154 FTE from the 

Personnel, 

Compensation & 

Benefits

27%

Other Non-Personnel

3%

Overhead

(Rent & Mail) 3%

Non-SAA Contracts

6%

Student Aid 

Administration 

Contracts

61%

FY 2018 Salaries & Expenses Costs by Category

Contract costs account for most of the Salaries and Expenses budget.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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2017 annualized level. Decreases in FTE include: 46 FTE from OCR, 31 FTE from Federal 

Student Aid (FSA), and 77 FTE from the PA account.

Department FTE Usage (FY 2009 – FY 2018)

FY 

2009

FY 

2010

FY 

2011

FY 

2012

FY 

2013

FY 

2014

FY 

2015

FY 

2016 

FY 

2017 

Est.

FY 

2018 

Est.

4,018 4,105 4,387 4,276 4,090 4,027 4,081 4,150 4,156 4,002

Department employees are divided between Washington, D.C., headquarters, 11 regional 

offices, and 13 field offices. Most regional and field office staff are in FSA, OIG, and OCR. The 

FSA regional office staff conduct reviews of lenders, institutions, and guaranty agencies 

participating in student financial aid programs, and perform debt collection activities on 

defaulted student loans. OIG staff conduct audits and investigations of Department programs 

and operations. OCR staff investigate civil rights complaints and conduct civil rights compliance 

reviews.

Boston

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Regional Offices

Field Offices

Location of the Department of Education 

Regional and Field Offices

Seattle

San

Francisco Denver

Kansas

City

Chicago

Atlanta

Dallas

Cleveland Sacramento

Long Beach

Puerto Rico Pembroke 

Pines

Pittsburgh

St. Paul

Austin

Phoenix

Nashville

Ann Arbor

Personnel Compensation and Benefits (PC&B) and Non-Personnel Costs Summary

The Budget request includes $618.8 million for PC&B, a decrease of $11.4 million from the 

FY 2017 annualized level. Non-personnel costs cover such items as travel, rent, mail, 
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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telephones, utilities, printing, IT, contractual services, equipment, supplies, and other 

departmental services. The total budget for non-personnel activities in FY 2018 is $1.7 billion, 

an increase of $169.1 million from the FY 2017 annualized level. Eighty-one percent, or 

$136.6 million, of the non-personnel increase is the result of higher Student Aid Administration 

servicing costs, which result from growth in the number of borrowers and shifts of existing 

borrowers from in-school to more expensive, in-repayment, statuses.

Centralized Overhead and Technology

Departmental overhead expenses cover centralized support and administrative services for all 

program and staff offices. The funds are administered by the Office of Management. These 

services include rent, building alterations and repairs, lease renewal, training, supplies, mail, 

and physical security for buildings and personnel. A total of $141.9 million is requested for 

these costs in FY 2018, an increase of $4.2 million from the FY 2017 annualized level. Major 

increases include rent, physical security costs, telework registration system, payroll system, and 

historically based cost escalations.

Information technology activities that comprise centralized IT services include computer 

operations, maintenance and improvements, local area network operations, initiatives designed 

to link Department business needs with the best available technology, and other commonly 

shared IT and office automation activities. The funds are administered by the Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. A total of $128.9 million is requested, which is an increase of $13.2 million 

from the FY 2017 annualized level. Major increases include improvements to the Department’s 

IT security to ensure the integrity of Department of Education data as well as to prevent 

potential IT security breaches, and development costs required for the replacement of the 

Department’s outdated financial management systems software.

Improper Payments

The Department continues to focus on assessing risks associated with improper payments and 

establishing effective internal controls designed to prevent, detect, reduce, and recover 

improper payments.

For the Title IV risk-susceptible Pell Grant and Direct Loan programs, the Department also 

estimates improper payment rates and analyzes the root causes of the improper payments 

detected. The major root causes of improper payments in the Pell Grant and Direct Loan 

programs are incorrect self-reporting of an applicant’s income, which leads to incorrect awards 

based on Expected Family Contribution (EFC), incorrect processing of student data by 

institutions during normal operations, student account data changes not applied or processed 

correctly, ineligibility for a Pell Grant or Direct Loan (e.g., validity of high school attended, history 

of degrees obtained), satisfactory academic progress not achieved, and incorrectly calculated 

return records by institutions returning Title IV student aid funds. To prevent and reduce 

improper payments, the Department is pursuing several corrective actions, which include adding 

or strengthening relevant controls.

The Department also uses other verification methods to protect against improper payments and 

to confirm specific information reported on the FAFSA by the applicant. Schools are required to 

verify all applicants that are selected by the Department for verification. Annually, the 

Department analyzes FSA’s grant recipients, student loan borrowers, and the verification 
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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selection system, and informs the financial aid community which FAFSA items are subject to 

verification for the upcoming award year. This annual analysis is intended to enhance 

verification methodology and to meet the goal of selecting applicants who are most likely to 

have incorrect information on their FAFSA.

In addition, FSA works to promote accuracy and accountability in the administration of Title IV 

student financial aid through institutional oversight, guidance, technical assistance, and 

enforcement. As part of its ongoing activities, the Program Compliance office conducts periodic 

recertification of all schools’ eligibility, issues loss of eligibility determinations to schools, 

assesses millions of dollars in final program review and final audit determinations, and debars 

individuals from receiving assistance or benefits from any Federal Agency as a result of 

financial aid fraud or other criminal convictions.

The Department continues to modernize the Continuous Controls Monitoring System (CCMS), 

an application that integrates payments analysis, case management, and reporting functions to 

automate and streamline the detection, recovery, and prevention of improper payments. A key 

objective of this initiative is development of predictive modeling to prevent improper payments to 

the maximum extent possible. The Department continues upgrading this system to expand the 

transactions being evaluated, improve the relevance of integrity checks with improved 

algorithms, and integrate new sources of comparative data. By the end of FY 2017, all planned 

CCMS functionalities will be completed and fully implemented for all non-FSA grants. The plan 

for FYs 2018 and 2019 is to employ risk-based analysis to define the monitoring required for 

contracts and administrative payments, as well as for loans. The CCMS team applies agile 

project management practices to ensure that design improvements are continually integrated 

into new releases. This project approach also expands opportunities to integrate new datasets, 

analytics methodologies, and applied algorithms which may emerge from Federal-wide groups, 

including the Improper Payments Community of Practice, the Fraud Reduction and Data 

Analytics Work Group, and the Data Sharing Work Group.

The Department created the Payment Integrity Workgroup (PIWG) to review and validate 

internal controls by payment type (i.e., Payroll, Travel, Transit Benefits, Grants –

Discretionary/Formula, Contracts, Government Purchase Card, and Interagency Agreements). 

The teams are documenting that the right controls are in place to prevent and detect improper 

payments and that they can be validated as part of the routine workflow process. As part of this 

review and validation with process and policy owners, the conversation also documents how the 

areas are incorporating Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) and generating ways to identify 

and report fraud. The workgroup is also incorporating the payment integrity checks that are 

generated from the CCMS as it related to the administrative areas. Finally, the Department 

continues to assess audit reports to identify potential areas of concern relevant to improper 

payments and to take appropriate action.

Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM)

The Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation Program, centrally managed by the Department of 

Homeland Security (DHS) and also implemented at the Department of Education, is intended to 

create a common baseline of cybersecurity capability and protection across the Federal 

Government. The program provides Federal Departments and Agencies with CDM-certified 

capabilities and tools that identify and prioritize cybersecurity risks on an ongoing basis and 
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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enable cybersecurity personnel to mitigate the most significant problems first. The CDM tools 

also allow Departments and Agencies to better manage their IT assets, helping to reduce their 

overall attack surface.

The CDM tools provide near real-time awareness of Education’s networks and environments.

Data from the tools are automatically ingested into an individual dashboard at the Department. 

The Agency Dashboard provides current visibility into the overall organization’s security posture 

based on a 72-hour data currency. With the full implementation of CDM, data from the 

individual Agency dashboards across the Federal Government will be aggregated into one 

Federal-level dashboard with planned synchronization every 8 hours. The Federal Dashboard 

is maintained by the CDM Program and allows DHS to monitor and respond to Federal 

cybersecurity threats and incidents quickly and efficiently.

The CDM Program is currently being implemented in four phases. Since FY 2013, Congress 

has supported all four phases of CDM.

Historically, it has taken Agencies days or weeks to determine that cybersecurity incidents have 

occurred in their environment. Once fully deployed, the CDM Program will shorten this 

timeframe to hours and minutes.

DHS, through the CDM Program Management Office, also provides support for training and 

governance activities, ensuring that CDM deployments and governance activities reinforce 

agency responsibilities for Information Security Continuous Monitoring as identified in OMB

Memorandum 14-03: Enhancing the Security of Federal Information and Information Systems

and in the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014.

DHS, through the CDM Program Management Office, will pay for the operations and support 

costs of the Department of Education’s CDM Phase 1 tools and services that were originally 

purchased by DHS, including Task Order 2 Software License Maintenance, Dashboard, and 

Delivery Order 1 tools.

PARTICIPATION IN GOVERNMENTWIDE E-GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES

The Department is actively participating in a number of Governmentwide e-Government 

initiatives and lines of business designed to make it easy for citizens and businesses to interact 

with the Government, save taxpayer dollars, and streamline citizen-to-Government 

communications. The Department has budgeted a total of $5.0 million in FY 2017, and requests 

$5.1 million in FY 2018 for these initiatives. The request includes support for the following 

initiatives/lines of business noted in the chart below:
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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(in whole dollars)

Governmentwide E-Government

Initiative/Line of Business FY 2017

FY 2018

Request

Budget Line of Business $110,000 $110,000

E-Rulemaking 112,000 101,000

Financial Management Line of Business 231,000 231,000

Geospatial Line of Business 25,000 25,000

GovBenefits.gov* 283,000 273,000

Grants.gov 428,000 392,000

Human Resource Management Line of Business 66,000 69,000

Integrated Awards Environment* 3,675,000 3,749,000

Performance Management Line of Business 80,000 80,000

USAJOBS 29,000 30,000

Total 5,039,000 5,060,000

NOTE: Funding for initiatives marked with an asterisk * is from the Student Aid Administration account; 

funding for all other initiatives/lines of business is from the Program Administration account.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Department of Education

Budget Authority by Account

(dollars in thousands)

ACTIVITY 2016

2017

Annualized CR

2018

Request

Change 

from 2017

to 2018

Program Administration:

Salaries and Expenses $431,000 $431,179 $438,000 $6,821

Building Modernization 1,000 0 0 0

Office for Civil Rights 107,000 106,797 106,797 0

Office of Inspector General 59,256 59,143 61,143 2,000

Subtotal, Departmental Management 598,256 597,119 605,940 8,821

Administrative costs from program accounts:

College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans 434 434 434 0

Historically Black College and University Capital Financing 334 333 333 0

Institute of Education Sciences:

National Assessment Governing Board 8,235 8,219 8,219 0

National Board for Education Sciences 275 276 280 4

Student Aid Administration:

Salaries and Expenses 711,756 668,462 680,711 12,249

Servicing Activities 840,098 880,442 1,017,000 136,558

Subtotal, program accounts 1,561,133 1,558,166 1,706,977 148,811

Total, Salaries and Expenses 2,159,389 2,155,285 2,312,917 157,632
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Department of Education

Budget Authority by Object Classification

(dollars in thousands)

Object 

class no. Object Class 2016

2017

Annualized CR

2018 

Request

Change from 

2017 to 2018

11.10 Full-time permanent $463,654 $464,218 $454,552 -$9,666

11.31 Full-time temporary 10,733 8,172 7,005 -1,167

11.32 Part-time 989 985 1,015 30

11.33 Consultants 612 259 267 8

11.51 Overtime 449 409 397 -12

11.52 Awards 4,637 4,966 5,038 72

subtotal 

row Subtotal, Personnel Comp. 481,074 479,009 468,274 -10,735

12.00 Benefits 147,957 151,068 150,339 -729

13.01 Benefits for former personnel 187 200 220 20

subtotal 

row Subtotal, Benefits 148,144 151,268 150,559 -709

21.00 Travel 9,432 6,543 6,642 99

22.00 Transportation of things 226 1 1 0

23.10 Rental Payments to GSA 75,207 73,572 77,178 3,606

23.31 Communications 772 628 628 0

23.32 Postage/fees 782 704 687 -17

subtotal 

row Subtotal, 23 76,761 74,904 78,493 3,589

24.00 Printing & Reproduction 2,477 997 938 -59

25.10 Advisory and Assistance Svcs 10,857 6,611 8,121 1,510

25.21 Other Services 886,267 960,039 1,087,947 127,908

25.22 Training/Tuition/Contracts 5,272 4,537 4,380 -157

25.23 Field Readers 10 59 0 -59

25.30 Goods/Services from Gov't 50,803 59,774 58,931 -843

25.40 Operations/Maint of Facilities 271 1 1 0

25.71 Operations/Maint of Equipment 1,165 1,496 1,119 -377

25.72 IT Services/Contracts 480,617 406,457 443,722 37,265

subtotal 

row Subtotal, 25 1,435,262 1,438,974 1,604,221 165,247

26.00 Supplies 1,073 842 862 20

31.01 IT Equipment/Software 1,891 1,810 1,987 177

31.03 Other Equipment 1,325 390 390 0

subtotal 

row Subtotal, 31 3,216 2,200 2,377 177

32.00 Building Alterations 1,724 547 550 3

43.01 Interest and Dividends 0 0 0 0 

total row Total 2,159,389 2,155,285 2,312,917 157,632

total row Total, Pers. Comp. & Ben. 629,218 630,277 618,833 -11,444

total row Total, Non-Personnel 1,530,171 1,525,008 1,694,084 169,076
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Department of Education

Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Employment (Staff Years) by Account

ACCOUNT 2016

2017

Request

2018

Request

Change 

from 2017 to 

2018

Program Administration 1,888 1,776 1,699 -77

Office for Civil Rights 563 569 523 -46

Office of Inspector General 228 237 237 0

Subtotal, Departmental Management 2,679 2,582 2,459 -123

FTE funded from program accounts:

College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans 2 3 3 0

Historically Black College and University Capital Financing 1 1 1 0

Institute of Education Sciences:

Insti tute of Education Sciences: National Assessment Governing Board 14 14 14 0

Insti tute of Education Sciences: National Board for Education Sciences 1 1 1 0

Student Aid Administration 1,453 1,555 1,524 -31

Subtotal, program accounts 1,471 1,574 1,543 -31

Total, FTE 4,150 4,156 4,002 -154
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Department of Education

Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Employment by Office

OFFICE 2016 2017

2018

Request

Change from 

2017 to 2018

Career, Technical and Adult Education 68 73 70 -3

Chief Financial Officer 175 174 167 -7

Chief Information Officer 126 120 115 -5

Civil Rights 563 569 523 -46

Communications and Outreach 104 89 79 -10

Deputy Secretary 42 40 37 -3

Elementary and Secondary Education 237 213 204 -9

English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and

Academic Achievement for Limited English Proficient 

Students 18 16 16 0

Federal Student Aid 1,326 1,423 1,392 -31

General Counsel 113 109 103 -6

Innovation and Improvement 91 72 67 -5

Inspector General 228 237 237 0

Institute of Education Sciences 189 180 168 -12

Legislation and Congressional Affairs 18 14 11 -3

Management 202 195 186 -9

National Assessment Governing Board 14 14 14 0

National Board for Education Sciences 1 1 1 0

Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development 99 95 85 -10

Postsecondary Education 183 178 163 -15

Secretary 101 118 160 42

Special Education and Rehabilitative Services 213 204 192 -12

Under Secretary 39 22 12 -10

Total, FTE 4,150 4,156 4,002 -154

NOTE: The Office of the Secretary’s FY 2018 FTE level reflects an increase of Schedule C employees 

occurring over the next several months as the new Administration’s team arrives. Many of these 

employees will ultimately move to other Department offices to fill key leadership positions.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Department of Education

Detail of Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Employment

Detail of Full-time Equivalent (FTE) 2016 Actual 2017 Estimate 2018 Request

Executive level I................................................. 1 1 1

Executive level II................................................ 1 1 1

Executive level III............................................... 1 0 1 

Executive level IV.............................................. 4 2 4

Executive level V............................................... 1 1 1

Subtotal...................................................... 8 5 8

Total - EX Salary................................. $1,349,250 $868,125 $1,366,200

Senior Executive Service............................. 87 88 90

Subtotal - ES1 ........................................... 87 88 90

Total - ES Salaries............................. $14,787,825 $15,107,400 $15,489,000

AL..................................................................... 2 2 2

AD..................................................................... 179 173 173

ED/EI................................................................ 6 3 3

GL.................................................................... 2 1 1

GS/GM-15........................................................ 528 502 496

GS/GM-14......................................................... 971 922 913

GS/GM-13......................................................... 1,120 1,064 1,053

GS-12................................................................ 782 770 770

GS-11................................................................ 195 191 191

GS-10................................................................ 1 1 1

GS-9.................................................................. 152 145 145

GS-8.................................................................. 36 32 32

GS-7.................................................................. 94 92 73

GS-6.................................................................. 16 14 11

GS-5.................................................................. 12 12 10

GS-4.................................................................. 19 19 19

GS-3.................................................................. 0 0 0

GS-2.................................................................. 3 3 3

GS-1.................................................................. 0 0 0

Subtotal...................................................... 4,118 3,946 3,896

Total full-time equivalent employment, 

end of year.......................................... 4,213 4,039 3,994

Full-time equivalent (FTE) 

usage.................................................. 4,150 4,156 4,002

Average ES salary............................................ $169,975 $171,675 $172,100

Average GS/GM grade..................................... 12.2 12.2 12.3

Average GS/GM salary..................................... $109,780 $112,641 $114,238

1

 FY 2016 includes 9 FSA SES positions. FY 2017 & FY 2018 include 10 FSA SES positions.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Organization Chart
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Locat ions of Major Administrative Contract s and Current Co ntractors

7 Denver

9 Colorado 

Springs

Department of Education

Locations of Major Administrative Contracts

and Current Contractors

2, 10 Plano

10 El Paso

10 Dallas

11 San Antonio

5,10 Lawrence

9, 10 Boise

5, 10 Coralville,

10 London, KY

10,11 Monticello, KY

10 Louisville,KY

10

Montgomery

10

Wetumpka

5,11, Arlington, VA

1,4,6,9,10,11 Washington, DC

1, 6 McLean, VA

2 6,10 Fairfax, VA 

10 Raleigh

10 Rockville, MD

8 Bethesda, MD

6 Clarksville, MD

3* Frederick, MD

6 Columbia

3* Madison

3* Lincoln

3* 

Chesterfield

11 Niagara Falls

5 Venice

9,10 Orlando

3* Salt 

Lake 

City

3* Concord, NH

3* Knoxville

3* Harrisburg

3* Warrendale

3* Oklahoma City

3* Wilmington, DE

Note: An asterisk represents a headquarters location for loan servicing contracts. Additional locations can be found in the Student Aid 

Administration Congressional Justification.

1 Financial Management System (FSA) 8 Education Department Central Automated Processing

2 EDUCATE (OCIO) Systems (EDCAPS)(OCIO)

3 Loan Servicers (FSA) 9 Next Generation Data Center FSA)

4 OCR CRDC Survey (OCR) 10 Application and Eligibility Determination System (FSA)

5 National Student Loan Data System (FSA) 11 Title IV Origination and Disbursement System (FSA)

6 Integrated Partner Management (FSA) 12 System Security Authorizations (FSA)

7 Payroll/Personnel Processing Center (OM)

10 Palo 

Alto

12 Reston, VA 

11 Piscataway, NJ

6,9, 10 Herdon, VA

10 

Roseville

9 Clarksville, VA

9 Alpharetta, GA

11 Columbus, GA
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

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Report on the Budget Formulation and Execution Line of Business 

as Required by Division D, Section 737(d) of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, 

P.L. 110-161

The U.S. Department of Education assumed the role as the first Managing Partner for the 

Budget Line of Business (BLoB) in the fall of 2006. The focus of the Budget LoB is to build a 

“budget of the future” by promoting information-sharing across Government Agency budget 

offices, as well as building a “community of practice.” Through this collaboration, the budget 

community has been identifying best practices for all aspects of budget formulation and 

execution. The Budget LoB strives to find solutions linking budget formulation, execution, 

planning, performance, and financial management information.

The goals of the Budget LoB are to:

• Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Agency and central processes for formulating 

and executing the Federal Budget

• Improve capabilities for analyzing and presenting budget, execution, planning, and 

financial information in support of decision making

• Enhance the effectiveness of the Federal budgeting workforce

Budget LoB anticipates 10-year savings of over $200 million Governmentwide due to efficiencies 

gained through collaboration and increased use of technology. Many Agency budget offices do 

not have automated systems to support budget formulation and execution activities. Agencies 

rely on basic office software and manual processes. Budget LoB’s goal is to reduce time spent 

by budget personnel on manual processes and increase time spent on high priority analytical 

activities (via increased use of technology, improved processes, and a better equipped 

workforce).

Budget LoB is a mixed lifecycle investment. Activities and solutions under development by 

Budget LoB workgroups are at different stages within the development lifecycle. Products under 

development are listed in the Objectives and Benefits table below and include implementation or 

projected implementation dates.

The following tables display the objectives and benefits, risks, costs, and Agency contributions to 

Budget LoB.
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W-17

Objectives and Benefits: Technology

Capability Objectives and Benefits

Technology

Technology

Collaboration 

Improves the efficiency and effectiveness of Government activities through the 

ready accessibility of information, and the ability to collaborate remotely both 

within an Agency (i.e., collaboration with regional and field staff) and across 

Federal Agencies (i.e., collaboration of each Agency with OMB and other 

Agencies on shared programs).

Current products include the MAX Federal Community, secure online meeting 

capability, MAX Shared Desktop, and MAX Calendar.

Current Status: The MAX Federal Community, a cross-agency collaboration 

platform, provides increased information sharing, collaboration, and knowledge 

management securely across the Federal Government, as well as within each 

Agency. With over 180,000 members (up from approximately 155,000 in 

May 2016), the MAX Federal Community is reportedly the largest Government 

operated collaboration site. Many Agencies are also using the secure MAX 

Shared Desktop or the secure online meeting tool allowing Agency personnel 

to attend meetings remotely with presentations displayed on their computer 

screens.

Technology

Data Collection & 

Tracking

Improves OMB and Agency efficiency and effectiveness in carrying out the 

numerous required budget data exercises. Benefits apply to both central 

budget exercises (i.e., those required of Agencies by OMB) and exercises at 

the departmental or Agency level (i.e., those requested by central offices of 

Agency regional and field offices). Agency benefits include increased data 

collection capabilities, reduced errors, and reduced time spent manually 

consolidating and publishing data.

Current products include multiple web-based data collection tools for central 

budget exercises, as well as a web-based tool, MAX Collect, for Agency use in 

the collection of budget briefing and question and answer materials. MAX 

Survey is a basic data collection capability also available on MAX.gov. Over 

300 MAX Collect exercises have been utilized in the last year alone.

Current Status: BLoB data collection tools have demonstrated significant 

value by automating the collection of data for dozens of centralized exercises 

related to the budget community for earmarks, continuing resolutions, 

Questions for the Record, and across-the-board reductions. The MAX Collect 

tool provides even greater benefit by enabling Agency budget offices to 

automate their own data collection exercises. Agencies are now using the tool 

to facilitate a broad range of data calls and data collection exercises 

numbering in the hundreds. This past year, the BLoB developed an add-on to 

MAX Collect called Collect Forms, which provides a much simpler and far 

more powerful user interface for collecting and reporting on data. MAX survey 

is used to quickly gather and analyze information via tokenized surveys.
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W-18

Capability Objectives and Benefits

Technology

Technology

Knowledge 

Management

Improves the ability of Agencies to locate and access information, increases 

the availability and comprehensiveness of data, and improves the ability of the 

budgeting community to manage the impending retirement of key personnel. 

Database-driven products such as the MAX Federal Community and MAX 

Collect enhance knowledge management capabilities by capturing 

“knowledge” as it is generated, simply as a by-product of these tools.

Technology

Agency Budget 

Formulation and 

Execution Tools

Provides a cost-effective strategy for Agencies that do not have budget 

formulation and execution applications, or have outdated applications, to 

quickly improve their effectiveness through automation. This effort encourages 

common and integrated solutions that are reusable Governmentwide.

Products include the Budget Formulation and Execution Manager system

(BFEM), the first shared budget formulation system by the Department of 

Treasury; the Departmental E-Budgeting System (DEBS), a shared offering 

from the Department of Labor; the Decision Matrix for budget systems 

evaluation (full systems evaluations); the Budget Capability Self-Assessment 

Tool (BC SAT); the MAX A-11 Data Transfer and Rule Validation project; and a 

common Budget Office Solutions catalog. The Decision Matrix allows 

Agencies to define their specific budget system requirements and evaluates 

the capability and maturity of six Agency and three commercial budget 

systems against those requirements. The BC SAT has provided several 

Agencies with comprehensive resource listings to further help them with 

strategic planning and resourcing.

Current Status: The MAX A-11 Rule Validation team supports processes, 

methodologies, and standards to enable Agencies to exchange data with 

OMB's MAX A-11 system through the use of multiple ‘services’, greatly 

improving the process, eliminating large amounts of manual data entry, and 

enabling availability of account level information on a real-time basis. BLoB 

continues to support Treasury’s BFEM and Labor’s DEBS systems as they 

provide customer Agencies with enhanced connections to OMB’s MAX budget 

system and worked with EPA to finalize their budget system deployment as a 

shared service. The BC SAT was at the heart of transformation activities for 

at least one agency this past year.

Technology

Analytical Tools

Enhances Federal capabilities for analyzing budget formulation, execution, 

planning, performance, and financial information. This enables more 

complete, thorough, and timely analysis, which will, in turn, provide policy 

decisionmakers with improved understanding of policy option impacts and 

alternatives. 

Current products include the MAX Analytics tool suite, which creates custom 

charts and graphs for analysis, and associated tools built upon the analytics 

core (such as MAX Calendar).

Current Status: MAX Analytics integrates with BLoB data collection and 

collaboration tools, enabling charts that update automatically as new data is 

entered. Agencies have been using MAX Analytics to dynamically display the 
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

W-19

Capability Objectives and Benefits

Technology

results of their data collections and to transform how they use analytics to 

manage problems. BLoB continues to work with Agencies to include the most 

relevant and useful capabilities in the tool suite. Several Agencies (OMB, 

DOJ, DOL, etc.) are now utilizing MAX Analytics to drive decision making 

based upon analysis not previously possible.

Technology

Budget Execution 

and Financial 

Management 

Integration

Improves the quality and integrity of information, data flows, and reporting in 

budget formulation and execution, especially in regard to its touch points with 

financial management. Identifying common business processes and data 

standards will form the basis for requirements for use in developing budget 

systems, as well as closer alignment with financial management systems. 

Current products include Governmentwide process maps for budget execution 

and budget formulation and the web-based budget execution training module, 

budget formulation training module, and Appropriations Law training module.

Current Status: The training modules are in use throughout the budget 

community. Over 8,300 individuals have accessed the self-paced online 

training module courses, which have an estimated return on investment to date 

of over 5,800 percent and a savings of over $6.9 million.

Technology

Document 

Production

Enables Agency budgeting personnel to move from clerical to analytical 

functions, increasing Agency analytical resource availability. Many Agency 

budget staff work countless hours to incorporate late-breaking policy data 

changes in high-visibility publications. Often, many changes must be 

simultaneously made in multiple documents for different stakeholders. 

Document production capabilities exist in Treasury and Labor’s shared service 

budget systems, as well as in the MAX Collect Tool, and in a recently released 

service allowing budget personnel to develop their own reporting templates.

Objectives and Benefits: Governance

Capability Objectives and Benefits

Governance

Governance

Program 

Management Office 

(PMO)

Serves as a central coordination point for Governmentwide collaboration and 

sharing of technologies and processes. The Program Management Office 

(PMO) allows resources across Government to be leveraged for cost savings. 

In this way, costs are reduced, economies of scale are achieved, and risks in 

developing and buying Agency budget tools are reduced through a coordinated 

combination of approaches that include: sharing common budget formulation 

components, purchasing commonly used software that has been proven in 

multiple Agencies, and purchasing services from other Agencies.

The PMO will support enhanced efficiency, effectiveness, quality, knowledge 

management, presentation, collaboration, and flexibility within the BLoB. 

Currently, the PMO supports seven initiative-specific workgroups that meet on 

a regular basis.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

W-20

Capability Objectives and Benefits

Governance

Process 

Improvements

Allows for the development of system requirements and guidelines for tools 

that are modular in nature (can be used as part of any system) and available 

for use by multiple Agencies. Accounts for the importance of flexibility in the 

budgeting process and acts as a set of standards that are essential for the

automated exchange of budget data with Treasury and OMB, as well as 

Agency financial management systems.

Current products include numerous updates to the MAX Federal Community, 

MAX Collect, MAX Analytics, and MAX Shared Desktop as well as 

implementation of MAX Authentication services at 11 Agencies with work 

underway to support additional Agencies with “single sign-on” capabilities.

Governance

Service Module 

Standardization

Encourages reusability and interoperability of budget systems across Agencies 

to achieve significant cost savings through a "build once, use often" 

philosophy. Service module registration via the PMO will help ensure that 

Agencies are aware of existing services so that duplicative investments are not 

made.

Objectives and Benefits: Human Capital

Capability Objectives and Benefits

Human Capital

Human Capital

Budget Human 

Capital

Enhances the effectiveness of the existing budgeting workforce and 

encourages participation from other professions within Government, the private 

sector, and universities. BLoB provides a central venue for the budget 

community, OPM, and the Council of Human Capital Officers to grow the 

appeal of Federal Budgeting as a career by combining Agency efforts to define 

budget career paths, core competencies, leadership development, certification 

programs, and sharing of ideas in areas such as succession planning,

retention and recruitment.

Products include recommendations on core competencies and proficiency 

levels; a Budget Career Day conference devoted to enabling budget 

professionals to better plan their careers while providing tools for them to do 

so; and training curricula for budget analysts, as well as no-cost training 

courses for budget staff and self-paced training modules. More are planned 

for the coming year.

Current status: Thousands of Government employees have undergone nocost training through in-class, web-based, or facilitated online training sessions 

hosted by the BLoB. Regular panel discussions feature OMB or senior Agency 

budget staff focusing on specific budgeting related topics and have been 

attended by over 3,000 individuals since the Department began hosting. 

Brownbag discussion groups focusing on a deeper understanding of budget 

execution and on the Budget Career Road Map have been attended by over 

800 people. An indepth course focusing on Basic Budget Processes began in 

2013 and has been held 14 times, with waiting lists and strong participation 

from over 375 attendees. All of these opportunities are offered to Federal 

employees free of charge.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

W-21

Risks

Type of 

Risk 1

Risk Description Mitigation Approach

Other Technology Maintaining ability to develop 

and field highest-quality IT 

services in the midst of rapid 

expansion of use without 

accompanying equal increase 

in available resources.

Work with product leads to encourage 

continued focus on quality and meeting 

requirements, implement updated 

procedures. Engage Agencies for more 

participation in development, fielding, and 

maintenance of solutions.

Other Management 

Oversight

Agency budget offices do not 

make use of the range of LoB 

products and services 

available to them—risk is 

unrealized cost 

avoidance/cost savings.

Develop metrics and assess tools 

capabilities and whether they are 

optimized for Agency budget office use.

1 Types of risk are categorized as either significant or other. If significant risks occur, they have substantial impact on 

the ability of the Line of Business to succeed. Other risks, while potentially serious, may not significantly impact the 

Line of Business and its ability to succeed.
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W-22

W-22

Line of Business IT Costs (dollars in thousands)

Costs by project 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Planning $437 $655 $100 $125 $125 $116 $78 $95 $95 $95 $95

Acquisition 904 810 355 335 350 375 178 265 265 265 265

Operations & Maint. 650 680 720 685 700 781 919 1050 1050 955 1050

Govt FTE Costs 490 444 162 172 238 244 100 100 100 100 100

2,481 2,589 1,337 1,317 1,413 1,516 1,275 1,510 1,510 1,415 1,510

FTE 4 4 4 4 2 2 1 1 1 1 1
SALARIES AND EXPENSES OVERVIEW

W-23

Anticipated Contributions by Agency (dollars in thousands)

AGENCY FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018

Department of Agriculture $110 $110 $110

Department of Commerce 110 110 110

Department of Defense--Military 110 110 110

Department of Education (direct funds) 110 110 110

Department of Energy 110 110 110

Department of Health and Human Services 105 105 105

Department of Homeland Security 110 110 110

Housing and Urban Development 110 110 110

Department of the Interior 110 110 110

Department of Justice 0 110 110

Department of Labor 105 105 105

Department of State 110 110 110

Department of Transportation 110 110 110

Department of the Treasury 105 105 105

Department of Veterans Affairs 110 110 110

US Army Corps of Engineers-Civil Works 80 80 80

Environmental Protection Agency 110 110 110

General Services Administration 110 110 110

National Aeronautics and Space Administration 105 105 105

National Science Foundation 105 105 105

USAID 105 105 105

Office of Personnel Management 110 110 110

Small Business Administration 55 55 55

Securities and Exchange Commission 55 55 55

Social Security Administration 55 55 55

Millennium Challenge Corporation 0 0 0

Office of National Drug Control Policy 55 55 55