RECEIPTS UNAVAILABLE FOR OBLIGATION UPON COLLECTION

EFFECTIVE FY 26

RECEIPTS UNAVAILABLE FOR OBLIGATION UPON COLLECTION	  

EFFECTIVE FISCAL 2026

PREPARED BY:

GENERAL LEDGER AND ADVISORY BRANCH

FISCAL ACCOUNTING OPERATIONS

BUREAU OF THE FISCAL SERVICE

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Contents

Version Control

Background

**Definitions from the TFM Glossary:**

**Special Fund Expenditure Account:** This is a type of Treasury Account Symbol that the Bureau of Fiscal Service establishes to record amounts appropriated from special fund receipts. Agencies may expend these receipts for special programs according to specific provisions of law.

Unavailable Receipts: Unavailable receipts are receipts that, at the time of collection, are not appropriated and not immediately available for expenditure. This is because:

· Congress limited the amount available for expenditure, or

· Agencies cleared amounts credited to receipt accounts to other receipt accounts, in whole or in part, before taking appropriation warrant action.

**Available Receipts:** Available receipts are special or trust fund receipts that, pursuant to law, are available as appropriations to a single agency for expenditure without further congressional action. In some fund accounts, use is restricted to investment only or is precluded by a limitation or benefit formula. An available receipt account carries the same symbolization as its corresponding expenditure account, except that an “X” is inserted to indicate the period of availability of such funds for obligation. However, in special circumstances involving dedicated collections for current year obligations and expenditures, these funds are placed in an unavailable receipt account until the Bureau of the Fiscal Service prepares a warrant to move the funds to a current fiscal year expenditure account.

**Trust Fund Expenditure Account:** This is a type of Treasury Account Symbol that the Bureau of Fiscal Service establishes to record amounts appropriated from trust fund receipts. Agencies may expend these receipts for specific purposes or programs according to the terms of a trust agreement or statute.

**Special Fund Receipt Accounts**: Fiscal Service credits special fund receipt accounts with receipts from specific sources collected by law for specific purposes. At the point of collection, these receipts either are available immediately or unavailable for expenditures depending upon statutory requirements.[footnoteRef:1] [1:  TFM Volume I, Part 2, Chapter 1500, Section 1530.15 – Special Fund Receipt Accounts] 

Trust Fund Receipt Accounts: Fiscal Service credits trust fund receipt accounts with receipts generated by the terms of a trust agreement or statute that designates a fund as a trust fund. At the point of collection, these receipts either are available immediately or unavailable for expenditure, depending upon statutory requirements, the terms of the trust agreement, and other provisions of law.[footnoteRef:2] [2:  TFM Volume I, Part 2, Chapter 1500, Section 1530.20 – Trust Fund Receipt Accounts] 

**Treasury Documentation:**

**Unavailable Special/Trust Fund Receipt Account**

An unavailable special/trust fund receipt account holds balances until legislation is enacted which allows an agency to obligate, expend, and disburse those balances.  The balances will be appropriated from the unavailable special/trust fund receipt account to a special/trust fund expenditure account via a warrant. The warrant will specify from which receipt account the appropriation stems.   

**Available Special/Trust Fund Receipt Account**

An available special/trust fund receipt account has legal authority to obligate, expend, and disburse its balances immediately without further action by Congress.  The Treasury Central Accounting System, CARS, will automatically transfer the balances from the available special/trust fund receipt account into the special fund expenditure account with the same main account symbol.  

**Special/Trust Fund Expenditure Account**

A special/trust fund expenditure account receives an appropriation from a special/trust fund receipt account either by warrant or automatic transfer, depending on the type of receipt account (unavailable/available).

**Budget Presentation:**

In the President’s Budget Appendix volume, there is a budget schedule for special and trust fund receipts (Schedule N). Schedule N is an automatically generated schedule that shows the flow of funding into and out of special and non-revolving trust funds. It shows new receipts deposited into the fund, new appropriations taken out of the fund – including any amounts appropriated but precluded from obligation, and the remaining balances of unappropriated receipts (if any).[footnoteRef:3] For budgetary purposes, receipts deposited into a special or non-revolving trust fund can be either "available" or "unavailable". If the amounts are unavailable for obligation, they are included in the balances shown in schedule N. [3:  OMB Circular No. A-11, Section 86.4 (August 2023)] 

Typically, an available special or trust fund receipt account has legal authority to obligate, expend, and disburse its balances immediately upon collection without further action by Congress. However, there are instances where Congress prohibits receipts or a portion thereof, from being immediately available for obligation. In turn, Congress may provide investment authority of these receipts prior to providing obligational authority.

This scenario will discuss the following types of receipts unavailable for obligation upon collection:

I. Special/Trust Expenditure Account where associated receipts are collected and obligated/outlayed

II. Special/Trust Expenditure Account where receipts (derived from a different special or trust fund expenditure account) are obligated/outlayed

Listing of USSGL Accounts Used in Part 1 of This Scenario:

Part 1 Special/Trust Expenditure Account where associated receipts are collected and obligated/outlayed

Year 1:

Scenario Assumptions:

· TAFS is a no-year special fund account. 

· Special fund receipts are only available for investment purposes until such time that there is an appropriation enacted.

· Generally, the appropriation is derived via the annual appropriation act.

· While the presentation reflects a special fund expenditure account, this is also applicable to a trust fund expenditure account.

Pre-Closing Trial Balance

Year 1

NOTE: Financial Statements are not presented in this scenario.  Historically crosswalks have been updated often, thus potentially causing confusion if the most current version of the crosswalk is not included, despite the background, transactions, and trial balances being accurate.  Please reach out to the USSGL team at The Bureau of the Fiscal Service if you have questions on financial statement presentation.

Closing Entries – Year 1

Post-Closing Trial Balance

Year 1

Part 1 Year 2:

Pre-Closing Trial Balance

Year 2

Closing Entries – Year 2

Post-Closing Trial Balance

Year 2

Part 1 Year 3:

Pre-Closing Trial Balance

Year 3

Closing Entries – Year 3

Post-Closing Trial Balance

Year 3

Part 2:

Listing of USSGL Accounts Used in This Scenario

Part 2: Special/Trust Expenditure Account where receipts (derived from a different special or trust fund expenditure account) are obligated/outlayed

Scenario Assumptions:

· TAFS is a no-year trust fund expenditure account. 

· Trust fund receipts are only available for investment purposes until such time that there is an appropriation enacted.

· Generally, the appropriation is derived via the annual appropriation act.

· While the presentation reflects a trust fund expenditure account, this is also applicable to a special fund expenditure account. 

· If the expenditure account #1 is a trust fund, then expenditure account #2 must be a trust fund. The same applies to situations for special funds.

Part 2 Year 1:

Pre-Closing Adjusted Trial Balance                          

Year 1

NOTE: Financial Statements are not presented in this scenario.  Historically crosswalks have been updated often, thus potentially causing confusion if the most current version of the crosswalk is not included, despite the background, transactions, and trial balances being accurate.  Please reach out to the USSGL team at The Bureau of the Fiscal Service if you have questions on financial statement presentation.

Closing Entries – Year 1

Post-Closing Adjusted Trial Balance

Year 1

Part 2 Year 2:

Pre-Closing Adjusted Trial Balance

Year 2

Closing Entries – Year 2

Post-Closing Adjusted Trial Balance

Year 2

Part 2 Year 3:

Pre-Closing Adjusted Trial Balance

Year 3

Closing Entries – Year 3:

Post-Closing Adjusted Trial Balance

Year 3

Page 2 of 2                                                                            October 2023

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