Executive Summary - 1

Mission Statement

Maintain a strong economy and create economic and job opportunities by promoting conditions 

that enable economic growth and stability at home and abroad; strengthen national security by 

combating threats and protecting the integrity of the financial system; and manage the U.S. 

government’s finances and resources effectively.

Executive Summary

FY 2017 President’s Budget by Function

Dollars in Thousands

 

FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 Increase/ Percent

Enacted Enacted Request Decrease Change

Management & Financial $1,343,704 $1,404,653 $1,520,463 $115,810 8.2%

Departmental Offices Salaries and Expenses $210,000 $222,500 $217,376 ($5,124) -2.3%

Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI) $112,500 $117,000 $117,000 $0 0.0%

Departmental Offices Salaries and Expenses $322,500 $339,500 $334,376 ($5,124) -1.5%

Cybersecurity Enhancement $0 $0 $109,827 $109,827 100.0%

Department-wide Systems and Capital Investments 

Program $2,725 $5,000 $5,000 $0 0.0%

Office of Inspector General $35,351 $35,416 $37,044 $1,628 4.6%

Treasury IG for Tax Administration $158,210 $167,275 $169,634 $2,359 1.4%

Special Inspector General for TARP $34,234 $40,671 $41,160 $489 1.2%

Community Development Financial Institutions Fund $230,500 $233,523 $245,923 $12,400 5.3%

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network $112,000 $112,979 $115,003 $2,024 1.8%

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau $100,000 $106,439 $111,439 $5,000 4.7%

Program Cap Adjustment Included in IRS $0 $0 ($5,000) ($5,000) NA

Net, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade $100,000 $106,439 $106,439 $0 0.0%

Bureau of the Fiscal Service $348,184 $363,850 $353,057 ($10,793) -3.0%

Treasury Franchise Fund $0 $0 $3,000 $3,000 100.0%

Tax Administration $10,945,000 $11,235,000 $12,280,095 $1,045,095 9.3%

IRS Taxpayer Services $2,156,554 $2,156,554 $2,406,318 $249,764 11.6%

IRS Enforcement $4,860,000 $4,860,000 $5,216,263 $356,263 7.3%

IRS Operations Support $3,638,446 $3,638,446 $4,314,099 $675,653 18.6%

IRS Business Systems Modernization $290,000 $290,000 $343,415 $53,415 18.4%

IRS Administrative Provisions2 $0 $290,000 $0 ($290,000) -100.0%

Less, IRS Cap Adjustment $0 $0 $514,748 $514,748 NA

IRS Total, Excluding Cap Adjustment $10,945,000 $11,235,000 $11,765,347 $530,347 4.7%

Subtotal, Treasury Appropriations Committee 

excluding Cap Adjustment and TEOAF $12,288,704 $12,639,653 $13,285,810 $646,157 5.1%

Treasury Forfeiture Fund ($944,000) ($876,000) ($657,000) $219,000 25.0%

Subtotal, Treasury Appropriations Committee 

including TEOAF $11,344,704 $11,763,653 $12,628,810 $865,157 7.4%

Cap Adjustment $0 $0 $514,748 $514,748 N/A

Total, Treasury Appropriations Committee 

including Cap Adjustment and TEOAF $11,344,704 $11,763,653 $13,143,558 $1,379,905 11.7%

Treasury International Programs $2,454,304 $2,313,470 $2,318,521 $5,051 0.2%

Economic Growth, National Security and Poverty 

Reduction (Multilateral Development Banks) $1,999,804 $1,816,477 $1,802,958 ($13,519) -0.7%

Food Security $30,000 $74,930 $53,000 ($21,930) -29.3%

Environmental Trust Funds $401,000 $398,563 $409,063 $10,500 2.6%

Global Infrastructure Facility $0 $0 $20,000 $20,000 100.0%

Office of Technical Assistance (OTA) $23,500 $23,500 $33,500 $10,000 42.6%

International Monetary Fund1 $0 $0 $0 $0 NA

Total, Treasury Appropriations $13,799,008 $14,077,123 $15,462,079 $1,384,956 9.8%

1/ Allocated as follows: $176.8 million Taxpayer Services, $4.9 million Enforcement, and $108.2 million Operations Support.

FY 2016 to FY 2017

2/ The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 includes IMF quota reform. The reforms will not be funded through Treasury's 150s Account, 

but rather through emergency funding.
Executive Summary - 2

Treasury’s mission is to maintain a strong 

economy and create economic and job 

opportunities by promoting conditions that 

enable growth and stability at home and 

abroad; strengthen national security by 

combating threats and protecting the 

integrity of the financial system; and 

manage the federal government’s finances.

To support this mission, the FY 2017 

President’s Budget requests $13.3 billion in 

discretionary appropriations for Treasury’s 

operating accounts. The Budget also 

proposes a multi-year program integrity cap 

adjustment, including $515 million in 

FY 2017, for critical IRS tax enforcement 

and compliance functions estimated to 

reduce the deficit by $46 billion over the 10-

year budget window. In addition, the 

Budget proposes $2.3 billion for Treasury’s 

International Assistance programs to 

promote our national security, open new 

markets for U.S. exporters, drive progress 

on sustainable development, and address key

global challenges such as food security and 

the environment.

Funding Highlights

The President’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 Budget provides $13.3 billion for Treasury’s operating 

accounts and $2.3 billion for Treasury’s international assistance programs in discretionary 

funding. This includes:

• Helping developing nations reduce carbon pollution, strengthen climate resilience, and pursue 

smart and sustainable long-term economic growth through a $250 million contribution to the 

Green Climate Fund as part of a combined Treasury Department and State Department 

investment of $750 million. 

• Investing $11.8 billion in base discretionary resources for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), 

an increase of $530 million (4.7 percent) from FY 2016, to fairly enforce the tax code and 

improve taxpayer services, including by developing and enhancing online tools for taxpayers. 

• Enhancing existing security systems on its internal Department networks and public websites, 

and supporting public-private cybersecurity coordination with a new $110 million Departmentwide Cybersecurity Enhancement Account.

• Funding the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence with $117 million to curb terrorist 

financing, including ISIL financing, and to implement sanctions targeting Iran, North Korea, 

Syria, and more, as well as $115 million for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. 

• Promoting economic development in low-income and underserved communities through a $12 

million increase (5.3 percent) from FY 2016 for the Community Development Financial 

Institutions Fund for a total of $246 million.

Reforms

• The Budget proposes a multi-year program integrity cap adjustment for tax enforcement 

activities, including $515 million in FY 2017 to reduce the deficit and narrow the tax gap, 

yielding net taxpayer savings of $46 billion over the next 10 years.

• It also proposes legislation authorizing and funding new programs to facilitate private 

investment to renew our Nation’s infrastructure, invest in small business job creation, and 

partner with private industry and local governments to promote stable income and sustainable 

savings practices for working families.
Executive Summary - 3

Encouraging International Economic 

Growth and Stability

The Treasury Department’s $2.3 billion 

FY 2017 International Assistance programs 

budget offers a cost effective way to provide 

U.S. leadership in international 

development, advance national security, and 

expand export markets for American 

businesses by promoting international 

financial stability and supporting key global 

initiatives such as reducing poverty, 

improving food security, investing in 

infrastructure, and addressing climate 

change. The Budget fully funds annual 

payments to the multilateral development 

banks to maintain U.S. shareholding 

positions and to provide a source of low-cost 

loans and grants for the world’s poorest 

countries. Additionally, the Budget includes 

$20 million for the World Bank Global 

Infrastructure Facility, a fund that will 

catalyze private investment in public 

infrastructure projects. The Budget also 

includes a significant increase for Treasury’s 

Office of Technical Assistance (OTA), as 

the first step toward meeting the 

Administration’s commitment at the 

Financing for Development conference in 

July 2015 to double OTA resources by 2020

as part of the U.S. effort to significantly 

increase funding for domestic resource 

mobilization.

The Budget includes $250 million toward 

the U.S. pledge to the Green Climate Fund, 

providing a total of $750 million when 

combined with $500 million provided 

through the Department of State. The 

request will support climate finance for 

developing nations, especially the poorest 

and most vulnerable, as they strengthen 

climate resilience, invest in clean energy, 

and implement their commitments to reduce 

carbon pollution on a pathway towards 

sustainable economic growth and 

development. The Budget also includes 

$137 million for the annual replenishment 

commitment to the Global Environment 

Facility (GEF) and $13 million to help 

Central American countries plus the 

Dominican Republic purchase catastrophe 

risk insurance and enhance disaster risk 

management capacity through the CCRIF 

Segregated Portfolio Company (formerly 

known as the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk 

Insurance Facility).

In addition Budget includes $53 million for 

investments to support food security. By 

harnessing the power of public-private 

partnerships and encouraging innovative 

financing mechanisms, donors have 

committed to funding agricultural 

investment plans to improve nutritional 

outcomes in poor countries, with the goal of 

eliminating world hunger.

Fairly Enforcing the Tax Code

In FY 2016, IRS funding remains $911 

million lower than its FY 2010 level despite 

an increasing workload resulting in part 

from new legislative mandates. The 

FY 2017 Budget provides the IRS with 

$11.8 billion in base discretionary resources,

an increase of $530 million (4.7 percent) 

from FY 2016, restoring the resource levels 

necessary to maintain the integrity of the tax 

system, fairly enforce the tax code, and 

provide adequate levels of taxpayer services. 

With these investments, the IRS will 

increase staffing for traditional taxpayer 

services, bolster defenses against stolen 

identify refund fraud, and provide assistance 

to taxpayers who call the IRS for assistance. 

In addition, the Budget invests in new IT 

architecture that will enable the IRS to 

modernize and secure its online services and 

provides taxpayers with an experience 

comparable to what they have come to 

expect from financial institutions. 
Executive Summary - 4

Additionally, the Budget includes a $515 

million FY 2017 cap adjustment to support 

program integrity efforts aimed at restoring 

enforcement of current tax laws to 

acceptable levels, investigating transnational 

organized crime, pursuing abusive tax 

schemes, and enforcing the new Foreign 

Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). 

The targeted investments funded from the 

cap adjustment in FY 2017 are expected to 

generate nearly $3 billion in annual revenue 

once fully operationalized in FY 2019, 

returning roughly $6 to the government for 

every dollar invested for these initiatives.

Improving the Cybersecurity of 

Treasury’s Networks and Data

The Budget proposes a new $110 million 

Department-wide Cybersecurity 

Enhancement Account to more strategically 

focus Treasury’s cybersecurity efforts and 

avoid fragmentation of IT management 

across bureaus that leads to cost 

inefficiencies and limits Treasury’s ability to 

nimbly respond in the event of a 

cyberattack. The IRS is currently partnering 

with the U.S. Digital Service to bolster 

electronic authentication procedures for 

access to all IRS digital services, and in 

FY 2017 Treasury will expand on this effort 

by deploying a new Digital Infrastructure 

Security Team to enhance existing security 

systems on its internal networks and public 

websites, thereby safeguarding the data on 

those systems department-wide.

Combating ISIL and Other International 

Threats

Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and 

Financial Intelligence (TFI) is responsible 

for leading the policy, enforcement, 

regulatory, and intelligence functions of 

Treasury aimed at identifying and disrupting 

financial support to international terrorist 

organizations, proliferators of weapons of 

mass destruction, narcotics traffickers, and 

other illicit actors. This includes efforts to 

cut off ISIL from the international financial 

system and to combat the threats we face 

from Iran and North Korea, among others. 

The Budget invests $117 million to support

TFI in the Treasury’s efforts to combat 

money laundering and terrorist financing, 

implement sanctions programs, and manage 

Treasury’s intelligence and other functions 

in support of U.S. national security policies 

and interests and law enforcement.

The Budget also provides $115 million for 

the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network 

(FinCEN) to support Treasury’s efforts to 

safeguard the financial system from illicit 

use, combat money laundering, and promote 

national security. FinCEN’s data analytics 

and unique authorities under the Bank 

Secrecy Act are important tools in the U.S. 

effort to combat ISIL and other threats to 

national security. 

Empowering Community Development 

and Economic Growth

The Budget includes $246 million for the 

Community Development Financial 

Institutions (CDFI) Fund, a $12 million 

increase (5.3 percent) from FY 2016, to 

promote economic development investments 

in low-income and underserved 

communities. The request provides funding 

for the CDFI Program, the Healthy Food 

Financing Initiative, the Native American 

CDFI Assistance Program, and the Bank 

Enterprise Award Program.

The 2017 Budget also provides funding for a

new CDFI small dollar loan program to

support broader access to safe and 

affordable financial products and provide an 

alternative to predatory lending.

The Budget also extends the CDFI Bond 

Guarantee program through FY 2017, 

providing up to $1 billion of long-term 

capital to CDFIs that support lending in 
Executive Summary - 5

underserved communities. The CDFI Bond 

Guarantee program will continue to operate 

with no taxpayer funded subsidy.

New Mandatory Programs

The Budget includes a series of mandatory 

proposals to facilitate private investment to

renew our Nation’s infrastructure, invest in 

small business job creation, and partner with 

private industry and local governments to 

promote stable income and sustainable 

savings practices for working families.

Allotment for Puerto Rico EITC Payments

The Budget proposes a $600 million annual 

allotment, indexed to inflation, to create a 

refundable locally-administered Earned 

Income Tax Credit (EITC) for residents of 

Puerto Rico. Unlike Americans living in the 

50 states and the District of Columbia, 

residents of Puerto Rico are not eligible for 

an EITC. Given Puerto Rico’s low labor 

force participation rate, the existence of an 

EITC should increase employment in Puerto 

Rico’s formal sector by providing higher 

incomes to workers who file taxes. This 

added incentive for participation in Puerto 

Rico’s formal economy should also increase 

Puerto Rico’s tax compliance and tax 

revenues.

Investing in Infrastructure

The Budget establishes a new Financing 

America’s Infrastructure Renewal (FAIR) 

program within Treasury that would provide 

direct loans to U.S. infrastructure projects 

developed through public-private 

partnerships. Eligible projects under the 

program will encompass the transportation, 

water, energy, and broadband sectors, as 

well as certain social infrastructure, such as 

educational facilities, and must meet all 

applicable environmental and labor 

standards. The program is estimated to 

provide $15 billion in direct loans over 10 

years at no cost to taxpayers.

Supporting Small Businesses

The Budget includes a new authorization of 

$1.5 billion for the State Small Business 

Credit Initiative (SSBCI) to build on the 

momentum of the program by strengthening 

the federal government's relationships with 

state economic development agencies, and 

providing capital to America's diverse 

community of entrepreneurs. Since it was 

first enacted in 2010, SSBCI has supported 

over 12,400 private sector loans or 

investments in small businesses, and helped 

create or retain over 140,000 jobs as 

reported by recipient small businesses. The 

additional $1.5 billion would be awarded in 

two allocations: $1 billion awarded on a 

competitive basis to states best able to target 

local market needs, promote inclusion, 

attract private capital for start-up and scaleup businesses, strengthen regional 

entrepreneurial ecosystems, and evaluate 

results; and $500 million awarded by a 

formula based on economic factors such as 

job losses and the pace of economic 

recovery.

Encouraging Projects that Pay for Success 

The Budget includes a $300 million onetime mandatory appropriation for a new Pay 

for Success (PFS) program administered by 

Treasury. This program will support the 

growing number of state and local 

governments seeking to establish projects 

that use PFS financing. These projects 

leverage private investment to provide 

preventive social services that measurably 

`improve outcomes for families and 

communities while generating value to 

the government, including savings. The PFS 

Incentive Fund will help to strengthen the 

ability of state and local governments to 

achieve measurable impact for people and 

communities. In addition, by providing 

centralized support and expertise for PFS at 

Treasury, the Incentive Fund will encourage 
Executive Summary - 6

the evolution of this nascent field into a 

more robust and sustainable public and 

private market.

Financial Innovation for Working 

Families Fund

The Budget includes a $100 million 

mandatory fund for Treasury to encourage 

the development of innovative private-sector 

financial products and services that would 

help low- to moderate-income workers build 

up “rainy day” reserves. The reserves would 

provide these workers and their families 

with a buffer against shocks to income and 

spending needs.
Executive Summary 

-7

FY 2017 President's Budget by Strategic Goal 

Dollars in Thousands

Direct $ Reimb. $ Direct $ Reimb. $ Direct $ Reimb. $ Direct $ Reimb. $ Direct $ Reimb. $ Direct $ Reimb. $

Management & Financial $ 492,016 $ 27,676 $ 86,277 $ 20,667 $ 619,258 $ 279,461 $ 254,171 $ 57,449 $ 68,741 $ 6,537 $ 1,520,463 $ 391,790 

Departmental Offices Salaries and Expenses 68,530 14,878 86,277 20,667 46,347 13,561 115,573 47,249 17,649 6,537 334,376 102,892 Cybersecurity Enhancement 62,084 1,651 46,092 109,827 - Department-wide Systems and Capital Investments Program 5,000 5,000 - Office of Inspector General 15,100 1,800 21,944 8,700 37,044 10,500 Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration 169,634 1,500 169,634 1,500 Special Inspector General for TARP 41,160 41,160 - Community Development Financial Institutions Fund 245,923 245,923 - Financial Crimes Enforcement Network 115,003 1,500 115,003 1,500 Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau 52,879 3,318 53,560 3,594 106,439 6,912 Bureau of the Fiscal Service 83,524 9,480 269,533 259,006 353,057 268,486 Treasury Franchise Fund 3,000 3,000 - 

Tax Administration $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 12,280,095 $ 140,686 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 12,280,095 $ 140,686 

IRS Taxpayer Services 2,406,318 36,465 2,406,318 36,465 IRS Enforcement 5,216,263 47,222 5,216,263 47,222 IRS Operations Support 4,314,099 56,999 4,314,099 56,999 Business Systems Modernization 343,415 343,415 - 

Total, Treasury Appropriations Committee $ 492,016 $ 27,676 $ 86,277 $ 20,667 $ 12,899,353 $ 420,147 $ 254,171 $ 57,449 $ 68,741 $ 6,537 $ 13,800,558 $ 532,476 

Treasury International Programs 2,318,521 2,318,521 - 

Total, Appropriated Level 492,016 27,676 2,404,798 20,667 12,899,353 420,147 254,171 57,449 68,741 6,537 16,119,079 532,476 Non-Appropriated Bureaus $ 147,162 $ 5,059,334 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 3,000 $ 21,963 $ - $ - $ 150,162 $ 5,081,297 

Office of Financial Stability (Administrative Account) 127,430 127,430 - Small Business Lending Fund Program (Administrative) 13,405 13,405 - State Small Business Credit Initiative (Administrative) 6,327 6,327 - Terrorism Risk Insurance (Administrative) 3,000 3,000 - Financial Stability Oversight Council 18,019 - 18,019 Office of Financial Research 104,770 - 104,770 Bureau of Engraving and Printing 846,335 - 846,335 United States Mint 2,956,207 - 2,956,207 Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 1,134,003 21,963 - 1,155,966 

Subtotal, Direct $ $ 639,178 $ 2,404,798 $ 12,899,353 $ 257,171 $ 68,741 $ 16,269,241 Subtotal, Reimbursable $ $ 5,087,010 $ 20,667 $ 420,147 $ 79,412 $ 6,537 $ 5,613,773 Total, Treasury Level $ 5,726,188 $ 2,425,465 $ 13,319,500 $ 336,583 $ 75,278 $ 21,883,014 1/ Total does not include the proposed $657 million Forfeiture Fund permanent cancellation. 

Total Treasury Goal/Objective

Promote domestic economic 

growth and stability while 

continuing reforms of the 

financial system

Enhance U.S. competitiveness 

and job creation, and promote international financial stability 

and more balanced global 

growth

Fairly and effectively reform 

and modernize federal 

financial management, 

accounting, and tax systems

Safeguard the financial 

system and use financial 

measures to counter national 

security threats

Create a 21st-century 

approach to government by 

improving efficiency, 

effectiveness and customer 

interaction
Executive Summary 

-8

Dollars in Thousands

Fiscal Year Comparison of Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Staffing (Direct and Reimbursable)

Appropriation Direct Reimb. Total Direct Reimb. Total Direct Reimb. Total

Departmental Offices Salaries and Expenses 771 197 968 872 197 1,069 1,290 166 1,456Terrorism and Financial Intelligence 356 29 385 377 29 406 0 0 0Cybersecurity Enhancement 0 0 0 0 0 0 86 0 86Office of Inspector General 151 10 161 194 19 213 194 19 213Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration 756 2 758 859 2 861 859 2 861Special Inspector General for TARP 150 0 150 192 0 192 192 0 192Community Development Financial Institutions Fund 75 0 75 79 0 79 87 0 87Financial Crimes Enforcement Netw ork 275 1 276 343 1 344 343 1 344Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau 456 10 466 494 10 504 529 10 539Bureau of the Fiscal Service 1,753 243 1,996 2,042 245 2,287 1,912 240 2,152Internal Revenue Service 80,180 612 80,792 82,462 643 83,105 86,347 675 87,022Subtotal, Treasury Appropriated Level 84,923 1,104 86,027 87,914 1,146 89,060 91,839 1,113 92,952Office of Financial Stability (Administrative Account) 74 0 74 72 0 72 64 0 64Small Business Lending Fund Program 14 0 14 19 0 19 19 0 19State Small Business Credit Initiative 9 0 9 9 0 9 17 0 17Office of Financial Research 194 0 194 230 0 230 255 0 255Financial Stability Oversight Council 22 0 22 34 0 34 36 0 36Treasury Franchise Fund 0 1,545 1,545 0 1,785 1,785 0 1,888 1,888Bureau of Engraving and Printing 0 1,800 1,800 0 1,924 1,924 0 1,924 1,924United States Mint 0 1,651 1,651 0 1,874 1,874 0 1,874 1,874Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 0 3,805 3,805 0 3,955 3,955 0 3,955 3,955Pay for Success 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 0 7Terrorism Insurance Program 4 0 4 10 0 10 10 0 10Financing America's Infrastucture Renew al 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 0 11Financial Innovation For Working Families Fund 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 0 8

Allotment For Puerto Rico EITC Payments 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2Total 85,240 9,905 95,145 88,288 10,684 98,972 92,268 10,754 103,022funded from the Federal Highw ay Transportation Authority Account.2/ IRS FY 2015 Direct FTE include 287 FTE funded through a transfer from Health and Human Services for the Affordable Care Act. IRS FY 2015-2017 Direct FTE include 7 FTE 1/ A portion of Fiscal Service's Reimbursable/Fee FTE is funded by fee revenue as authorized by the Debt Collection Improvement Act (DCIA) of 1996.

2015 Actual 2016 Enacted 2017 President's Budget
Executive Summary 

-9

DO Cyber DSCIP OIG TIGTA SIGTARP CDFI FinCEN TTB FS TFF IRS Subtotal TEOAF Total

FY 2016 Enacted $ 339,500 $ - $ 5,000 $ 35,416 $ 167,275 $ 40,671 $ 233,523 $ 112,979 $ 106,439 $ 363,850 $ - $ 11,235,000 $ 12,639,653 $ (876,000) $ 11,763,653 

Adjustment to Request (10,050.00) 3,050.00 - - - - - - - - - - (7,000.00) - (7,000.00Maintaing Current Levels (MCLs) 5,312.00 - - 508.00 2,376.00 588.00 412.00 1,824.00 1,562.00 6,032.00 - 170,348.00 188,962.00 - 188,962.0 Non-Recurring Costs (1,050.00) - (5,000.00) - - - (337.00) - - - - - (6,387.00) - (6,387.00Efficiency Savings (1,430.00) - - - (17.00) (99.00) - (1,300.00) - (1,935.00) - (3,766.00) (8,547.00) - (8,547.00Other Adjustments - - - - - - - - (1,562.00) - - - (1,562.00) - (1,562.00

Adjustments to Base $ (7,218) $ 3,050 $ (5,000) $ 508 $ 2,359 $ 489 $ 75 $ 524 $ - $ 4,097 $ - $ 166,582 $ 165,466 $ - $ 165,466 FY 2017 Base $ 332,282 $ 3,050 $ - $ 35,924 $ 169,634 $ 41,160 $ 233,598 $ 113,503 $ 106,439 $ 367,947 $ - $ 11,401,582 $ 12,805,119 $ (876,000) $ 11,929,119 

Program Decreases - - - - - - - - - (14,890.00) - - (14,890.00) - (14,890.00Program Increases 2,094.00 106,777.00 5,000.00 1,120.00 - - 12,325.00 1,500.00 - 3,000.00 363,765.00 495,581.00 - 495,581.0 Program Integrity Cap Adjustment - - - - - - - - - - - 514,748.00 514,748.00 - 514,748.0 

Subtotal, Program Changes $ 2,094 $ 106,777 $ 5,000 $ 1,120 $ - $ - $ 12,325 $ 1,500 $ - $ (14,890) $ 3,000 $ 878,513 $ 995,439 $ - $ 995,439 Change to the Forfeiture Fund Cancellations/Rescission - - - - - - - - - - - - - 219,000.00 219,000.0 FY 2017 President's Budget $ 334,376 $ 109,827 $ 5,000 $ 37,044 $ 169,634 $ 41,160 $ 245,923 $ 115,003 $ 106,439 $ 353,057 $ 3,000 $ 12,280,095 $ 13,800,558 $ (657,000) $ 13,143,558 

Summary of FY 2017 Increases and Decreases

Dollars in Thousands
Executive Summary - 10

Organization 

Treasury is organized into the Departmental Offices, seven bureaus, and three inspectors general. 

The Departmental Offices are primarily responsible for policy formulation, while the bureaus are 

the operating units of the organization.1

 1 In addition to the listed organizations, the Office of Risk Management, created in FY 2015, and the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business 

Utilization report to the Deputy Secretary. Learn more about Treasury’s bureaus and offices on the following pages and at 

http://www.treasury.gov/about/organizational-structure/Pages/default.aspx. For financial reporting purposes, the Departmental Offices includes 

the entities described in the following section, the various funds and programs managed by them (referenced in Part 2 of this report), and the 

Federal Financing Bank (FFB).
Executive Summary - 11

Departmental Offices

• Domestic Finance works to preserve confidence in the U.S. Treasury securities market, 

effectively manage federal fiscal operations, strengthen financial institutions and markets, 

promote access to credit, and improve financial access and education in service of 

America’s long-term economic strength and stability.

• Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI) marshals the Department’s intelligence and 

enforcement functions with the twin aims of safeguarding the financial system against 

illicit use and combating rogue nations, terrorist facilitators, weapons of mass destruction 

proliferators, money launderers, drug kingpins, and other national security threats.

• International Affairs protects and supports U.S. economic prosperity and national security 

by working to foster the most favorable external environment for sustained employment 

and economic growth in the United States.

• Tax Policy develops and implements tax policies and programs, reviews regulations and 

rulings to administer the Internal Revenue Code, negotiates tax treaties, and provides 

economic and legal policy analysis for domestic and international tax policy decisions. 

Tax Policy also provides revenue estimates for the President’s Budget.

• Economic Policy reports on current and prospective economic developments and assists 

in the determination of appropriate economic policies. The office is responsible for the 

review and analysis of domestic economic issues and developments in the financial 

markets.

• The Treasurer of the United States oversees the U.S. Mint and Bureau of Engraving and 

Printing, chairs the Advanced Counterfeit Deterrence Steering Committee, and is a key 

liaison with the Federal Reserve. In addition, the Treasurer serves as a senior advisor to 

the Secretary in the areas of community development and public engagement.

• The Office of Management, including the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), manages the 

Department’s financial resources and oversees Treasury-wide programs, including human 

capital, information technology, acquisition, and diversity and inclusion.

• Other offices within Departmental Offices include General Counsel, Legislative Affairs, 

and Public Affairs.

• Three Inspectors General – the Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the Treasury 

Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), and the Special Inspector General for 

the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) – provide independent audits, 

investigations, and oversight of Treasury and its programs.
Executive Summary - 12

Bureaus

• The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) collects federal excise taxes on 

alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and ammunition and is responsible for enforcing and 

administering laws covering the production, use, and distribution of alcohol products.

• The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) develops and produces U.S. currency notes 

that are trusted worldwide.

• The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) safeguards the financial system 

from illicit use, combats money laundering, and promotes national security through the 

collection, analysis, and dissemination of financial intelligence and strategic use of 

financial authorities.

• The Bureau of the Fiscal Service (Fiscal Service) provides central payment services to 

federal program agencies, operates the U.S. Government’s collections and deposit 

systems, provides government-wide accounting and reporting services, manages the 

collection of delinquent debt owed to the U.S. Government, borrows the money needed to 

operate the U.S. Government through the sale of marketable, savings, and specialpurpose U.S. Treasury securities (including the state and local government series), and 

accounts for and services the public debt.

• The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the largest of the Department’s bureaus and 

determines, assesses, and collects tax revenue in the United States.

• The United States Mint (U.S. Mint) designs, mints, and issues U.S. circulating and 

bullion coins; prepares and distributes numismatic coins and other items; and strikes 

Congressional Gold Medals and other medals of national significance. The U.S. Mint 

maintains physical custody and protection of most of the nation’s gold and all of its silver 

assets.

• The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) charters, regulates, and supervises 

national banks and federal savings associations (thrifts) to ensure that they operate in a 

safe and sound manner, provide fair access to financial services, treat customers fairly, 

and comply with applicable laws and regulations. The OCC also supervises federal 

branches and agencies of foreign banks and has rule-making authority for all savings 

associations.

Treasury Strategic Framework 

The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993 and the GPRA Modernization 

Act of 2010 establish the need for agencies to identify performance goals, report progress against 

targets, and conduct data-driven reviews. When done well, these practices serve two key 

purposes for stakeholders within and outside of the organization: to assess the organization’s 

health and impact and to inform decision-making and strategy, including effective resource 

allocation. In this spirit, Treasury developed a strategic framework supported by best-in-class 

organizational performance practices to ultimately help achieve its strategic goals.
Executive Summary - 13

Treasury Organizational Performance Review Cycle

Treasury’s organizational performance reviews provide a regular forum for open dialogue and 

coordination between Department and bureau and office leadership, bringing together different 

perspectives to set and align priorities, identify and solve problems, review agency performance 

goals, and drive results. The cycle integrates statutory requirements to conduct quarterly 

performance reviews of agency goals and a Strategic Objective Annual Review (SOAR), which 

analyzes cross-cutting performance and designates a set of strategic objectives as making 

“Noteworthy Progress” or as a “Focus Area for Improvement.”

Fall Winter Spring Summer

Focus

Bureau-level Performance Department-level 

Performance (SOAR)

Bureau-level 

Performance

Performance-based 

Budget

Goals / Outcomes

• Gain a shared 

understanding of 

previous year’s progress 

at the bureau/office 

level

• Identify and align 

priorities

• Recognize successes

• Evaluate cross-agency 

progress toward 

strategic objectives

• Identify issues to discuss 

with OMB at FedStat (a 

new annual review with 

OMB)

• Assess progress 

on priorities

• Surface problems 

or assistance 

needed

• Discuss solutions

• Recognize 

successes

• Connect priorities 

to future funding

• Understand 

performance 

impacts

In addition to these department-level reviews, bureaus and offices validate performance data 

each quarter and many run their own internal performance reviews.

FY 2014-2017 Strategic Framework

The strategic framework comprises the Department’s FY 2014-2017 strategic goals and 

objectives and FY 2014-2015 Agency Priority Goals (APGs), which align to specific objectives. 

All bureaus and offices align their programs and performance within this framework.

Strategic Goals Strategic Objectives/APGs Contributing 

Bureaus/Offices

Economic

Goal 1:

Promote domestic 

economic growth 

and stability while 

continuing reforms 

of the financial 

system

1.1: Promote savings and increased access to credit 

and affordable housing options

Domestic Finance

International 

Affairs

Economic Policy

BEP

Fiscal Service

OCC

TTB

U.S. Mint

1.2: Wind down emergency financial crisis response 

programs

1.3: Complete implementation of financial regulatory 

reform initiatives, continue monitoring capital 

markets, and address threats to stability

1.4: Facilitate commerce by providing trusted and 

secure U. S. currency, products, and services for 

use by the public

Goal 2: 

Enhance U.S. 

competitiveness 

2.1: Promote free trade, open markets, and foreign 

investment opportunities International 

Affairs 2.2: Protect global economic and financial stability 
Executive Summary - 14

Strategic Goals Strategic Objectives/APGs Contributing 

Bureaus/Offices

and job creation, 

and promote 

international 

financial stability 

and more balanced 

global growth

and press for market-determined foreign exchange 

rates

TFI

Economic Policy

2.3: Advance U.S. economic, financial, and national Tax Policy

security goals by leveraging multilateral 

mechanisms

2.4: Provide technical assistance to developing 

countries working to improve public financial 

management and strengthen their financial 

systems

Financial

Goal 3:

Fairly and 

effectively reform 

and modernize 

federal financial 

management, 

accounting, and tax 

systems

3.1: Improve the efficiency and transparency of 

federal financial management and governmentwide accounting Domestic Finance

Tax Policy

Fiscal Service

IRS

TTB

3.2: Improve the disbursement and collection of 

federal funds and reduce improper payments made 

by the U.S. government

3.3: Pursue tax reform, implement the Patient 

Protection and Affordable Care Act and Foreign 

Account Tax Compliance Act, and improve the 

execution of the tax code

Security

Goal 4: 

Safeguard the 

financial system 

and use financial 

measures to 

counter national 

security threats

4.1: Identify priority threats to the financial system 

using intelligence analysis and outreach to the 

financial sector

TFI

Domestic Finance

FinCEN

OCC

4.2: Develop, implement, and enforce sanctions and 

other targeted financial measures

4.3: Improve the cybersecurity of our nation’s 

financial sector 

4.4: Protect the integrity of the financial system by 

implementing, promoting, and enforcing antimoney laundering and counterterrorism financing 

standards

Aligned APG: Focus Enforcement on HighPriority Threats Using Proactive Analysis

Management

Goal 5: 

Create a 21stcentury approach 

to government by 

improving 

efficiency, 

effectiveness and 

customer 

interaction

5.1: Increase workforce engagement, performance, 

and diversity by instilling excellence, innovation, 

and inclusion in Treasury’s organizational culture 

and business practices

All Offices and 

Bureaus, led by the 

Office of 

Management

5.2: Support effective, data-driven decision-making 

and encourage transparency through intelligent 

gathering, analysis, sharing, use, and 

dissemination of information 

5.3: Promote efficient use of resources through shared 

services, strategic sourcing, streamlined business 

processes, and accountability

5.4: Create a culture of service through relentless

pursuit of customer value

Aligned APG: Increasing IRS Self-Service Options 

for Taxpayers
Executive Summary - 15

Performance Overview 

Goal 1: Promote domestic growth and stability while continuing reforms of the financial 

system

Strategic Objective 1.1: Promote savings and increased access to credit and affordable 

housing options

Strategic Objective 1.2: Wind down emergency financial crisis response programs

Strategic Objective 1.3: Complete implementation of financial regulatory reform initiatives, 

continue monitoring capital markets, and address threats to stability

Strategic Objective 1.4: Facilitate commerce by providing trusted and secure U. S. currency, 

products, and services for use by the public

Increased access to credit and savings

The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (Jobs Act), which celebrates its fifth anniversary this year, 

has produced impressive results. The law created the State Small Business Credit Initiative 

(SSBCI), which is charged with increasing the availability of credit for small businesses and 

generating jobs and other economic development benefits for states. Because of the program’s 

success, Treasury seeks to reauthorize it through FY 2023. Since its passage, SSBCI has 

supported more than 12,400 private sector loans or investments to small businesses and helped 

create or retain more than 140,000 jobs, as reported by the small businesses who received the 

loans and investments. 2

 As of June 30, 2015, approximately $1.26 billion of $1.46 billion total 

funds available for disbursement have been provided to the states. 3 As of December 2014, states 

had expended $864 million of these funds to leverage $6.4 billion in new lending or investing. 

The Jobs Act also created the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Bond 

Guarantee Program, which is administered by the CDFI Fund. Bonds issued under the program 

support CDFI lending activity in underserved communities by providing a source of long-term 

capital. Under FY 2013 and 2014 authority, Treasury provided four bond guarantees, which 

supported eight bond loans totaling $525 million. On September 29, 2015, Treasury announced 

that an additional nine bond loans, totaling $327 million, were guaranteed in FY 2015.

Helping Americans save—for retirement and other goals—is a top priority for Treasury. 

Millions of workers in America either do not have access to an employer-sponsored retirement 

plan or lack options to save for retirement. In December 2014, Treasury began the initial pilot 

phase of myRA, or my Retirement Account, that makes saving for retirement simple, safe, and 

affordable. In addition, Treasury continued to lead the administration’s efforts to help 

Americans have the financial information and skills they need to make sound choices in a 

complex financial system by chairing the interagency Financial Literacy and Education 

Commission and receiving important recommendations from the President’s Advisory Council 

on Financial Capability for Young Americans. Additionally, Treasury worked closely with the 

Department of Education to improve the federal student loan system.

 2 SSBCI December 2014 Annual Report

3 SSBCI June 2015 Quarterly Report
Executive Summary - 16

Economic recovery and stability

FY 2015 also marked the fifth anniversary of the most far-reaching and comprehensive financial 

reforms since the Great Depression: the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer 

Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act). During the darkest moments of the 2008 financial crisis, the 

U.S. economy was contracting at the fastest rate in 50 years. By early 2009, companies were 

shedding more than 800,000 jobs a month and, eventually, the unemployment rate reached 10 

percent. The crisis demonstrated that excessive risk-taking, low levels of capital, unsafe lending 

practices, and inadequate oversight within the financial system can have a real impact on the 

lives of all Americans. By enacting the Dodd-Frank Act, the U.S. Government set out to reform 

Wall Street to be more stable, transparent, and focused on serving customers.

Five years later, with nearly all of the major rules written, the financial system is safer, stronger, 

and more resilient. The economy is growing and unemployment rate has dropped to 5.0 percent

as of November 2015. 4

 Regulators have modern, common-sense tools to protect taxpayers, and 

banks have more capital to cover potential losses. And since financial crises do not respect 

national borders, Treasury is working through the Group of 20 (G-20) and Financial Stability 

Board (FSB) to make sure that the Department’s high standards are implemented globally. This 

year, the FSB will finalize a new international standard on total loss absorbing capacity (TLAC) 

for globally systemically important banks and standards for higher loss absorbing capacity for 

globally systemically important insurers.

Additionally, the emergency financial crisis response programs continue to wind down 

effectively. In December 2014, the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) fully liquidated its 

investment in Ally Financial and realized cumulative receipts of $19.6 billion ($2.4 billion more 

than invested). The ultimate cost to taxpayers of TARP programs dropped from the FY 2009 

estimate of $341.0 billion to $37.2 billion as of September 2015. TARP’s foreclosure prevention 

programs provided more than 1.5 million homeowners with permanent mortgage modifications, 

which equates to approximately $38.7 billion in realized monthly mortgage payment savings for 

these homeowners. 

Monitoring for new risks to the financial system and the broader economy remains a top priority 

for Treasury and other regulators. For example, on October 15, 2014, the U.S. Treasury market 

experienced significant volatility. To better understand the sources of that volatility, Treasury, 

the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, 

the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission 

conducted an analysis and issued a joint report in July 2015. The report analyzed a host of 

factors, including changes in global risk sentiment and investor positions, and those related to the 

evolution of Treasury market structure, in an effort to explain the events of that day. Treasury 

will continue to work with partners, including through the Financial Stability and Oversight 

Council (FSOC), to monitor the financial system and investigate any potential threats to financial 

stability.

The future of currency

During the summer of 2015, Secretary Lew announced that the $10 bill, the first in a new family 

of notes, will undergo a redesign and that a woman's portrait will be featured on U.S. paper 

 4 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, November 6, 2015 release.
Executive Summary - 17

currency for the first time in more than a century. 5 The newly designed note is also expected to 

incorporate a raised tactile feature that increases accessibility and usability for the blind and 

visually impaired community. As part of his announcement, the Secretary asked Americans to 

engage in the redesign process by weighing in on whose portrait should be featured and how 

currency can honor the country’s rich history of democracy. Treasury received more than 1.5 

million responses from the public to date through face to face meetings, roundtables, town halls, 

Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, emails, and handwritten letters. 

The Department is also working to evaluate the future of coins. The U.S. Mint provided research 

to Congress on potential alternative metals for coins that could drive down metal costs.

Facilitation of commerce

Treasury plays an important role in facilitating commerce for certain industries, such as the 

alcoholic beverage industry, that rely on Treasury’s approval to enter the market. As these 

industries continue to expand, particularly in the small winery, brewery, and spirits areas, new 

businesses that are qualified to operate are waiting longer for permits. Further, increased 

demand for approvals of alcohol beverage labels and formulas, and declining resources to 

manage the approval processes, has required Treasury to work to fundamentally reshape these 

programs. Processing times for these approvals have also increased in recent years, which 

impede compliant commerce for industry members, and are particularly detrimental to small 

business. Recent efforts to reduce processing times—including an expanded list of label 

revisions allowable without new approval—have been outpaced by industry growth.

Key Performance Data Highlights

Measure 

(Responsible 

Bureau/Office)

FY 12 FY 13 FY 14 FY 15 4-yr 

Trend

FY 15 

Target

Result vs 

Target

Percentage of CDFI Program 

loans & investments 

originated to eligible 

distressed communities or 

underserved populations by 

dollar amount (%) (Domestic 

Finance - CDFI Fund)

84.9 77.1 70.8 80.1 60.0 Exceeded

Manufacturing costs for 

currency – dollar costs per 

thousand notes produced 

(BEP)

43.3 50.5 42.0 43.62 55.0 Exceeded

Seigniorage per dollar issued 

(Mint) .21 .24 .37 .49 .24 Exceeded

Percent of permit applications 

processed within service 

standards (TTB)

61 50 58 47 85 Not Met

 5 Access https://www.thenew10.treasury.gov/ for more information.
Executive Summary - 18

Percent of label and formula 

applications processed within 

service standards (TTB)

83 49 67 75 85 Not Met

Explanation of Results

Percentage of CDFI Program loans & investments originated to eligible distressed communities or 

underserved populations by dollar amount (Domestic Finance - CDFI Fund)

This measure demonstrates the impact of CDFI awardees in serving eligible distressed communities and 

underserved populations by lending reported during the program year. By regulation, all certified CDFIs 

must originate 60 percent or more of their loans and investments in eligible distressed census tracts or to 

underserved populations. The target is a threshold that must be met or exceeded, recognizing the need for 

CDFIs to balance their mission to service distressed communities and underserved populations with 

safety and soundness considerations. The increase over the prior year was due to full adoption of the 

2010 five-year American Community Survey (ACS) data to define eligible distressed census tracts (the 

prior year reporting allowed the use of either 2000 decennial data or the five-year ACS data). 

Manufacturing costs for currency – dollar costs per thousand notes produced (BEP)

This measure calculates the actual manufacturing cost for currency notes, which includes direct labor 

costs, the cost of raw materials used, and related manufacturing overhead charges. The FY 2015 cost of 

manufacturing was lower than anticipated due to savings resulting from increased volume and decreased 

spoilage.

Seigniorage per dollar issued (Mint)

This measure calculates the difference between the face value and the cost of minting and issuing 

circulating coins. Seigniorage per dollar issued is the seigniorage generated from each dollar of 

circulating coinage face-value shipped to Federal Reserve Banks. FY 2015 results exceeded the target 

and prior year performance due to a 24 percent increase in circulating shipment volumes coupled with a 9 

percent reduction in general and administrative costs.

Percent of permit applications processed within service standards (TTB)

This measure indicates how often TTB processes permit applications within the established customer 

service standards, which are reviewed annually for new businesses seeking to engage in alcohol or 

tobacco manufacturing or distribution to ensure timely market entry for qualified individuals. As the 

majority of permit applications are filed electronically, TTB implemented system enhancements in FY 

2015 to reduce bottlenecks in the approval process. However, the volume of applications, particularly in 

the manufacturing segments of small wineries, breweries, and distilleries, offset gains and resulted in 

continued processing delays.

Percent of label and formula applications processed within service standards (TTB)

This measure indicates how often TTB processes alcohol beverage label and formula applications within 

the customer service standards established for the respective programs to improve consistency and 

reliability for the business community served. Service standards are annually reviewed and updated to 

account for various factors, including workload and resources. Though TTB achieved substantial 

improvement in performance in the last two years, performance remains below target as TTB efforts to 

manage the volume of submissions by reducing filing requirements associated with label and formula 

approval have been offset by increased applications due to industry growth. 
Executive Summary - 19

Goal 2: Enhance U.S. competitiveness and job creation, and promote international 

financial stability and more balanced global growth

Strategic Objective 2.1: Promote free trade, open markets, and foreign investment 

opportunities

Strategic Objective 2.2: Protect global economic and financial stability and press for marketdetermined foreign exchange rates

Strategic Objective 2.3: Advance U.S. economic, financial, and national security goals by 

leveraging multilateral mechanisms

Identified as a Focus Area for Improvement in FY 2015 due mainly to external factors 

slowing progress, specifically securing congressional approval of the International 

Monetary Fund (IMF) Reform package.

Strategic Objective 2.4: Provide technical assistance to developing countries working to 

improve public financial management and strengthen their financial systems

Identified as making Noteworthy Progress in FY 2015 due to the Office of Technical 

Assistance’s (OTA) reputation in program management and the results of recently 

completed projects, particularly in Latin America where OTA helped to establish Latin 

America’s first Tax Inspector General.

Progress toward balanced growth 

Leveraging multilateral mechanisms, Treasury made progress enhancing global economic 

growth prospects by securing commitments from the G-20 countries at the Brisbane Leaders’ 

Summit in November 2014 to boost near-term demand through comprehensive growth strategies 

and to establish the Global Infrastructure Hub to increase global investment. The plan’s 

emphasis on comprehensive growth strategies to boost demand over the near-term reflected an 

important U.S. policy priority. Additional commitments to boost growth have been secured 

through the G-20 process in 2015.

In addition, Treasury defined the policy framework for development finance for the next 15 

years by successfully negotiating the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda at the Third 

International Conference on Financing for Development in July 2015. The conference provided 

a forum to promote a modern and updated approach to development finance, including a bold 

vision for achieving a prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable world free from extreme poverty. It 

also provided the financing framework for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

adopted by world leaders in September 2015. The 2030 agenda includes 17 development goals 

in the areas of domestic resource mobilization, private sector investment, combatting illicit 

finance, sustainable infrastructure, improved data, maternal and child health, and others. 

With the United States Trade Representative (USTR), Treasury co-leads the negotiation of 

financial services chapters of free trade agreements. In June 2015, Congress passed Trade 

Promotion Authority (TPA), which granted the President the authority to negotiate trade deals 

that will then be considered by Congress under an expedited approval process. Notable progress 

was made promoting free trade and open markets by reaching agreement on the largest regional 

trade accord in history, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, and by advancing the 

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and the broader U.S. trade agenda.
Executive Summary - 20

Efforts to promote global stability

Treasury protects and supports American economic prosperity by strengthening the external 

environment for U.S. growth, preventing and mitigating global financial instability, and 

managing key global challenges. New commitments secured from China at the June 2015 

Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) will lead to implementation of economic reforms and 

pro-market policies that will create new opportunities and a more level playing field for U.S. 

workers and firms. They also included commitments from China on the negotiation of 

international export credit disciplines, exchange rate policy and transparency, market access for 

U.S. high-technology goods and services, and expanded participation in China’s markets by U.S. 

financial services providers. Further commitments were secured during the September 2015 

State Visit of China’s president in the areas of development finance and foreign investment 

policy. These commitments will serve to protect global economic and financial stability.

Additionally, Treasury continued efforts with European counterparts to encourage institutional 

development in the euro area and remained engaged with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) 

to monitor progress toward economic stabilization in vulnerable countries like Ukraine and 

Greece. In May 2015, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the 

Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (Jordan) signed a third sovereign loan guarantee agreement that 

will help Jordan continue to provide critical services to its citizens and support specific economic 

reforms to promote economic stability and growth. These guarantees, which Treasury helped to 

design, have proven successful in supporting Jordan’s reform efforts during a time of regional 

instability.

International leadership and assistance

Treasury continues to engage with G-20 members to leverage the FSB to collective advantage, 

supporting the FSB’s objectives of greater financial stability, strong, sustainable, and balanced 

growth, and a level playing field for firms both in the United States and globally. Progress was 

made on the key objectives for global regulatory reform set out at the Pittsburgh Summit in 

2009, including: building more resilient financial institutions with higher capital requirements 

and better quality capital; making the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives markets safer and more 

transparent; addressing the risks posed by the largest, most complex financial institutions; and 

monitoring potential emerging threats to financial stability.

While Treasury made progress on several key international issues, evolving global geopolitical 

and financial crises and slowing economic growth in key regions and countries required Treasury 

to respond nimbly to immediate priorities, leaving less time for longer-term goals. 

Compounding these external challenges, Congress again failed, in FY 2015, to approve the 2010 

IMF Quota and Governance Reforms and provide sufficient support for multilateral assistance 

priorities. This strains the ability of the United States to lead in these institutions and can 

adversely impact the willingness of other countries to engage in advancing U.S. priorities.

Despite these challenges, Treasury continues to provide critical technical assistance to finance 

ministries and central banks in developing countries. In FY 2015, Treasury’s Office of 

Technical Assistance (OTA) successfully completed several projects in Latin America to provide 

regional models of excellence in public financial management. For example, Treasury’s 

assistance enabled the establishment of the first tax inspector general within the Colombian 
Executive Summary - 21

government, now seen as a leader and model for surrounding countries. In FY2015, OTA also 

continued to provide technical assistance to the Ukrainian government as part of the U.S. 

Government’s rapid response to stabilize the banking sector and strengthen government finances. 

Key Performance Data Highlights

Measure 

(Responsible 

Bureau/Office)

FY 12 FY 13 FY 14 FY 15 4-yr 

Trend

FY 15 

Target

Result 

vs 

Target

Timely review of Committee 

for Foreign Investment in the 

U.S. (CFIUS) cases (%) 

(International Affairs)

N/A 100 100 100 100 Met

Impact of Technical 

Assistance Programs -

Changes that result from 

project engagement – 5 point 

scale (International Affairs)

3.1 3.0 2.9 2.9 3.1 Not met

Traction of Technical 

Assistance Programs – scope 

and intensity of engagement 

– 5 point scale (International 

Affairs)

3.9 3.8 3.7 3.8 3.6 Exceeded

Explanation of Results

Timely review of CFIUS cases (%) (International Affairs)

By statute and regulation, CFIUS must complete its consideration of a covered transaction within 

75 days of acceptance of a notice regarding the transaction, except for transactions that the 

parties have voluntarily withdrawn. The 100 percent result for FY 2015 reflects that CFIUS 

timely reviewed all such notified transactions for national security concerns and concluded 

action transactions after determining there were no unresolved national security concerns.

Impact and Traction of Technical Assistance Programs (International Affairs)

Traction is the degree to which OTA’s foreign counterparts are engaging proactively and 

constructively with OTA advisors, particularly at the working level. Traction was relatively high 

during the reporting period. Impact measures the extent to which a project is achieving the 

intermediate goals and ultimate outcomes described in the project’s terms of reference and work 

plan during the fiscal year – such as passage of law or regulation, an increase in government 

revenues, an improvement in a government’s credit rating, or a reduction in financial 

crimes. The impact measure is primarily a function of the extent to which OTA’s foreign 

counterparts actually make use of OTA’s technical advice and is dependent on a range of factors 

not within OTA’s control, including the policy and political environment, the commitment of incountry actors to reform, overall economic conditions, and in some cases, the country’s security 

environment. Taken together, these factors resulted in a lower average score during this 

reporting period. OTA is sometimes called upon to engage in countries where US foreign policy 

and national security interests are compelling but where the overall political economy and 

security environment is especially challenging and impact is hard to achieve. Sustaining traction 

in these difficult assistance projects is a mark of the program’s strength. It should also be noted 
Executive Summary - 22

that relatively minor deviations from the baseline target are to be expected in assigning an 

aggregate numerical value to a program that consists of many individual projects – the traction 

and impact figures above are the average of more than 150 individual project ratings –

implemented over multiple countries with different policy and political environments.

Goal 3: Fairly and effectively reform and modernize federal financial management, 

accounting, and tax systems

Strategic Objective 3.1: Improve the efficiency and transparency of federal financial 

management and government-wide accounting

Identified as a Focus Area for Improvement in FY 2015 due to anticipated work that will 

be done in FY 2016 to implement the DATA Act and USAspending.gov improvements.

Strategic Objective 3.2: Improve the disbursement and collection of federal funds and reduce 

improper payments made by the U.S. Government

Strategic Objective 3.3: Pursue tax reform, implement the Patient Protection and Affordable 

Care Act and Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, and improve the execution of the 

tax code

Innovations in federal financial management

Treasury constantly seeks to lead the government in modernizing federal financial management. 

As a co-lead with OMB in implementing the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 

2014 (DATA Act), Treasury engaged with communities that create and use federal financial data 

to make it more transparent and available to the American people. 6 Once implemented, the 

DATA Act will make federal spending data more accessible, searchable, and reliable. In FY 

2015, Treasury and OMB published new data standards based on public input that will help

improve the quality of federal spending data and enable agencies to use common standards when 

reporting information. Treasury is also developing resources to support federal agencies in 

adopting the data standards and increasing spending transparency based on the DATA Act

requirements. Treasury will continue to engage the public in the development of new online 

tools to support greater access to data and, by May 2017, further improve data accuracy on 

USAspending.gov.

The amount of college debt increased substantially in recent years, and the United States needs a 

world-class student lending system on par with its higher education system. To develop new 

solutions to this growing problem, the Department of Education partnered with Treasury to 

launch a pilot in February 2015 that allows Treasury to work directly with defaulted student loan 

borrowers. The pilot will yield valuable data and first-hand experience with the collections 

process, which should provide a better understanding of best practices and how to improve 

borrower outcomes.

Fiscal responsibility

Treasury is entrusted with managing the nation’s finances, collecting money and making 

payments on behalf of the United States. Treasury also determines and executes a borrowing 

strategy that meets the federal government’s needs at the lowest cost over time. Furthermore, 

 6 For more information on Treasury’s efforts to implement the DATA Act, access https://www.usaspending.gov/Pages/Data-Act.aspx. 
Executive Summary - 23

Treasury accounts for, and reports on, the U.S. Government’s finances to the American people. 

Sound financial management enables the continual operation of essential government services.

In May 2015, Treasury changed its cash management policy to hold a higher level of cash to 

cover one week of average disbursements in the case of events that limit market access, such as 

cyberattacks or natural disasters. This change was based on a review of policies, 

recommendations from the Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee, and an assessment of 

emerging threats.

Treasury also made strides in facilitating agencies’ compliance with the Improper Payments 

Elimination and Recovery Improvement Act of 2012 (IPERIA). In FY 2015, Treasury enhanced 

its systems to allow for real-time matching of payments against death and vendor data. In 

addition, the incorporation of Privacy Act-restricted data improved vendor data matching and 

reduced false positives by 99.8 percent. Treasury also improved its analytics capabilities and 

developed agency-specific reports that provide a particular agency or program within the agency 

a high-level summary of statistical observations that may contribute to improper payments. 

These reports provide a means to inform agency management about these observations and to 

determine whether or not the observations call for a more in-depth analytical project in 

partnership with the agency, to assess the issue, determine root cause, and develop internal 

control methodologies to eliminate the issue in the future.

Despite this progress, challenges inhibiting eligibility verification remain, specifically in gaining 

access to additional data sources that will help prevent improper payments. To help mitigate 

some of these challenges, the FY 2016 President’s Budget included a number of legislative 

proposals that would, if enacted by Congress, provide Treasury with additional tools to combat 

waste and fraud as well as greater authority to take actions that will prevent payment errors and 

improve compliance.

Tax reform and administration

Pursuing tax reform remains a top priority for Treasury, along with implementing tax provisions 

of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and 

administering the existing tax code fairly and effectively. In FY 2015, Treasury continued 

negotiating and signing FATCA agreements. At the end of FY 2015, there were 76 signed 

agreements, including 30 signed during the year, and an additional eight agreements in substance 

were reached. In July 2015, Treasury finalized the first-ever comprehensive tax treaty between 

the United States and Vietnam, which represents a significant step in expanding the U.S. tax 

treaty network (pending Senate approval).

To bring better transparency to the tax system and improve enforcement, Treasury successfully 

persuaded the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to adopt the 

U.S. model to tighten the net on tax evaders. As part of the FY 2016 President’s Budget, 

Treasury also introduced annual revenue proposals to Congress, including 27 new proposals. 

The Administration’s Fiscal Year 2016 Revenue Proposals included an international tax reform 

section addressing inversions and 45 proposals for business tax reform. Finally in this area, TTB 

worked with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Customs and Border Protection and 

other law enforcement partners to address illicit trafficking of products through customs bonded 
Executive Summary - 24

warehouses and foreign trade zones. TTB also plans to complete full integration into the 

International Trade Data System to improve excise tax enforcement efforts.

Despite these successes, effective tax administration grows more challenging every year due to 

the worsening IRS funding situation. In the past five years, IRS funding has been reduced by 

$1.2 billion, causing the IRS to implement severe controls on all expenditures. These controls, 

which include restrictions on staff replacement, led to a reduction of almost 15,500 full-time 

employees since FY 2010. The funding constraints also significantly affected the IRS’s ability 

to modernize infrastructure and adequately staff systems. By prioritizing resources, the IRS 

delivered another successful filing season in 2015 in terms of return processing: opening on 

schedule and implementing new provisions of FATCA and ACA. The IRS also issued nine out 

of ten refunds in less than 21 days. The filing season was more challenging in terms of customer 

service, which is discussed further under Goal Five.

The IRS also dedicated significant resources to address tax fraud, resulting in the successful 

recovery of $813 million in 2015 and leading to a public-private partnership with software 

developers, banks, and other industries to identify and enact a series of steps to further protect 

taxpayers from tax-related identity theft in 2016. In 2015, through September, the IRS rejected 

or suspended the processing of 4.5 million suspicious returns and stopped 1.2 million confirmed 

identity theft returns, totaling $7.2 billion. Additionally, through September, the IRS stopped 

$2.3 billion worth of refunds in other types of fraud, totaling $9.5 billion defended against

confirmed fraudulent returns.

Key Performance Data Highlights

Measure 

(Responsible 

Bureau/Office)

FY 12 FY 13 FY 14 FY 15 4-yr 

Trend

FY 15 

Target

Result 

vs 

Target

Percentage of Treasury 

payments and associated 

information made electronically 

(%) (Fiscal Service)

88.3 92.5 94.4 94.8 94.9 Not Met

Percentage of total dollar 

amount of U.S. Government 

receipts collected electronically 

(%) (Fiscal Service)

97.0 97.0 98.0 98.0 98.0 Met

Percentage of individual returns 

processed electronically (IRS) 80.5 82.5 84.1 85.3 84.6 Exceeded

Taxpayer Self-Assistance Rate

(IRS) 78.5 83.3 84.7 88.7 85.0 Exceeded

Explanation of Results

Percentage of Treasury payments and associated information made electronically AND Percentage of 

total dollar amount of U.S. Government receipts collected electronically (Fiscal Service)

Fiscal Service has been promoting the Paperless Treasury initiative for several years in an effort to 

disburse payments, as well as receive and settle collections, through electronic means. Fiscal Service will 
Executive Summary - 25

expand the number of digital wallet providers and online bill payment agencies and will work with 

partner agencies to identify the best tools and strategies for transitioning more of their customers to 

electronic alternatives.

Percentage of individual returns processed electronically (IRS)

The number of electronically filed individual tax returns divided by the total individual returns filed. The 

IRS exceeded its FY 2015 target and FY 2014 performance for individual returns processed 

electronically. This increase is attributed to taxpayers’ increasing use of tax software and tax preparers to 

file their tax returns. The IRS will continue to process individual returns as efficiently as possible to meet 

future plans.

Taxpayer Self-Assistance Rate (IRS)

The percentage of taxpayer assistance requests resolved using self-assisted automated services. In FY 

2015, the Taxpayer Self-Assistance Rate was at an all-time high of 88.7 percent, which was 3.7 percent 

above target and 4.0 percent more than FY 2014. The increase was due to taxpayers' use of Web 

Services, particularly the "Where's My Refund" application. The IRS will continue to promote the webfirst strategy to taxpayers, offering a more convenient, efficient, and effective way to meet their needs.

Goal 4: Safeguard the financial system and use financial measures to counter national 

security threats

Strategic Objective 4.1: Identify priority threats to the financial system using intelligence 

analysis and outreach to the financial sector

Identified as making Noteworthy Progress in FY 2015 due to the progress made in 

applying little-used authorities to share information and implementing the new business 

system and advanced algorithms to identify targets and pursue enforcement actions as a 

result of the intelligence.

Strategic Objective 4.2: Develop, implement, and enforce sanctions and other targeted 

financial measures

Identified as making Noteworthy Progress in FY 2015 due to the Joint Comprehensive 

Plan of Action signed in FY 2015 and the new regulations regarding Cuba sanctions 

Strategic Objective 4.3: Improve the cybersecurity of our nation’s financial sector 

Identified in FY 2015 as making Noteworthy Progress due to the significant progress 

made in coordinating and engaging with industry and as a Focus Area for Improvement 

due to ever-evolving threats and complexities in sharing information.

Strategic Objective 4.4: Protect the integrity of the financial system by implementing, 

promoting, and enforcing anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing 

standards

Aligned APG: Focus Enforcement on High-Priority Threats Using Proactive Analysis

Improved protection of the financial system

Treasury works to protect the integrity of the financial system and advance key national security 

and foreign policy objectives through outreach, coordination, and collaboration with public and 

private sector partners; regulation, enforcement, financial intelligence analysis; and targeted 

financial activities and measures. One of Treasury’s FY 2014-2015 Agency Priority Goals 

(APGs) was to use proactive analytics to focus enforcement on high-priority threats. By 

focusing on this APG, Treasury implemented advanced analytics capabilities and improved the 

use and sharing of information on threats to the financial system. In FY 2015, FinCEN initiated 

daily tactical reporting to law enforcement, foreign partners, and the intelligence community 
Executive Summary - 26

through the use of new information technology capabilities. By developing and employing 

business rules in a modernized system, FinCEN automatically screened Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) 

reports daily on topics of national security concern, including terrorist financing, cyber threats, 

and Ukraine kleptocracy. As a result of the efforts, FinCEN quadrupled the intelligence products 

provided and increased completed enforcement actions in FY 2015, compared to FY 2014.

FinCEN also moved the global community forward on anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing policies and coordinated multi-lateral efforts to support Ukraine’s efforts to 

recover misappropriated assets. FinCEN issued the first civil enforcement action against a 

virtual currency exchanger, Ripple Labs, for willfully violating the BSA. 

Effectiveness of sanctions programs

Through a steady campaign to expose Iran’s deceptive activities in the financial arena, Treasury 

isolated Iran’s banks from the world’s financial centers, wounding its trade and financial

strength. Since 2010, these and other efforts led to the diplomatic process that produced the Joint 

Comprehensive Plan of Action in July 2015. This plan will ensure Iran’s nuclear program 

remains exclusively peaceful and, in turn, will lift specified nuclear-related sanctions on Iran 

upon verification from the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran has implemented key 

nuclear commitments. This success proves that smart, creative, persistent financial efforts, when 

backed by the superb support of the U.S. intelligence community, can change behavior.

In December 2014, the President announced a set of diplomatic and economic changes to chart a 

new course in U.S. relations with Cuba and further engage and empower the Cuban people. 

Treasury and the Department of Commerce published revised Cuban Assets Control Regulations 

and Export Administration Regulations, effective in January 2015, that will facilitate travel to 

Cuba for authorized purposes, approve processing of certain financial transactions, and allow 

other activities in the areas of telecommunications, financial services, trade, and shipping. In 

September 2015, Treasury and Commerce announced additional amendments to the Cuba 

sanctions regulations. These regulatory changes build upon the January amendments and will 

further facilitate the normalization process between Cuba and the United States.

Financial sector cyber security 

Cyber threats are vast and evolving—not just increasing in number, but also in types of incidents 

and means for intrusion. The prevalence of cyber risks creates a persistent and complex 

challenge for financial institutions spanning the sector. The financial costs of cyber-attacks are 

real and increasing; disruption of business, erosion of customers, loss of revenue, reputational 

damage and loss of confidence, and theft of intellectual property are just a few ways cyberattacks hurt the financial system.

As the Sector Specific Agency for Financial Services, defined under Presidential Policy 

Directive 21, Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience, Treasury participates in interagency 

and cross-sector initiatives and plays a key role in managing responses to disruptive events. 

While Treasury’s sector-specific responsibilities include all hazards, whether natural or manmade, in recent years the Department has increasingly focused on promoting improvements in 

cybersecurity across the financial sector. In FY 2015, Treasury worked with industry to organize 
Executive Summary - 27

cybersecurity initiatives on a national level using the following themes: baseline protections, 

information sharing, and response and recovery.

In February 2015, the President signed an executive order encouraging and promoting the 

sharing of cybersecurity threat information within the private sector and between private and 

government entities. Treasury assisted DHS in promoting information sharing and analysis and 

worked this year to automate the information-sharing process.

To enable effective incident response, Treasury established and convened the first-ever meetings 

of the Financial and Banking Information Infrastructure Committee at the principal level and 

spearheaded the development of tabletop exercises to test cyber-incident response processes. In 

FY 2015, Treasury hosted three cyber-related exercises with more than 25 public and private 

sector organizations.

Protecting Treasury’s infrastructure is critical to maintaining a secure financial infrastructure. 

Consequently, Treasury fully committed to OMB’s government-wide cyber-sprint and created an 

internal cyber dashboard to monitor progress and potential threats. As of August 2015, Treasury 

met OMB’s requirement for strong authentication of users with privileged access and was 

considered a top-performing federal agency for cybersecurity cross-agency priority goal. 

Key Performance Data Highlights

Measure 

(Responsible 

Bureau/Office)

FY 12 FY 13 FY 14 FY 15 4-yr 

Trend

FY 15 

Target

Result vs 

Target

Percentage of users finding 

that the financial intelligence 

collected by FinCEN pursuant 

its regulations provides 

valuable information to 

safeguard the financial 

system, combat money 

laundering, and counter 

terrorist financing 

90 80 81 83 82 Exceeded

Impact of TFI programs and 

activities – 10 point scale 

(TFI)

8.1 8.3 8.5 8.8 8.5 Exceeded

Explanation of Results

Percentage of users finding that the financial intelligence collected by FinCEN pursuant its regulations 

provides valuable information to safeguard the financial system, combat money laundering, and counter 

terrorist financing (FinCEN)

Survey data that looks at the value of FinCEN data, such as whether the data (1) provided unknown 

information, (2) supplemented or expanded known information, (3) verified information, (4) helped 

identify new leads, (5) opened a new investigation or examination, (6) supported an existing investigation 

or examination, or (7) provided information for an investigative or examination report. While the FY 

2015 results remain lower than the FY 2012 level, FinCEN exceeded its target of 82 percent and the 

results have increased steadily for the past three years. FinCEN introduced a new query tool late in FY 
Executive Summary - 28

2013 that changed how users access financial intelligence products. While this new tool provides 

enhanced search capabilities, it appears that limited training opportunities for users in FY 2013 caused a 

drop in results. As a result, since FY 2013, FinCEN has placed greater emphasis on both in-person and 

on-line training that will better assist users and continue to improve performance in this area.

Impact of TFI programs and activities (TFI)

There are several things that account for TFI’s increase in program impact and activities to include the 

signed Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in FY 2015 that implements sanctions relief to Iran in 

exchange for Iran taking steps to ensure a peaceful nuclear program, as well as the new regulations 

regarding Cuba sanctions. Additionally, TFI has advanced the rulemaking process for Beneficial 

Ownership, and TFI has continued funding Third Party Money Laundering cases and their operational 

needs. 

Goal 5: Create a 21st Century approach to government by improving efficiency, 

effectiveness, and customer interaction

Strategic Objective 5.1: Increase workforce engagement, performance, and diversity by 

instilling excellence, innovation, and inclusion in Treasury’s organizational culture and 

business practices

Strategic Objective 5.2: Support effective, data-driven decision-making and encourage 

transparency through intelligent gathering, analysis, sharing, use, and dissemination of 

information 

Strategic Objective 5.3: Promote efficient use of resources through shared services, strategic 

sourcing, streamlined business processes, and accountability

Designated as a Focus Area for Improvement in FY 2015 due to the challenges facing 

Treasury shared service providers and the anticipated efforts in the coming year to 

standardize products and services.

Strategic Objective 5.4: Create a culture of service through relentless pursuit of customer 

value

Aligned APG: Increasing IRS Self-Service Options for Taxpayers

Pursuit of best-in-class business practices

Treasury’s future success, both immediate and long term, depends on sustaining and developing 

the resources required to achieve the Department’s mission. These critical resources include 

finances, physical assets, technology, and most importantly, people. In the FY 2014-2017 

strategic plan, Treasury committed to capitalizing on 21st century advances in knowledge, 

methods, and technology to manage resources as effectively and efficiently as possible, creating 

the best value for all constituents.

During FY 2015, Treasury advanced several leading management practices. Treasury continued 

the workforce planning effort that began in FY 2014 and will focus next on the cybersecurity 

workforce. Treasury also established the Office of Risk Management, headed by the Chief Risk 

Officer, and Treasury’s Deputy Secretary established the Treasury Risk Management 

Committee, which she co-chairs with the Chief Risk Officer, and introduced a more robust risk 

discussion in Treasury’s organizational performance reviews for leaders from different areas to 

surface potential risks and identify effective mitigation actions.
Executive Summary - 29

Employee engagement

Recent events, including the cybersecurity breaches at the Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM) and sustained fiscal uncertainty, test employees’ morale and ability to remain engaged. 

Fortunately, 94 percent of the Treasury responses to the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey 

reflect that employees remain willing to put in extra effort to get a job done and 88 percent are 

constantly looking for ways to do their jobs better. In FY 2015, Treasury remained committed to 

fostering an environment where leaders and employees feel encouraged to focus on important 

principles of good government and empowered to take action. Treasury has institutionalized a 

focus on employee engagement by adopting an annual engagement program cycle of data-based 

action planning, program implementation, and periodic performance reviews. Additionally, the 

management offices responsible for individual and organizational performance management 

policy and implementation created the Performance Alignment Work Group to further improve 

alignment of individual actions to organizational results within Treasury.

Treasury also continued to foster an environment where every employee feels equally valued. In 

FY 2015, more than 200 supervisors and managers participated in a cultural transformation effort 

focused on diversity and inclusion principles. Human capital issues, including diversity and 

inclusion, were regular topics at the organizational performance reviews and remain a top 

priority for Treasury leadership. 

Service to customers

In Treasury’s efforts to lead more efficient practices in government, Treasury expanded its 

customer base for shared administrative services this year to include the Department of Housing 

and Urban Development and DHS. While this is an indicator of the high quality of Treasury’s 

products and services, customer feedback indicates that their needs and expectations vary 

greatly. Consequently, Treasury is working to improve communications and standardize 

services, products, and processes to sustain the cost efficiencies of the model and improve 

customer satisfaction.

Few government agencies have greater interaction with the American people than the IRS, and 

providing top quality service to taxpayers, including helping them understand and meet their tax 

obligations, remains a central focus for the IRS. That is why Treasury’s second FY 2014-2015 

APG focused on increasing self-service options for taxpayers, who increasingly expect ondemand web-based interactions. In FY 2015, the IRS continued to invest in and prioritize online 

services to meet taxpayer demand for anytime, anywhere, any-device access, delivering 

innovative digital interactions and enhanced support and communication with the tax community 

and government partners.

Online service options cost comparatively less and have a greater capacity to assist larger 

numbers of taxpayers than other service channels. At the same time, the IRS recognizes that 

telephone contact remains a critical and preferred mechanism for many taxpayers and, 

consequently, committed as many resources as possible in FY 2015 to maintaining telephone 

service at acceptable levels. As referenced earlier in this report, between FY 2010 and FY 2015, 

Congress cut the IRS budget by more than $1.2 billion, which represents a cut of nearly 10 

percent in nominal dollars and more than 17 percent with inflation. This impacted the IRS’s 

ability to serve taxpayers, contributing to the level of service falling to 38.1 percent in FY 2015. 
Executive Summary - 30

The IRS also experienced increased call volume in FY 2015 and issued 17.6 million disconnects, 

which are automatic call terminations by the IRS after a fixed waiting period. These “courtesy” 

disconnects are designed to limit excessive wait time and direct callers to alternative service 

channels.

Increasing the use of online services, however, results in additional challenges. In May 2015, the 

IRS determined that unauthorized third parties used taxpayers’ personal information obtained 

from sources outside of the IRS to access its “Get Transcript” application by using stolen 

information to clear the application’s multi-step user authentication process. The required prior 

personal knowledge about the taxpayer included social security number, date of birth, filing 

status, street address, and answers to several identity verification questions typically known only 

to the taxpayer. The IRS believes some of this information may be used to file fraudulent tax 

returns during the upcoming 2016 filing season. Immediately after this incident, the IRS 

suspended the “Get Transcript” application and contacted impacted taxpayers, directing them to 

identity theft protection tools available through the IRS and credit-monitoring services made 

available at the IRS’s expense. The IRS also flagged impacted accounts in its core processing 

system to protect taxpayers moving forward. Securing systems and protecting taxpayers’ 

personal information continues to be a top priority for Treasury.

Despite the threat of identity theft, taxpayers’ demand for self-service and electronic service 

options continues to increase. The IRS plans to create a more secure online environment by 

focusing on developing and maintaining strong authentication and identity management 

capabilities. In addition, the IRS provides year-round assistance through outreach and education 

programs, tax forms and publications, and toll-free call centers, taxpayer assistance centers, 

volunteer income tax assistance sites, and tax counseling for the elderly sites.

Key Performance Data Highlights

Measure 

(Responsible 

Bureau/Office)

FY 12 FY 13 FY 14 FY 15 4-yr 

Trend

FY 15 

Target

Result vs 

Target

Federal Employee Viewpoint 

Survey (FEVS) Engagement 

Index – 1 to 100 (%) 

(Management)

70 68 66 66 67 Not Met

Treasury-wide Footprint in 

Thousands of Sq. Ft. 

(Management)

37,998 37,320 36,418 35,439 36,031 Exceeded

Customer Service 

Representative Level of 

Service (%) (IRS)

67.6 60.5 64.4 38.1 38.0 Exceeded
Executive Summary - 31

Summary of Management and Performance Challenges

Several cross-cutting challenges were in identified and discussed in Treasury’s FY 2015 

organizational performance reviews that affect efforts to achieve its strategic priorities: 

• Changing international conditions and evolving threats: As previously discussed, 

evolving and unpredictable global economic and geopolitical conditions affect 

Treasury’s negotiations and program implementation. The nature of the threats that 

Treasury faces in the cybersecurity, anti-money laundering, and terrorist financing 

realms are also fast-growing and constantly changing. Additionally, while the economy 

has largely recovered, Treasury must remain vigilant to new threats to financial stability 

and economic growth.

• Uncertain fiscal and legislative environments: The pattern of continuing resolutions 

and the potential for a lapse in appropriations constrains Treasury’s ability to plan 

strategically, impacts its ability to effectively manage the country’s debt, and reduces 

the level of service to taxpayers. Additionally, reauthorization of certain programs and 

congressional approval of key reforms would enable Treasury to better achieve U.S. 

objectives but is difficult to predict and, consequently, to plan for its execution.

• Increased expectations and demand: Treasury has, in recent years, been asked to lead 

government-wide implementation of new laws and policies (such as ACA and DATA 

Act), including the launch of innovative new tools and pilots, while adjusting to reduced 

resources and staffing levels.

Explanation of Results

Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) Engagement Index – 1 to 100 (%) (Management)

The FEVS Engagement Index denotes the extent to which employees are engaged in their work and 

motivated by their organization’s leadership. Treasury’s Engagement Index remained constant at 66 

percent from 2014 to 2015. Eight out of eleven Treasury components increased their Engagement Index 

by 1 to 5 points from 2014 to 2015. Because of IRS’s size, however, a decline of 1 point in its 

Engagement Index neutralized the effect of other bureau increases. 

Treasury-wide Footprint in Thousands of Sq. Ft. (Management)

This measures the total square footage occupied by Treasury’s owned and leased buildings. The 

Department’s real property footprint was reduced by an estimated three percent (almost one million 

square feet) during FY 2015. The reduction was achieved through better use of existing office space, 

consolidations and co-locations, increased use of telework, and the implementation of new space design 

standards that use a reduced footprint to optimally right-size the portfolio consistent with Department 

mission and essential program needs. The Department projects that the footprint will be reduced by 

another 600,000 square feet in FY 2016.

Customer Service Representative Level of Service (%) (IRS)

This measure is defined as the number of toll free callers that either speak to a Customer Service 

Representative or receive information messages divided by the total number of attempted calls. In FY 

2015, the Customer Service Representative Level of Service (LOS) target was lowered due to decreased 

resources and staffing and a projected increase in the number of ACA inquiries. During the filing season, 

the level of service was 37.4 percent; however, the overall fiscal year target was exceeded by 0.1 percent. 

FY 2015 Assistor Calls Answered decreased 21 percent and automatic disconnections based on wait times 

increased 11.6 percent when compared to FY 2014. Through extensive communication, the IRS 

encourages taxpayers to use the Web or automated tools and alternate channels to resolve their concerns.
Executive Summary - 32

• Effectiveness of the hiring process: The federal hiring process poses challenges to 

Treasury organizations aiming to quickly recruit and hire top talent. Treasury seeks 

skills that are in high demand in the private sector, which has more flexibility in hiring

practices and incentives.

• Availability of data and analytic capability: Reliance on third party or private sector 

analysis poses a risk to the quality of the analysis and recommendations that Treasury 

provides to senior government officials. Treasury faces challenges in its efforts to 

improve decision-making by reducing reliance on third-party analysis. Additionally, 

Treasury is structured and, in some cases, statutorily required, to protect data. 

Reshaping Treasury’s ability to meet increasing calls in recent years to share data across 

organizations may require additional infrastructure and staff.

In addition to the performance challenges discussed above and in previous sections of this report, 

OIG and TIGTA have identified the most significant management and performance challenges 

facing the Department, in accordance with the Reports Consolidation Act of 2000. 7 These 

challenges do not necessarily indicate deficiencies in performance; some represent inherent risks 

that require continuous monitoring. Refer to Section C of Part 3, Other Information, for a 

detailed discussion of these challenges, including Treasury’s progress toward addressing them.

OIG-Identified Treasury-Wide Management Challenges

• Cyber Threats

• Management of Treasury’s Authorities Intended to Support and Improve the Economy

• Efforts to Promote Spending Transparency and to Prevent and Detect Improper 

Payments

• Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing/Bank Secrecy Act Enforcement

• Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund Administration

TIGTA-Identified IRS Management Challenges 

• Security for Taxpayer Data and IRS Employees

• Implementing ACA and Other Tax Law Changes

• Tax Compliance Initiatives

• Fraudulent Claims and Improper Payments

• Achieving Program Efficiencies and Cost Savings

 7 SIGTARP does not provide an annual report to the Secretary because it provides oversight over a program that spans multiple agencies.
Executive Summary - 33

• Improving Tax Systems and Online Services

• Providing Quality Taxpayer Service Operations

• Globalization

• Taxpayer Protection and Rights

• Human Capital

FY 2016 Outlook

In considering the challenges and risks to successful mission delivery facing the Department, 

Treasury identified several initiatives to pursue in FY 2016, including two new agency priority 

goals (APGs) for FY 2016-2017:

• Increase secure self-service options for taxpayers (FY 2016-2017 APG led by the IRS).

• Develop and promote financial transparency policies and their adoption by leading, in 

collaboration with OMB, the government-wide implementation of the DATA Act 

(FY 2016-2017 APG led by the Fiscal Assistant Secretary).

• Continue Treasury’s efforts to expand access to credit and bring private capital back into 

the housing market by completing comprehensive housing finance reform; securing the 

reauthorization of the SSBCI and CDFI Bond Guarantee programs; and expanding access 

to long-term savings opportunities for more Americans by continuing to improve the 

myRA program and increase its enrollments.

• Secure congressional approval of the 2010 IMF quota and governance reform proposal 

and confirmations of nominations to ensure stable and effective U.S. representation at 

International Financial Institutions.

• Present to the President key findings and potential opportunities to improve the student 

loan collections process for defaulted borrowers.

• Secure the funding necessary for the IRS to maintain a balanced enforcement program 

and deliver the web-first service model.

• Increase coordination and information sharing efforts across government and private 

sectors to protect the stability of the financial system and the interests of American 

citizens.

• Partner with OMB and the General Services Administration to increase the flexibility 

with which agencies can acquire and share data sets and analytic capability.

• Transform the Departmental Offices’ hiring process using Lean Six Sigma process 

improvement methodologies, providing best practices for other organizations and making 

Treasury more competitive as an employer.