Bureau of the Public Debt 

Program Summary by Budget Activity 

(Dollars in thousands)

Appropriation FY 2010 FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2010 to FY 2012

Enacted Annualized

CR Level

Request $ Change % Change

 Wholesale Securities Services $24,396 $25,049 $23,120 ($1,276) (5.23%)

 Government Agency Investment Services $18,013 $16,706 $15,419 ($2,594) (14.40%)

 Retail Securities Services $139,569 $140,915 $116,260 ($23,309) (16.70%)

 Summary Debt Accounting $10,266 $9,574 $8,836 ($1,430) (13.93%)

 Do Not Pay Implementation $10,000 $10,000 100%

Subtotal, Bureau of the Public Debt $192,244 $192,244 $173,635 ($18,609) (9.68%)

Offsetting Collections - Reimbursables $21,425 $20,815 $24,400 $2,975 13.89%

Total Program Operating Level $213,669 $213,059 $198,035 ($15,634) (7.32%)

Direct FTE 1,042 1,042 987 (55) (5.28%)

Reimbursable FTE - - - - -

Total FTE 1,042 1,042 987 (55) (5.28%)

Note: Total Appropriated Resources for FY 2010 and FY 2011 include $10,000,000 in projected user fee collections. Total 

Appropriated Resources for FY 2012 include $8,000,000 in projected user fee collections. 

Summary 

 

Bureau of the Public Debt (BPD) 

BPD’s mission is to borrow the money needed 

to operate the federal government, account for 

the resulting debt, and provide reimbursable 

support services to federal agencies. In 

carrying out its mission and vision, 

Public Debt annually auctions and issues more 

than $8 trillion in Treasury bills, notes, bonds 

and Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities 

(TIPS); administers on Treasury's behalf its 

regulatory responsibilities for the government 

securities market; ensures reliable systems and 

processes are in place for issuing, transferring, 

paying interest on and redeeming Treasury 

securities; serves more than 50 million retail 

customers each year; administers in excess of 

$4 trillion in investments for more than 230 

federal trust funds; and provides timely and 

accurate information on the public debt. 

Public Debt’s FY 2012 priorities include 

eliminating new issues of paper savings bonds 

and creating an IT portal of payment 

information that federal agencies can use to 

ensure their payments are only received by 

eligible recipients. 

Total resources to support Public Debt 

activities in FY 2012 are $198,035,000, 

including $173,635,000 from direct 

appropriations, of which $8,000,000 are user 

fees, and $24,400,000 from offsetting 

collections. 
BPD FY 2012 Budget Highlights

(Dollars in thousands)

Appropriation Amount

FY 2010 Enacted Budget $192,244

FY 2011 Continuing Resolution $192,244

Changes to Base: 

Adjustment to Reach Policy Level: ($7,458)

Adjustment to Reach FY 2011 President's 

Policy 

($7,458)

Maintaining Current Levels (MCLs): $1,234

Maintaining Current Levels $1,234

Efficiencies, Savings & Base Reductions: ($20,385)

Eliminate Paper Savings Bonds ($6,451)

Eliminate new issues of paper payroll 

savings bonds by 1/1/2011 

($5,700)

Program and Support Services Efficiencies ($5,464)

Data Center Consolidation ($470)

Decommission Legacy Treasury Direct 

System 

($1,650)

Procurement Savings ($650)

Subtotal FY 2012 Changes to Base ($26,609)

Total FY 2012 Base $165,635

Program Changes: 

Program Decreases: ($2,000)

Reduction to Systems Modernization Fund ($2,000)

Program Increases: $10,000

Do not Pay Implementation $10,000

Subtotal FY 2012 Program Changes $8,000

Total FY 2012 Budget Request $173,635

User Fees ($8,000)

Total FY 2012 Budget Request (Net) $165,635

FY 2012 Budget Adjustments 

 

FY 2011 Annualized Continuing Resolution 

The FY 2011 Annualized Continuing Resolution 

for BPD is $192,244,000. 

Adjustment to Reach Policy Level 

Adjustment to Reach FY 2011 President's 

Policy -$7,458,000 / -33 FTE 

Adjustment from the FY 2011 Annualized 

Continuing Resolution (CR) Rate to reach the 

FY 2011 President's Policy Level. The 

President's Policy Level is equal to the 

FY 2011 President's Budget as adjusted for the 

proposed pay freeze. 

Maintaining Current Levels (MCLs) 

Maintaining Current Levels +$1,234,000 / +0 

FTE 

Funds are requested for inflation adjustments 

in non-labor expenses such as GSA rent, 

postage, supplies and equipment and health 

benefits and the increase in Federal Employee 

Retirement System participation. No inflation 

adjustment is requested for pay in FY 2012. 

Efficiencies, Savings & Base Reductions 

Eliminate Paper Savings Bonds no later than 

December 31, 2011 -$6,451,000 / +0 FTE 

Eliminate new issues of paper savings bonds. 

Savings of agent fees, postage and printing by 

eliminating new issues of over-the-counter 

paper savings bonds. 

Eliminate new issues of paper payroll savings 

bonds by 1/1/2011 -$5,700,000 / -12 FTE 

Savings of agent fees, postage and printing by 

eliminating new issues of paper payroll 

savings bonds and FTE savings from a decline 

in customer service transactions after new 

issues of paper payroll bonds are eliminated. 

Program and Support Services Efficiencies -

$5,464,000 / -18 FTE 

Savings realized from reductions in funded 

positions across all Public Debt programs and 

in administrative and IT support services. In 

addition, to increase operational efficiencies 

and reduce operating expenses, Public Debt 

will centralize its printing, duplicating and 

scanning activities. 

Data Centers Consolidation -$470,000 / +0 

FTE 

Public Debt, along with the Financial 

Management Service, will consolidate five 

data centers to two, which will produce 

savings due to reductions in energy 

consumption, equipment, software, and staff. 

Decommission Legacy Treasury Direct System 

-$1,650,000 / -12 FTE 

Established in 1986, Legacy Treasury Direct 

allows marketable securities investors to do 

business by mail and, to a certain extent, 

through an automated phone system or online. 

Now that marketable securities are available in 

TreasuryDirect, an online account system, 
Public Debt can decommission the aging 

Legacy system. 

Procurement Savings -$650,000 / +0 FTE 

Cost savings by streamlining procurement 

operations and reducing procurement 

spending. 

Program Decreases 

Reduction to Systems Modernization Fund -

$2,000,000 / +0 FTE 

Savings due to elimination of BPD's Systems 

Modernization fund. 

Program Increases 

Do Not Pay Implementation +$10,000,000 / 

+20 FTE 

Expand the Do Not Pay Portal and increase 

analytical capabilities to detect fraud patterns 

and reduce improper payments. 

Adjustments to Request User Fee 

User Fees -$8,000,000 / +0 FTE 

 Public Debt projects that in FY 2012 there 

will be fewer users of the Legacy Treasury 

Direct system who are subject to the annual 

account maintenance fee. Account holders 

with balances over $100,000 (par value) are 

charged an annual account maintenance fee of 

$100. 

Explanation of Budget Activities 

 

Salaries and Expenses 

Wholesale Securities Services ($23,120,000 

from direct appropriations, and $3,179,000 

from reimbursable programs)

Public Debt announces, auctions and issues 

marketable Treasury bills, notes, bonds and 

TIPS. This program ensures that the 

government’s critical financing needs are met 

and oversees an infrastructure that provides for 

the transfer, custody and redemption of 

Treasury securities in the wholesale market. 

Public Debt also administers Treasury's 

regulations that provide investor protection 

and maintain the integrity, liquidity and 

efficiency in the government securities market. 

Government Agency Investment Services 

($15,419,000 from direct appropriations, and 

$2,121,000 from reimbursable programs)

Public Debt supports federal, state and local 

government agency investments in nonmarketable Treasury securities as well as 

federal agency borrowing from the 

Department of the Treasury. There are more 

than 230 trust and investment funds held by 

federal agencies. For 18 of the funds, the 

Secretary of the Treasury, designated by 

statute, is the managing trustee. 

 

Retail Securities Services ($116,260,000 from 

direct appropriations, including $8,000,000 

from user fee collections, and $17,884,000 

from reimbursable programs)

Public Debt serves more than 50 million retail 

customers who have invested in marketable 

and savings securities directly with Treasury. 

Investors may hold these securities in bookentry or paper form. With the elimination of 

new issues of paper savings bonds, 

Public Debt will position Treasury to provide 

other simple, safe, and affordable ways for 

Americans to save. The program will deliver a 

high-quality customer experience through 

traditional and emerging technologies, 

opportunities for self-service, and easy to use 

communication channels. 

Summary Debt Accounting ($8,836,000 from 

direct appropriations, and $1,216,000 from 

reimbursable programs)

This program is key to meeting Public Debt's 

responsibility to account for the public debt 

and related interest expense incurred to finance 

the operations of the federal government. 

Public Debt produces daily reports on the 

balance and composition of the public debt, 

provides the overarching control structure for 

dozens of subordinate securities systems and 
reconciles their related transactions and cash 

flows. 

 

Do Not Pay Implementation ($10,000,000 

from direct appropriations) 

In June 2010, a Presidential Memorandum 

(Enhancing Payment Accuracy Through a 

“Do Not Pay List”) established the creation of 

a comprehensive Do Not Pay List against 

which agency payments could be crosschecked to prevent ineligible recipients from 

receiving payments from the federal 

government. To make this list more 

beneficial, VerifyPayment.Gov has been 

created to serve as a one-stop-shop for 

agencies. 

The Bureau of the Public Debt has been given 

responsibility for maintaining and expanding 

VerifyPayment.Gov. Additionally, Public 

Debt will work with the Recovery 

Accountability and Transparency Board, to 

support an operations center to analyze fraud 

patterns and refer potential issues to agency 

management. 

Legislative Proposals 

 

Public Debt has no legislative proposals for 

FY 2012. 

BPD Performance by Budget Activity 

Budget Activity Performance Measure FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 FY 2012

Actual Actual Actual Target Target

Government Financing Percent of Respondents 

Selecting the Highest 

Rating of Customer 

Satisfaction with 

Government Agency 

Investment Services (%) 

(Oe)

N/A N/A 55.0 56.0 57.0

Government Financing Percent of Retail Customer 

Service Transactions 

Completed within 5 

Business Days (%) (Ot) 

N/A 86.0 92.7 87.0 87.0 

Government Financing Percent of Auction Results 

Released in Two Minutes 

+/- 30 Seconds (%) (Oe)

100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Financial Information Cost Per Summary Debt 

Accounting Transaction ($) 

(E)

9.11 8.66 11.28 15.5 14.95

Description of Performance 

 

The Bureau of the Public Debt has continued 

to set challenging performance goals with 

positive results. To improve performance, 

Public Debt places a high priority on adopting 

new technology to increase the security, 

flexibility and efficiency of financing the 

needs of the federal government. 

In FY 2010, Public Debt released auction 

results within two minutes, plus or minus 30 

seconds, 100 percent of the time, surpassing its 

performance target of 95 percent. In addition, 

Public Debt processed over 92 percent of retail 

customer transactions within 5 business days 

and met its targeted costs for summary debt 

accounting transactions. In FY 2010 

Public Debt began measuring the percentage 

of customers rating Government Agency 

Investment Services as excellent.