Benefits Administration Letter

Number: 16-304 Date: July 2016 

United States

Office of 

Personnel Management

The Federal Government’s Human Resources Agency

Subject: Fiscal Year 2016 Cost Factors for Calculating Imputed Costs 

This Letter provides the fiscal year (FY) 2016 cost factors for the Federal civilian benefit programs.

Agencies will use these factors to calculate their imputed costs relating to the Civil Service

Retirement System (CSRS), the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), the Federal 

Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHB) and the Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance 

Program (FEGLI). The imputed costs are used to determine the actuarial liabilities which are 

included in Governmental financial statements.

Benefits Administration Letter (BAL) 03-309, dated September 15, 2003, provides detailed 

instructions for the computation and accounting for imputed costs related to the Federal civilian

benefit programs; see http://www.opm.gov/retire/pubs/bals/2003/03-309.pdf for more information. 

COST FACTORS

Pensions. The economic assumptions used to calculate the FY 2016 cost factors under Statement of

Federal Financial Accounting Standard (SFFAS) 33: Pensions, Other Retirement Benefits, and 

Other Postemployment Benefits: Reporting the Gains and Losses from Changes in Assumptions and 

Selecting Discount Rates and Valuation Dates are based on 10-year historical averages. These 

economic assumptions differ from those established by OPM under guidance from the CSRS Board 

of Actuaries for the determination of certain statutory funding payments for CSRS and FERS. 

For most CSRS-covered employees, the FY 2016 cost factor is 33.5 percent of basic pay. The 

FY 2016 cost factors for all categories of CSRS coverage are attached. While agency payments

under CSRS are not affected by the CSRS normal cost percentages for the vast majority of agencies,

the CSRS normal cost percentages determined under SFFAS 33 are used to determine the actuarial

liabilities which are included in Governmental financial statements.

The FY 2016 cost factors reported in this BAL also differ from the normal cost percentages used to 

determine the employer contributions agencies pay for FERS employees. For most FERS-covered

employees, the FY 2016 cost factor is 15.1 percent of basic pay. The cost factors for all categories of

FERS coverage are attached. Since the cost factors reported under SFFAS 33 are determined on a

different basis than are the actual FERS normal cost contributions, agencies should expect to continue

to report future imputed retirement costs for their FERS employees.
 

FEHB Program. For FY 2016, the cost factor is $6,266 per enrolled employee. Please note that the 

cost factors shown below are based on the actuarial assumptions required by SFFAS 33, as 

calculated by the FEHB actuary.

Quarter Factor

1st $1,535 

2nd 1,556 

3rd 1,577 

4th 1,598 

FY 2016 $6,266 

FEGLI Program. The FY 2016 cost factor for the FEGLI is 0.02 percent of basic pay, the same as 

in previous years. 

STATEMENT FOR AUDITORS

The FY 2016 cost factors provided in this letter are being issued before an opinion by OPM’s 

independent public accounting firm can be received for FY 2016. Nonetheless, the FY 2015 cost 

factors for “regular” CSRS and FERS coverage, as well as those for the FEHB and FEGLI Programs 

were disclosed in the footnotes accompanying OPM’s consolidated FY 2015 financial statements. 

These statements received an unqualified audit opinion. The policies, procedures and controls 

pertaining to the calculations of the FY 2016 cost factors did not change from FY 2015. 

Consequently, auditors of FY 2016 financial statements can rely upon the disclosures in Office of 

Personnel Management’s FY 2015 financial statements and the related audit opinion. 

INQUIRIES

If you have any questions regarding this information, feel free to email us at 

FinancialBALs@opm.gov. You may also phone us at (202) 606-0606. 

 

 

 

Kolo Babagana 

Acting Associate Chief Financial Officer

Financial Services 

Attachment
 Attachment

2016 COST FACTORS FOR THE CSRS AND FERS

CSRS

CATEGORY COST FACTOR (%)

Regular 33.5 

Regular Offset 24.6 

Law Enforcement Officers 57.9 

Law Enforcement Officers - Offset 49.7 

Air Traffic Controllers 52.9 

Air Traffic Controllers – Offset 45.0

Members of Congress 41.8 

Members of Congress – Offset 38.4 

Congressional Employees 47.0

Congressional Employees – Offset 38.6

FERS

CATEGORY COST FACTOR (%)

Regular 15.1

Law Enforcement Officers 33.4

Air Traffic Controllers 35.2

Members of Congress 23.5 

Congressional Employees 21.3 

Military Reserve Technicians 19.6 
FERS-Revised Annuity Employees (RAE)

CATEGORY COST FACTOR (%)

Regular - RAE 15.6 

Law Enforcement Officers - RAE 34.1

Air Traffic Controllers - RAE 35.9 

Military Reserve Technicians - RAE 20.0

FERS-Further Revised Annuity Employees (FRAE)

CATEGORY COST FACTOR (%)

Regular - RAE 15.7 

Law Enforcement Officers - RAE 34.1

Air Traffic Controllers - RAE 35.9 

Military Reserve Technicians - RAE 20.1