U.S. FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

Promoting and protecting labor-management relations 

for effective, efficient Government.

FLRA.GOV

AGENCY FINANCIAL 

REPORT
This page intentionally left blank.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN.......................................................................................... 1

Annual FFMIA Statement of Assurance..................................................................................... 1

Annual FMFIA Statement of Assurance..................................................................................... 1

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS ................................................................. 2

BACKGROUND AND MISSION ............................................................................................. 2

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE ........................................................................................ 3

STRATEGIC GOALS / PERFORMANCE SUMMARY.......................................................... 6

Strategic Goal 1: We will ensure quality, timely, impartial, and consistent investigative and 

decision-making processes with determinations that are clearly articulated. ......................... 6

Strategic Goal 2: We will develop and provide tools and resources to enable the parties to 

prevent or more effectively and efficiently resolve their labor-relations disputes and 

improve their labor-management relationships. ..................................................................... 9

Strategic Goal 3: We will manage our resources effectively and efficiently, and recognize 

that our dedicated workforce is critical to the resolution of labor-relations disputes........... 15

FINANCIAL SECTION............................................................................................................... 21

Principal Financial Statements.................................................................................................. 21

Balance Sheet............................................................................................................................ 21

Statement of Net Cost ............................................................................................................... 22

Statement of Changes in Net Position ...................................................................................... 23

Statement on Budgetary Resources .......................................................................................... 23

Report of Independent Auditors................................................................................................ 40

OTHER ACCOMPANYING INFORMATION........................................................................... 45

SUMMARY OF FINANCIAL STATEMENT AUDIT........................................................... 45

SUMMARY OF MANAGEMENT ASSURANCES............................................................... 45

IMPROPER PAYMENTS ELIMINATION AND RECOVERY ............................................ 46
1

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN

I am pleased to present the Federal Labor Relations Authority’s (FLRA) 

Agency Financial Report (AFR) for fiscal year (FY) 2020. This report 

provides an assessment of the Agency’s financial status along with information 

on our financial management and performance. The financial statements and 

notes that follow explain the FLRA’s financial position as of September 30, 

2020, and how the Agency’s financial resources were expended to achieve 

results.

For the fifteenth consecutive year, the FLRA has received an unqualified audit opinion on its 

financial statements. Along with the unqualified opinion, the report of independent auditors 

found no material weaknesses in the design and operation of the Agency system of internal 

controls over financial reporting. We are confident that the FLRA’s financial and performance 

data are complete, accurate, and reliable.

Annual FFMIA Statement of Assurance

Pursuant to the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA), FLRA management 

has assessed that the agency’s financial management systems, including both financial and 

financially related (or mixed) systems, comply substantially with (1) Federal financial 

management systems requirements, (2) applicable Federal accounting standards promulgated by 

FASAB, and (3) the U.S. Standard General Ledger (USSGL) at the transaction level.

Annual FMFIA Statement of Assurance

Pursuant to the Federal Managers’ Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA), FLRA management is 

responsible for managing risks and maintaining effective internal control to meet the objectives 

of Sections 2 and 4 of the Federal Managers’ Financial Integrity Act. The FLRA conducted its 

assessment of risk and internal control in accordance with OMB Circular No. A-123, 

Management’s Responsibility for Enterprise Risk Management and Internal Control. Based on 

the results of this assessment, the FLRA can provide reasonable assurance that its internal 

controls over the effectiveness and efficiency of operations, reporting, and compliance were 

operating effectively as of September 30, 2020.

Colleen Duffy Kiko, Chairman

Federal Labor Relations Authority

October 30, 2020
2

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

The FLRA has elected to produce an Agency Financial Report (AFR), with a primary focus on 

financial results, and an Annual Performance Report (APR), which focuses on strategic goals 

and performance results, in lieu of a combined Performance and Accountability report (PAR). 

The FLRA will submit its 2020 APR final draft to OMB on January 11, 2021, and, once 

approved, make it available on the FLRA website concurrent with the President’s 2022 Budget 

release in February 2021. Both the AFR and APR will be available on the FLRA website.

BACKGROUND AND MISSION

FLRA is an independent administrative Federal agency created by Title VII of the Civil Service 

Reform Act of 1978, also known as the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations 

Statute (the Statute), 5 U.S.C. §§ 7101-7135. �e purpose of the Statute is to prescribe certain 

rights and obligations of the employees of the Federal Government and to establish procedures 

that are designed to meet the special requirements and needs of the Government. Id. § 7101(b). 

�e provisions of the Statute are to be interpreted in a manner consistent with the requirement of 

an effective and efficient Government. Id.

Consistent with its statutory mandate, FLRA’s mission is: Protecting rights and facilitating 

stable relationships among Federal agencies, labor organizations, and employees while 

advancing an effective and efficient Government through the administration of the Statute.

FLRA applies its Federal-sector expertise to execute its mission primarily by carrying out the 

following statutory responsibilities:

1. Conduct hearings and resolve complaints of ULPs under § 7118 of the Statute. 

Id. § 7105(a)(2)(G). FLRA is responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and adjudicating 

claims that an agency or a labor organization has failed to uphold its legal obligations 

under the Statute.

2. Determine the appropriateness of units for labor-organization representation under the 

Statute, and supervise or conduct elections to determine whether a labor organization has 

been selected as an exclusive representative by a majority of employees in an appropriate 

unit. Id. § 7105(a)(2)(A). FLRA also resolves disputes about which employees may be 

included in bargaining units under the Statute. Id. § 7105(a)(2)(B).

3. Resolve exceptions to grievance-arbitration awards under § 7122 of the Statute. 

Id. § 7105(a)(2)(H). FLRA adjudicates appeals – known as exceptions – to arbitration 

awards that result from grievances filed by employees, labor organizations, or agencies 

under parties’ negotiated grievance procedures. �e FLRA reviews those awards to 

assess whether they are contrary to any law, rule, or regulation, or are deficient on other 

grounds similar to those applied by Federal courts in private-sector labor-management 

disputes.
3

4. Resolve issues relating to the duty to bargain in good faith under § 7117(c) of the Statute. 

Id. § 7105(a)(2)(E). FLRA resolves negotiability disputes that arise during bargaining 

under two circumstances – when an agency claims that a contract proposal is outside the 

duty to bargain and when an agency head disapproves a negotiated agreement claiming 

that it contains provisions that are contrary to law, rule, or regulation.

5. Assist in resolving negotiation impasses between Federal agencies and exclusive 

representatives. Id. § 7119.

In addition, Congress directed FLRA to prescribe criteria and resolve issues relating to the 

granting of national consultation rights under § 7113 of the Statute; prescribe criteria and resolve 

issues relating to determining compelling need for agency rules or regulations under § 7117(b) of 

the Statute; prescribe criteria relating to the granting of consultation rights with respect to 

conditions of employment under § 7117(d) of the Statute; and take such other actions as are 

necessary and appropriate to effectively administer the provisions of the Statute.

Moreover, FLRA is to “provide leadership in establishing policies and guidance” related to 

matters under the Statute. Id. § 7105(a)(1). FLRA satisfies this directive primarily through its 

written determinations, but also by offering training and other services.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

Headquartered in Washington, D.C., FLRA has three statutory components–the Authority, the 

Office of the General Counsel (OGC), and the Federal Service Impasses Panel (the FSIP or the 

Panel)–each with unique adjudicative or prosecutorial roles.

The Agency also provides full program and staff support to two other organizations–the Foreign 

Service Labor Relations Board and the Foreign Service Impasse Disputes Panel, pursuant to the 

Foreign Service Act of 1980, 22 U.S.C. §§ 4101-4118.
4

Chief Executive and Administrative Officer

The President of the United States designates one Member as Chairman who serves as FLRA’s 

chief executive and administrative officer. 5 U.S.C. § 7104(b).

The Authority

The Authority – FLRA’s adjudicatory body – is led by three full-time, presidentially nominated 

and Senate-confirmed Members who are appointed to fixed, staggered five-year terms. The 

President designates one Member to serve as Chairman. The Chairman acts as the Agency’s 

Chief Executive and Administrative Officer.

The Authority is responsible for adjudicating ULP complaints, ruling on exceptions to 

arbitrators’ awards, resolving disputes over the negotiability of collective-bargaining proposals 

and provisions, and deciding applications for review of Regional Directors’ decisions in 

representation disputes. The Authority Members appoint Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) to 

hear and prepare recommended decisions that may be appealed to the Authority in cases 

involving ULP complaints.

Other offices and programs under the jurisdiction of the Authority include the Office of the 

Solicitor, the Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ), the Office of Case Intake and 
5

Publication (CIP), and the Equal Employment Opportunity Program (EEO). Standing as an 

independent entity within the Authority is the Office of Inspector General.

The Office of the General Counsel

�e Office of the General Counsel (OGC) is led by a presidentially appointed and Senateconfirmed General Counsel (GC) who has direct authority over, and responsibility for, all 

employees in the OGC, including those in FLRA’s Regional Offices. �ere has not been a 

Presidentially-nominated and Senate-confirmed GC since January 20, 2017, although under the 

Vacancies Act, there was an Acting GC through November 16, 2017. �e OGC investigates and 

resolves ULP charges, files and prosecutes ULP complaints, and provides training, as 

appropriate. In addition, through delegation by the Authority, the Regional Offices investigate 

and resolve representation cases and conduct secret--ballot elections.

The General Counsel has a small staff at FLRA Headquarters, located in Washington, D.C. 

Headquarters management provides administrative oversight; develops policies, guidance, 

procedures, and manuals that provide programmatic direction for the Regional Offices and 

training and education for the parties; and processes appeals from the Regional Offices’ 

dismissals of ULP charges. Each Regional Office is headed by a Regional Director who 

provides leadership and management expertise for their respective regions. There are five 

Regional Offices: Atlanta, Georgia; Chicago, Illinois; Denver, Colorado; San Francisco, 

California; and Washington, D.C.
6

The Federal Service Impasses Panel

The Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP) is composed of part-time Presidential appointees 

who are appointed to fixed, staggered five-year terms. The FSIP assists in resolving negotiation 

impasses between Federal agencies and labor organizations representing Federal employees that 

arise from collective-bargaining negotiations under the Statute and the Federal Employees 

Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act. The FSIP Members are presidentially appointed 

(PA), but they are not subject to Senate confirmation. 

STRATEGIC GOALS / PERFORMANCE SUMMARY

Strategic Goal 1: We will ensure quality, timely, impartial, and consistent 

investigative and decision-making processes with determinations that are 

clearly articulated.

The Authority

The Authority began 2020 with renewed energy and staffing. During 2018 and 2019, the 

Authority experienced significant staffing shortages that hampered its case processing speed and 

resulted in a backlog. As a result, the Authority only averaged between 7 and 8 merits decisions 

per month in 2019. However, as a result of its focus on filling vacancies and training new 

attorneys, the Authority increased its productivity and ended 2020 with an average of between 11 

and 12 merits decisions per month.

Because the Authority entered 2020 with a backlog, the cases it closed were older. This means 

that, despite its increased productivity, the Authority did not meet all of its targeted goals 

regarding case-processing timelines (as will be reflected in the Annual Performance Plan). For 

example, the Authority met its 210-day target in only 32 percent (34/107) of arbitration cases, 

and its outer 365-day target in 61 percent (65/107) of arbitration cases. In contrast, the Authority 

met its 300-day target in 78 percent (25/32) of negotiability cases, and met its outer 365-day 

target in 84 percent (27/32) of negotiability cases. Further, the Authority continues to meet the 

statutory requirement to determine whether to grant review in 100 percent of representation cases 

within 60 days of filing of an application for review from a Regional Director’s determination. 

Where the Authority has granted applications for review, it has met its 210-day target in 88

percent (14/16) of cases and met its outer 365-day target in 88 percent (14/16) of cases. The few 

ULP cases in the Authority’s inventory are some of the oldest cases in its inventory. As a result, 

the Authority met its 300-day target and outer 365-day target in only 25 percent of the ULP 

decisions issued this year (1/4).

Although the Authority set targets to reduce the “average age” of closed cases within each case 

type by 5 percent, this target is in tension with the Authority’s focus on clearing its backlog and 

issuing the oldest cases in its inventory. Accordingly, the Authority did not hit the 5 percent 

reduction in any of its four case types.
7

The Office of Administrative Law Judges

The OALJ is also a part of the Authority. Due to the continuing lack of a Presidentially 

nominated and Senate-confirmed GC, the OALJ continued performing work for other agencies 

on a reimbursable basis through the OPM ALJ Loan Program. When the caseload increases 

substantially after a GC is confirmed, the OALJ may well have to become a recipient of the 

OPM ALJ Loan Program. In addition, due to attrition and reduction of staff of the Authority, the 

OALJ continued drafting decisions in accordance with regulations to assist the Authority with 

matters other than ULP cases.

The Office of the Solicitor

The Office of the Solicitor represents FLRA in court proceedings before all U.S. courts, 

including the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the Federal District 

Courts. During 2020, the Solicitor’s Office litigated numerous cases in the Federal courts, filed 

briefs supporting Authority decisions and defending the constitutionality of Authority 

components, and presented oral argument before panels of circuit court judges. After receiving 

decisions from the courts of appeals, the Solicitor’s Office provided timely and thoughtful advice 

to the Authority concerning the courts’ orders. The Solicitor’s Office experienced a sharply 

increased caseload in 2020, which is expected to continue in 2021 as parties seek review of 

adverse Authority decisions in the courts of appeals under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a). In addition, 

parties have increasingly been seeking to circumvent 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a)’s jurisdictional bar by 

filing many cases in Federal District Court. 

The Solicitor also serves as FLRA's in-house counsel, providing legal advice to FLRA 

components on all facets of Government operations, including ethics, FOIA, privacy, human 

resources, fiscal law, and the Administrative Procedure Act. It met all reporting and substantive 

deadlines under those authorities.

The Federal Service Impasses Panel

In the previous years, the Panel received an average of 140 requests for assistance per year 

(averaging close to 11 new filings per month). Beginning in 2018, the Panel received 92 filings 

(an average of 6 new filings per month) and 76 filings in 2019 (an average of 7 new filings per 

month). In 2020, the Panel received 90 new case filings (an average of 7.5 new filings per 

month). That filing trend is expected to continue.

In 2020, the FSIP exceeded all of its timeliness measures for assisting parties in resolving their 

negotiation impasses. Specifically, the Panel issued its decision to decline jurisdiction on cases 

not appropriately before the Panel within 140 days of the date that the parties filed their request 

for assistance in 100 percent (23/23) of cases. The Panel assisted the parties in achieving 

voluntary settlement within 160 days of the date that the parties filed their requests for assistance 

in 85 percent (11/13) of cases. And, it issued its final order within 200 days of the date that the 

parties filed their request for assistance in 88 percent (35/40) of cases.
8

The Agency has also established “average age” goals to provide the Panel and the parties a sense 

of how long, on average, it takes for a case to be resolved by the Panel. That target is a 

measurement of the age of disposition of cases, averaged over the prior 3 fiscal years – historical 

average age. The Panel accomplished a reduction in the amount of time, on average, to close out 

cases (i.e., notify parties of the Panel decision) where the Panel has determined that it will 

decline jurisdiction (i.e., historical average 89 days reduced to 70 days in 2020; 21 percent 

decrease in processing time).

However, the Panel has seen an increase in the processing and closing of cases closed by other 

means. Following the Administration’s issuance of Executive Orders 13836, 13837, and 13839, 

and the related OPM guidance to agencies regarding collective bargaining, effectuated in 

August 2019, the FSIP began to receive more impasses over ground rules for successor 

collective-bargaining agreements. These cases tend to be substantively more complex than 

single issue impact and implementation changes (e.g., changes in a personnel policy). In 2018, 

before the implementation of the 2018 Executive Orders, there were 4.7 issues, on average, in a 

FSIP case. In 2019, after the injunction on the Executive Orders was lifted in July 2019, there 

were 9.3 issues, on average, in a FSIP case. In 2020, there were, on average, 13.7 issues in a 

FSIP case. In addition to the increase in the number of issues in the cases, the parties tended to 

be more entrenched in their positions and less willing to settle the impasse. These trends resulted

in the need for the Panel to issue lengthy, complex, final decisions ordering the parties to adopt 

contract language to resolve the impasse.

The impact of these trends can be seen in the overall average age of the cases. Where a case was 

closed as a result of the Panel working with the parties to achieve mutual settlement of a 

negotiations impasse, the Panel saw a decrease in the amount of time, on average, to close out 

cases where the parties have reached settlement of the outstanding issues (i.e., historical average 

of 120 days decreased to 72 days in 2020; 40 percent decrease in processing time). Where the 

case was closed as a result of the Panel needing to make a final decision to order contract 

language to be adopted by the parties, the Panel saw an increase in the amount of time, on 

average, to close out cases where the Panel has ordered the adoption of final contract language 

(i.e., historical average of 154 days increased to 162 days in 2020; 5 percent increase in 

processing time). In total, the historic overall average age for processing a FSIP case was 82.5 

days. In 2020, that overall average age increased to 100 days, an 18 percent increase in 

processing time.

Office of General Counsel

The OGC has not had a GC or Acting GC since November 17, 2017. In addition, the OGC staff 

teleworked since mid-March of 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these challenges, 

the OGC continued to investigate cases and deliver strong results. It met its strategic 

performance measures for the timely resolution of ULP and representation cases, having 

resolved 94 percent (1692/1808) of ULP cases within 120 days of the filing date, and 80 percent 

(140/175) of representation cases within 120 days of filing. The timely resolution of REP cases 

increased by 20 percent. Of those ULP cases resolved in 2020, the OGC resolved over 248 of 

them through voluntary settlement during the investigative process.
9

A key aspect of FLRA’s 2018-2022 Strategic Plan is to increase the rate of eFiling, because by 

December 31, 2022, FLRA is mandated to have transitioned to electronic case files. To this end, 

the OGC increased its eFiling rate to 52 percent of all cases filed. This represents a 10 percent 

increase in the eFiling rate for the OGC.

Having OGC political leadership in place will restore the OGC’s ability to carry out its full 

mission and allow it to be successful in further meeting its 2021 and 2022 performance goals 

while beginning to address the large backlog of cases pending GC action (currently 420 

complaints and 409 appeals).

Strategic Goal 2: We will develop and provide tools and resources to enable 

the parties to prevent or more effectively and efficiently resolve their laborrelations disputes and improve their labor-management relationships.

Offering high-quality educational resources through FLRA’s website is key to prevent or more 

effectively and efficiently resolve labor-management disputes. Parties who are better informed 

about their rights and obligations under the Statute are less likely to pursue frivolous matters or 

defenses, and they are more likely to approach their labor-management relations in a manner that 

is consistent with the Statute.

�e Agency will continue to explore ways to supplement and enhance the educational resources 

on its website, such as expanding parties’ access to statutory and other training, online training 

modules, and short animated training videos.

Education and Training Tools

FLRA provides valuable education and training tools to the Federal labor-management-relations 

community in all aspects of its case law and processes. Providing meaningful and clear guidance 

on statutory rights and responsibilities so that its customers are knowledgeable furthers timely 

and efficient case processing and is an important function of FLRA under the Statute. FLRA 

delivers its educational materials through a variety of means, such as: in-person training sessions; 

web-based training modules and YouTube videos; and case outlines, manuals, and subject-matter 

guides that are easily accessible on www.flra.gov.

Training

FLRA addressed specific requests of parties for targeted training. Agency components have 

traditionally provided training on statutory principles governing ULPs, representational issues, 

negotiability disputes, and arbitration exceptions. Providing such external training to Federal 

agencies and labor organizations regarding their rights and obligations under the Statute directly 

promotes FLRA’s mission of protecting rights and facilitating stable labor-management 

relationships while advancing an effective and efficient Government.

Obviously, the 2020 training landscape was dramatically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, 

particularly the ability to offer in-person training. Accordingly, for 2020, FLRA provided only
10

29 training sessions, of which 9 were in-person and 20 were virtual (online). The training 

sessions conducted in the second-half of the fiscal year were done virtually.

�ese sessions were requested by the organizations based on their perceived needs in the Federal 

labor-management relations area. �e targeted training sessions focused on a range of issues, 

including unfair labor practices and representation matters. 

FLRA staff tailored each session to meet the individualized needs of the particular group and 

received consistent positive feedback from the participants. Specifically, in 2020, 98% of 

evaluators rated the training as effective or highly effective. �is positive feedback achieved the 

FLRA performance goal in this area.

In addition to training presentations at in-person events, the Authority, the OGC, and the FSIP 

provided online training, including presentations at several nationwide, annual conferences that 

were held virtually due to public health concerns. These conference sessions included 

presentations of newly prepared materials of current relevance. Prior to the pandemic, the OGC 

consistently provided statutory training courses across the country, though due to budget 

uncertainty, the OGC scaled back its provision of training that required FLRA-funded travel. 

In 2020, the training sessions at which FLRA presented virtually, combined with the 6 in-person 

training sessions to reach an estimated 2,780 participants. That number of participants achieved 

FLRA’s 2020 performance goal set for training.

Over and above these virtual conferences and in-person training sessions, FLRA YouTube 

instructional videos have received over 2700 views since the channel’s launch on April 29, 2020. 

FLRA issued two press releases announcing 6 instructional training sessions online.

In total, FLRA’s in-person, virtual, and YouTube training reached 5,480 persons.

YouTube Educational Tool

In 2020, FLRA created video trainings via FLRA’s new YouTube channel.

The new channel modernizes the Agency’s customer interactions and delivers on the Agency’s 

second strategic goal from the 2018-2022 Strategic Plan promising to “develop and provide tools 

and resources to enable the parties to prevent or more effectively and efficiently resolve their 

labor-relations disputes and improve their labor management relations.”

The channel can be found here. Once on the channel, customers can click “Subscribe” to receive 

updates when new material is posted.

On April 29, 2020, FLRA unveiled the channel beginning with five training videos covering 

unfair labor practice topics referenced in the Statute. The first five educational videos cover the 

following topics:

• Unlawful Interference – Section 7116(a)(1) of the Statute,
11

• Violations by Unions – Duty of Fair Representation and To Bargain in Good Faith,

• Discrimination – Section 7116(a)(2) and (4) of the Statute,

• Meetings and Bypasses – Formal Meetings, Investigatory Examinations, and Bypasses,

• Information Requests – Section 7114(b)(4) of the Statute.

On August 19, 2020, FLRA released an animated training video explaining the Agency’s eFiling 

process. This release was the first in a series of animated videos serving to further educate our 

customers on the many different aspects of federal-sector labor law. The eFiling video covers: 

• How to file a case, 

• Where to file, 

• Who is eligible to file,

• Case Types – Arbitration, Negotiability, Representation, Unfair Labor Practice, 

Negotiation Impasse, and 

• How to check case status. 

FLRA’s videos supplement external training events and since the channel’s launch, have 

received over 2,700 views. New educational content is in regular production to address our 

customers evolving needs. 

Live-Stream Training

In 2020, for the first time, FLRA live-streamed educational training via the internet. 

Case-Processing Timelines

Throughout 2020, FLRA provided leadership and guidance by educating parties with more 

meaningful information about case-processing timelines. For example, starting in 2019, the 

Authority has been measuring case age starting from the date that the case is filed until the date 

that a decision is issued. In addition, the Agency began reporting “average ages” of closed cases 

within all FLRA components and offices, which provides the parties with the average amount of 

time that it takes to process each case type. 

Educating the parties with this information will help them reach better, more informed decisions 

regarding their litigation options. It provides them with more realistic expectations around case 

processing.

Case Digests

The Authority educates the parties primarily through its issued decisions, particularly those on 

previously unaddressed legal issues. To that end, the Authority now publishes case-summary 

“digests” to provide additional, easy-to-understand guidance to its customers.

As of 2020, the Authority now posts each new decision with an accompanying digest. That 

culminates a two-year strategic initiative. Authority case digests that summarize each of the fulllength, merits decisions can be viewed online. 
12

While the digests are not part of the official decisions, these summaries are a valuable tool for 

researchers and members of the Federal labor-management community to identify more quickly 

and efficiently the decisions that interest them. The FLRA expects that case-summary digests 

will provide customers with additional, easy-to-understand guidance and information regarding 

precedent. 

Further, the Authority has compiled these digests on the Quarterly Digest Reports page. The 

Authority pursues this digest initiative as part of its commitment in its Strategic Plan for Fiscal 

Years 2018 through 2022 “to develop tools and resources” to assist the parties. 

The Quarterly Digest Reports are online for all of 2019 and through the first three quarters of 

calendar year 2020. To date, the Authority has published approximately 175 digests. Quarterly 

digests are up to date and were announced in a press release. 

FLRA’s 2018-2022 Strategic Plan also includes a renewed emphasis on clearly articulated 

written work products. As part of this effort, the FLRA has particularly focused in the first few 

paragraphs of each Authority decision as a place to provide a brief synopsis of the most pertinent 

principles in the decision. This uniform structure should help customers understand a decision’s 

significance or relevance to them without needing to read the entire decision. 

Parties have been reminded, however, that the descriptions contained in the digests are for 

informational purposes only, do not constitute legal precedent, and are not intended to be a 

substitute for the opinion of the Authority. 

RSS Feeds

Via subscription to its Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Feed, FLRA offers updates on FLRArelated news and provides notifications when new Authority decisions are posted. In 2020, by 

press release, the FLRA encouraged subscription to its RSS Feed.

Guides & Manuals

In 2020, FLRA continued to update online educational tools, including guides and manuals. In 

September of 2020, the Office of General Counsel updated the OGC Case Law Outline. Also in 

September of 2020, the Office of General Counsel updated the Representation Case Law

Outline.

Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service 

As part of the Agency’s strategic commitment to develop and provide tools and resources to 

enable the parties to prevent or more effectively and efficiently resolve their labor-relations 

disputes and improve their labor-management relationships, the Authority signed a memorandum 

of understanding (MOU) with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) creating a 

new pilot procedure for resolving negotiability appeals at no cost to the parties. 
13

�e Authority trained a unique cadre of FMCS mediators so that they may assist the parties in the 

resolution of negotiability appeals through mediation. �e training program was exceptionally 

well received by the mediators, who submitted comments that the trainers were “excellent” and 

“knowledgeable,” and that the course provided “great coverage of complex information.” 

Under the pilot program, before a negotiability appeal is considered by the Authority’s Members 

for a decision, the Authority may refer such appeals to FMCS, either on the Authority’s own 

initiative or based upon a request from the parties. �e Authority anticipates that this will reduce 

case-processing time in negotiability appeals as well as provide opportunities for parties to 

expeditiously resolve appropriate negotiability disputes without the need for a formal Authority 

decision.

After working with FMCS to develop a shared case-management system for tracking referrals, 

the Authority began referring negotiability appeals to FMCS mediators in December, 2019. �e 

preliminary results have showed promise. FMCS mediators have either narrowed, or completely 

resolved, the parties’ negotiability dispute in 40 percent (2/5) of referred cases. More 

importantly, with the help of the FMCS mediators, the parties have resolved 76 percent (48/63) 

of the proposals or provisions referred to mediation.

Consistent with the MOU, the Authority and FMCS will confer later this year concerning any 

necessary adjustments to the pilot program. Additionally, leadership of the Authority, FSIP, and 

FMCS made a joint panel presentation at the FMCS National Labor-Management Conference in 

August with approximately 500 participants.

eFiling

FLRA’s eFiling efforts serve to improve the customer’s experience allowing both filers and the 

Agency more efficiently handle filings electronically.

A key aspect of FLRA’s 2018-2022 Strategic Plan is to increase the rate of eFiling, because by 

December 31, 2022, FLRA is mandated to have transitioned to electronic case files. To this end, 

the OGC increased its eFiling rate to 52 percent of all cases filed. This represents a 10 percent 

increase in the eFiling rate for the OGC. The Authority saw a nine percent increase in eFiling, 

bringing its 2020 eFiling rate to 89 percent of all cases filed.

Like the rest of the federal government, FLRA is grappling with the challenges posed by the 

COVID-19 pandemic. In response, the Agency adapted very well technologically. To ensure 

the health and safety of the Agency’s employees and parties, FLRA suspended in-person filings

and the use of FLRA’s eFiling system has increased. At the same time, the Agency has 

continued to process documents filed by mail and facsimile, consistent with regulation.

Videoconference Hearings

In 2020, the OGC issued guidance to its Regional Directors on conducting representation 

hearings through videoconference in order to ensure that vital representational work continues 

during the COVID-19 pandemic.
14

Updated Regulations and Policies

The Authority also educates the parties through the issuance of regulations and policies. In 

situations where parties experience labor-management challenges, targeted assistance can 

promote stable labor-management relationships by educating the parties regarding their statutory 

rights and obligations. It can also promote effective and efficient Government by assisting parties 

in addressing their disputes without necessarily resorting to formal filings.

Regulations

In 2020, to educate and guide the public, the Authority issued one new regulation and 

requested comment on another:

• On December 23, 2019, FLRA sought comment on the regulations governing 

negotiability appeals to better “expedite proceedings,” consistent with Congress’s 

direction, and with the FLRA’s goal in its strategic plan to “ensure quality, timely . . . 

decision-making processes.” The proposed rule is designed to streamline the adjudication 

process for negotiability appeals, resulting in more timely decisions for the parties. On 

January 28, 2020, FLRA extended comments to February 11, 2020.

• On July 9, 2020, FLRA published a Final Rule, which will appear as § 2429.19 of the 

Authority’s Regulations, stating that “after the expiration of the one-year period during 

which an assignment may not be revoked under 5 U.S.C. § 7115(a), an employee may 

initiate the revocation of a previously authorized assignment at any time that the 

employee chooses... The employing agency must process the employee’s duesrevocation made after the first year “as soon as administratively feasible.” 

Policies

In 2020, the Authority issued five policy decisions to educate and guide the public:

• On February 14, 2020, in Office of Personnel Management, (71 FLRA No. 107, 0-PS34), the Authority stated that 5 U.S.C. § 7115(a) is most reasonably interpreted as 

permitting revocation of dues assignments at any time after the first year of assignment 

and stated that it would pursue notice-and-comment rulemaking to that effect. The 

resulting regulation, 5 C.F.R. § 2429.19, is described above.

• On August 19, 2020, in National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, Inc.,

(71 FLRA No. 178, O-PS-39), the Authority clarified that the Statute expressly 

authorizes only ‘direct’ lobbying and does not expressly authorize any other type of 

“indirect” or “grass roots” lobbying on official time.

• On September 30, 2020, in United States Office Of Personnel Management, (71 FLRA 

No. 191, 0-PS-38), the Authority stated that the Statute neither requires nor prohibits 

midterm bargaining, and that all proposals concerning midterm-bargaining obligations 

(including zipper clauses) are mandatory subjects for negotiation that may be bargained.

• On September 30, 2020, in U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, (71 FLRA No. 190, 0-PS-44), the Authority announced that “because the de 
15

minimis standard is inconsistent with the purposes of the Statute, ... an agency will not 

be required to bargain over a change to a condition of employment unless the change is 

determined to have a substantial impact on a condition of employment.”

• On September 30, 2020, in U.S. Department of Agriculture (71 FLRA No. 192, 0-PS-46), 

the Authority clarified that when parties are renegotiating an existing collectivebargaining agreement and a continuance provision extends the operation of the agreement 

beyond the originally established, concrete expiration date, the first day of the extension 

period marks the beginning of a new term for the agreement under sections 7114(c) and 

7116(a)(7) of the Statute. On that first day of the extension, all government-wide 

regulations that became effective during the previous term of the agreement will, where 

applicable, govern the parties immediately by operation of law, and the thirty-day period 

for agency-head review will begin.

Questionnaire

During the COVID-19 pandemic, FLRA implemented a customer questionnaire which was used 

in representation cases.

Strategic Goal 3: We will manage our resources effectively and efficiently, 

and recognize that our dedicated workforce is critical to the resolution of 

labor-relations disputes.

FLRA completed, and complied with, the three requirements of the President’s Management 

Agenda, Cross-Agency Priority Goal 3, as required by the Director’s memorandum 

“Maximization of Employee Performance Management and Engagement by Streamlining 

Agency Performance and Dismissal Policies and Procedures” dated September 25, 2019:

1. Reviewed whether agency policies create unnecessary barriers to addressing poor 

performance;

2. Removed steps and procedures for addressing poor performance and misconduct that are 

not required by statute or Federal regulation that is currently in force; and

3. Provided supervisors with policies and guidance regarding performance improvement 

plans (PIPs) pursuant to Chapter 43 (noting PIPs can be started at any point and not just 

at the end of the rating period) and guidance that unacceptable performance can be 

addressed through Chapter 75.
16

EO 13781

In full support of Executive Order 13781, Comprehensive Plan for Reorganizing the Executive 

Branch, (March 13, 2017) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memorandum M-17-

22, Comprehensive Plan for Reforming the Federal Government and Reducing the Federal 

Civilian Workforce (April 12, 2017), the Agency completed its process of taking a closer look at 

its structure and operations, and implemented solutions for streamlining and reducing costs 

across FLRA. It developed reform proposals and a long-term workforce plan focused on 

improving the Agency’s efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability. Based on regional 

workload, flat budgets, increasing rental costs, and the availability of technology to improve 

operational efficiency, the final result was the closure of the Boston and Dallas Regional Offices 

in 2019 and 2018, respectively. 

Travel and Training

Other reform efforts included sustaining the 25 percent across-the-board reduction in the 

Agency-wide travel and Agency-wide internal, employee-development training from 2017 

through 2020. However, travel costs will increase for hearings once a GC is on board and for 

specific targeted statutory training to parties. In addition, increased funding was necessary for 

professional development of FLRA staff, was incorporated into the 2021 budget, and is 

continued in 2022. 

Professional Development

With respect to professional development, despite budgetary limitations, FLRA continues to 

provide its employees with relevant, mission-related training and better identify training needs. 

This includes utilizing recommendations from the Agency’s Professional Development Team 

such as the promotion of the use of employee individual development plans for all staff. The 

Agency has also continued to provide informal “lunch and learns” on a variety of mission-related 

and operational topics.

Additional Cost Reductions

FLRA has also committed to other administrative efforts to reduce costs. Where appropriate, the 

Agency will continue to tap existing Government-wide shared-services solutions, like those that 

it already uses for payroll, financial services, and travel. It will continue to seek out and utilize 

existing Government-wide procurement solutions and contracting flexibilities. These include 

using a General Services Administration (GSA) approved vendor that the Agency otherwise 

would not have found for its eFiling and Case Management projects, and piggybacking on the 

Library of Congress’s FEDLINK contracting tool to procure Westlaw legal research services 

more easily.

All-Employee Meetings

FLRA had 6 all-employee WebEx meetings to keep employees engaged:
17

COVID All-Employee Meeting Dates

October 22, 2020

July 30, 2020

May 7, 2020

March 12, 2020

Pre-COVID All-Employee Meeting Dates

February 20, 2020 (Black History Event)

January 30, 2020

People: Developing a Workforce for the 21st Century

The mission accomplishments cited above are particularly noteworthy because, in 2020, the 

Agency has been operating with only 107 FTEs throughout most of 2020 due to attrition, 

retirements, and reduced funding in 2020.

Guided by its strategic plan, in 2020, FLRA continued its review of Agency performancemanagement systems (both General Schedule and Senior Executive Service) and individual 

employee performance plans to ensure that they directly align with the 2018-2022 Strategic Plan. 

Revised performance standards were implemented as part of a one-year pilot that began in 2020.

In support of these efforts to improve performance management, the Agency is working with the 

OPM to implement the USA Performance automated performance-management system in 2021. 

Automating the performance-management process using a tool that is compliant with all Federal 

performance-management regulations and OPM recommendations, will assist Agency managers 

– and the Agency as a whole – in increasing performance accountability.

OPM’s FEVS provides employees an opportunity to influence change by submitting feedback 

about their work environment, agency leadership, and other important factors affecting morale 

and employee satisfaction. FLRA’s 2019 overall response rate was 64 percent - 23 points higher 

than the Government-wide average of 41 percent. That rate is also in line with the small agency 

(100-999 employees) response rate of 67 percent.

In response to the 2019 FEVS feedback, the Agency continues to actively engage employees at 

all levels in Agency processes and to seek their opinions. The Strategic Plan Implementation 

Teams (with representation from headquarters, regional offices, and all of the components) 

continue to address the challenges raised by the recent FEVS results. Teams have conducted 

focus groups to better understand and address employee concerns. The teams, which include 

managers and non-managers, are:

(1) Professional Development Team

(2) Performance Communication Teams

a. Authority

b. OGC

c. Administrative and Management

(3) Customer Engagement Team
18

(4) Employee Engagement Team

(5) Diversity & Inclusion Team

(6) Health & Wellness Team

(7) Agency Awards Development Team

The teams continue to focus on a variety of issues including revisions to performance plans for 

mission critical positions, improving customer engagement, and improving professional 

development within the Agency. These employee-led teams have recommended, for example, 

new performance standards for the majority of positions in the agency, completion of individual 

development plans by employees to identify their training needs, professional development 

opportunities, a new communication form implemented as a way of improving anonymous 

employee engagement, and recently recorded video presentations of educational material 

available on the FLRA website and YouTube channel. Many of the teams’ recommendations 

were accepted and implemented in 2020. Teams continue to engage in discussions with 

leadership and have a prominent voice on how best to allocate the Agency’s limited training 

dollars. This process continues to add value and has allowed employees to be engaged in the 

stewardship of the Agency and to offer innovative and creative solutions to problems they see in 

the workplace or its processes.

Consistent with OMB policy, FLRA provided a Workforce Fund Plan to guide the awards 

program in 2020. For 2021, as directed by OMB, the Agency will increase the award funding by 

one percent of non-SES/SL spending. To ensure that FLRA creates a comprehensive strategy to 

develop and foster a culture of recognition, both formal and informal, FLRA created an Agency 

Awards Development Team to not only create and implement the Agency’s Workforce Fund 

Plan but also to provide innovative ideas to update the Agency’s award policy. This review is to 

be completed in 2021.

IT Modernization

As noted above, FLRA is continuing its ongoing efforts to expand its IT capabilities to enhance 

mission performance by improving the quality and effectiveness of its internal- and externalcustomer-facing services – including increased use of cloud-based solutions, improving its IT 

security program, and developing innovative means for enhancing employees’ ability to work 

remotely. The Agency also continues to improve its overall efficiency, as well as the customer 

service experience, by engaging in new and innovative ways to conduct business, such as 

through eFiling. In addition, the Agency has strategically emphasized IT modernization by 

implementing realistic and attainable equipment lifecycles.

In 2020, FLRA continued to execute its multi-year plan to achieve the long-term goal of 

implementing end-to-end electronic case files throughout the Agency. Originally a four-phase 

plan, the Agency has succeeded in merging Phases 2 and 3 of the original plan into a single 

implementation. This combination will allow the Agency to accelerate the realization of a fully 

electronic case file and compliance with OMB mandates.

1. Phase 1 was implementation of the upgraded eFiling “3.0” system. Addressing customer 

feedback, and after refining its approach, the Agency launched a more user-friendly and 
19

intuitive user interface that is built on a new, cloud-based technology platform that will 

better support the Agency’s long-term needs. This was completed in 2018.

2. The original goal of Phase 2 was to provide an integrated, more user friendly and 

intuitive user interface for the Agency’s internal electronic CMS that mimicked the look 

and feel of eFiling 3.0. Phase 2 also included implementation of an Agency-wide DMS–

an electronic, cloud-based “filing cabinet” that provides a framework for organizing 

digital and paper documents. The DMS also provides the necessary storage capacity and 

IT platform for the integration of eFiling, CMS, and DMS. The Agency has successfully 

implemented the DMS, and in 2020 completed the first pilot of the CMS with the 

Authority component.

3. Phase 3 was originally slated to consist of the integration of eFiling, CMS, and DMS. 

However, Phase 2 and Phase 3 have been combined. The Agency has successfully 

developed a full, end-to-end integrated and automated electronic casefile for the 

Authority component. The system is currently scheduled to go live before the end of 

2020. The Agency now expects to complete development for the OGC in 2021 and to 

fully implement the new CMS across all components by the end of CY 2021.

4. Phase 3 (nee 4) is the transition to 100 percent electronic case files throughout the 

Agency, with a goal of September 30, 2022, for completion.

The Agency has relied on an agile development approach, both in how the systems are developed 

and with how the project is funded. As such, timelines associated with the plan have shifted over 

time, but the Agency still remains within target, and its overall costs are well below industry 

standards for similar undertakings. Further, despite the evolving nature of the approach, the goal 

and the results have remained the same: implementation of fully electronic case files throughout 

the Agency to enable the FLRA to increase its overall efficiency and effectiveness and meet the 

OMB mandate of electronic case files by December 2022. 

It is important to note that should FLRA not receive the IT funds requested and approved by 

OMB in 2021, then significant delays will occur. Successful achievement of this goal will 

enable implementation of additional external and internal case processing improvements that will 

further maximize the use of technology and eliminate many of the labor-intensive, manual case 

processes that are currently in place. These case-processing improvements include reducing the 

time and expense that FLRA staff spends copying, scanning, mailing, and manually entering 

data; eliminating outdated facsimile service; reducing U.S. Postal Service costs by implementing 

electronic service of case-related documents by FLRA on the parties; reducing or eliminating 

delivery service costs for transferring paper case files between FLRA components; implementing 

a pilot program that would mandate FLRA parties to file all case-related documents 

electronically; and eventually mandating eFiling for all FLRA case filings. The greatest benefit 

will be the ability to redirect staff hours currently used to perform manual administrative tasks to 

perform other mission-critical functions.

In addition, FLRA continues to embrace its “cloud-first” approach. All of the Agency’s major 

technical components – email, DMS, CMS, and eFiling – are hosted in the cloud. The pandemic 
20

significantly accelerated the Agency’s plan to move its Video Teleconferencing (VTC) system to 

the cloud in 2020 and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) in 2021. The Agency fully 

implemented the industry-standard Webex video conferencing system so that FLRA employees 

could continue to operate at 100 percent during social distancing. In 2020, the Agency 

transitioned to a new network cloud service provider, increasing the Agency’s network 

bandwidth and saving the Agency roughly 40 percent of its network costs to invest in 

cybersecurity initiatives. FLRA continued to maintain its lifecycle for Agency computer 

hardware, completing an Agency refresh of key networking infrastructure components and 

specific data center hardware.
21

FINANCIAL SECTION

Principal Financial Statements

The FLRA’s principal financial statements have been prepared to report the financial position 

and results of operations of the Agency, pursuant to the requirements of 31 U.S.C. § 3515(b). 

While the statements have been prepared from the books and records of the FLRA in accordance 

with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for Federal entities and the formats 

prescribed by the OMB, the statements are in addition to the financial reports used to monitor 

and control budgetary resources, which are prepared from the same books and records. The 

statements should be read with the realization that they are for a component of the U.S.

Government, a sovereign entity.

Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet presents the FLRA’s financial position through the identification of Agency

assets, liabilities, and net position. The FLRA’s fund balance with the Department of the 

Treasury (the Treasury) is approximately 95% of the total assets in both FY 2019 and FY 2020. 

The FLRA does not maintain any cash in commercial bank accounts or foreign currency 

balances, nor does it have any revolving or trust funds. The Agency’s second largest asset is its 

furniture, equipment, and IT hardware and software, which is recorded at original acquisition

cost, and then depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of the 

asset. 

Total assets increased to $6.9 million at the end of FY 2020 from $6.5 million at the end of 

FY 2019. The Agency did not make any new fixed-asset purchases in FY 2020, while the net 

book value of property and equipment already owned experienced further depreciation.

Assets as of September 30, 2020 2019

Fund balance with the Treasury $6,577,962 $6,167,641

General property and 

equipment 239,886 248,062 

Accounts receivable 48,401 48,607

Prepaid expenses 36,956 49,655

Total $6,903,205 $6,513,966

Totals may not add due to rounding.

Funds held with the Treasury are available to pay Agency liabilities, which represent the amount 

of monies or other resources likely to be paid by the FLRA as a result of transactions or events 

that have already occurred. Accrued employee leave, payroll, and benefits costs, along with 

accrued workers’ compensation under the Federal Employees Compensation Act (FECA), 

accounted for nearly 90 percent of total liabilities at the end of FY 2020. The remaining 10

percent reflects the amount owed by the FLRA to vendors and other Federal agencies for 
22

purchased goods and services. Agency liabilities totaled $3.9 million in FY 2019, and $4.0

million in FY 2020.

Liabilities as of September 30, 2020 2019

Unfunded leave $1,459,318 $1,019,222 

FECA liability 1,341,638 1,792,524 

Accrued payroll and benefits 958,960 882,702 

Accounts payable 261,607 166,022 

Other Liabilities 1,400 11,138

Total 4,022,923 3,871,608 

The FLRA’s total net position at the end of FY 2020 was $2.9 million a $0.2 million increase 

from the previous year.

Statement of Net Cost

The Statement of Net Cost presents the gross cost of operating the FLRA’s three major 

programs, less any reimbursable revenue earned from those activities. The net cost of operations 

in FY 2020 was $25.2 million, which is $0.7 million more than FY 2019. In FY 2020, 60

percent of the Agency’s direct resources were dedicated to the Authority, which includes central 

administrative services provided to the entire Agency; 36 percent were dedicated to the OGC; 

and the remaining 4 percent were devoted to the FSIP.

FY 2020 Financial Obligations by Budget Object Class

Compensation & benefits (77%)

Other contractual services (12%)

Rent & utilities (9%)

Communications (1%)

Supplies & equipment (1%)

Travel & transportation (0.1%)
23

Statement of Changes in Net Position

The Statement of Changes in Net Position reflects the changes that occurred within the 

cumulative results of operations and any unexpended appropriations. The cumulative results of 

operations represent the net results of operations since inception, the cumulative amount of 

prior-period adjustments, the remaining book value of capitalized assets, and future funding 

requirements. Cumulative results from FY 2019 to FY 2020 reflect a $18 thousand decrease 

totaling $2.5 million.

Unexpended appropriations include undelivered orders and unobligated balances. Undelivered 

orders reflect the amount of goods and services ordered that have yet to be received. 

Unobligated balances are the amount of appropriations or other authority remaining after 

deducting the cumulative obligations from the amount available for obligation. The FLRA had 

an increase of $0.2 million in total, unexpended Agency appropriations in FY 2020.

Statement on Budgetary Resources

The Statement on Budgetary Resources reports the budgetary resources available to the FLRA 

during FY 2019 and FY 2020 to carry out the activities of the Agency, as well as the status of 

those resources at the end of each year. The primary source of FLRA funding is its annual 

Salaries and Expenses appropriation from the Congress. The Agency also receives 

reimbursements, pursuant to the Economy Act, for travel expenses associated with training 

provided by Agency employees on the Statute and FLRA mission.

The FLRA had $25.5 million in total budgetary resources available to it in FY 2020. The 

Agency incurred obligations of $25.1 million in FY 2020, with recording outlays of $24.2 

million. Total budgetary resources decreased by $1.2 million in FY 2020, due primarily to a 

reduction in annual appropriations which resulted in decreased new obligations.
24

Accompanying notes are integral to these statements and may reflect rounding differences.

2020 2019

Assets:

Intragovernmental

Fund Balance With Treasury (Note 2) $ 6,577,962 $ 6,167,641

Accounts Receivable (Note 3) 34,669 40,368

Prepaid Expenses 36,956 49,655

Total Intragovernmental $ 6,649,587 $ 6,257,664

Accounts Receivable, Net (Note 3) $ 13,732 $ 8,239

Property, Equipment, and Software, Net (Note 4) 239,886 248,062

Total Assets $6,903,205 $6,513,966

Liabilities:

Intragovernmental

Accounts Payable (Note 5) $ 36,802 $ -

Accrued Payroll and Benefits (Note 5) 215,959 173,242

FECA Unfunded (Note 5) 197,032 198,927

Other 1,400 10,850

Total Intragovernmental $ 451,193 $ 383,019

Accounts Payable (Note 5) $ 224,805 $ 166,022

Unfunded Leave (Note 5) 1,459,318 1,019,222

FECA Actuarial Liability (Note 5) 1,144,606 1,593,597

Accrued Payroll and Benefits (Note 5) 743,001 709,460

Other Liabilities (Note 6) - 288

Total Liabilities $ 4,022,923 $ 3,871,608

Net Position:

Unexpended Appropriations - Other Funds $ 5,394,350 $ 5,174,568

Cumulative Results of Operations - Other Funds (2,514,068) (2,532,210)

Total Net Position $ 2,880,282 $ 2,642,358

Total Liabilities and Net Position $ 6,903,205 $ 6,513,966

BALANCE SHEET

(in dollars)

As of September 30, 2020 and 2019

Federal Labor Relations Authority
25

Accompanying notes are integral to these statements and may reflect rounding differences.

2020 2019

Gross Program Costs:

Authority:

Intragovernmental Costs $ 5,849,713 $ 5,390,916

 Public Costs 9,264,661 8,793,418

 Total Program Costs $ 15,114,374 $ 14,184,334

Less: Earned Revenue (1,115) (22,521)

Net Program Costs $ 15,113,259 $ 14,161,813

Federal Services Impasse Panel:

Intragovernmental Costs $ 194,347 $ 184,877

 Public Costs 786,688 611,694

 Total Program Costs $ 981,035 $ 796,571

Less: Earned Revenue (500) -

Net Program Costs $ 980,535 $ 796,571

Office of General Counsel:

Intragovernmental Costs $ 2,162,826 $ 2,363,319

 Public Costs 6,948,062 7,219,015

 Total Program Costs $ 9,110,888 $ 9,582,334

Less: Earned Revenue - (6,408)

Net Program Costs $ 9,110,888 $ 9,575,926

Total Gross Program Costs $ 25,206,297 $ 24,563,239

Less: Total Earned Revenue (1,615) (28,929)

Net Cost of Operations $ 25,204,681 $ 24,534,310

STATEMENT OF NET COST

(in dollars)

For the Years Ended September 30, 2020 and 2019

Federal Labor Relations Authority
26

Accompanying notes are integral to these statements and may reflect rounding differences.

2020 2019

Unexpended Appropriations:

Beginning Balances $ 5,174,568 $ 2,864,908

Budgetary Financing Sources:

Appropriations Received $ 24,890,000 $ 26,200,000

Other Adjustments (279,328) (525,964)

Appropriations Used (24,390,891) (23,364,376)

Total Budgetary Financing Sources $ 219,781 $ 2,309,660

Total Unexpended Appropriations $ 5,394,350 $ 5,174,568

Cumulative Results of Operations:

Beginning Balances $ (2,532,210) $ (2,493,570)

Budgetary Financing Sources:

Appropriations Used $ 24,390,891 $ 23,364,376

Other Financing Sources (Non-Exchange):

Imputed Financing Sources $ 831,882 $ 1,131,294

Other 50 -

Total Financing Sources $ 25,222,823 $ 24,495,670

Net Cost of Operations (25,204,681) (24,534,310)

Net Change $ 18,142 $ (38,640)

Cumulative Results of Operations $ (2,514,068) $ (2,532,210)

Net Position $ 2,880,282 $ 2,642,358

For the Years Ended September 30, 2020 and 2019

Federal Labor Relations Authority

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN NET POSITION

(in dollars)
27

Accompanying notes are integral to these statements and may reflect rounding differences.

2020 2019

Budgetary Resources:

Unobligated balance from prior year budget authority, net $ 612,618 $ 467,118

Appropriations 24,890,000 26,200,000

Spending authority from offsetting collections 1,165 29,662

Total Budgetary Resources $ 25,503,783 $ 26,696,780

Status of Budgetary Resources:

New obligations and upward adjustments (Note 10) $ 25,108,103 $ 26,386,975

Unobligated balance, end of year:

 Apportioned, unexpired account 14,319 34,427

Expired unobligated balance, end of year 381,361 275,378

Unobligated balance, end of year (total) 395,680 309,805

Total Budgetary Resources $ 25,503,783 $ 26,696,780

Outlays, net:

Outlays, net, (total) $ 24,200,352 $ 23,980,695

Agency outlays, net $ 24,200,352 $ 23,980,695

Federal Labor Relations Authority

STATEMENT OF BUDGETARY RESOURCES

(in dollars)

For the Years Ended September 30, 2020 and 2019
28

NOTE 1: SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

A. Reporting Entity

The FLRA is an independent, administrative Federal agency created by Title VII of the Civil Service 

Reform Act of 1978, with a mission to carry out five statutory responsibilities: (1) determining the 

appropriateness of units for labor organization representation; (2) resolving complaints of unfair labor 

practices; (3) adjudicating exceptions to arbitrators’ awards; (4) adjudicating legal issues relating to duty to 

bargain; and (5) resolving impasses during negotiations. The agency consists of three components: the 

Authority, the Office of the General Counsel, and the Federal Service Impasses Panel.

B. Basis of Accounting and Presentation

The financial statements have been prepared to report the financial position, net cost of operations, 

changes in net position, and budgetary resources of the FLRA in accordance with the Chief Financial 

Officers Act of 1990, the Government Management Reform Act of 1994, and the Accountability of Tax 

Dollars Act of 2002. The statements have been prepared from agency financial records in accordance with 

U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), in accordance with guidance issued by the 

Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) and the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB), as prescribed in OMB Circular A-136, Financial Reporting Requirements, and pursuant to the 

requirements of 31 U.S.C. § 3515(b). These financial statements include all funds and accounts under the 

control of the FLRA. 

The accounting structure of Federal agencies is designed to reflect both accrual and budgetary accounting 

transactions. Under the accrual method of accounting, revenues are recognized when earned, and 

expenses are recognized when incurred, without regard to the receipt or payment of cash. The budgetary 

accounting principles, on the other hand, are designed to recognize the obligation of funds according to 

legal requirements, which in many cases occur before an accrual-based transaction takes place. The 

recognition of budgetary accounting transactions is essential for compliance with legal constraints and 

controls over the use of Federal funds. The accompanying financial statements are prepared on the accrual 

basis of accounting.

Accounting standards require all reporting entities to disclose that accounting standards allow certain 

presentations and disclosures to be modified, if needed, to prevent the disclosure of classified information.

C. Budget Authority

The Congress passes appropriations annually that provide the FLRA with authority to obligate funds for 

necessary salaries and expenses to carry out mandated program activities. These funds are available until 

expended, subject to OMB apportionment and to Congressional restrictions on the expenditure of funds. 

Also, the FLRA places internal restrictions on fund expenditures to ensure the efficient and proper use of 

all funds.

D. Fund Balance with Treasury

FLRA receipts and disbursements are processed by the Department of the Treasury. Fund balances with 

the Treasury consist of appropriated funds that are available to pay current liabilities and to finance 

authorized purchase commitments. No cash is held in commercial bank accounts.

E. Accounts Receivable
29

Accounts receivable consists of amounts owed to FLRA by other federal agencies and the public. 

Amounts due from federal agencies are considered fully collectible and consist of interagency 

agreements. An allowance for uncollectible accounts receivable from the public is established when 

either (1) management determines that collection is unlikely to occur after a review of outstanding 

accounts and the failure of all collection efforts, or (2) an account for which no allowance has been 

established is submitted to the Department of the Treasury for collection, which takes place when it 

becomes 120 days delinquent. Based on historical experience, all receivables are considered collectible 

and no allowance is provided.

F. General Property and Equipment (P&E)

This category consists of equipment and internal use software. The basis for recording purchased P&E is 

full cost, including all costs incurred to bring FLRA P&E to and from a location suitable for its intended 

use. P&E is depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of the asset. 

Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards (SFFAS) No. 10, Accounting for Internal Use 

Software, provides accounting standards for internal use software used by each agency. The standards 

provide for capitalized property to continue to be reported on the Balance Sheet. P&E that are not 

capitalized because they are under the capitalization threshold are expensed in the year of acquisition.

The FLRA’s capitalization threshold for individual purchases is $25,000. Bulk purchases of similar items 

that individually are worth less than $25,000, but collectively are worth more than $100,000 are also 

capitalized using the same general P&E categories and useful lives as capital acquisitions. Major building 

alterations and renovations are capitalized, while maintenance and repair costs are charged to expense as 

incurred.

General P&E Category Service Life

Software 3 Years 

Computer Equipment 5 Years 

Office Equipment 7 Years 

Office Furniture 15 Years 

Leasehold Improvements Life of lease 

G. Liabilities

Liabilities represent the amount of monies or other resources likely to be paid by the FLRA as a result of 

transactions or events that have already occurred. Liabilities are recognized when they are incurred, 

regardless of whether they are covered by available budgetary resources. FLRA reports its liabilities 

under two categories, Intragovernmental and With the Public. Intragovernmental liabilities represent 

funds owed to another government agency. Liabilities with the Public represent funds owed to any entity 

or person that is not a federal agency, including private sector firms and federal employees. Each of these 

categories may include liabilities that are covered by budgetary resources and liabilities not covered by 

budgetary resources. No liability can be paid, however, absent an appropriation. Liabilities for which an 

appropriation has not been enacted are, therefore, classified as not covered by budgetary resources, since 

there is no certainty that the appropriation will be enacted. Liabilities that are covered by budgetary 

resources consist of intragovernmental and public accounts payable and accrued funded payroll. 

Liabilities not covered by budgetary resources in FY 2019 and FY 2020 consist of accrued and actuarial 

Federal Employees Compensation Act (FECA) compensation and unfunded employee leave. The Federal 

government, acting in its sovereign capacity, can abrogate liabilities other than contracts.
30

H. FECA Liabilities

An accrued FECA liability is recorded for actual and estimated future payments to be made for workers’ 

compensation pursuant to the FECA. The actual costs incurred are reflected as a liability because agencies 

will reimburse the Department of Labor (DOL) two years after the actual payment of expenses. Future 

revenues will be used for their reimbursement to the DOL. The liability consists of: (1) the unreimbursed 

cost paid by the DOL for compensation to recipients under the FECA; and (2) the net present value of 

estimated future payments calculated by the DOL.

An estimated actuarial liability for future workers’ compensation benefits is included. The liability 

estimate is based on the DOL’s FECA actuarial model that takes the amount of benefit payments over the 

last twelve quarters and calculates the annual average of payments for medical expenses and 

compensation. This average is then multiplied by the liabilities-to-benefits paid ratios for the whole 

FECA program. The ratios may vary from year to year as a result of economic assumptions and other 

factors, but the model calculates a liability approximately twelve times the annual payments.

I. Annual, Sick and Other Leave

Amounts associated with the payment of annual leave are accrued while leave is being earned by 

employees, and this accrual is reduced as leave is taken. Each year the balance in the accrued annual leave 

account is adjusted to reflect current pay rates. To the extent that current or prior-year appropriations are 

not available to finance annual leave, future financing sources will be used. Sick leave and other types of 

non-vested leave are expensed as taken. 

Any liability for sick leave that is accrued but not taken by a Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or 

a Civil Service Retirement System Offset (CSRS offset)-covered employee is transferred to the Office of 

Personnel Management (OPM) upon the retirement of that individual. Federal Employees Retirement 

System (FERS)-covered employees were not entitled to use unused sick leave for additional service credit 

until October 28, 2009. For retirements effective between October 28, 2009 and December 31, 2013, 50 

percent of unused sick leave can be used for additional service credit. For retirements effective after 

December 31, 2013, 100 percent of unused sick leave can be credited.

J. Net Position

The components of net position are unexpended appropriations and cumulative results of operations. 

Unexpended appropriations include undelivered orders and unobligated balances. Undelivered orders 

reflect the amount of goods and services ordered that have yet to be actively or constructively received. 

Unobligated balances are the amount of appropriations or other authority remaining after deducting the 

cumulative obligations from the amount available for obligation. The cumulative results of operations 

represent the net results of operations since inception, the cumulative amount of prior-period adjustments, 

the remaining book value of capitalized assets, and future funding requirements.

K. Retirement Plans

The FLRA’s employees participate in the CSRS or the FERS. For CSRS employees, hired prior to January 

1, 1984, the FLRA withholds seven percent of each employee’s salary and contributes seven percent of the 

employee’s basic salary to the CSRS Retirement and Disability Fund. These employees may also 

contribute, on a tax-deferred basis, to a defined contribution plan – the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). The 

regular Internal Revenue Service limit in FY 2019 and FY 2020 was $19,000 and $19,500, respectively. 

The FLRA is not required to and does not contribute any matching amounts for CSRS employees. 
31

The FERS was established by enactment of Public Law 99-335. Pursuant to this law, the FERS and Social 

Security automatically cover most employees hired after December 31, 1983. Employees hired before 

January 1, 1984 elected either to join the FERS and Social Security or to remain in the CSRS. For FERS 

employees, the FLRA withholds 6.2 percent in old age survivors and disability insurance up to a specified 

wage ceiling and 0.8 percent of an employee’s gross earnings for retirement. In FY 2020, the FLRA 

matched the retirement withholdings with a contribution equal to 16.0 percent of the employee’s taxable 

salary. Due to enactment of the FERS Revised Annuity Employee and Further Revised Annuity Employee 

programs, the agency matched with a contribution equal to 14.2 percent for employees hired during and 

after calendar year 2013.

All employees are eligible to contribute to the TSP. For employees under the FERS, a TSP account is 

automatically established. The FLRA is required to make a mandatory contribution of one percent of the 

base salary for each employee under the FERS. The agency is required to match the employee’s contribution 

up to a maximum of five percent of his or her salary. Matching contributions are not made to the TSP 

accounts established by CSRS employees. The FLRA does not report on its financial statements information 

pertaining to the retirement plans covering its employees. Reporting amounts such as plan assets, 

accumulated plan benefits, and related unfunded liabilities, if any, are the responsibility of the OPM. 

FERS employees and certain CSRS reinstatement employees are eligible to participate in the Social 

Security program after retirement. CSRS employees who are 65 or older are eligible for Social Security 

payments (even if they have not retired). In these instances, the FLRA remits the employer’s share of the 

required contribution.

L. Imputed Financing from Costs Absorbed by Others

The FASAB’s SFFAS No. 5, Accounting for Liabilities of the Federal Government, requires that employer 

agencies recognize the full cost of pension, health, and life insurance benefits during their employees’ active 

years of service. The OPM, as administrator of the CSRS and FERS plans, the Federal Employees Health 

Benefits Program, and the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Program, must provide the “cost 

factors” that adjust the agency contribution rate to the full cost for the applicable benefit programs. An 

imputed financing source and corresponding imputed personnel cost is reflected in the Statement of 

Changes in Net Position and the Statement of Net Cost. 

M. Revenue and Other Financing Sources

The FLRA’s revenues are derived from reimbursable work agreements, Freedom of Information Act 

collections, and a direct annual appropriation. The FLRA recognizes reimbursable work when earned, i.e., 

services have been provided. Each reimbursable work agreement specifies the dollar value of the agreement 

and is based on estimated resources needed to perform the specified services.

The agency receives an annual Salaries and Expenses appropriation from the Congress. Annual 

appropriations are used, within statutory limits, for salaries and administrative expenses and for operating 

and capital expenditures for essential P&E. Appropriations are recognized as non-exchange revenues at 

the time the related program expenses are incurred. Appropriations expended for capitalized P&E are 

recognized as expenses when an asset is consumed in operations. The FLRA’s annual appropriation for 

FY 2019 and FY 2020 was $26,200,000 and $24,890,000, respectively.

N. Expired Accounts and Cancelled Authority

Unless otherwise specified by law, annual budget authority expires for incurring new obligations at the 

beginning of the subsequent fiscal year. The account into which the annual authority is placed is called an 
32

expired account. For five fiscal years, the expired account is available for expenditure to liquidate valid 

obligations incurred during the unexpired period. Adjustments are allowed to increase or decrease valid 

obligations incurred during the unexpired period that were not previously reported. At the end of the fifth 

expired year, the account is cancelled and any remaining money is returned to the Treasury.

O. Contingencies

A contingency is an existing condition, situation, or set of circumstances involving uncertainty as to 

possible gain or loss to the agency. The uncertainty will ultimately be resolved when one or more future 

events occur or fail to occur. With the exception of pending, threatened, or potential litigation, a contingent 

liability is recognized when a past transaction or event has occurred, a future outflow or other sacrifice of 

resources is more likely than not, and the related future outflow or sacrifice of resources is measurable. For 

pending, threatened, or potential litigation, a liability is recognized when a past transaction or event has 

occurred, a future outflow or other sacrifice of resources is likely, and the related future outflow or sacrifice 

of resources is measurable.

P. Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates 

and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses. Actual 

results could differ from those estimates.

Q. Advances and Prepayments

Advance payments are generally prohibited by law. There are some exceptions, such as reimbursable work 

agreements, subscriptions, and payments to contractors and employees. Payments made in advance of the 

receipt of goods and services are recorded as advance payments and recognized as expenses when the 

related goods and services are received.

NOTE 2: FUND BALANCE WITH TREASURY

U.S. government cash is accounted for on an overall consolidated basis by the Treasury. The amounts 

shown on the Balance Sheet represent the FLRA’s right to draw on the Treasury for valid expenditures. 

The fund balance as shown on the FLRA records is reconciled monthly with records from the Treasury. 

Fund Balance with Treasury account balances as of September 30, 2020 and 2019 were as follows (In 

Dollars):

2020 2019

Status of Fund Balance with Treasury:

Unobligated Balance

 Available $ 14,319 $ 34,427 

 Unavailable 381,361 275,377 

Obligated Balance Not Yet Disbursed 6,182,282 5,857,837 

Non-Budgetary FBWT 1 - 

Total $ 6,577,963 $ 6,167,641 
33

No discrepancies exist between the Fund Balance reflected on the Balance Sheet and the balances in the 

Treasury accounts.

The available unobligated fund balances represent the current-period amount available for obligation or 

commitment. At the start of the next fiscal year, this amount will become part of the unavailable balance 

as described in the following paragraph.

The unavailable unobligated fund balances represent the amount of appropriations for which the period of 

availability for obligation has expired. These balances are available for upward adjustments of obligations 

incurred only during the period for which the appropriation was available for obligation or for paying claims 

attributable to the appropriations.

The obligated balance not yet disbursed includes accounts payable, accrued expenses, unfilled orders, and 

undelivered orders that have reduced unexpended appropriations but have not yet decreased the fund

balance on hand.

NOTE 3: ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE, NET

The reported amount for accounts receivable consists of amounts owed to the FLRA by other Federal 

agencies (intragovernmental) and the public. There are no amounts that are deemed uncollectible as of 

September 30, 2020 and 2019. Accounts Receivable balances as of September 30, 2020 and 2019 were as 

follows (In Dollars):

NOTE 4: GENERAL PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET

Schedule of General Property, Plant and Equipment, Net as of September 30, 2020 (In Dollars):

2020 2019

Intragovernmental

Accounts Receivable $ 34,669 $ 40,368

Total Intragovernmental Accounts Receivable $ 34,669 $ 40,368

With the Public

Accounts Receivable $ 13,732 $ 8,239

Total Public Accounts Receivable $ 13,732 $ 8,239

Total Accounts Receivable $ 48,401 $ 48,607
34

Schedule of General Property, Plant and Equipment, Net as of September 30, 2019 (In Dollars):

NOTE 5: LIABILITIES COVERED AND NOT COVERED BY BUDGETARY RESOURCES

Unfunded FECA liabilities consist of workers’ compensation claims payable to the DOL, which will be 

funded in a future year, and an unfunded estimated liability for future workers’ compensation claims based

on data provided from the DOL. The actuarial calculation is based on benefit payments made over twelve 

quarters and calculates the annual average of payments. For medical expenses and compensation, this 

average is then multiplied by the liability-to-benefit paid ratio for the whole FECA program. 

Unfunded leave represents a liability for earned leave and is reduced when leave is taken. At the end of 

each month the balance in the unfunded leave account is adjusted to reflect the liability at current pay rates 

and leave balances. Unfunded leave is paid from future funding sources and, accordingly, is reflected as a 

liability not covered by budgetary resources. Sick and other leave is expensed as taken. All other liabilities 

are considered to be covered by budgetary resources.

Liabilities Covered and Not Covered by Budgetary Resources as of September 30, 2020 consist of the 

following (In Dollars):

Major Class

Acquisition 

Cost

Accumulated 

Amortization/

Depreciation

Net Book 

Value

Computer Equipment $ 270,613 $ 76,674 $ 193,939

Office Furniture 9,077 9,077 -

Construction-in-Progress 45,947 N/A 45,947

Total $ 325,637 $ 85,751 $ 239,886

Major Class

Acquisition 

Cost

Accumulated 

Amortization/

Depreciation

Net Book 

Value

Computer Equipment $ 726,499 $ 478,437 $ 248,062

Office Furniture 9,077 9,077 -

Total $ 735,576 $ 487,514 $ 248,062
35

Liabilities Covered and Not Covered by Budgetary Resources as of September 30, 2019 consist of the 

following (In Dollars):

NOTE 6: OTHER LIABILITIES

Other liabilities as of September 30, 2020 consisted of the following (In Dollars):

Covered Not Covered Total

Intragovernmental Liabilities

 Accounts Payable $ 36,802 $ - $ 36,802

 Accrued Payroll and Benefits 215,959 - 215,959

 Unfunded FECA - 197,032 197,032

 Other 1,400 - 1,400

Total Intragovernmental Liabilities $ 254,161 $ 197,032 $ 451,193

Public Liabilities

 Accounts Payable $ 224,805 $ - $ 224,805

 Unfunded Leave - 1,459,318 1,459,318

 FECA Actuarial Liability - 1,144,606 1,144,606

 Accrued Payroll and Benefits 743,001 - 743,001

Total Public Liabilities $ 967,806 $ 2,603,924 $ 3,571,730

Total Liabilities $ 1,221,967 $ 2,800,956 $ 4,022,923

Covered Not Covered Total

Intragovernmental Liabilities

 Accounts Payable $ - $ - $ -

 Accrued Payroll and Benefits 173,242 - 173,242

 Unfunded FECA - 198,927 198,927

 Other 10,850 - 10,850

Total Intragovernmental Liabilities $ 184,092 $ 198,927 $ 383,019

Public Liabilities

 Accounts Payable $ 166,022 $ - $ 166,022

 Unfunded Leave - 1,019,222 1,019,222

 FECA Actuarial Liability - 1,593,597 1,593,597

 Accrued Payroll and Benefits 709,460 - 709,460

 Other 288 - 288

Total Public Liabilities $ 875,770 $ 2,612,819 $ 3,488,589

Total Liabilities $ 1,059,862 $ 2,811,746 $ 3,871,608
36

Other liabilities as of September 30, 2019 consisted of the following (In Dollars):

NOTE 7: LEASES

The FLRA has operating leases for rental of office space and equipment. As a Federal agency, the FLRA 

is not liable for any lease terms beyond one year. All leases are federal.

Current Operating Leases

233 Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta, GA

The FLRA has an interagency agreement with the General Services Administration for office space at 233 

Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta, GA. The term is for 156 months beginning on or about January 18, 2022. 

FLRA has the right to terminate the lease based on the availability of funds or with a four month notice at 

any point after the first twelve months of occupancy.

224 S. Michigan Avenue, Suite 445, Chicago, IL

The FLRA has an interagency agreement with the General Services Administration for office space at 224 

S. Michigan Avenue, Suite 445, Chicago, IL. The term is for 120 months beginning on or about June 16, 

2012. FLRA has the right to terminate the lease based on the availability of funds or with a four month 

notice at any point after the first twelve months of occupancy.

1244 Speer Boulevard, Denver, CO

The FLRA has an interagency agreement with the General Services Administration for office space at 1244 

Speer Boulevard, Denver, CO. The term for the current agreement is for 120 months beginning on or about 

March 25, 2018. FLRA has the right to terminate the lease based on the availability of funds or with a four 

month notice at any point after the first twelve months of occupancy.

1400 K Street NW, Washington, DC

Current Non-Current 2020 Total

Intragovernmental

 Unemployment Insurance Liability $ 1,400 $ - $ 1,400

Total Other Liabilities $ 1,400 $ - $ 1,400

Current Non-Current 2019 Total

Intragovernmental

 Unemployment Insurance Liability $ 10,798 $ - $ 10,798

 Custodial Liability 52 - 52

Total Intragovernmental Liabilities $ 10,850 $ - $ -

With the Public

 Withholdings Payable $ (445) $ - $ (445)

 Advances and Prepayments 733 - 733

Total Other Liabilities $ 288 $ - $ 733
37

The FLRA has an interagency agreement with the General Services Administration for office space at 1400 

K Street NW, Washington, DC. The term is for 60 months beginning on or about September 14, 2021. 

FLRA has the right to terminate the lease based on the availability of funds or with a four month notice at 

any point after the first twelve months of occupancy.

901 Market Street, San Francisco, CA

The FLRA has an interagency agreement with the General Services Administration for office space at 901 

Market Street, San Francisco, CA. The term is for 120 months beginning on or about August 1, 2011. FLRA 

has the right to terminate the lease based on the availability of funds or with a four month notice at any 

point after the first twelve months of occupancy.

NOTE 8: COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

The FLRA is, at times, a party in various administrative proceedings, legal actions, and claims brought by 

or against the agency. In the opinion of FLRA management, the ultimate resolution of any proceedings, 

actions, and claims will not materially affect financial position or results of operations of the FLRA. The 

agency examined its FY 2015 obligations prior to cancellation and believes that it does not have any 

outstanding commitments or contingencies that will require future resources to liquidate.

NOTE 9: INTRAGOVERNMENTAL COSTS AND EXCHANGE REVENUE

The classification of revenue or cost as “intragovernmental” or “with the public” is determined on a 

transaction by transaction basis. Preceding transactions in the lifecycle of a product will not have an impact 

on subsequent transactions. If the FLRA purchases goods or services from another Federal entity, 

capitalizes them into inventory, and later resells them to the public, the cost of the original purchase of 

resale assets from the other Federal entity will be classified as “intragovernmental” at the time of the 

purchase. At ultimate sale to the end user, the resulting cost of goods will be classified as “with the public.” 

The purpose of this classification is to enable the Federal government to provide consolidated financial 

statements, and not to match public and intragovernmental revenue with costs that are incurred to produce 

public and intragovernmental revenue.

NOTE 10: APPORTIONMENT CATEGORIES OF OBLIGATIONS INCURRED

All obligations incurred are characterized as Category A, quarterly apportioned, on the Statement of 

Budgetary Resources. Obligations incurred and reported in the Statement of Budgetary Resources in fiscal 

years 2020 and 2019 consisted of the following:

2020 2019

Direct Obligations, Category A $ 25,106,937 $ 26,357,314

Reimbursable Obligations, Category A 1,165 29,662

Total Obligations Incurred $ 25,108,102 $ 26,386,975
38

NOTE 11: UNDELIVERED ORDERS AT THE END OF THE PERIOD

The amount of budgetary resources obligated for undelivered orders at the end of September 30, 2020

consisted of the following (In Dollars):

The amount of budgetary resources obligated for undelivered orders at the end of September 30, 2019

consisted of the following (In Dollars):

NOTE 12: EXPLANATION OF DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SBR AND THE BUDGET OF 

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT

SFFAS No. 7, Accounting for Revenue and Other Financing Sources and Concepts for Reconciling 

Budgetary and Financial Accounting, calls for explanation of material differences between amounts 

reported in the Statement of Budgetary Resources and the actual balances published in the Budget of the 

U.S. Government (the President’s Budget). The FY 2021 President’s Budget, with actual amounts for FY 

2019, has been reconciled to the Statement of Budgetary Resources. The FY 2022 President’s Budget, 

with actual amounts for FY 2020, will not be published until February 2021.

NOTE 13: INCIDENTAL CUSTODIAL COLLECTIONS

Custodial collections are reflected in Fund Balance with Treasury during the year. While these 

collections are considered custodial, they are neither primary to the mission of the agency nor material to 

the overall financial statements. FLRA's custodial collections are $1 for the year ended September 30, 

2020. There were no custodial collections for the year ended September 30, 2019. Custodial collections 

are transferred to the Treasury General Fund on September 30 and are not reflected in the financial 

statements of the Agency. 

NOTE 14: RECONCILIATION OF NET COST TO NET OUTLAYS

The reconciliation of net outlays, presented on a budgetary basis, and the net cost, presented on an accrual 

basis, provides an explanation of the relationship between budgetary and financial accounting 

information. 

Federal Non-Federal Total

Paid Undelivered Orders $ 36,956 $ - $ 36,956

Unpaid Undelivered Orders 2,055,952 2,905,762 4,961,714

Total Undelivered Orders $ 2,092,908 $ 2,905,762 $ 4,998,670

Federal Non-Federal Total

Paid Undelivered Orders $ 49,656 $ - $ 49,656

Unpaid Undelivered Orders 1,148,819 3,667,021 4,815,840

Total Undelivered Orders $ 1,198,475 $ 3,667,021 $ 4,865,496
39

Reconciliation of Net Cost to Net Outlays as of September 30, 2020:

Reconciliation of Net Cost to Net Outlays as of September 30, 2019:

Intragovernmental With the Public Total 

Net Operating Cost (SNC) $ 8,205,720 $ 16,998,961 $ 25,204,681

Property, plant, and equipment depreciation $ - $ (54,123) $ (54,123)

(Increase)/Decrease in assets not affecting Budget Outlays:

Accounts receivable $ (5,699) $ 5,493 $ (206)

Other assets $ (12,699) $ - $ (12,699)

(Increase)/Decrease in liabilities not affecting Budget Outlays:

Accounts payable $ (36,802) $ (58,784) $ (95,586)

Salaries and benefits $ (42,717) $ (33,542) $ (76,259)

Other liabilities $ 11,345 $ 9,183 $ 20,528

Other financing sources:

Imputed federal employee retirement benefit costs $ (831,882) $ - $ (831,882)

$ (918,454) $ (131,773) $ (1,050,227)

Acquisition of capital assets $ - $ 45,948 $ 45,948

Other $ (51) $ 1 $ (50)

$ (51) $ 45,949 $ 45,898

Net Outlays (Calculated Total) $ 7,287,215 $ 16,913,137 $ 24,200,352

Total Components of the Budget Outlays That Are Not Part of Net Operating Cost

Components of the Budget Outlays That Are Not Part of Net Operating Cost

Total Components of Net Operating Cost Not Part of the Budget Outlays

Components of Net Operating Cost Not Part of the Budgetary Outlays 

Intragovernmental With the Public Total 

Net Operating Cost (SNC) $ 7,910,645 $ 16,623,665 $ 24,534,310

Property, plant, and equipment depreciation $ - $ (101,285) $ (101,285)

(Increase)/Decrease in assets not affecting Budget Outlays:

Accounts receivable $ 30,254 $ 8,239 $ 38,493

Other assets $ 31,514 $ - $ 31,514

(Increase)/Decrease in liabilities not affecting Budget Outlays:

Accounts payable $ 328,155 $ 160,563 $ 488,718

Salaries and benefits $ 14,587 $ 83,287 $ 97,874

Other liabilities $ 12,581 $ (260,829) $ (248,248)

Other financing sources:

Imputed federal employee retirement benefit costs $ (1,131,294) $ - $ (1,131,294)

$ (714,203) $ (110,025) $ (824,228)

Acquisition of capital assets $ - $ 270,613 $ 270,613

Other $ 2 $ (2) $ -

$ 2 $ 270,611 $ 270,613

Net Outlays (Calculated Total) $ 7,196,444 $ 16,784,251 $ 23,980,695

Outlays, net, (total) (SBR 4190) 23,980,695

Outlays, Net (SBR 4210) $ 23,980,695

Total Components of Net Operating Cost Not Part of the Budget Outlays

Components of the Budget Outlays That Are Not Part of Net Operating Cost

Total Components of the Budget Outlays That Are Not Part of Net Operating Cost

Related Amounts on the Statement of Budgetary Resources

Components of Net Operating Cost Not Part of the Budgetary Outlays 
40

Report of Independent Auditors

The Report of Independent Auditors is provided below.
41
42
43
44
45

OTHER ACCOMPANYING INFORMATION

SUMMARY OF FINANCIAL STATEMENT AUDIT

Audit Opinion: Unqualified

Restatement: No

Beginning 

Balance New Resolved Consolidated

Ending 

Balance

Material weaknesses 0 0 0 0 0

SUMMARY OF MANAGEMENT ASSURANCES

Effectiveness of Internal Control over Financial Reporting (FMFIA § 2)

Statement of Assurance: Unqualified

Beginning 

Balance New Resolved Consolidated Reassessed

Ending 

Balance

Material weaknesses 0 0 0 0 0 0

Effectiveness of Internal Control over Operations (FMFIA § 2)

Statement of Assurance: Unqualified

Beginning 

Balance New Resolved Consolidated Reassessed

Ending 

Balance

Material weaknesses 0 0 0 0 0 0

Conformance with Financial Management System Requirements (FMFIA § 4)

Statement of Assurance: Systems conform

Beginning 

Balance New Resolved Consolidated Reassessed

Ending 

Balance

Non-conformances 0 0 0 0 0 0
46

IMPROPER PAYMENTS ELIMINATION AND RECOVERY

The Improper Payments Information Act of 2002, as amended by the Improper Payments Elimination 

and Recovery Act of 2010 (IPERA), requires agencies to annually report information on improper 

payments. The FLRA has reviewed all of its programs and determined that none are susceptible to 

significant improper payment. The IPERA also requires agencies to conduct payment-recapture audits 

for each program that expends $1 million or more annually, if conducting such audits would be costeffective. Based on the criteria set forth in Appendix C of OMB Circular A-123, the agency has also 

determined that it would not be cost-effective to establish a recovery-audit program for its programs 

that expend more than $1 million. Recoveries are not expected to be greater than the costs incurred to 

identify any overpayments.
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

1400 K Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20424

www.flra.gov

WWW.FLRA.GOV