Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Discussion

Because of COVID-19, Federal, State, and Local governments have been spending significant amounts of money to respond to the coronavirus pandemic. Some agencies are receiving more funds while others are being asked to cut back on their budgets.

Review “The Budgetary Effects of Major Laws Enacted in Response to the 2020-21 Coronavirus Pandemic, December 2020 and March 2021 https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2021-09/57343-Pandemic.pdf

If the agency you are working on IS listed in the article as receiving more funds, your job with this assignment is to INCREASE your budget to add in money from Appropriations (Taxes). For example, the Small Business Association (SBA) received $261 billion for PPP loans. This will mean hiring more staff to manage PPP applications and distribute the money, and more funds to give out to businesses.

If the agency you are working on is NOT listed in the article, your job with this assignment is to REDUCE your budget by 10%.

1. Either INCREASE or REDUCE the budget you created in weeks 2 and 3.

a. If your agency is receiving more funds to respond to the pandemic, identify where costs should be increased to make use of the increase.

• For example: The Small Businss Association (SBA) will need to:
  • Hire more staff to manage Payment Protection Program (PPP) applications and distribute the money
  • Create a new cost category called PPP Loans with the money that will be given out to businesses.

b. If your agency is not receiving more funds to respond to the pandemic, identify where costs should be decreased to arrive at a 10% reduction in your budget.

• For example:
  • Eliminate or reduce one or more services
  • Furlough (lay-off) staff from one or more programs
  • Reduce staff hours (for example, the Los Angeles Department of Mental Health required all staff to take off, without pay, every other Friday to reduce costs)
  • Combination of options

Update your Excel budget to reflect the cost increases or reductions – and be sure to update your revenue line so you have a balanced budget.

Your updated spreadsheet with the increase or reduction will be included in your final project budget package.

You will not upload your updated Excel budget as part of this assignment.

2. Craft a concise and professionally formatted financial management memorandum that conveys financial analysis findings in lay-person terminology.

The memo must have the following sections:

• Executive Summary: A brief summary (one or two paragraphs) of the budget analysis.
• Issue Overview: In a single paragraph provide a brief overview of your three programs and explain that this memo addresses the requirement to increase or reduce your proposed budget.
• Cost addition or reduction options analysis: Briefly describe the options you considered to increase or reduce the costs. For each option include a sensitivity analysis – summarize the advantages and disadvantages of each option you considered keeping in mind budgetary and political considerations and how the budget increases or cuts will affect the services provided and the people served.
• Budget Analysis: In about one page, summarize the findings from the cost increase or reduction options analysis and explain in more detail the option(s) you selected. Go into more detail about the sensitivity analysis by including how the increases or reductions will affect services and people served, staff, and the politicians.
• Conclusion: In one paragraph maximum, restate the findings.
• This memorandum will be included in your final project budget package, so you should write it for the people in the legislature that will approve your budget. Use the format of your final project template (i.e. font, styles, etc.).
• Embed the 3rd element, the infographic, at the end of the Memo to show the financial savings and sensitivity analysis.

3. Develop an “infographic” that visually conveys the findings of the memo.

Embed the Infographic at the end of your memo. The Infographic will be uploaded in the same document as the Memo.

Infographic How-To

(1) Avoid visual clutter. The eye should be able to take in the main message at a glance, typically through the relationship between colors, shapes, and numbers. Leave a lot of white space.

(2) Avoid dense narrative. Graphics and their interaction should convey the main message, not sentences or paragraphs. (This is why it is called an “infographic” and not an “infoparagraphic”). Words should function only as labels and titles.

(3) Avoid garish color. Generally it is a good idea to aim for neutral tones and shades. When one puts a house on the market, it is typical to paint it shades of gray, beige, or other colors that are not going to offend. Use a similar logic with infographics; the graphic display should be the main communicator. Color choice can reinforce but should not get in the way.

(4) Avoid rhetorically charged graphics. While use of shocking images is often the trade of political discourse, these are designed to appeal to emotion, not to intellect. This course is emphasizing evidence-based argumentation, and the infographic should highlight evidentiary arguments, not polemics.

Infographic Resources

CAVANA: Canva is a free app that you might consider using to create the required infographic. https://www.canva.com/

EXPLANATORY WEBSITE: “What Are the 9 Types of Infographics? (+Infographic Templates)” https://venngage.com/blog/9-types-of-infographic-template/

VIDEO: “How to Create an Infographic – Part 1: What Makes a Good Infographic?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLxQAa5Sras

INFOGAPHICS AND EDWARD TUFTE, THE FATHER OF DATA VISUALIZATION

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Th_1azZA2OY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaGqOPxHFkc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0Ug5z_bVIY

NOt: I am working on the US department of Defense. my organization is not in the list, which I have reduce my budget by cut 10% from the total budget that in the excel file. You can reduce the budget by cut all salaries.