Circular
No. A-97
August 29,
1969
TO THE HEADS
OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND ESTABLISHMENTS
SUBJECT: Rules
and regulations permitting Federal agencies to provide specialized
or technical services to State and local units of government under
Title III of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act of 1968
1. Purpose
2. Background
3. Reservation of existing authority
4. Definitions
5. Policy
6. Types of services that may be provided
7. Conditions under which services may be provided
8. Reports to Congress
9. Effective Date
10. Inquiries
1. Purpose. This Circular promulgates the rules and regulations
which the Director of the Bureau of the Budget is authorized to
issue pursuant to Section 302 of the Intergovernmental Cooperation
Act of 1968 (P.L. 90-577; 82 Stat. 1102). It also provides for the
coordination of the action of Federal departments and agencies (hereinafter
referred to as "Federal agencies") in exercising the authority contained
in Title III of said Act as directed by the President's Memorandum
of November 8, 1968 (33 F.R. 16487).
2. Background.
a. Title III
of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act of 1968 is intended to:
- Encourage
intergovernmental cooperation in the conduct of specialized or
technical services and provisions of facilities essential to the
administration of State or local governmental activities.
- Enable State
and local governments to avoid unnecessary duplication of special
service functions.
- Authorize
Federal agencies which do not have such authority to provide reimbursable
specialized and technical services to State and local governments.
b. Title III
of the Act authorizes the head of any Federal agency, within his
discretion and upon written request from a State or political subdivision
thereof, to provide specialized or technical services, upon payment
to the Federal agency by the unit of government making the request,
of salaries and all other identifiable direct or indirect costs
of performing such services.
c. Title III
of the Act requires that:
- Any services
provided pursuant to Title III shall include only those which
the Director of the Bureau of the Budget through rules and regulations
determines Federal agencies have special competence to provide.
- The Director's
rules and regulations shall be consistent with, and in furtherance
of, the Government's policy of relying on the private enterprise
system to provide those services which are reasonably and expeditiously
available through ordinary business channels.
- All moneys
received by any Federal agency in payment of furnishing specialized
and technical services under Title III of the Act shall be deposited
to the credit of the principal appropriation from which the cost
of providing such services has been paid or is to be charged.
- The head
of any Federal agency shall furnish annually to the respective
Committees on Government Operations of the Senate and House of
Representatives a summary report on the scope of the services
provided under Title III.
3.
Reservation of existing authority. The authority contained
in Title III of the Act and this Circular is in addition to, and
does not supersede, any existing authority now possessed by any
Federal agency with respect to furnishing services, whether on a
reimbursable or non-reimbursable basis, to State and local units
of government. The reporting and other requirements and conditions
contained in this Circular shall not apply to services furnished
under such existing authorities.
4. Definitions. For purposes of this Circular:
a. The term
"State" means any of the several States of the United States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, any territory
or possession of the United States, or any agency or instrumentality
of a State, but does not include the governments of the political
subdivisions of a State.
b. The terms
"political subdivision" or "local government" mean a local unit
of government, including specifically a county, municipality, city,
town, township, or a school or other special district created by
or pursuant to State law, or combinations thereof.
c. "Specialized
or technical services" means statistical and other studies and compilations,
development projects, technical tests and evaluations, technical
information, training activities, surveys, reports, documents, and
any other similar service functions which any Federal agency is
especially equipped and authorized by law to perform.
5. Policy. Federal agencies will cooperate to the maximum
extent possible with State and local units of government to provide
such specialized or technical services as may be authorized. Such
services shall generally supplement, not supplant existing services,
and Federal agencies should not provide services with full reimbursement
under this Circular which have heretofore been furnished for less
than full reimbursement under other authorities, unless specifically
requested to do so.
6. Types of services that may be provided.
a. It is hereby
determined that Federal agencies have the special competence to
provide, and may provide the following specialized or technical
services, and facilities related thereto, pursuant to Title III
of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Act of 1968:
- Any existing
statistical or other studies and compilations, results of technical
tests and evaluations, technical information, surveys, reports,
and documents, and any such materials which may be developed or
prepared in the future to meet the needs of the Federal Government
or to carry out the normal program responsibilities of the Federal
agencies involved.
- Preparation
of statistical and other studies and compilations, technical tests
and evaluations, technical information, surveys, reports, and
documents, and assistance in the conduct of such activities and
in the preparation of such materials, provided they are of a type
similar to those which the Federal agency is authorized by law
to conduct or prepare.
- Training
of the type which the Federal agency is authorized by law to conduct
for Federal personnel and others or which is similar to such training.
- Technical
aid in the preparation of proposals for development and other
projects for which the Federal agency provides grants-in-aid or
other assistance, provided such aid primarily strengthens the
ability of the recipient in developing its own capacity to prepare
proposals.
- Technical
information, data processing, communications and personnel management
systems services which the Federal agency normally provides for
itself or others under existing authorities.
b. Any of the
above specialized or technical services provided to the States and
their political subdivisions under existing authorities may also
be provided under Title III of the Act and the terms of this Circular.
c. If a Federal
agency receives a request for specialized or technical services
which are not covered in subparagraph a above and which it
believes is consistent with the Act and which it has a special competence
to provide, it should forward such request to the Bureau of the
Budget for action. Similarly, if there is doubt as to whether the
service requested is covered by subparagraph a, the request
should be forwarded to the Bureau of the Budget for action.
7. Conditions under which services may be provided. The specialized
or technical services provided under Title III of the Act and this
Circular may be provided, in the discretion of the heads of Federal
agencies, only under the following conditions:
a. Such services
will be provided only to the States, political subdivisions thereof,
and combinations or associations of such governments or their agencies
and instrumentalities.
b. Such services
will be provided only upon the written request of a State or a political
subdivision thereof. Requests will normally be made by the chief
executives of such entities and will be addressed to the head of
the agency involved.
c. Such services
will not be provided unless the agency providing the services is
providing similar services for its own use under the policies set
forth in the Bureau of the Budget Circular No. A-76, "Policies for
acquiring commercial or industrial products and services for Government
use" (Revised August 30, 1967). In addition, in accordance with
the policies set forth in Circular No. A-76, the requesting entity
must certify that such services cannot be procured reasonably and
expeditiously by it through ordinary business channels.
d. Such services
will not be provided if they require any additions of staff or if
they involve outlays for additional equipment or other facilities
solely for the purpose of providing such services, except where
the costs thereof are charged to the user of such services. Further,
no staff additions may be made which impede the implementation of
or adherence to the employment ceilings contained in the Bureau
of the Budget allowance letters.
e. Such services
will be provided only upon payment or provision for reimbursement
to the Federal agency involved, by the unit of government making
the request, of salaries and all other identifiable direct and indirect
costs of performing such services. For cost determination purposes,
Federal agencies will be guided by the policies set forth in the
Bureau of the Budget Circular No. A-25, "User Charges" (September
23, 1959).
f. Any payments
or reimbursements received by Federal agencies for the costs of
such services will be deposited to the credit of the principal appropriation
or other account from which the costs of providing the services
have been paid or are to be charged.
g. In the
event a request for a service is denied, the Federal agency shall
furnish the entity making the request with a statement indicating
the reasons for the denial.
8. Reports to Congress. The head of each Federal agency
will furnish annually to the respective Committees on Government
Operations of the Senate and House of Representatives a summary
report on the scope of the services provided under Title III of
the Act and this Circular. Such reports will be prepared as of the
end of each calendar year and will indicate the nature of the services
rendered, the names of the States and political subdivisions involved,
where practical, and the cost of the work. Services provided under
other authorities are not to be included in the reports. Copies
of the reports will be submitted to the Bureau of the Budget not
later than March 30 of each year.
9. Effective date. This Circular is effective immediately.
It supersedes the "Interim Regulation under Title III of the Intergovernmental
Cooperation Act of 1968 (P.L. 90-577)," dated December 19, 1968,
concerning training by the U.S. Civil Service Commission.
10. Inquiries. Inquiries regarding this Circular may be addressed
to the Office of Executive Management, Bureau of the Budget, Washington,
D.C. 20503, or telephone (202) 395-4934
(Government
dial code 103-4934).
ROBERT P.
MAYO
Director