Air Force Accounting and Finance Office—Colonel Rick Coe

Air Force Comptroller, July, 2004

We continue to make headway in reducing the number of problem military pay cases ... in fact, we've fallen below 8,000 cases-which is below the level maintained prior to the implementation of Military Personnel Data System (MilPDS) several years ago. You should all be commended for a job well done. As we clear away the cases, we have more time to focus on older cases. For the last several months, my office has been providing this information to the MAJCOMs for action, which has resulted in a 75% reduction in cases over 90 days old. Again, another job well done.

Analysis has shown that most of the older cases just require the initiating organization to open the case, review the changes made by DFAS or AFPC, and approve as completed. Of course, if the action has not been completed the case needs to be referred back to the appropriate office for action. MAJCOMs must continue vigilance in this area to ensure our Airmen are paid timely and correctly.

A potential tool to ensure cases are not created is the root cause analysis transformation initiative lead by AETC. Current processes for improvement have been identified in deployments, accessions, promotions, re-enlistments, and separations/retirements. The team members include experts from AFPC, base level FM and DP offices and are working solutions for quick wins that can be implemented immediately. More great things to follow in this area.

Another area where we've seen improvement is on the interest penalty payments. We're well on our way to make the interest per million goal of $109 for FY04. As of April 2004, we are at $87 dollars per million disbursed. Well below the FY04 goal. Continued focus on ensuring timely preparation and submission of receiving reports, whether electronically through WAWF-RA or manually, will ensure we make our FY04 goal and add scarce dollars back to the mission.

Another area I'd like to draw your attention to is the MAJCOM metrics posted to the Air Force Portal under the SAF/FMP/AFAFO website. The metrics were developed with MAJCOM participation and have been available since early 2003. These monthly metrics include prompt payment information, timeliness of travel payments, outstanding travel orders, CMS cases, in-processing timeliness, resource advisor and contingency training, aged NULOs, unmatched disbursements, and travel card delinquencies. All these metrics are by MAJCOM for comparison purposes and to facilitate the crossfeed of ideas/best practices. As a result of the April SAF/FM Executive Session in April 2004, we have been tasked to beef up the metrics and make them more robust. We'll also include metrics, where feasible, to compare the Air Force with other services. Over the next several months we will be working with the MAJCOMs to expand the metric program and have the new metrics implemented for the next fiscal year. Our goal is to use information already available so that additional workload is not created for the MAJCOMs and bases.