Analyzing Allowance Program Administrative Costs: Account Structures and Methodology

摘要

This note describes the data base and methodology used in analyzing housing allowance program administrative costs in HUD's Housing Assistance Supply Experiment (HASE). Cost and workload data were provided by the housing allowance offices (HAOs) of Brown County, Wis., and St. Joseph County, Ind. The account structures, allocating costs to functions, and relating costs to workload are detailed. The HAOs maintain administrative cost data in three separate but interrelated account structures: (1) object - class accounts that group expenditures by the types of goods and services purchased as inputs to HAO operations; (2) cost center accounts that group expenditures according to the allocation of responsibility within the HAOs; and (3) function accounts that group expenditures according to the outputs they support. In HAO administration analysis, allocating cost data by function is important because it provides the basis for determining productivity. Direct expenditures cover program operation, while indirect expenditures entail administrative support. Three factors have been important in securing HAO management support of these systems: (1) data collection and analysis tasks are not overly burdensome; (2) the measures have credibility within the HAOs; and (3) lower level managers experience more benefits than costs in continued systems maintenance. Tables and footnotes are provided. Accounting data and procedures are appended.