Benefits Administration Letter

This Letter provides the fiscal year (FY) 2007 cost factors for the Federal civilian benefit programs. Agencies will use these factors to calculate their imputed costs relating to the "pensions" (the Civil Service Retirement and Federal Employees' Retirement Systems), the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Program.

Benefits Administration Letter 03-309, dated September 15, 2003, provides detailed instructions for the computation and accounting for these imputed costs; see http://www.opm.gov/asd/htm/bal03.asp.

COST FACTORS

Pensions. For most Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) covered employees, the FY 2007 cost factor will be 25.0 percent of basic pay, the same as for FY 2006. The FY 2007 cost factors for all categories of CSRS coverage are attached and unchanged from FY 2006.

For most Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) covered employees, the FY 2007 cost factor will be 12.0 percent, also the same as for FY 2006. The cost factors for all categories of FERS coverage are attached and unchanged from FY 2006.

Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. For FY 2007, the cost factor is $5,572 per enrolled employee:

Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Program. The FY 2007 cost factor for the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Program (FEGLI) is 0.02 percent of basic pay, the same as in previous years.

ASSURANCE FOR AUDITORS

The cost factors provided in this letter are being issued before they can receive an opinion by OPM's independent public accounting firm. Nonetheless, the FY 2006 cost factors for "regular" CSRS and FERS coverage, as well as those for the FEHB and FEGLI Programs were disclosed in the footnotes accompanying OPM's consolidated FY 2006 financial statements; these statements received an unqualified opinion. The policies, procedures and controls pertaining to the calculations of the cost factors did not change from FY 2006. In addition, the Pension and Life Program cost factors were unchanged from FY 2006. Consequently, auditors of FY 2007 financial statements can rely upon the disclosures in OPM's FY 2006 financial statements and the related audit opinion.

INQUIRIES

If you have any questions regarding this information, we would prefer that you email us at finance@opm.gov, so we have a record of our communication. You may also phone us on (202) 606-0606.

Kenneth T. Harris, Acting Chief
Financial Reporting and Policy Group
Center for Financial Services

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