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By Christina Cox, Accounting and Data Management Division
Editor’s Note: Recently, we asked Christina Cox, Project Manager for FMS’s new Transaction Reporting System (TRS) to help us answer agency questions about TRS and its upcoming impact. What follows are a list of questions asked, which we hope will help federal agencies to better understand TRS and prepare for it.
What is TRS?
TRS will be an FMS-wide transaction broker, data warehouse, and reporting solution that will provide Trading Partners and FMS with a single touch point for the exchange of all financial transaction information across all collection systems. This will enable FMS to normalize financial transaction reporting and standardize the availability of financial information across all settlement mechanisms and collection systems. TRS is a self-contained system with various related external system interfaces.
What are the benefits and impacts to agencies?
TRS will provide the ability to view detailed collection and deposit information in their lowest detail in one place and be the single touch point for all agency collection activity. Utilizing data warehouse technology, TRS’s business intelligence capabilities will permit agencies to extract and analyze their data in various scenarios according to their needs. TRS will provide flexible reporting formats accommodating various business needs, transaction volumes, and technical capabilities. By providing statistical and analytical reporting, TRS will significantly improve an agency’s ability to more precisely manage its financial position, on a real-time basis, throughout the day.
Once completed, TRS will provide integrated transaction and deposit reporting of revenue activity across all collection systems. Additionally, TRS will greatly improve the way federal agencies collect, analyze, and redistribute financial transaction information, which, in turn, will eliminate redundancies and disconnects across and between the numerous point-to-point connections currently in place between collection agents and federal agencies.
If my agency uses TRS, will my agency still need to access CA$HLINK II to confirm deposits?
You will not need to access CA$HLINK II once all of your agency detailed collection and deposit information is reported to TRS. Until that time, agencies will be able to continue to use CA$HLINK II for all deposit information. CA$HLINK II will not be retired until information on all collection activities are available in TRS.
Will TRS have all information needed by my agency?
As the single touch point for all agency collection activity, TRS will have the information agencies currently receive from all collections systems. This includes financial data needed to settle a transaction, move funds, perform accounting, etc. and program data which is other business data associated with a collection transaction. The program data will only be available in TRS for a limited time period, such as six months. Agencies will need to retrieve this data and manage it in their own systems.
What file formats will TRS support?
For automated system-to-system exchanges, TRS will use the standard XML schema developed by FMS’s Enterprise Data Architecture Team. This schema can be found at: http://www.fms.treas.gov/eda/schema.html.
How will my agency download files from TRS?
Agencies will be able to view, save, and download transaction detail and deposit summary information through a web browser. By using the Business Intelligence tools available in TRS, agency users will be able to create downloadable files that fit their agencies’ specific requirements. In the near future, agencies will be able to implement automated interfaces with TRS in order to receive files of their collection detail and deposit summary information on a scheduled basis.
When will my agency be able to get reports from TRS?
Agencies wanting to participate in the TRS Pilot program will have several standard and customizable reports available to them by the end of 2008. General transitioning of agencies from CA$HLINK II to TRS will begin in 2009.
What types of access control will TRS have? Will it require multi-factor authentication?
Users will access the TRS application with a web browser over the Internet. No TRS application software will be installed on the client machine. The security model will be similar to CA$HLINK II. Groups within federal program agencies will be granted access
privileges. Each group will designate specific individuals as security administrators for their group. The security administrators will be able to authorize access to other members of the group. TRS will not initially require multi-factor authentication, but multi-factor authentication will be required in the future.
Can I reclassify this information through TRS? If not, why?
Subsequent reclassifications will not be reflected in TRS (as TRS is not intended to be an accounting system). Agencies will send reclassifications directly to Governmentwide Accounting.
Will I be able to run ad hoc queries using the TRS business intelligence and reporting tools?
Depending upon your permissions, you will be able to run ad hoc queries using the TRS business intelligence and reporting tools. FMS expects that most agency users will be able to get the information they need from standard reports.
Will I be able to access images of checks and remittance documents through TRS?
Yes. Images of checks and remittance documents that agencies currently access through collection systems will be available through TRS.
Will the information currently housed in CA$HLINK II be transitioned for 7 years back, or will both systems need to be maintained simultaneously for information warehousing purposes?
FMS is currently working on a strategy to provide agencies with historical CA$HLINK II data. Once all of the collections systems are reporting to TRS, FMS does not plan to maintain both systems simultaneously beyond a short transition period.
What system changes will I have to make to get information from TRS?
FMS is hoping to minimize the system changes required by your agency to receive files from TRS. If your agency uses the Business Intelligence tools available in TRS, you will be able to create downloadable files that may fit your agency’s system requirements and avoid major system changes. If your agency needs an automated interface to receive data, then your agency will need to use FMS’s standard XML schema for automated interfaces. The standard XML schema is available at: http://www.fms.treas.gov/eda/schema.html.
How can I participate in a pilot with TRS?
To participate in a pilot with TRS, please contact TRS Project Manager, Christina Cox at (202) 874-7207 or email: Christina.Cox@fms.treas.gov.
What is the current implementation schedule for TRS?
TRS is being implemented in phases. In order for TRS to provide collection transaction information to federal program agencies, TRS must first implement interfaces with various sources of collections data. As these interfaces are implemented, increasing amounts of transaction data will become available to agencies through TRS. TRS will begin piloting to agencies in 2008 and begin general transitioning of agencies in 2009. In all cases, TRS will work closely with your agency in the planning of an implementation process.
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