[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 120 (Friday, June 21, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42259-42262]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-15736]


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GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION


Submission for Public Comments: General Services Administration 
(GSA); Household Goods Tender of Service (HTOS); Conversion of Flat 
Industrial Funding Fee (IFF) to a Percentage IFF

AGENCY: Federal Supply Service, GSA.

ACTION: Notice of HTOS amendment with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The General Services Administration (GSA), in compliance with 
41 U.S.C. 418b, is publishing for comment in the attachment to this 
notice HTOS revisions to convert the Centralized Household Goods 
Traffic Management Program (CHAMP) IFF from a $145 flat fee to a 
comparable fee of 2.75 percent of a shipment's total net transportation 
charge (excluding storage in transit (SIT) fees). This change conforms 
with the percentage method GSA uses to fund its other programs,

[[Page 42260]]

including its multiple award schedules, and automatically will keep 
program funding at a pace with inflation.

DATES: Comment Due Date: July 22, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Mail comments to the Travel and Transportation Management 
Division (FBL), General Services Administration, Crystal Mall Bldg. 4, 
Rm. 812, 1941 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA 22202, Attn: Ms. 
Lynn Ju (Re: Percentage IFF). GSA will consider your comments prior to 
implementing this change.

FOR FUTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Lynn Ju, Transportation Programs 
Branch, by phone at 703-305-7060 or by e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The GSA CHAMP provides Federal civilian 
agencies a framework for efficiently and economically transporting 
household goods (HHG) of their employees relocated in the interest of 
the government from one official duty station to another, both 
domestically and internationally. On average CHAMP saves agencies 52 
percent compared to commercial rates. GSA has arrangements with over 
280 carriers, both large and small, for shipping Federal employees' 
HHG. GSA provides a listing of available carriers for interstate, 
intrastate, or international shipments including American offshore 
moves. Agencies have access to this information through GSA's web-based 
Interagency Transportation Management System (ITMS).
    GSA proposes to convert the current CHAMP IFF from a $145 flat fee 
per shipment to 2.75 percent of the net transportation charge per 
shipment excluding SIT fees. This is a procedural change only for the 
purpose of converting the flat fee to a percentage fee that equates to 
approximately the same amount as the current flat fee without 
increasing the overall cost to Federal agencies. Use of a percentage 
fee is the fundamental way GSA's Federal Supply Service (FSS) has 
assessed IFF's for essentially all of its programs since Congress 
authorized GSA to charge fees in 1987. This change will align the HHG 
IFF with GSA's funding mechanism for other programs and automatically 
will keep pace with inflation. The collection method will remain the 
same; that is, transportation service providers will continue to 
collect and pay the IFF to GSA, but based on 2.75 percent of a 
shipment's net transportation charge instead of a flat fee.
    Representatives of GSA's Transportation Zone Offices studied 
converting the flat fee to a percentage basis to arrive at a percentage 
that equates to approximately the same overall cost for Federal 
agencies as the current flat fee. The American Moving and Storage 
Association furnished the Federal civilian sector's average shipment 
weight of 8,000 pounds and average distance of 1,000 miles for a 
domestic HHG shipment based on a sample of its records. The gross line-
haul cost for a shipment of this size would be $7,681, and the average 
max pack would be $3,676.50. The top 16 CHAMP transportation service 
providers represent 81 percent of the volume of CHAMP moves, and last 
year their average discount was 52 percent. Using these figures the net 
cost of an average shipment would be $5,292. The IFF for an average 
shipment costing $5,292 at 2.75 percent would be $145.53. GSA does not 
have statistical data for accessorial items such as, bulky items, long 
carries, shuttles, crating, etc. Therefore, the percentage is 
hypothetical based on the best information available, and could be 
somewhat higher or lower than the current IFF depending on the actual 
characteristics of a particular move. The IFF would be more for heavier 
shipments and less for lighter shipments, but the IFF still will be 
embedded in carriers' rates and should balance out without any cost 
increase to Federal agencies or carriers overall, in using CHAMP.

    Dated: June 17, 2002.
Joseph H. Jeu,
Assistant Commissioner, Office of Transportation and Property 
Management.

Attachment--Changes to Household Goods Tender of Service, Section 9--
Reporting Requirements

9-3.1.4. Industrial Funding Fee

    The Industrial Funding Fee (IFF) amount must equal the sum of all 
shipment net charges reported in HTOS Paragraph 9-3.1.2, multiplied by 
the applicable IFF percentage identified in the Request for Offers. Any 
deficiencies identified will be handled in accordance with HTOS 
Paragraph 9-3.1.4.1. and 9-3.1.4.2.

9-3.2.2.2. Shipment Report Spreadsheet Format

    Entry format is text entry (i.e. left aligned). Fields marked with 
an asterisk (*) are numeric and must, if necessary, be zero filled from 
the left (i.e., 00250 for 250) depending on the field size. Save the 
file as a comma-separated file (.CSV) then rename as necessary (.SHP or 
.ERS).

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                                                Required         Record
                   Field                       position(s)     position(s)                 Contents
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Record ID..................................               1               1  Must be S.
Field Delimiter............................               1               2  Comma.
SCAC.......................................               4             3-6  Four (4) digit Standard Carrier
                                                                              Alpha Code (SCAC) identifying the
                                                                              carrier the GBL/CBL was issued to.
Field Delimiter............................               1               7  Comma.
Type of Transportation.....................               2             8-9  Enter GD for General Domestic, GI
                                                                              for General International, DD for
                                                                              Direct Domestic Move Management
                                                                              (MMS), DI for Direct International
                                                                              MMS, BD for Broker Domestic MMS,
                                                                              or BI for Broker International
                                                                              MMS.
Field Delimiter............................               1              10  Comma.
Type of Move...............................               3           11-13  If the GBL/CBL was used for
                                                                              household goods, put in HHG; for
                                                                              Automobile, put in POV; for
                                                                              Unaccompanied Air Baggage, put in
                                                                              UAB.
                                                                              **If multiple elements were moved
                                                                              using one GBL/CBL, each element
                                                                              must have an individual shipment
                                                                              record.
Field Delimiter............................               1              14  Comma.

[[Page 42261]]

 
Federal Agency Identification Code.........               9           15-23  Agency's 9 digit User ID code used
                                                                              to access ITMS. This User ID can
                                                                              be obtained directly from the user
                                                                              agency or from the ITMS system
                                                                              itself. If unable to obtain the
                                                                              proper User ID, please contact the
                                                                              PMO. Records with this field
                                                                              blank. X or zero-filled will not
                                                                              be accepted.
Field Delimiter............................               1              24  Comma.
Carrier Reference Number...................              15           25-39  Carrier reference number used when
                                                                              the shipment was booked by the
                                                                              carrier. Start the reference
                                                                              number with position 25. If
                                                                              reference number does not consist
                                                                              of 15 numbers, place X's after
                                                                              number to fill out the 15
                                                                              positions.
                                                                             Example: Reference number 135895
                                                                              would appear as 135895XXXXXXXXX.
                                                                              Records with this field blank, X
                                                                              or zero filled will not be
                                                                              accepted.
Field Delimiter............................               1              40  Comma.
Billing Date...............................               8           41-48  Date of Agency Billing (YYYYMMDD)
                                                                             (Example: 20020215 = February 15,
                                                                              2002).
Field Delimiter............................               1              49  Comma.
BL Number..................................               8           50-57  Bill of Lading Number. Use GBL/CBL
                                                                              number associated with the
                                                                              shipment. If CBL number is less
                                                                              then 8 characters, place X's after
                                                                              the number to fill in field.
                                                                              Records with this field blank or
                                                                              zero filled will not be accepted.
Field Delimiter............................               1              58  Comma.
Type of GBL/CBL............................               1              59  Input V if Virtual GBL/CBL was
                                                                              used. Input G if standard GBL/CBL
                                                                              was used.
Field Delimiter............................               1              60  Comma.
Pickup Date................................               8           61-68  YYYYMMDD (see Billing Date).
Field Delimiter............................               1              69  Comma.
Delivery Date..............................               8           70-77  YYYYMMDD (see Billing Date).
Field Delimiter............................               1              78  Comma.
*Transit Time..............................               3           79-81  Actual Transit Time in days.
                                                                             Example: 007 = 7 days.
Field Delimiter............................               1              82  Comma.
Origin State or Country Code...............               4           83-86  Four digit state or country
                                                                              identifier. State is the two digit
                                                                              state identifier, all CAPS, plus
                                                                              two (2) zeros (0). Example: FL00.
                                                                              Country code is the four-digit
                                                                              country code as listed in the most
                                                                              current Request for Offers.
                                                                              Example: Germany = 3940. Records
                                                                              with this field blank, X or zero
                                                                              filled will not be accepted.
Field Delimiter............................               1              87  Comma.
Origin Zip Code............................               5           88-92  5-digit zip (X Fill for Canada or
                                                                              International Shipments).
Field Delimiter............................               1              93  Comma.
Destination State or Country Code..........               4           94-97  See Origin State above. Records
                                                                              with this field blank, X or zero
                                                                              filled will not be accepted.
Field Delimiter............................               1              98  Comma.
Destination Zip Code.......................               5          99-103  5-digit zip (X Fill for Canada or
                                                                              International Shipments).
Field Delimiter............................               1             104  Comma.
*Actual Weight Shipped.....................               5         105-109  In pounds for HHG or UAB. Example:
                                                                              09800 = 9800 pounds. If the record
                                                                              is for POV, place five (5) zeros,
                                                                              00000
                                                                             **If field is zero filled for POV,
                                                                              positions 11-13 must state POV.
Field Delimiter............................               1             110  Comma.
*Mileage...................................               4         111-114  Whole miles only. Example: 0750 =
                                                                              750 miles. This field should be
                                                                              zero filled for International
                                                                              moves.
Field Delimiter............................               1             115  Comma.
* Discount Offered.........................               3         116-118  Domestic: Discount off the current
                                                                              415 tariff; International:
                                                                              Percentage of the base line rate
                                                                              tables contained in the Request
                                                                              for Offers.
Field Delimiter............................               1             119  Comma.
*Gross Charges.............................               5         120-124  Exclusive of SIT charges, in whole
                                                                              dollars only.
Field Delimiter............................               1             125  Comma.
*Net Charges...............................               5         126-130  Exclusive of SIT charges, in whole
                                                                              dollars only.
                                                                             Example: 07600 = $7,600.00.
Field Delimiter............................               1             131  Comma.

[[Page 42262]]

 
Employee's Last Name.......................              15         132-146  Last name of the employee listed on
                                                                              the GBL/CBL in all CAPS. If the
                                                                              employee's name does not consist
                                                                              of 15 letters, place X's after the
                                                                              name to fill out the 15 positions.
                                                                             Example: The name of Jones would
                                                                              appear as JONESXXXXXXXXXX. Records
                                                                              with this field blank, X or zero
                                                                              filled will not be accepted.
Field Delimiter............................               1             147  Comma.
Participants Tax ID Number.................               9         148-156  Participant TIN.
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Examples:

(1) Domestic:

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  A        B         C         D              E                       F                   G              H           I        J            K         L
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  S        GSAA       GD        HHG          RXPGITY43             Q794912349XXXXX     19990612         S12345XX     V     19990105     19990312    007
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     M           N           O           P           Q           R           S           T          U                     V                      W
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    MO00       64131        OK00        7122       10030        0400         056       12500       05500                 SMITH-BATTSONXX      103777444
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(2) International:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  A        B         C         D               E                       F                   G             H          I        J            K          L
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  S        GSAA       GI        POV            RXPG8TY43            Q794-P912666XXX     19991012       PP123456     G     19990601     19990724     053
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     M           N           O             P            Q          R          S          T          U                     V                      W
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    MO00       64131        490J           XXXXX       00000       0000        165      15500      15500                 SMITH-BATTSONXX      103777444
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[FR Doc. 02-15736 Filed 6-20-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-24-P