Finance Accounting Service (DFAS) for accounting
mission of the responsibility center; and work or
services to be performed for others.
purposes.
Ship Operating Forces include active fleet ships,
Expense element codes are codes established by
amphibious battalions and units, staff and commands,
DOD to classify expenses for cost accounting and
and certain designated shore activities,
reporting purposes. They are listed and defined in the
Navy Comptroller (NAVCOMPT) Manual, Volume 2,
Threshold is an administrative money ceiling
Chapter 4.
established by the fleet commander. With OPTAR
a c c o u n t i n g , a g e d u n fi l l e d o r d e r s b e l ow t h e
An expense limitation is the financial authority
established threshold are authorized administrative
issued by a major claimant or subclaimant to an
cancelled, and OPTAR funds reclaimed. By the same
intermediate level of command, An example of an
token, unmatched expenditures below the established
intermediate level command is the type commander
threshold are authorized by the DFAS to be threshold
(TYCOM),
C O M N AVA I R L A N T,
or
charged by the fleet to the OPTAR without detailed
COMNAVAIRPAC.
review by the OPTAR holder, thereby reducing
A field (shore) activity, for purposes of the RMS,
available OPTAR funds.
is a shore station that is issued an operating budget. It
An unfilled order, for accounting purposes, is a
could be issued this operating budget by a major
general term used to describe a request document for
claimant; subclaimant, or expense limitation holder,
material or services that has been entered in the
depending on who has immediate responsibility.
OPTAR log. Unfilled order documents (chargeable)
Because it is issued an operating budget, it is also a
are assembled and forwarded to the DFAS by the
responsibility center.
OPTAR holder when the procedures require the
A major claimant (or operating budget grantor) is
chargeable unfilled orders to be matched against
a bureau, office, or command designated as an
expenditures submitted by issuing and paying
administering office under the Operations and
activities.
Maintenance, Navy (O&MN) (regular and reserve)
A work unit is a unit of measurement such as
appropriations listed in the NAVCOMPT Manual,
documents processed, tonnage moved, students
vo l u m e 2 , c h a p t e r 2 . M a j o r c l a i m a n t s r e c e ive
trained, or gallons processed. The term is used to
operating budgets directly from the Chief of Naval
provide quantitative information of the physical
Operations (CNO).
output applicable to a subdivision in the operating
Obligation authority is the budgeted amount
budget.
within an operating budget approved in a fixed
amount for incurring obligations or unfilled orders.
BACKGROUND
An operating budget is the annual budget and
Under the procedures in effect before
financial authority of an activity or command that
implementation of the RMS, financial management
contains the resources to perform that activity's
of naval activities was restricted to the materials and
mission.
services that resulted in expenditures of appropriated
An operating target (OPTAR) is an authorization
funds granted to those activities. Little or no attention
of funds subject to administrative control issued to a
was paid to other costs such as military services,
level below the responsibility center. The recipient of
material issued at no cost (free issue), or material or
an OPTAR is referred to as an OPTAR holder.
services charged to open allotments. These costs were
considered as other resources. In this situation, the
A responsibility center is an organizational unit
responsible commander was only controlling a small
headed by an officer or supervisor who is responsible
percentage of his or her operating costs. The RMS
for the management of all resources within the unit,
was designed to correct this deficiency by providing
and who, in most cases, can significantly influence
the responsible commander with a budget that
the expense incurred within the unit.
included all cost incurred instead of allotments to
Resources c o n s i s t o f m i l i t a r y a n d c iv i l i a n
cover only limited portions of those costs. The DOD
personnel; material on hand and on order; the
determined that management would be improved
entitlement to procure or use material, utilities,
significantly if the financing of an activity was related
services required for performance of the basic
to the total expense of the task or mission assigned
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