The Bureau of the Public Debt is an agency within the Fiscal Service of the United States Treasury Department. Under authority derived from Article I, section 8 of the Constitution, Public Debt is responsible for borrowing the money needed to operate the federal government.

It also accounts for the resulting debt and more recently, provides administrative and IT services to federal agencies. Principal operations are conducted in Washington, D.C. and Parkersburg, West Virginia. Additionally, Federal Reserve Banks, acting as Treasury’s fiscal agents, operate critical systems in support of Public Debt Programs and perform a variety of processing and customer service functions in marketable and savings securities.

Mission and Vision

Public Debt’s mission is to borrow the money needed to operate the federal government, account for the resulting debt, and provide reimbursable support services to federal agencies. Financing the federal government is accomplished by selling Treasury bills, notes, bonds, Treasury inflation-protected securities, and U.S. Savings Bonds.

The Bureau also provides reimbursable administrative and information technology services to other government agencies through the Administrative Resource Center (ARC). Public Debt fulfills its mission through five different programs: Wholesale Securities Services, Government Agency Investment Services, Retail Securities Services, Summary Debt Accounting, and Franchise Services. Public Debt’s vision is "Leading the way for responsible, effective government through commitment to service, efficient operations, openness to change, and values-based behavior".

History

While the public debt of the United States can be traced to the beginning of the nation itself in 1776, Public Debt, as it’s known today, was officially created in 1940. The creation was part of a Treasury reorganization plan where the Public Debt Service was officially designated the Bureau of the Public Debt. Public Debt has had a presence in Parkersburg, WV since 1954, when the city was designated a relocation site for Public Debt in the event of a national emergency. In 1957, Parkersburg became the electronic processing center for savings bonds, and from 1993 to 1996, Public Debt consolidated and transferred the majority of its operations to Parkersburg. Today, over 95% of Public Debt employees work in Parkersburg.

Organizational Structure

Source: Bureau of the Public Debt. Available at http://www.publicdebt.treas.gov/whoweare/structure.htm

Public Debt Programs

Wholesale Securities Services

The Wholesale Securities Services program ensures the government’s critical financing needs are met and administers Treasury's auction rules and government securities market regulations. Wholesale Securities Services is responsible for the sale and issuance of trillions of dollars in securities each year, and the operation of Treasury and Federal Reserve systems that support the issuance and redemption of Treasury securities.

Another responsibility of the program is identifying which securities can be pledged to the government for collateral and determining how these securities are valued. This process ensures that both government funds on deposit at commercial banks and private-sector contracts with the government are secured.

The Wholesale Securities Services program contributes to Treasury's priority of financing the debt at the lowest cost over time by guaranteeing operational readiness to meet the government’s financing needs and protecting and strengthening Treasury’s borrowing capabilities. It also educates and builds relationships with large investors and preserves confidence in Treasury auctions through the auction rule compliance program.

Government Agency Investment Services

The Government Agency Investment Services program is made up of three components: Federal Investments, Special Purpose Securities, and Federal Borrowings. The program offers specialized investments for government entities at the federal, state, and local levels.

• The Federal Investments area issues, services, and redeems Government Account Series securities for federal agencies. The Federal Investments component handles the accounting and reporting on all receipts and disbursements for the 18 trust funds (such as Social Security, Highway and Unemployment) managed by the Treasury Department.
• The Special Purpose Securities area issues, services and redeems special purpose securities, as well as serves as a fiscal agent for securities issued by other federal agencies. The State and Local Government Series (SLGS) is the largest of these securities. SLGS offer flexible investment alternatives for state and local governments to refinance outstanding, tax-exempt debt.
• The Federal Borrowings area manages direct loans and loan guarantees to federal agencies operating loan programs. These loan programs support education, housing, veterans and small businesses. The Federal Borrowings area is also responsible for the accounting and reporting of all principle and interest amounts.

Retail Securities Services

The Retail Securities Services program serves millions of Treasury securities investors. Specifically, the program is responsible for the issuance, servicing and redemption of U.S. Savings Bonds and marketable Treasury securities. Additionally, the TreasuryDirect® and Legacy Treasury Direct holding systems fall under the Retail Securities Services program. Legacy Treasury Direct and TreasuryDirect systems allow individuals and institutions set up accounts to purchase Treasury securities and hold them directly with Treasury, rather than with a financial institution.

The program currently is focused on supporting Treasury's goal of effectively managing government finances by positioning Treasury to eliminate new issues of paper savings bonds and improving service quality and efficiency for customers.

Summary Debt Accounting

The Summary Debt Accounting program is responsible for accounting for the public debt of the United States and related interest expenses. The program controls and reconciles Treasury securities transactions and related cash flows. These cash flows represent funds received from the sale of securities and funds disbursed as interest and principal payments. Summary Debt Accounting also produces and publishes data and reports on the composition of the public debt as well as the balance of the debt to the penny. The program is focused on improving the clarity, usefulness and availability of federal debt information.

Franchise Services

Public Debt's Administrative Resource Center (ARC) provides reimbursable financial, administrative and IT services to a wide variety of federal agencies. Administrative services include financial accounting, travel and relocation services, human resources, procurement, and investment services. Information technology services include application development and hosting, website development, Internet services, network maintenance, security consulting, and encryption services.

ARC was selected by the Office of Management and Budget as a Shared Service Provider for Financial Management as well as Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) service, and as a Shared Service Center to perform Certification & Accreditation (C&A) through the Information Systems Security Line of Business (ISSLOB). ARC allows customers to focus on their missions, not support functions; lowers customer administrative service costs; improves data quality through standardization; and strengthens controls and ensures audit compliance.

Values-Based Organization

Public Debt has identified five core values which serve as reminders of the bureau's expectations of its employees: Information Sharing, Informality, Integrity, Inclusion, and Individual Respect. Public Debt's goal in building a values-based culture is to increase accountability, improve productivity and results, and contribute to employee morale. In 2009, Public Debt was ranked 4th best place to work in the federal government based on a survey of civil servants conducted by the Office of Personnel Management across 216 federal agency subcomponents.

Program Data (as of 08/31/2009)

Wholesale Securities Services:

• 274 auctions
• $24.1 trillion bid
• $8.3 trillion awarded
• $6.9 trillion in marketable issues held in National Book-Entry System
• $900 billion in Treasury securities transfers daily

Retail Securities Services:

• $188.5 billion in paper savings bonds held by 50 million investors
• $54.9 billion in book-entry marketable issues held in a legacy system by 278,000 customers
• $8.7 billion in electronic savings and marketable issues held by 292,000 investors in Internet accessed TreasuryDirect system

Government Agency Investment Services:

• $4.4 trillion invested by 74 federal agencies
  • $2.9 trillion in 18 managed trust funds (Social Security, Highway, etc.)
  • $1.5 trillion in 228 other federal government trust and investment accounts
• $218 billion invested by over 6,000 state and local governments
• $789 billion loaned to 37 federal agencies

Summary Debt Accounting:

• $11.8 trillion outstanding
  • $7.5 trillion held by the public
  • $4.3 trillion held by government accounts
• $98 trillion flow of funds

Franchise Services:

• 71 agency customers (including Public Debt)
• $161 million in revenue (est.)

External links

• Bureau of the Public Debt
• TreasuryDirect
• SSPWG Certified PKI Shared Service Providers List