The Forecast page is an estimation tool linked to the Cash Flow Analysis page that will allow the User to apply different values to factors, such as estimated participation, food benefit costs and rebates. The objective of this page is to more accurately project food obligations, redemptions and rebates throughout the fiscal year so that the State may make informed decisions in the planning, reporting and submitting of monthly budgets. For example, if food costs spike or caseload changes significantly, then obligations and/or rebates to be received may need to be adjusted accordingly. Any changes made to the Forecast page will be reflected in the Cash Flow Analysis page, which, in turn, is used to prepare the FNS-798.
Note:
• The User eWIC Data check box must be selected on the State Configuration Settings page.
• A Forecast must be populated and saved for a fiscal year before the user is able to continue to the Cash Flow Analysis page.
• The system will only use closed eWIC months in forecasting.
• The system will use a maximum of the previous 12 closed eWIC months that exist. If less than 12 closed eWIC months exist, then the system will use all available close eWIC months that do exist.
From the home page in HANDS hover over Finance on the main menu bar. Click on FNS 798 in the drop-down menu, the Annual Budget page displays.
1. Click the Forecast tab. The Forecast page displays with the current fiscal year values by default.
2. Select Fiscal Year from the Fiscal Year drop-down menu.
3. Click Search, displays the data for the Fiscal Year selected.
4. Enter all desired estimated fields that do not display actuals.
Note:
• User will only be able to modify the estimated fields when the fiscal month is open, which can be seen by a Y or N being displayed within the Closed Y/N row at the bottom of the page.
• When a user adjusts an editable value on the page the numbers that are derived off that field’s value will automatically be updated throughout the entire page. This provides the user with instant feedback of how the adjustment will affect the fiscal years projections.
5. To save changes, click the Save button at the bottom of the Forecast page.
6. To discard unsaved changes, click the Refresh button at the bottom of the Forecast page.
The projected costs section of the page provides the user with estimated values based on the previous entered and saved data in the system.
1) By default, the Est Gross Food value for October is derived from WIC Projected Total Participation for October (WIC Projected Participation screen) * Starting Food Benefit Cost (Annual Budget Factors screen) * Redemption Rate (Annual Budget Factors screen). For the remaining fiscal months, the values are derived from WIC Projected Total Participation by Month (WIC Projected Participation screen) * (Annual Budget Factors screen) * Redemption Rate (Annual Budget Factors screen) * Annual Food Benefit Inflation Factor (Annual Budget Factors screen).
2) By default, the Est Rebates value per month is derived from the Projected Infant Participation for each month (WIC Projected Participation screen) * Rebate per Infant (Annual Budget Factors screen) * Rebate Redemption rate (Annual Budget Factors screen).
3) The Est Net Food Expend value per month is derived from the subtraction of Est Gross Food for that month – Est Rebates for that month.
If modifications are made to the editable fields within the participation section of the page, projected costs values will update automatically based on the new participation values.
The participation section of the page provides the user with estimated (open months) and actual (closed months) participation numbers for each fiscal month. Additionally, the total participation both estimated and actual is broken down for each WIC category. Users can modify the estimated WIC category participation values for open fiscal months. These changes will be immediately represented throughout the rest of the page. This provides the user with instant feedback on the effect of their change. Initially, the Est fields are populated straight from the WIC Projected Participation page (Women Projected Participation, Infant Projected Participation and Children Projected Participation columns). The Act fields are populated when a fiscal month is closed. These fields represent the actual participation and percentages for the closed fiscal month. This allows users to see the difference between what they estimated and what the actual values were for the fiscal month.
The food package costs section of the page provides the user with estimated (open months) and actual (closed months) food package cost values. The system will breakdown the food package cost by individual WIC category and provide the user the ability to adjust this value and see the impact for the open months.
From within the Redemp Rate by Cat (WIC) row the user is able to see the individual redemption rates for closed months per redeemed subcategory. Clicking the details button opens a modal that shows a grid for each WIC category with individual rows for each subcategory with the redemption rate.
The rebates section of the page provides the user with estimated (open months) and actual (closed months) rebate amounts per infant.