Strategic Planning and Resource Assessment

Forest Service 2003 Success Stories

Success Stories: Incident Financial Services and the National Emergency Equipment Rental Agreement (EERA) Payment Center

Incident Financial Services (IFS), an Enterprise Team based in the Pacific Southwest Region, has an innovative approach to provide a rapid response to the high volume, seasonal payment needs of fire season for the USDA Forest Service. IFS offers cooperators and contractors a single point of contact with consistent processing procedures, specifically developed by IFS for the National Emergency Equipment Rental Agreement (EERA) Payment Center. These EERA are agreements the Forest Service uses to hire all emergency contracted equipment for fire suppression efforts, such as water tenders, dozers, pickups/drivers, fallers, sanitation facilities, buses, and engines. EERA also handles land use agreements needed during fire emergencies.

In the Pacific Southwest Region, based in California , IFS provides centralized billing and payment services under Cooperative Agreements with California Department of Forestry and California Office of Emergency Services for fire incidents. But IFS doesn't only work in California ! In all, they service 35 National Forests in six of the nine regions, and for three Regional Offices.

As interagency coordination and response to fire incidents increase, IFS fills a critical niche in improving business operations and financial accountability for the USDA Forest Service. In July through October of 2002, IFS processed EERA payments in excess of $115 million, using up to 60 permanent employees to assist during a critical fire season.

IFS is also responsible for implementing the National EERA Centralized Payment Strategy in four Payment Center locations: Albuquerque, NM, Missoula , MT, Ogden, UT, and Placerville, CA .

Photos

IFS Owner: Debbie Klippenstein

Billing Unit Members: Wes Sturdevant, Suellen Carroll, Sue McGlaughlin, Pam Vining, and Carmen Galindo

Trespass Unit: Lisa Halop-Freer and Cindy Zabolzadeh

USDA Forest Service - Strategic Planning and Resource Assessment
Last Modified: Tuesday, 18 May 2004 at 11:33:17 EDT