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Budgeting software benefits command and users

  • Published
  • By Michelle J. Gigante
  • Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs
Learning how to load software onto a computer was painful for Paul Grabiel. He is a budget analyst, not a techie. As a result, until mid-January, Mr. Grabiel couldn't do his job without biting his lip in frustration.

But there's good news for Mr. Grabiel and his colleagues in financial management at Headquarters Air Force Materiel Command, as well as the rest of the financial management community in the command. In the last few weeks they've come to appreciate friendlier software that makes budget analysis simpler.

The new software is an online database known as the Automated Funds Management System, or AFM, which controls, manages and distributes funds from the Secretary of the Air Force level to the major commands. AFM turns out to be a tool that promotes continuous process improvement, one of the three focus areas of Gen. Bruce Carlson, AFMC commander. The system ensures error-free data transmission, saving time and money for AFMC's work force. It provides internal controls for checks and balances, and interfaces with the logistics and acquisitions communities.

"Before, there was the constant responsibility of having to make multiple copies of the data entered, fax it, and then the next person in line would have to re-enter the data," Mr. Grabiel said. "Fortunately, AFM provides a single data point-of-entry, so it is only necessary to type in the data once. It saves printing, scanning and filing time." 

In addition, AFM incorporates a primary classification-coding system called the standard fiscal code. It recodes the Department of Defense financial information in an effort to standardize the activities within budgeting and accounting across the Air Force, Army, Navy, Marines, Defense agencies, field offices and the Army Corps of Engineers.

"AFM is an important step forward for the Air Force comptroller community," said Col. Dave Price, AFMC director of Financial Management. "AFM has fully automated the funds-allocation process so our budgeters could focus attention on financial analysis and on providing the critical information commanders need to make good decisions."

AFMC and Air Force Special Operations Command, headquarted at Hurlburt Field, Fla., are the first Air Force major commands to transition to the new software. It was released Jan. 20 to all financial management directorates within the command.

AFM replaces two previous financial management systems: the Automated Budget Interactive Data Environment System, or ABIDES, and the Command Budget Automated System, or CBAS.

ABIDES was a classified legacy system developed by the Air Force and consisted of highly-segregated subsystems. CBAS had been used since 1960.

"The CBAS word processor was frustrating because it used programming language that was over 30 years old," said Mr. Grabiel. "You would have to load software that was not included (with CBAS), a difficult task for someone who is not tech savvy." He added that the old, tedious and time-consuming process of faxing budget data is history.