eCORTS -- Capital Outlay Request Tracking System --

Capital Outlay Budget Requests and statutory requirements are outlined in R.S. 39:101 & 102. When preparing a five-year capital outlay plan, address both five-year capital planning and preventative maintenance. A first-year request should reflect only those projects which must be funded in the next year. If a project or portion of funding for a project can wait, it should be shown in Years 2-5 of the request.

For projects other than those funded from self-generated cash, federal funds or dedicated revenues, the only anticipated source of funding available is the General Obligation Bonds. Limit Capital Outlay Projects which do not have a cash source of funding to those which have an anticipated useful life of 20 years or more and a value or cost of at least $100,000. Examples of projects that qualify for inclusion in the capital outlay bill are:

However, depending on the useful life of equipment and furnishings, a decision may be made to fund these items through alternative sources. In addition, agencies should explore alternative financing, such as equipment leasing programs, for equipment such as fiber optic or telephone cable installation or replacement, telephone systems, computer systems, video monitoring equipment, photo enforcement, etc.

Any of these items that are needed should be addressed in your operating budget requests. Every state agency should have a written maintenance management plan in place which addresses these items through the operating budget, instead of deferring maintenance until a capital outlay budget project is needed. Capital outlay requests to prematurely replace roofs, or electrical, mechanical or HVAC equipment, due to lack of maintenance, will not receive capital outlay funds. Instead, these costs will be absorbed in that State Agency’s operating budget.

RS 39:112 and the State Constitution compel Facility Planning and Control (FP&C) to review Capital Outlay Requests for feasibility, and to notify appropriate legislative committees if any project is deemed not feasible. RS 39:112 also states that any project deemed not feasible shall not be included in the Capital Outlay Act. In order for FP&C to conduct feasibility reviews of Capital Outlay Requests, it is necessary that the Requests contain the statutorily required contents. For more information on this, please see STATE ENTITY or NON-STATE Entity Capital Outlay Budget Request Memo.

FP&C evaluates each Capital Outlay Requests for feasibility in accordance with the content requirements of RS 39:102. Capital Outlay requests need to be detailed and filled out completely including specifics on the project, what is being requested, what you have now, itemized break-out of costs, exact location of the project, timeline for the project, and any other descriptive information you can provide to establish statutory requirements. FP&C will endeavor to work with entities to ensure that the statutorily-mandated content requirements are included. Please submit Capital Outlay Requests in a timely manner to allow for corrections/revisions. Keep in mind that the final application date is November 1st. Those Requests that FP&C deems incomplete will be declared "unfeasible” and appropriate Legislative Committees will be notified per RS 39:112.

Applications for Capital Outlay funds are filed electronically in the Capital Outlay Request Tracking System, eCORTS. The website for eCORTS is: www.doa.la.gov/ecorts. Do not mail paper copies of your capital outlay requests. All requests will be submitted electronically only.

All capital outlay requests are to be submitted electronically through eCORTS to Facility Planning and Control, Capital Outlay Section, by November 1st. Requests submitted after November 1st cannot be included in the Capital Outlay Act unless:

Also, R.S. 39:101 states that any project, or component of a project, funded in a capital outlay act, which is not funded through a cash or non-cash line of credit as approved by the State Bond Commission or is not under contract in any one fiscal year shall not be considered in any subsequent year unless a new request is made. Also, Bond Counsel has advised that if Revenue Bonds are authorized but not issued in any one fiscal year, a request should be made for the subsequent fiscal year.

State Entities

The state has a tremendous backlog of deferred maintenance that includes life safety deficiencies as well as other safety deficiencies that could jeopardize life and property. These issues should be agency priorities in the Capital Outlay requests. Although it may be desirable to improve the quality of the institutions by proposing new facilities; deferred maintenance cannot be ignored and must be given a high priority. Deterioration of existing facilities through lack of deferred maintenance should be the first areas of need addressed in the Capital Outlay requests as ultimately the cost more to repair or replace will escalate.

State Department governing authorities should submit a Departmental Priority Ranking Spreadsheet showing all requested projects in priority order, and should include the amount requested and the proposed means of financing for the first year and years 2-5 (see the sample format). Email the State Departmental Priority Ranking Spreadsheet in Excel or Word format to CapitalOutlay@la.gov. Do not mail paper copies of the capital outlay request.

Requests must be submitted through and prioritized by the appropriate governing authority. Applications for Capital Outlay funds are filed electronically in the Capital Outlay Request Tracking System, eCORTS. The website for eCORTS is: www.doa.la.gov/ecorts.

For state departments with a governing authority, your request IS NOT considered submitted to FPC when you electronically submit your agency's capital outlay requests. The request electronically submits to a Department level eCORTS user who then reviews and submits to FP&C only the requests the Department recommends for consideration in the capital outlay budget. Please correspond with your agency's Department level eCORTS user for status on your submission.

R.S. 39:101.B (1)(c) requires that Capital Outlay requests be submitted no later than November 1st each year. R.S. 39:112 states that requests submitted after November 1st cannot be included in the Capital Outlay Act unless the project is:

RS 39:102 requires that Requests contain:

    1. Detailed project description
    2. Deasonable date of when the project will be needed
    3. Location
    4. Estimated construction cost
    5. Cost of equipping and furnishing
    6. Space utilization plan
    7. Cost of opening and operating the facility for the first year
    8. Estimated annual operating and maintenance costs
    9. Method and source of financing
    10. Estimated completion date
    11. Identification of other similar facilities in area and evaluation of their capabilities to meet needs
    12. Order of priority against other Requests submitted by the agency

FP&C evaluates Capital Outlay Requests for feasibility in accordance with the content requirements of RS 39:102. FP&C will endeavor to work with agencies to ensure that the statutorily-mandated content requirements are included. Please submit Capital Outlay Requests in a timely manner to allow for corrections/revisions. Those Requests that FP&C deems incomplete will be declared unfeasible, and appropriate Legislative Committees will be notified per RS 39:112. For more information on State Department Capital Outlay Request Guidelines, please see STATE ENTITY Capital Outlay Request Guidelines Memo.

Non-State Entities

Non-State Entities are defined as port and levee districts, police juries, municipalities, and non-state miscellaneous and non-profit organizations. A Capital Outlay Request must be submitted in order to request funds for a project to be included in the Capital Outlay Budget. Submission of a Capital Outlay Request in no way insures or implies that state funds will be appropriated to a project. Historically, requests for state funds have averaged about $1.5 billion annually, which far exceeds the amount of new general obligation bond funding available for the Capital Outlay Budget each year. Given the limited available state funding, and the backlog of unfunded state agency projects, priority consideration will be given to state agency projects. When submitting a Capital Outlay request, state statute now requires local match funds of at least twenty-five(25) percent of the project cost. The source of these funds must be identified in the Capital Outlay Request. This demonstrates a local commitment to the project.

Applications for Capital Outlay funds are filed electronically in the Capital Outlay Request Tracking System, eCORTS. The website for eCORTS is: www.doa.la.gov/ecorts. All applicants are strongly encouraged to fill out all form blanks in as much detail as possible.

FP&C will evaluate Capital Outlay Requests for feasibility in accordance with the content requirements of RS 39:102. FP&C will endeavor to work with entities to ensure that the statutorily-mandated content requirements are included. Please submit Capital Outlay Requests in a timely manner to allow for corrections/revisions. Those Requests that FP&C deems incomplete will be declared unfeasible, and appropriate Legislative Committees will be notified per RS 39:112. For more information on Non-State Entity Capital Outlay Request Guidelines, please see NON-STATE ENTITY Capital Outlay Request Guidelines Memo.

In order for FP&C to conduct feasibility reviews of Capital Outlay Requests, it is necessary that the Requests contain the statutorily required contents.

RS 39:102 requires that Requests contain:

    1. Detailed project description
    2. Reasonable date of when the project will be needed
    3. Location
    4. Estimated construction cost
    5. Cost of equipping and furnishing
    6. Space utilization plan
    7. Cost of opening and operating the facility for the first year
    8. Estimated annual operating and maintenance costs
    9. Method and source of financing
    10. Estimated completion date
    11. Identification of other similar facilities in area and evaluation of their capabilities to meet needs
    12. Order of priority against other Requests submitted by the entity

Please provide details of the project in your request such as description of the project, timeline, any funding secured or requested, what you have now, what you are proposing, itemized break-out of costs, materials involved, property ownership, as well as the need for the project. It is suggested that the description of hte need for the project be written into the space provided on Page 2 of the Capital Outlay Request.

The certificate questionnaire is required to be completed by non-state entities only. This form provides budgetary, tax, and local financial data for the entity requesting capital outlay funding. Please fill out this info and enter contact information at the end of the document.

The Capital Outlay Statute requires legislative support for capital outlay requests submitted by Non-State Entites. If your entity is not a state department, please have a State Senator or State Representative who represents the area the project is located write a Letter Of Support for your project(s). Please have the letter of support mailed to these addresses. Do not mail paper copies of your capital outlay requests.

Division of Administration
Facility Planning and Control
Capital Outlay Section
Claiborne Building
1201 N. Third Street, Suite 7-160
P.O. Box 94095
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
Email: COSupportLetters@la.gov

Legislative Fiscal Office
18th Floor, State Capitol
900 North Third Street Post Office Box 44097
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70804-9097
225-342-7233
Email: feigleyr@legis.la.gov

Senate Committee on Revenue & Fiscal Affairs
Senate Sub-Basement, State Capitol
900 North Third Street
Post Office Box 94183
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70804
225-342-2040
Email: simpsons@legis.la.gov, hunterb@legis.la.gov, and carra@legis.la.gov

Senate Committee on Finance
15th Floor, State Capitol
900 North Third Street
Post Office Box 94183
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70804
225-342-2040
Email: millerj@legis.la.gov and hessm@legis.la.gov

House Committee on Ways and Means
House Committee on Appropriations
C/O House Fiscal Staff (one copy to be shared by both committees)
11th Floor, State Capitol
900 North Third Street
Post Office Box 44486
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70804
225-342-6945
Email: vermaelenc@legis.la.gov and pryora@legis.la.gov

Add New Project

The project title should be a brief description of the project showing location of the project and can end with descriptive words such as Planning, Construction, Equipment, Acquisition, Land Acquisition, etc. An example would be: Widening of 123 Highway in Smithville, Planning, Construction, and Acquisition. Another example is: Multipurpose Center in Smithville, Planning and Construction. For all requests except those that are for Statewide Programs such as Statewide Major Repairs, Statewide ADA, etc. please make your requests specific to one project.

The Location is the village, town, city, regional area or nearest intersection in which the project will occur.

Please select a project class that gives a reasonable estimate of when the project is needed.
Only one classification can be selected. If another classification is selected, the currently selected classification is unselected. It is a required field, so you cannot un-select all three.

Emergency Project: A capital outlay project can be classified as an "emergency" if it is essential to alleviate conditions that are hazardous to life or property and court mandates. Examples include extensive roof leaks, structural defects, code violations, accreditation, asbestos/hazardous materials abatement, and extensive breakdown of HVAC systems.

Current Program Requirements: Projects that would allow an agency to bring its facilities up to program standards set by national or regional accrediting associations. Also, changes necessary to improve the functioning of a program. This would include measures to rectify for program achievement. It would also include provisions for major alterations to meet or maintain current program requirements. Examples include the addition of a new program, and changes or relocation of an existing program.

Anticipated Program Needs: Projects anticipated on the basis of increased enrollments, additional service, obsolescence of existing facilities, and changing an agency's role, scope or mission. Examples include the addition of a new program, changes or relocation of an existing program.

Department: The Department field is automatically populated based on info provided in your USER ID request.

Parish: Choose one or more parishes in the array of 10 drop-down lists. At least one must be selected. Based on your parish selection, the legislator district codes will only appear for the parishes selected. Choose the correct Senator (http://senate.legis.state.la.us/Senators/ByDistrict.asp) or Representative (http://house.louisiana.gov/H_Reps/H_Reps_ByDistrict.asp) in the legislative district in which the project will occur. Failure to properly identify the correct elected official could result in a delay in review of your submittal. "Statewide" is an option and can be selected at the bottom of the parish list.

House & Senate District: Please enter the district number of a legislator who represents the parish in which the project is located. If you selected "Statewide" or "Multi-Parish" for parish, you will not enter Senate or House Districts.

The contact information is very important. This information will be used to contact your entity should there be questions. Please provide accurate, up-to-date, contact information for the entity in the below fields. Please do not use the consulting firm’s information as the contact information for the project.

User: User is the name of the agency. This field accepts only 20 characters. You may have to abbreviate. Please do not use any other name but the name of the entity requesting funding.

Contact: Enter the name of someone at the agency, who can be contacted with questions, or for more information. Please do not use the name of a consultant. Contact information needs to be an employee with the agency.

Project Address: Enter the address of the actual project or the nearest intersection.

City/State/Zip: Although these fields are self-explanatory, you may notice that the State field requires two characters conforming to the USPS state code convention. Any lower case letters will be converted automatically to upper case. The Zip Code field will accept either 5 or 9-digit zip codes and will automatically covert 9-digit entries to xxxxx-xxxx format.

Phone/Fax: The Phone field requires a 10-digit phone number (xxx-xxx-xxxx). It is not necessary to enter the dashes as the field will be automatically formatted. The Fax field is not required but it is highly requested that a fax number be provided.

Please populate all fields: Facility, Address, City/State/Zip, Phone/Fax and Email. Facility name is the name of the entity requesting the funds.

After the field blanks on page 1 are filled in, press the SAVE NEW PROJECT button. If any information in required fields is left unfilled, or any invalid data was entered, you will see an error message. Go back and make corrections as indicated by the error message and then click SAVE NEW PROJECT. After a successful save of the first page, the project will be assigned a Project ID number and then loaded into Page 1. At this point, additional data can be entered on page 1, or you can navigate to other pages. You may wish to note the Project ID number displayed in the window header.

After filling out the first page, the request is not considered finished and is not yet submitted. Please open all the pages of the request and fill out the request in its entirety, perform the check for errors function, and electronically submit by selecting the appropriate button after successful error check.

eCORTS Help

If you have used eCORTS before and have a USER ID and password already, you may log in to eCORTS. If you have never used the eCORTS System before, you must first request a USER ID for eCORTS. The link to do this is located on the log in screen for eCORTS. After you submit the request for a USER ID, an email response from Capital Outlay with your USER ID and first time log in instructions will be sent to you within three working days. Please do not call or email Capital Outlay for a status on your USER ID. If you are locked out of eCORTS, please email CapitalOutlay@la.gov to have your USER ID unlocked.

If you already have a USER ID, it will stay active each year. If you are submitting capital outlay requests on behalf of an entity, you must fax a letter of permission each fiscal year. Your USER ID will only be active for that fiscal year. If you forget your password and/or USER ID, go to the log in screen for eCORTS and a Password/USER ID Reminder is available. You will be prompted to submit your email address and your USER ID and password will automatically be emailed to you. If you have questions about an existing USER ID, please email CapitalOutlay@la.gov.

You must have Adobe Acrobat on your computer to be able to print the request you have entered. A free download is available on the Adobe Acrobat website. You can link to this site from the eCORTS Home Page www.doa.la.gov/ecorts.

Make sure you are using Internet Explorer 6.0 or a later version for your browser. A free download is available on the Microsoft website. You can link to this site from the eCORTS Home Page www.doa.la.gov/ecorts.

You will not submit paper copies of your capital outlay requests. They will be submitted electronically.

If you are a state entity, you may email Departmental Summary Sheets to CapitalOutlay@la.gov.

If you are a non-state entity (ports, parishes, municipalities, non-profit organizations), you will still need to mail a Letter of Support from a legislator who represents the area the project is located. Please mail a copy of the Letter of Support to each of the five offices listed:

Log-In IDs

All users of eCORTS website need a log-in ID. The log in screen requires you to enter a log-in ID and password. The log-in ID is set up by the Office of Facility Planning and Control Capital Outlay Section via an electronic Log-In ID request.

To obtain a user id, log into eCORTS website www.doa.la.gov/ecorts and click "Enter Capital Outlay Request Website eCORTS", then click on "Click here to request a new User ID". A webpage will open with fields for you to fill out and submit. Please enter accurate and complete information. It is very important that you provide the name of the entity requesting the funding, as this will be the entity assigned to your user id. Please use the legal name of the organization in the user id request form if it is a non-profit or non-state misc. organization. When you submit, please wait for a user id response back to the email address you provided in the User ID request form. Capital Outlay will assign your user id up as promptly as possible. Please do not call for a status. It can take one to three business days.

Once the user id is set up, this user id will be permanent, but the permissions terminate each year on July 1st for users who DO NOT work for the agency requesting the funding. This can be private consultants, engineering firms, contracted employees, private grant assistants, etc. If you are an employee or volunteer of the organization requesting funds, your user id and password are always current.

There are some entities who hire a consultant, engineering firm, private consultant, contracted employees, private grant assistants, etc to complete their request on their behalf. They may complete a request on behalf of an entity if Capital Outlay has a letter of permission from the entity. The firm/consultant/contracted individual will need to request a letter of permission on entity letterhead signed by an entity administrator be faxed to Facility Planning Capital Outlay Attn: eCORTS Administrator to Fax 225-342-7624. Once Capital Outlay receives the letter of permission, the process of setting up the user id will be resumed and the entity will get an email with log-in instructions when the user id is set up.

Check Project for Errors

This Page is designed to allow you to analyze the entries that you have made into this application. Each project must be analyzed separately before it can be moved up to a higher stage.

There is a checkbox next to every page that is required for the selected project. Click the checkbox next to each page that you want to check for errors, then click the "Check for Errors" button. If you want to check all pages, click on the "check all" link. Clicking on the "uncheck all" link will uncheck all checkboxes.

If any errors are present, a list will appear on the screen with a corresponding page number to the left, indicating the page on which the error can be found. Click on the page number to display the page. Correct the error and click SAVE. Then press ALT + TAB on your keyboard to return to the list of errors. To generate a new error list, click "Check for Errors" again.

If you want to print the list of errors, you use the browser's menu. Click on File, then Print.

When you are finished checking the project for errors, you can click on "Close Window". This will not exit the application, or log you off.

Select Prior Year Projects

The Select Prior Year Projects allows the user to copy a project from a previous year forward to edit. This keeps the user from entering the same request from year to year if resubmission is necessary. To perform the function, log into eCORTS and click "Select Prior Year Projects."

In the Select Prior Year Projects section, select the year the request was submitted from the years listed under "Choose a Prior Fiscal Year." After you have done that, the list of project titles will appear from that year. Click on the title of the project to copy forward to the current year. A confirmation box will appear asking if you are sure you would like to copy project from a previous year to the current year, click "Copy Project."

You have copied that project forward. It is not submitted yet, just copied to the current year for you to edit. When you are finished copying projects and would like to return to the active year to edit the projects you copied forward, click "Return to Active Year." You will be directed back to the current year. The projects you copied will be there to click on to edit.

Print Reqests

Once the first page of the request has been filled out and saved in eCORTS, you may print the project at any point while filling out the request. Once you have submitted the request electronically, the request can still be retrieved to view and print only in the "View Projects to Print" section. When the project is error free, submit the request electronically. Do not mail paper copies of the request.

Your computer must have Adobe Acrobat to print the request. There is a link to a free download for Adobe Acrobat on the eCORTS Home Page at http://www.doa.la.gov/ecorts/.

Submit Requests

The link to submit electronically will appear on the project's main menu screen where all the page numbers are listed for that project on the lower right side of the menu. The link to submit electronically will not appear for you to click on UNTIL the request is ERROR FREE. If this link has not appeared, you need to run the Check for Errors. If the link is on your menu screen, that means your project is error free. Click this button to submit electronically when you are finished with the request. Please do this promptly after you finish. Once your project has been submitted electronically, it will not be listed in eCORTS to edit.

Page 1

The Location is the city in which the project will occur. This field only holds 15 characters, so choose them wisely.

Emergency: A capital outlay project can be classified as an "emergency" if it is essential to alleviate conditions that are hazardous to life or property. Examples include extensive roof leaks, structural defects, code violations, accreditation, asbestos/hazardous materials abatement, and extensive breakdown of HVAC systems.

These radio buttons are mutually exclusive, i.e., when one is clicked another will be un-clicked, so that only one is selected at a time. It is a required field, so you cannot un-select all three. At least one must be selected.

A priority number is to be assigned to each new project request in keeping with the relative importance to the achievement of overall department goals. Prioritize your requests by number. For example, if you have 3 requests, one will be 1 of 3, two will be 2 of 3, and three will be 3 of 3. Indicate the priority in the "Local/Agency" field in the Project section of Page 1. If your entity is only submitting one request, the priority will be 1 of 1.

This field is for state agencies only. Site Code and State ID numbers have been assigned to all existing state facilities, and can be found in your SLABS (State Land and Buildings) report or your Asbestos Management Plan. If you are unable to locate either of these items, contact Facility Planning and Control, Capital Outlay Section, at CapitalOutlay@la.gov.

These fields contain six (6) characters. Proper format for a State ID is a letter, either "L" or "S", and a five-digit number.

For more info on filling out page 1, see Add New Projects part of eCORTS Instructions.

Page 2

Information on the estimated project as a whole is entered on computer page 2. The total under cost estimates should equal the total Proposed New Funding on computer page 3. Also, the construction estimate furnished on computer page 2 should match the Total Construction Cost at the bottom of computer page 11. We recommend that your entity complete computer pages 9, 11, and 12 before completing computer pages 2 and 3. The information for construction costs, equipment costs, and facility requirements is completed on computer pages 9, 11, and 12 and will need to be transferred or duplicated in the fields on page 2 in construction and equipment costs. On page 3, the amount requested is entered, and after having completed the computer pages 9, 11, and 12, the amount you need to request and the amount you have as a match, if any, need to match the amount estimated for the project on computer page 2. It is recommended that you print out the request after you have completed computer page 1, and use that to organize your project costs so you’ll have the information you need to enter into eCORTS on those pages.

Planning Cost is a fee for professional services for planning/ designing. This figure should be 10% of construction cost. If you know that planning costs are not 10%, the information may be entered into the comment fields located at the bottom of Page 4 in the Comments Field below the Agency Impact Statement. Miscellaneous or incidental expenses not already listed, including insurance, legal fees and testing are calculated as 10% of construction cost. The program will automatically calculate these costs as a percentage of the construction cost.

Enter the dollars you plan to spend capital outlay funds on equipment. The amount you put here must be the same as the total for equipment on page 12 Equipment Costs. If no dollars of capital outlay funds will be used for equipment, please leave the Equipment field on page 2 blank and do not fill out page 12 at all.

Please enter an estimated number of months for planning and construction. This is a required field. If you do not have this information yet, or it is not applicable to your project, please enter "1".

Page 3

Prior funding refers to prior years actual funding (i.e. cash and lines of credit); and all funding in the current Capital Outlay Act (i.e. cash or lines of credit). The funding source (means of financing), amount, year, act number and bond priority level should be identified. Only prior funding for the project being submitted need be listed. Check off Bond if the proejct was a General Obligation Bond project.

If your project received an appropriation for General Obligation Bonds in a prior year, but did not receive a line of credit from the State Bond Commission, do not enter that funding under "Prior Funding". Prior Funding is only funding actually committed for the project.

This is where you put how much you are requesting from capital outlay: either new funding or funding that got in a previous year's capital outlay bill and didn't get a line of credit.Proposed new funding refers to the funding required in addition to actual funding in prior years and current year (i.e. cash, bonds sold or lines of credit). Proposed new funding should include current year bond funding which was not granted a line of credit by the October Bond Commission, plus any additional funding you would like to request.

Please make sure you have reflected all project funding on computer page 3. Prior Funding total plus Proposed New Funding total should be equal to the Cost Estimates total on computer page 2.

*The specific source of funds for Items 2-7 listed above should be identified if included in the funding for any part of the project.
**The specific name of the statutory fund for Item 6 should be identified. Statutory Dedications are for Departments of the State of Louisiana only.

Page 4

This statement is a "sign-off" by an appropriate State Department authority or non-state entity. The name, title and date are required fields. It is recommended that you complete this page with information about your project.

The comments field has a variety of functions. You may use this field for a justification of your request. You may also use this field if you run out of room in another field or for any additional information, description, or miscellaneous info you would like to include on the request. In addition, please note discrepancies in funding if there are any in your request. If costs for your project have changed from a previous year’s request, please note the difference and reason for increase/decrease. Please note that while you are in eCORTS, the session will time out after approximately twenty (20) minutes, so please save your pages frequently.

This page can be used to list itemized break-out of costs, materials involved, property ownership, timeline for the spending of the funds, etc. Please provide any pertinent information on your request here.

Page 7

These fields are read-only. Make any changes to them on Page 1.

The description needs to be a brief sentence or two describing the project. Please put something different than what you have for the title of the project. This field is not for entering a justification or need for the project, only a description of what the project is in a brief form. Use Comments section on computer page 4 to add additional description information.

These are drop down boxes. Please select the fields most applicable for this project. You must select Project Type first, then Facility Type second.

Please enter a brief comment on the service, or program, that will be provided as a result of this project.

Please enter the project’s long-range plan, timeline for the project and/or funding and construction requested timeline. Also give a summary of your agency or organization’s strategic plan for the project or program.

Page 8

"Applicable Guidelines" refers to any mandates that your department or agency must follow to acquire federal funds, grants, etc. that are particular to you. It is not necessary to list NFPA, ADA, etc. in this area because ALL agencies are expeted to follow these codes and regulations. For example, if the federal regulatory agencies for correctional facilities require that every inmate has a cell of at least 80 square feet, then this should be listed. This is very important to Corrections, and Facility Planning needs to be aware of this guideline; however, this guideline does not affect any other agency. List the publication and the specific guideline in the blanks provided. If the project is located in an area that has project or other restrictions and/or local or federal requirements, guidelines, etc. please indicate those guidelines.

This field is to enter the name of the feasibility study preparer. If no feasibility study was performed for this project, leave this field blank. In order to enter data into these two fields, you must first click the checkbox above them on the right.

Please indicate if it is suspected or known that any part of the project involves hazardous materials. Also, please indicate if that info is unknown.

This is a required field. Please provide this information relative to this project you are proposing in comparison with other similar projects in the area. If no similar projects exist, please indicate that. Evaluate the comparison facility to the facility you are proposing, provide info on how they would be similar, how they would be different, the age, size, useful life for each if a building is involved, etc.

Page 9

If your project does not involve renovation or construction of an existing or new building, check “No Space”, fill out the Preparer’s Name and the current date and save the page. The rest of the information is not applicable. For any construction project involving a building, this information is required to be filled out, in addition to the table on computer page 11. The information from computer page 9 defaults to computer page 11, so complete computer page 9 first.

In the "Facility Requirements" section, the type of space is to be entered. If several areas are the same, each area does not need to be listed individually. For example, if the area is to be "office" space, it is not necessary to list each office separately. Also, file rooms, break areas or other similar spaces can be lumped into the category "Office". The number (#) column is for the number of people to be housed in this space. It is not the number of rooms. Typically, at this point, most agencies have not prepared programs and do not actually know the number of rooms. They should, however, know the number of people that need to be housed. Examples of occupants are employees, clients, students, etc.

If your project does not have space requirements, does not involve renovation or addition to a new or existing building or space, click the checkbox for "No Space" for Space Requirements. Please check "New Space" or "Existing Space" in reference to the proposed building project.

Whether or not you are required to complete this page, these two fields are required. Put the name of the person who is completing the table on that page and the current date the page is being filled out. If this page is not applicable to your project, enter your name and current date in those fields.

Net Area/Person should reflect the area/space needed per person. For example, if the agency requests a classroom to house 30 students at 30 square foot per student, the Net Area Required is 900 square feet. The program will automatically calculate this figure.

Net area required for each functional space type (number of people times the net area per person required).

The total gross area equals the product of the total net area times the burden factor (see section entitled "Burden Factor").

The burden factor is a percentage that is allowed for building support areas such as lobbies, elevators, stairwells, and primary circulation. An efficient burden factor is usually around 20%. More often, the burden is 25-30%.

The burden area is the difference between the gross area and the net area. The program will calculate this area.

Additional Program Requirements refers to those areas that are not spaces as such. For example, loading docks, public roadways, utility tie-ins, etc. that are required for the project should be listed here.

Page 10

If the project is new construction and involves relocation of a program or personnel from an existing facility, please describe what will become of the existing facility. If it is a renovation, please provide a listing of any major renovations that have occurred, such as installation of a new HVAC system. It is not necessary to list minor renovations such as addition of walls, new carpet, etc. To determine whether asbestos is present in the facility, consult the "Asbestos Management Plan" books housed at the site's physical plant or contact Facility Planning at CapitalOutlay@la.gov. Provide the age and condition of the roof and any rooftop equipment in the blanks provided. If your project does not include renovation or addition to a building, some of the fields on this page may not apply to your project. Fill out what is applicable to your project.

Page 11

This page is required information to show cost break-out for the project. This information is not applicable for equipment-only requests. Otherwise, please use Construction Cost table for space costs and Additional Line Item table for any other itemized costs besides equipment. If your project does not involve a building, the Additional Line Item Expenses table may still be used to enter itemized costs for materials involved in the project.

The total construction cost on page 11 should match the construction cost estimate amount entered on computer page 2. It is recommended that page 9, 11, and 12 be filled out before computer page 2. Computer page 9, 11, and 12 are worksheet pages that help produce figures related to project materials and costs. The figures may then be plugged into the Cost Estimates table so that all figures on the request are consistent.

Under Construction Costs, "List Special Cost Affecting Factors" refers to any item or requirement that drives the square foot cost to a level that is higher than standard. For example, a laboratory space will require fume hoods, separate zoning of the HVAC, installation of specialized equipment, etc. These requirements are going to affect the overall cost of the project and should be listed here. In this table, the space types that are similar can be grouped as they were in the "Facility Requirements" section. Each type of space that is a different cost, i.e. warehouse, lab, office, etc. should be grouped separately. Space type and net area will be copied for your convenience from Page 9.

Cost of construction, renovation, repair, demolition or other work, excluding land acquisition, professional fees, and other costs. This should include the cost of all fixed equipment, such as bathroom fixtures, laboratory and kitchen equipment, etc.

Additional Line Item Expenses such as parking lots, utility tie-ins, etc. should be listed and described. This should be entered as a unit cost (if available) and total cost.

Page 12

Equipment costs are listed as item and total. If this is a first or current year request, an itemized breakdown should be attached on a separate sheet showing unit costs and estimated useful life of the equipment.

If you entered equipment cost data on this page, you must also indicate equipment cost information on Page 2, Cost Estimates, and vice versa. These are corresponding fields.

Please use categories to list equipment proposed for this project and comments section on computer page 4 to give specifics on equipment to be purchased, who will own the equipment, if it is new or used, itemized costs, condition of equipment at purchase, timeline for purchase of equipment, if construction or another aspect of the same project is involved, at what point in the project is the equipment needed, what the useful life of the equipment will be, etc.

Page 13

The Operating Budget section should be used to indicate the increase or decrease in the operating budget as a result of the proposed state agency project. For state agencies, it should match the BR-1 and BR-2 submittals to the Office of Planning & Budget. It is necessary to meet with your Fiscal Officer or Budget Officer to prepare this correctly. It is also necessary to meet with this person so the operational funding will be requested to support the project in the agency's budget submittal. If the project is not feasible from an operations standpoint, your fiscal officer can indicat this at this time. Of course, if this is the scenario, there is no need to submit the request.

The first column of the table shows the current operational funding. The second column indicates the change in required funding due to the proposed project. The top half of the table shows expected expenditures. The bottom half shows the proposed means of financing. The proposed financing should equal the anticipated expenditures. If not, modify your entries so that the table will balance.

This data represents Total Expenditures over the next five (5) years. Since this is a request for operational funds, it may not be necessary to increase your operating budget in the first fiscal year. For example, if a project has 12 months of planning and 18 months of construction, it will probably be three years before any additional operational funds are needed. Therefore, request the additional funds in the third year. Unless a major change is anticipated in the operating budget, we generally increase the funding request by 4% (a typical inflation rate for each following year).

Page 14

Page 16 (Departments of State of LA only)

If you selected "yes" while completing the budget request on Page 9 under Facility Requirements, then you are required to complete a Space Utilization Plan. It will be Page 16 in the eCORTS application.

R.S. 39:102 requires the Capital Outlay Budget Request to include a space utilization plan for the requesting agency. The intent of this legislation is to determine whether existing space can be utilized to provide needed space and avoid construction of new space. A space utilization study must be submitted for all project requests that involve construction of new or additional space. It is not necessary to submit a space utilization plan for projects such as Asbestos Abatement, Roof Repairs, Road Repairs, Sewer Improvements, etc. It shall be based on the following criteria and/or any other applicable guidelines.

Explain how the agency determined that a new facility or addition was required. The purpose of this evaluation is to show a before/after scenario and its relationship to a recognized benchmark or standard. One way of expressing this relationship is to first show all existing usable square footage (s.f.) that is of a similar type. For example, if you are requesting a new laboratory building, all existing laboratory square footage should be shown. Also, any other square footage that could be converted to a lab should be shown, separately. Next, compare the existing space and its usage with any benchmark or standards. The benchmark used should be one that is recognized among most institutions within your industry. The intent of the comparison is to measure the s.f./person, number of beds or number of cells, etc. as it relates to the benchmark. The maximum or peak and average or typical occupancy of the facility should be considered in the evaluation. For areas that are not "occupied", such as a loading dock, consider the equipment and other space requirements.

Once total existing usable s.f. has been calculated, add the proposed project s.f. to the existing s.f. and recalculate the s.f./person, etc. and show how the addition of the proposed project affects the relationship you have established with the benchmark. This study of existing space should assist you in the decision to request additional space, renovate, or re-examine the efficiency of your existing facilities. If existing space is determined to be inadequate for conversion or renovation, explain why and what will become of this space. For example, will this space be renovated and fall into another space category? The square footage of this space should be shown and its deletion from the existing space indicated.

All standards, guidelines, and definitions used by the requesting agency shall be submitted for comparison and clarification. The space utilization study shall include gross and usable area as explained in the following section Definitions. If another means for calculating area is used, please include the methodology.

Gross Area - This is the sum of the floor areas of all levels of a building which are totally enclosed within the building envelope.

Usable Area - This is the floor area of a facility that can be assigned to occupant groups. Usable area includes the area of interior walls, building columns and projections and secondary circulation. Usable area excludes exterior walls, major vertical penetrations, primary circulation, building core, and building service areas.

eCORTS Instructions

Guidelines for Capital Outlay Budget Requests