The bottom line up front: You can reconcile your Statement of Budgetary Resources (SBR) directly to the SF-133 (Report on Budget Execution and Budgetary Resources) line by line with one exception. Distributed offsetting receipts require a separate Treasury report. Here's how to do it using a real-world example.
If you work in federal financial management, reconciling the SBR to the SF-133 is a fundamental control activity. When these reports tie together, you've verified that your agency's budget execution matches what's reported in the financial statements. When they don't match, you've identified a potential reporting error or control weakness that needs investigation.
This reconciliation is essential for Yellow Book audits, OMB Circular A-123 compliance testing, and preparing accurate Agency Financial Reports (AFRs).
Here's what makes this reconciliation straightforward: the budgetary resources section is structured the same way across the SBR,
SF 132, and SF 133. The line items match. The titles are nearly identical. Once you know where to look, the reconciliation flows naturally from top to bottom.
We'll walk through this using FY 2024 data from the Armed Forces Retirement Home—a smaller agency with clear financial reporting that makes it easier to see the relationships.
On the SBR: Armed Forces Retirement Home reported $$108,733,197 in unobligated balances brought forward from the prior year.
On the SF-133: Look at line 1070, "Unobligated Balance, Total." You'll find $108,733,197—an exact match.
Pro tip: The SF-133 is essentially a pivot table. You can double-click on any line to see which specific Treasury Account Symbols (TAS) make up that balance. In this case, you'd see the $108 million came from multiple funds—FY 2023, FY 2022, FY 2021, FY 2020, plus some no-year funds. (FY 2019 balances were canceled by September 30, so they don't appear in the final total.)
On the SBR: $102 million in appropriations.
On the SF-133: Line 1100 shows appropriations totaling $102 million. This amount comes from two separate appropriation accounts that sum to the total.
On the SBR: $1,950,000 in spending authority from offsetting collections.
On the SF-133: Line 1750, "Total Spending Authority from Offsetting Collections," shows $1,950,000.
On the SBR: $212,683,197 in total budgetary resources.
On the SF-133: Line 1910 shows $212,683,197—matching exactly.
This is your first major checkpoint. If total budgetary resources don't match between the SBR and SF-133, stop and investigate before moving forward.
On the SBR: $98,099,078 in new obligations and upward adjustments.
On the SF-133: Line 2190 shows $98,099,078
for "New Obligations and Upward Adjustments, Total."
Note: The SF-133 also breaks down Category A and Category B spending, but there's no direct line-by-line tie to the SBR for those subcategories. Focus on the total obligations line for reconciliation purposes.
On the SBR: $107,237,116 in apportioned unexpired accounts.
On the SF-133: Line 2201 shows "Apportioned, Available in Current Period" (which represents unexpired funds) at $107,237,116.
On the SBR: $734,883 in unapportioned unexpired balances.
On the SF-133: Line 2403, "Unobligated Balance, Unapportioned, Other," shows $734,883
Important context: This section of the SF-133 represents unexpired funds, even though the word "unexpired" doesn't appear in the line title. You know these are unexpired because they're classified as "other" unapportioned balances available for future use.
On the SBR: $107,971,999 total unexpired unobligated balance.
On the SF-133: Line 2412 shows $107,971,999 for "Unexpired Unobligated Balance, End of Year."
On the SBR: $6,612,120 in expired unobligated balances.
On the SF-133: Line 2413 shows $6,612,120 for "Expired Unobligated Balance, End of Year."
On the SBR: $114,584,119 total unobligated balance at year-end.
On the SF-133: Line 2490 shows $114,584,119—the sum of expired and unexpired unobligated balances.
On the SBR: $212,683,197
On the SF-133: Line 2500 shows $212,683,197.
This is your second major checkpoint. The total at the bottom of the Status section should equal the total at the top of the Budgetary Resources section. If it doesn't, there's an error in the agency's budget execution data.
Note: The SF-133 includes some memo accounts (like line 2501) that aren't reported on the SBR. Don't be concerned if you see lines on the SF-133 that don't appear on the SBR; that's expected.
On the SBR: $ 100,783,327 in net outlays.
On the SF-133: Line 4190, "Outlays, Net (Discretionary and Mandatory)," shows $100,783,327.
This line represents actual cash disbursements, net of any collections that offset those disbursements.
Here's where the reconciliation gets tricky.
On the SBR: Armed Forces Retirement Home reported -$20,306,515 in distributed offsetting receipts.
On the SF-133: This line doesn't exist.
If you check the Treasury Financial Manual (TFM) crosswalk for the Statement of Budgetary Resources, you'll see that distributed offsetting receipts are "not supported by USSGL."
That means there's no direct USSGL account code that feeds this line. So it won't appear on the SF-133, which is built from USSGL data.
Since this line isn't on the SF-133, you need to go to another source. Here's the process:
Step 1: Check OMB Circular A-136
OMB Circular A-136 provides the financial reporting requirements for federal agencies, including detailed instructions for each line on the SBR.
Navigate to the Statement of Budgetary Resources section and find the guidance on distributed offsetting receipts. You'll see this instruction:
"The Quarterly Distributed Offsetting Receipts by Department Report can be found here: Monthly Treasury Statement (MTS) | U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data. Agencies should include in the SBR the receipt accounts in this report classified as:
• Proprietary Receipts from the Public;
• Intra-budgetary Receipts Deducted by Agencies; and
• Offsetting Governmental Receipts.
The amount of distributed offsetting receipts reported in this statement should be the aggregate of cash collected in these receipt accounts and reported to Treasury monthly within the CARS Classifications Transaction Accountability Module."
Step 2: Access the Treasury Report
Go to the U.S. Department of the Treasury's website and locate the "Quarterly Distributed Offsetting Receipts by Department Report."
Step 3: Find Your Agency
The report doesn't list agencies by name—it uses agency ID numbers. For the Armed Forces Retirement Home, the agency ID is 084. Search for that number in the report. There are three line being reported for 084.
Step 4: Locate the Amount
Under "Proprietary Receipts from Public," you'll find the year-to-date activity: -$20,306,515. This matches the distributed offsetting receipts line on the SBR exactly.
On the SBR: This is the net total of your outlays minus your distributed offsetting receipts.
Take your outlays net $100,783,000 and subtract your distributed offsetting receipts ($20,306,515) to arrive at agency outlays, Net of $80,476,812. This is simple math—no separate report required.
The SF-133 functions like a pivot table. When you see a total line, double-click it to see the underlying detail—which specific
Treasury Account Symbols, which fiscal years, and which transactions make up that total. This feature is invaluable when investigating variances.
The SF-133 includes memo accounts that provide additional context but don't tie directly to SBR lines. Don't expect every SF-133 line to have an SBR equivalent.
When you encounter a line on the SBR that doesn't appear on the SF-133, check the
TFM Section 5 crosswalk for the Statement of Budgetary Resources. It will tell you whether the line is supported by USSGL and if not, where to find the data.
A-136 is your roadmap for federal financial reporting. It explains not just what to report, but where the data comes from. When in doubt, start there.
Reconciling the SBR to the SF 133 is more than a mechanical exercise. It's a fundamental internal control that ensures:
- Budget execution data is accurately reported in financial statements
- Agencies comply with OMB financial reporting requirements
- Auditors can trace budgetary resources from source documents through to published financials
- Budget analysts and financial managers can identify and resolve discrepancies before AFR publication
Whether you're conducting Yellow Book audits, testing controls under OMB Circular A-123, or managing an agency's financial close process, this reconciliation is essential federal government accounting training.
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