Direct, step-down, and reciprocal methods; assign costs to departments Cost information for Lake County Library is as follows. Support Operating Direct Costs Salaries Supplies Janitorial Administration Books Other Media Total $40,000 $%50,000 $70,000 $180,000 $20,000 5,000 800 5,000 15,000 25,000 450 Allocation Base Volumes 1,200 300 2,500 Square feet Employees 500 500 In additi on to directly traceable costs, the library incurred $24,000 for a building lease. oce to departments any costs that have not been traced, and then calculate total costs assigned to each department. e the support department costs to the operating departments using the direct method. nethod. Allocate first the costs for the support department having the largest direct costs. ocate the support department costs to the operating departments using the reciprocal e the support department costs to the operating departments using the step-down d. Use either simultaneous equations or Excel Solver