Mattey Publishing Company (Mattey) is a publisher of novels. The monthly equipment maintenance cost for Mattey is considered to be a mixed cost. The variable portion of the cost is related to the number of novels published. The production volume and maintenance costs for the past six months are presented below. Mattey uses the high-low method to separate mixed costs into its fixed and variable portions.

Month	Volume of Production (Number of Novels)	Equipment Maintenance Costs
June	438,000	$7,353
July	406,000	$6,946
August	411,000	$7,010
September	55,000	$2,482
October	600,000	$9,414
November	239,000	$4,822

Do not enter dollar signs or commas in the input boxes. a) Calculate the variable rate for the equipment maintenance cost. Round your answer to 5 decimal places. Variable Cost per Unit: $Answer

b) Calculate the fixed portion of the equipment maintenance cost. Round your answer to the nearest whole number. Fixed Cost: $Answer