The Saint Lucia Blood Bank, a private charity partly supported by government grants, is located on the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia. The blood bank has just finished its operations for September, which was a very busy month due to a powerful hurricane that hit neighboring islands causing many injuries. The hurricane largely bypassed Saint Lucia, but residents of Saint Lucia willingly donated their blood to help people on other islands. As a consequence, the blood bank collected and processed over 20% more blood than had been originally planned for the month. A report prepared by a government official comparing actual costs to budgeted costs for the blood bank appears below. Continued support from the government depends on the blood bank's ability to demonstrate control over its costs. Saint Lucia Blood Bank Cost Control Report For the Month Ended September 30 Medical supplies Liters of blood collected Equipment depreciation Lab tests Rent Utilities Administration Total expense Actual Results 570 Planning Budget Variances 450 $ 10,665 $ 8,775 $1,890 U 6,084 5,850 234 U 4,480 4,100 380 U 1,800 1,800 0 1,002 900 102 U 12,945 $ 36,976 12,375 570 U $ 33,800 $ 3,176 U The managing director of the blood bank was very unhappy with this report, claiming that his costs were higher than expected due to the emergency on the neighboring islands. He also pointed out that the additional costs had been fully covered by payments from grateful recipients on the other islands. The government official who prepared the report countered that all of the figures had been submitted by the blood bank to the government; he was just pointing out that actual costs were a lot higher than promised in the budget. The following cost formulas were used to construct the planning budget: Medical supplies Lab tests Equipment depreciation Rent Utilities Administration Cost Formulas $19.500 $13.000 $4,100 $1,800 $900 $10,800 +$3.50q