CHAPTER III Legislative Recommendations THE FOLLOWING legislative recommendations are made in the interest of economy, efficient administration, and to simplify accounting: HOUSING NEEDS The personnel of the General Accounting Office and its records are scattered in 15 buildings or parts of buildings in widely separated sections of the District of Columbia. Space in 9 of the 15 buildings is rented at an annual cost of $169,026.80, not including space in 2 of the rented buildings for which the rental is paid from appropriations of that part of the Public Buildings Administration, Federal Works Agency, which was formerly the Building Management Branch of the National Park Service. Working conditions are so crowded that it is not possible for employees, especially those in more responsible positions, to perform efficiently. Desirable coordination and consolidation of functions cannot be effected because of either inadequate or unsatisfactory space or both. The accounting records of the Government are filed or stored largely on temporary wooden shelves and in buildings which do not afford adequate protection against dust, fire, and water hazards. These are the records on which the Government must rely to disprove thousands of claims, unjustified or already paid, which are asserted against the Government every year, in the General Accounting Office, in the 'courts, and before the Congress in private bills. The work of practically every activity of the General Accounting Office is dependent upon the coordinated action of its other activities and upon records which may be located in other buildings, among the 15 occupied, and under present conditions its work throughout necessarily proceeds at a much slower pace and at materially increased expense. The following statement shows the buildings occupied by the General Accounting Office, whether used for personnel or files or both, the square feet of space occupied, whether the space is Government owned or rented, and the rent and maintenance charges paid: Main office, 5th and F Sts. NW. Old Patent Office, 8th and F Old Post Office, 11th and Penn-...do.. New Post Office, 12th and Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Moses, 11th, and F Sts. NW 1700 Kalorama Rd. NW. 1712-24 Kalorama Rd. NW 1701 Kalorama Rd. NW. 1420 U St. NW. 401 South Capitol St. 1220 19th St. NW. 119 D St. NE. 2215 5th St. NE. Total.. Annual maintenance charges paid by G. A. Ŏ. Personnel and files__ Files... Personnel and files.. Files.. Personnel and files.. Files 28,000 do. 21,000 ..do. 1 Rent paid by Public Buildings Administration. None of the space occupied is considered adequate or suitable for personnel or files with the exception of that located in the Department of Commerce and New Post Office Buildings, both of which are new and modern. The other buildings are not satisfactorily equipped and are inadequately ventilated and heated for comfort during winter weather. The main building at Fifth and F Streets NW., the Old Post Office and Moses Buildings present continuous problems of this nature. The buildings used for files are largely garage buildings with unsatisfactory facilities for ventilation and heat. It is necessary at all times for file clerks and searchers to work among the files compiling transcripts of accounts and other information and it is a matter of serious concern that some of these buildings are so unsuitable for personnel purposes as to endanger the health of the employees required to work therein. The distance between the 15 buildings, apparent from an analysis of the above statement, causes much loss of time of personnel whose duties require them to go to and from the various buildings and brings serious problems in administration of the work of the General Account ing Office due not only to separation of the administrative office of the Comptroller General but also to the delays in the necessary shifting of accounting records from building to building prior and subsequent to settlement of accounts and claims. The provision of suitable housing facilities for the General Accounting Office is now actively before those officials of the Executive branch of the Government charged with the duty of preparing plans and estimates therefor for presentation to the Congress. I am convinced all fully realize this outstanding need and I express the hope a program to meet it will be presented to the Congress and receive its favorable consideration during the next regular session. TRAVEL EXPENSES OF CIVILIAN OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES UPON OFFICIAL CHANGE OF STATION Section 2 of the Treasury and Post Office Departments Appropriation Act for the fiscal year 1939, 52 Stat. 120, 147, contains the following provision: Appropriations for the fiscal year 1939 available for expenses of travel of civilian officers and employees of the executive departments and establishments shall be available also for expenses of travel performed by them on transfer from one official station to another when authorized by the head of the department or establishment concerned in the order directing such transfer: Provided, That such expenses shall not be allowed for any transfer effected for the convenience of any officer or employee. [Italics supplied.] A similar limitation was made applicable to such appropriations for the fiscal year 1940, in section 2 of the Treasury and Post Office Departments Appropriation Act of May 6, 1939, Public, No. 65, and previously has been in effect from fiscal year to fiscal year, at least since 1927, as set forth in 7 Comp. Gen. 482, and 11 id. 459, 461. From the beginning, the former Comptroller General held that the language of this limitation requires, as a condition precedent to making the appropriation available, that the expenses of the travel between official stations must have been authorized by the head of the department or establishment concerned or an assistant head authorized by statute to act in place of the head, "in the order directing such transfer" and that authorization by some subordinate, or approval by the head of the department after the travel had been performed, does not meet the requirement. Such a requirement that the head of the department or bureau involved personally act in advance on each individual travel order has imposed a great burden upon such officials which seems out of proportion to any public interest affected and likewise has imposed a severe burden upon the General Accounting Office in the examina tion and settlement of accounts to see that the limitations are observed. Also, legislative relief has been sought to have payments validated where the individual orders did not meet the requirements of the statutory limitation. Several such payments were validated in Private Act No. 229 of July 12, 1937, 50 Stat. (part II) 1029. It is believed that no public interest would suffer if general legislation should be enacted on this matter as follows: Hereafter any appropriations made available for expenses of travel of civilian officers and employees of the executive departments and establishments shall be available also for expenses of travel performed by them on transfer from one official station to another when authorized by the head of the department or establishment concerned: Provided, That such expenses shall not be allowed for any transfer effected for the convenience of the officer or employee. This would deny the use of the appropriation for transfers not duly authorized and at the same time would relieve the department heads from the burden of acting upon each individual order involving a transfer or change of station and would avoid the raising in the General Accounting Office of many suspensions or disallowances and the preparation of pertinent correspondence thereon involving form rather than substance. Also, it would obviate the necessity for requests for validating legislation in the form of public or private relief acts to clear the accounts of such suspensions or disallowances. TRANSPORTATION OF EFFECTS A recommendation was made in the last annual report that legislation be enacted to establish uniformity of allowances for the transportation of household goods and personal effects of civilian officers and employees when transferred from one official station to another for permanent duty. The basis for such recommendation was stated in the last annual report, pages 1197-1199, as follows: At the present time, under administrative regulations there is a wide variance in the authorized allowances with respect to the limitations fixed for packing, crating, drayage charges (some allow uncrating), etc., also as to the weight and nature of the effects which may be shipped at Government expense. Illustrative of the manner in which legislative authority is now derived and the administrative effect given thereto by the several departments and agencies of the Government, attention is invited to the following: Department of the Interior Annual appropriation acts for the Bureau of Reclamation, the Geological Survey, Office of Indian Affairs (including Alaska), the Bureau of Mines, and Division of Grazing, each provide expenditures for packing, crating, and transportation (including drayage) of personal effects of employees upon permanent change of station under regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior. Department of the Interior Regulations governing payment of traveling expenses and of transportation of personal effects, dated January 22, 1937, provide for the actual and necessary expense not exceeding $100 for packing, crating, and boxing; and freight and drayage charges, including transfer by stage where necessary, for the transfer of household effects and ordinary personal property exclusive of automobiles, not exceeding 5,000 pounds gross shipping weight; and for professional books shipped independently of such household effects and other personal property, not exceeding 300 pounds gross shipping weight, transportation, whenever practicable to be covered by Government bill of lading. Similar authority is granted to the National Park Service by general legislation, act of May 26, 1930, 46 Stat. 383 Department of Labor Employees of the Immigration and Naturalization Service may be allowed, within the discretion and under written orders of the Secretary of Labor: * the expenses incurred for the transfer of their wives and dependent minor children; their household effects and other personal property, not exceeding in all 5,000 pounds, including the expenses for packing, crating, freight, and drayage thereof." Act of February 21, 1931, 46 Stat. 1205. Department of Labor General Order No. 178, prescribing regulations under subject title, "Transfers of employees under act approved February 21, 1931, 46 Stat. I. 1205," provides in pertinent part as follows: PAR. 6. "(a) Actual charges for the cost of packing, crating, and drayage of household effects and other personal property will be allowed. PAR. 7. "(a) Freight charges incurred in shipping the employee's household effects and other personal property, not exceeding in all 5,000 pounds, will be allowed. "(b) The gross weight of all articles shipped, including the weight of the packing cases, crates, and other containers, shall not exceed in all 5,000 pounds. Any expense for packing, crating, drayage, or freight, in excess of the expense for 5,000 pounds, must be borne by the employee. "(j) The allowance for freight charges will not exceed the minimum freight rate applicable to the household effects and other personal property belonging to and shipped by the employee. If a higher freight rate is incurred by reason of a valuation being placed on the goods, the excess charges will be borne by the employee." Department of Agriculture Under authorities contained in the Act of March 4, 1911, 36 Stat. 1265: 66* ** officers and employees of the Department of Agriculture transferred from one official station to another for permanent duty, when authorized by the Secretary of Agriculture, may be allowed actual traveling expenses, including charges for the transfer of their effects and personal property used in official work, under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture." |