OCR Text |
Show Our OurGovern1nent OurGovernment Govern1nent Government GovernmentJIow ( jrovernment jrovernmentHow ' - -How How -JIow JIow - I-Iow I Iow - It Operates OperatesBy By Win/am Win am William l7illlam / Bruckartrtwnaww Bruckart Bruckarl BruckartCHECKS . . . I , , , , , . . . rtwn-aww- rtwn aww rtwnawwwww.hf _ _ - , , - , ww-w.hf www.hf ww w.hf whf , , - , , . , , + . CHECKS AND DOUBLE DOUBLECHECK DOUBLECHECK DOUBLECHECK DOUBLECHECKHHnnn CHECK CHECKTBff17 T8 HHnnn TBff17 nn Is a classical story stor ; e extant extanthere extanthere tant tanthere here about a man who was retired retiredafter retiredafter retiredafter after some forty years of governmentservice government governmentservice governmentservice service only to bo be notified two years yearslatcr yearslater yearslater latcr later that his accounts sho\\ sho showed shoed ' \ ed an un unnamed unnamed unnamed named amount still due him Be lie Bemade liemade Hemade made numerous trips to the buIldIng buIldIngwhere buildingwhere buildingwhere where he had been employed and even eventually eventually eventually tually was told that his claim h'ld hld had h'ldbeen hadbeen hidbeen ' been appro appros approied ' ed etl It was W'1S W1S ' a n month or so solater solater solater later before he was paid , but he sure sure- surely surely surely - ly was paid , , the check being for a atotal atotal atotal total of three centsThough cents cent centsThough , ; Though that may seem to be an ex exaggerated exaggerated esaggerated aggerated caE case > C . , It actually Is not out outof outof outof of the ordinary . . Your Undo Uncle Sam Samwatches Samwatches Samwatches watches pennies closer , I dare say saythan , than most of us He has to do It It . . The ThegO'fernment Thegovernment Thegovernment gO'fernment gOfernment government ' Is approximately a five bIl bll bIllon blllion blllion lon lion ] dollar business Its records are areand , and have ha'fe hafe ' to be , , exact eJ.act eJact . to the penny pennyHad pennyHad pennyHad Had the circumstince clrcumst'1nce clrcumst1nce circumstance ' of the three threecent threecent threecent cent Incident , , mentioned above , been beenfavorable beenfavorable beenfavorable favorable to Uncle Sam , the amount amountwould amountwould amountwould would have been collected even bad had It Itbeen itbeen Itbeen been necessary to sue In court and andobtaIn andobtain andobtain obtaIn a judgment . . . The necessity necesslty necesslt for maintaining maintaInmg such sucha a close watch on the pennies Is the thereason thereason thereason reason why there Is a genet gcneial general al account accountIng accounting accountIng Ing office The comptroller general of ofthe ofthe ofthe the United Statesho States , , ' \ who \\ho ho Is head of the thegeneral thegeneral thegeneral general accountln accounting offlce office , never ne.er neer . has the thegood thegood thegood good will w111 svlll of all offices of the govern government government government ment at one time The nature of hIs hIsjob hisjob hisjob job n makes ] I es popularity popuhrIty Impossible He HeIs Heis HeIs Is required by law to tread on too tooman toomany toomany man many v toesLet toesLet toes toesLet Let me lllustrite l11ustr'lte l11ustrlte illustrate ' how bow , In doing his hisjob hisjob hisjob job , the comptroller general gains g\ins g ins ' \ so somuch somuch somuch much disfavor He passes pasees ; upon every everypayment everypayment everypayment payment that Is made out of federal federalfunds federalfunds federalfunds funds ; every penny that Is approprl appropri approprlated appropriated appropnated ated by congress has to be spent ac- ac accordmg according ac according - - cording cordmg to the letter of the law , and andthe andthe andthe the comptroller general's generals ' ' ' job Is to see seethat seethat seethat that the several hun hundred red dlsbursmg disbursing dlsbursmgofficers disbursingofficers disbursingofficers officers of the government covernment do It that thatway thatway thatway way . . It tal takes es no stretch of the Imagl magi Imaglnation ] Imagination magination nation , therefore , , to understand underst'lnd understlnd ' that thatwhen thatwhen thatwhen when a dibursin disbursing ! ) officer mal makes es a pay pay- payment payment payment - ment and then Is 1s told by the comp comptroller comptroller comptroller troller general a few weeks later that thatthe thatthe thatthe the payment was not In accordance accordancewith accordancewith accordancewith with law-\\ law lawell law-well law well law - ' \ well ell . , It Is the exception exceptionrather exceptionrather exceptionrather rather than the rule when that th'lt thlt ' de declslon declsion decislon clslon clsion faila flllls falls to produce an argument argument.You argumentYou . You probably would argue , too If It you youwere youwere youwere were held liable hable for the government governmentIt . . It Is not alone with the dlsburslDg disbursing dlsburslDgofficers disbursingofficers disbursingofficers officers tliat that the comptroller general generalhas generalhas generalhas has troubles i ; he meets Individuals to towhom towhom towhom whom the disbursing officel officeis officers s go to get getbac1 getback getback bac1 back . their overpayments , , and frequent frequently ly they tbey demand reconsideration O.er Oer Over O.erpayments Overpayments Overpayments . payments may result In the purchase purchaseof of supplies for the government . , In the thepa"ment thepayment thepavment pa\"ment pa "ment ment payment ' \ " of salaries s\larIes s larIes ' \ , . In the settlement settlementof of genera general ] claims , , or In such things thingsas as refund of expenditures e'Pendltures ePendltures erpendrtures ' paid by gov gov- governmental governmental governmental - ernmental represcntativ represent'lth representlth represcntatlses represcntatlsesLaws ' esLa es esLaws Laws Las La\\ La ' \ s require , , for instance , that an anIDl1yIdual anindividual anIndividual IDl1yIdual individual ! traveling travellng at government go\ernment go ernment \ ex expense expease espense pense pease , must take ta1.e ta1e . the most direct route route.Picture routePicture . . . PIcture then what the reaction is of ofan ofan ofan an Indn Individual indrsidual Idu'll Idull ' who Is Informed InformetJ weeks weeksafter weeksafter weeksafter after he had made a trip that It if he hehad hehad hehad had taken tahen the proper train , or boat boatthe , , the expense e'Pense ePense ' to government go"ernment goernment , " would bae hale baebeen halebeen havebeen , been $166 166 $1 1 $ C6 6 less lees ; , and that he must pay paybac1 payback payback bac1 back . that sum out of his own o"n on " jeans jeansY jeansYou jeansYou ( Y You ou select your own language , and andI andI I will w1l1 match It with expressions I ha hale haleheard hav , e eheard eheard heard , because they cover the whole wholecategory wholecategory wholecategory category of epithets ) But all of this is necessary , or else elsethe elsethe elsethe the government would be the loser losernot , not In thousands of dollars dollarCl , but In mil mi14 mil- mi14lions millions millions - lions , , annually Government supplies suppliesare suppliesare suppliesare are costly . . The appropriations for forthem forthem forthem them are astounding If there ' \ was as no nochecI nocheck nocheck checI check { on the way the monev money Is spent spentIt , it Is easy to understand what would wouldhappen wouldhappen wouldhappen happen The taxp'l taxpl taxpayers ' ers would be becalled becalled becalled called upon to furnish more money . So congress arranged a long long time timeago timeago timeago ago to ha has have , e a an auditing s s3 system stem for forall forall forall all government go\ernment go ernment \ accounts It was not notbecause notbecause notbecause because it feared dishonesty dlehonesty ; among amongthe amongthe amongthe the ' " workers or1.ers or1ers . There TheraL Ther Is , very sery ery little of ofthis ofthis ofthis this in the government But thp the laws lawsare lawsare lawsare are Intended to pro provide proside ' Ide for expendi expendi- e expenditurec expenditures pendI- pendI pendIturec - turec tures : , and if those laws are not carried carriedout carriedout carriedout out , chaos naturally natura1Jy " would "ould ould result result.There resultThere . . . There had to be a central authorIty authoritytherefore , therefore , , for checking chec1.ing chec1ing . all the pay pay- payments payments payments - ments ' This .rhis rhis . bringsbout brings ibout \bout bout about ' \ uniformity uniformityof of Interpretation of ot the la\ la laws las lass ' \ s and as asBures assures assures Bures sures orderly conduct of plyments p'1yments p1yments payments ' by bythe bythe bythe the gos go government , ernment . . No one doubts the theproprIety thepropriety thepropriety proprIety of such a courseThus courseThus course courseThus Thus , e\er e er evcri every \ check thit tl1\t tl1 t that ' \ is made out outby outby outby by any government disbursing officer officeranywhere officeranywhere officeranywhere anywhere soonci soonel sooner or later finds Its way waythrough waythrough waythrough through the regulation chunnel-some chunnel some channel-some channel chunnelsomecan channelsomecall channel - somecall can call It red tap tape-to tape to tape - to the scrutinizIng scrutinizingeye eye of the comptroller comptro1Jer genera general ) whose whoseassist'lnts whoseassistants whoseassistants assist'lnts assistlnts assistants ' , numbering scores , deter determine determine determine mine whether the payment was proper properThe properThe properThe The magnitude of this job fob of audIting audItingbecomes auditingbecomes auditingbecomes becomes apparent app'lrent applrent ' when It Is known knownthat knownthat knownthat that rulings from the general accounting account account- accountIng accounting - ing office average about thirty per perweek perweek perweek week . , or about five fie fhe , each dav day 'l l ' , and tbat that tbatthese thatthese thatthese these arise from examination e"Cnmination eCnmination eeamination " of about abouttwo abouttwo abouttwo two and one half million ml1lIon checks Q Qmonth i amonth ) month 4 : ) 1932 Western WC5tern Nowpa.por Nowpapor NOWWIl.POT NOWWIlPOT Nowepapor . . Union |