Evening star., 1924-03-21
.M'CARL "GUNN|NG"
FOR 4,420 OWING
$14Q,&7,479T0U.S. S.
Systematic Effort Being
Made to Recover, 0verpay-
ments or Short Collections.
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.
]. R. McCarl, controller general of the
United States, has gone cunning for
24.420 persons reported to owe the
United States total of $140.S47.479.
His activities in that direction repre-
sent an entirely new departure in gov
eminent financial operations. A special
collection unit has been established in
the general accounting Office in the
Treasury Department. and is now sys-
tematically engaged in an effort to make
each and all of these alleged delinQuents
pay up.
Except in isolated cases. such as
formal legal proceedings to recover
overpay ments, practically no attempt
has ever been made to bring in
the vast sums to which Uncle Sam
Is entitled. Authorities assert that
II all the money due the United
States on account Of overpayments
could be retrieved and deposited in
the Treasury there would be no Ques-
ton of deficiency on account of
pending proposals for reduction in
income taxes. There would even be
enough, it is declared, to finance the
soldiers bonus without a dollar of
new revenue
Names Of All Debtors.
Controller General McCarrs impos-
ing index contains the names of all
debtors of record in the general ac-
counting Office. The record includes
overpayments by disbursing officers
and "shcrt collections" by collecting
officers, as we'll as occasional over
payments through settlements by the
controller general himself.
Although the 24,420 names of ap-
parent debtors now card indexed are
ticketed as owing s140, ,S47, ,4792s,
that does not mean that the full
amount will be recovered, or even
that the reported Indebtedness repre-
sents a just demand of the United
States. There will be many instances
of bankruptcy and other grounds of
non-recovery. In other cases there
may arise questions of law or fact,
which, when finally determined, will
be decided against the government.
McCal Is collection unit is not dig
gfng into the dim and distant past.
In fact, it's operations only go back
ceeding on the we'll settled law of
sot-off and counterclaim, a form Of
adjusting accounts with which the
public is familiar as between indi-
viduals in common business practice.
Insists on Settlements.
The McCarl theory is that the gov
ernment, no less than an individual,
may insist upon the satisfaction of its
claims against a person or a corpora
tion before it will satisfy the claim
Of person or a corporation
against it.
Thus, If, for instance, the Bethle-
hem Steel Company or the American
Woolen Company has a bill against the
United States the controller gen.
erals collection unit clears for action
and investigates whether there may
not be some old transaction in, which
a particular claimant was overpaid
If anything like that is discovered
McCarl insists upon deducting eny
sum due the government before pay
ing a new account.
1t cannot be. expected that the ex-
penditure of immense sums of ap-
propriated and other moneys can be
made without error. While not con-
elusive, the extent of error in dis
bursting accounts may be illustrated
by the fact that one of the divisions
of the general accounting office de-
MED credit to the disbursing officers
for expenditures made by them in the
total sum of $10,5S2,859.
Recoverfes Last Year.
In the same accounts. items ag-
gregating a like amount were ques-
toned. During December, 1923. one
division secured refunds amounting
to $650,000, disallowed $4,000 and
suspended other items aggregating
$46S,000. During the last fiscal year
the general accounting office recov-
cred s7,977,888. Since July 1, 1923
ssss,2s5 has been collected, of which
about 100000 represents overpay-
mentS to railroads.
These collectiosn fairly illustrate
what is being done by the controller
limited personnel and the, scattered
condition of the Office, 1t has been i'm
possible to obtain accurate figures as
to total recoveries. 1t appears to be
safe to multiply amounts already re-
covered by two and to estimate that
possible recoveries eventually will in
crease the amount hundredfold.
One of the lucrative fields of recov-
cry is that Of overpayment Of rental
allowance to naval officers. During
the five months ended March 1, 1924.
63S items were stopped. covering al
lowances amounting to $4,405,614, to
Offset reported Indebtedness amount
ing to $15,914,390. officers are en-
titled to allowances for rental OF
living premises for dependents, and
the controller generals office has in
stituted~a pretty rigorous system OF
checking up on the legitimacy of such
allowances. It is in connection with
McCarrs procedure on this score,
among other reasons, that he has
found himself at war with the Navy
Department in recent times.
ytoeeyriSht. 1a4.)