Evening star., 1936-07-05
CONTROLLER HELD
PROPER AUTHORITY
IN FISCAL ISSUES
Pay Boost Dispute Ironed
Out by Ending Liability of
US. Officials.
INTEREST NOW KEENER
IN NEW APPOINTMENT
Report Emphasizes Resolve Of
Lawmakers to Retain Brake
on Outlay.

With a sharp warning from Con-
gress against ignoring rulings of the
Controller Generals Office, employees
who got the money and discussing
officers in several Government estab-
lishmentS are being relieved Of lia-
bility for approximately S500,000 in
salary increases that had been branded
as illegal by former Controller General
]. r. McCarl.
The action Of Congress which
cleared the diSbursing accounts wrote
the end to a battle between members
of the cabinet who went to Attorney
General Cummings for their authority,
and McCarl. who on several occa-
sions said bluntly that Cummings had
no power to pass on the validity Of
expenditures, adding that was a pre-
rogative entirely of the Controller
Generals Office.
This latter attitude also was taken
port from the House Committee on
Expenditures in the executive depart
ments, headed by Representative.
Cochran, Democrat, of Missouri,
which went forward with the bill to
clear the accounts passed at the wind
up of Congress.
Appointment Watched.
Now being circulated through the
executive agencies the report is get
ting particular attention because OF
he : Yalo ha of
mination of Congress-with a new
controller general to be appointed-to
maintain the Office as a strictly inde-
pendent regulatory agency.
This committee" said the report,
las strongly of the opinion that the
conflicting views Of the Attorney Gen.
eral and the controller general should
have been reconciled before the in
creases were actually granted. Had
this been done the situation that now
eonfronts the employees and disbursing
officers would not exist.
THE committee, of course. realizes
that disbursing officers simply follow
instructions of their superiors. but it
might be well to call the attention os
diSbursing officers to the Federal
statute that enables them to get an
expression from the accounting officer
when in doubt as to the legality of
any payments they are called on to
make.
Not Condoning a Precedent.
"The committee further feels that
too often executive officers have acted
in conflict with the opinion of the
| controller general. Congress created
the General Accounting Office to pro-
vide check on Government expendi-
lures. The committee, while report-
ing this bill. wants it distinctly un-
derstood that it is not setting a prece-
dent to be followed in the future. nor
IS it condoning the acts of executive
officers who disregard the controller
generals ruling"
The trouble had its. origin IN the
slipshod manner in which pay rates
were fixed in the early days of the New
Deal agencies which were exempted
from the classification act. Eventu.
ally. President Roosevelt by executive
order set up schedule for these and
McCarl acting under the no-promo-
| ton section of the economy act, put
limit on pay increases that could bs
granted under regarding, and also held
| that the executive order rates must
apply in the regular establishments
when employees were paid with emer-
gency public works. funds.
Cummings diSSenteG on both counts
and, according to the House commit
tee report, War, Agriculture and In
terror Public Works went ahead with
| their salary program in contravention
to McCarl's ruling. The General Ac-
counting Office promptly suspended
accounts in about 5000 cases, making
the disbursing officers and any en-
ployes who still we're in Service-many
had left-responsible for repayment to
the Government. The upShot was the
bill, which went to the House from
Secretary of the Interior Ickes.