An Act relating to the transportation of mail by highway post office service, and for other purposes
PL 84-862 (S.2634), enacted 08/01/1956

70 S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LtAW 862-AUG. 1, 1966 
781 
Public Law 862 
CHAPTER 813 
AN ACT 
Relating to the transportation of mail by highway post oflSce service, and for 
other purposes. 
Aueust 1,1956 
[S. 2634] 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled^ That this Act may be 
cited as the "Highway Post Office Service Act of 1955". 
SEC. 2. The Postmaster General may provide highway post office 
service, either by contract or Government-owned motor vehicle, for 
carrying the mails and postal employees on routes between points 
where in his judgment conditions justify the operation of such service. 
The motor vehicles shall be especially designed and equipped for the 
distribution of mail en route and shall be constructed, fitted up, main-
tained, and operated in accordance with such specifications, rules, and 
regulations as the Postmaster General may prescribe. 
SEC. 3. Contracts for highway post office service shall be obtained 
in accordance with section 3709 of the Revised Statutes as amended 
(41U.S.C.5). 
SEC. 4. (a) The Postmaster General may make contracts for high-
way post office service for terms not to excesd six years. 
(b) The Postmaster General may make provisions in contracts for 
highway post office service for increasing or decreasing the mileage, 
increasing or decreasing the hours of service required or for other 
service changes. 
He may also provide in such contracts for the re-
adjustment of compensation paid thereunder, either upward or down-
ward to reflect such changes, and to reflect increased or decreased 
costs attributable to changed conditions occurring during the contract 
term over which the Postmaster General or the contractor have no 
control and which could not reasonably have been foreseen at the 
time the original bid was made or the proposal for renewal filed. 
(c) Contracts for highway post office service may provide for the 
imposition or remission of fines and penalties by the Postmaster 
General for delinquencies in the performance of the contract. 
Each 
such contract shall contain a provision providing for its cancellation 
by the Postmaster General and may provide for an indemnity pay-
ment by the Postmaster General in the event of such cancellation. 
(d) Contracts for highway post office service may contain such 
other provisions as the Postmaster General deems appropriate. 
SEC. 5. (a) The Postmaster General, by mutual agreement with the 
holder of a contract for highway post office service and without sub-
mitting the service for bids, may renew the contract for successive 
periods of not more than six years at the rates of compensation pre-
vailing at the end of the preceding contract term. 
(b) If the holder of a contract for highway post office service has 
sublet his contract in accordance with its terms and does not indicate 
in writing to the Postmaster General at least ninety days before the 
end of contract term that he desires to renew the contract, the Post-
master General may enter into a contract wuth a subcontractor then 
performing the service, in the same manner and upon the same terms 
as prescribed in subsection (a) of this section, if such subcontractor 
has performed the service required under the contract to the satis-
faction of the Postmaster General for a period of at least six months. 
SEC. 6. Where there is no contractor legally bound or required to 
perform the service desired by the Postmaster General or when an 
accepted bidder or contractor shall fail or refuse to perform the 
service on a route according to his accepted proposal or his contract 
the Postmaster General, without advertising, may contract for the 
H i g h w a y Post 
Office Service Act 
of 1955. 
Contracts* 
Terms. 
Changes in mile* 
age, etc. 
Fines and pen-
alties. 
Renewal. 
Contracts 
w i t h 
subcontractors. 
Contracts with-
out advertising. 
T82 
PUBLIC L
(
A
W 863-AUG. 1, 1966 
[70 ST A T . 
Bonds. 
Repeal. 
service desired or continue the service originally contracted for in 
such manner and in such equipment as he may deem to be in the 
public interest for a term of not to exceed one year. 
SEC. 7. The Postmaster General may require such bond or bonds 
as he deems necessary to protect the interests of the Government. 
Such bond shall be in the form and amount and contain such condi-
tions as he may prescribe. 
SEC. 8. Sections 1 and 2 of the Act of July 11, 1940, entitled "An 
Act to provide for the transportation and distribution of mails on 
motor-vehicle routes" (54 Stat. 756; 39 U. S. C. 505, 506) are hereby 
repealed. 
Approved August 1, 1956. 
August 1
, 1956 
ueust 1. I 
15. 
3897] 
Public Law 863 
CHAPTER 814 
AN ACT 
To improve governmental budgeting and accounting methods and procedures, 
and for other purposes. 
G o v e r n m e n t 
b u d g e t 
and ac -
counting pr o c e d-
ure« 
64 Stat. 832. 
64 Stat. 834. 
C o s t 
budgets. • b a s e d 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, 
AMENDMENTS IX) THE BUDGET AND ACCOUNTING ACT, 19 21 
SEC. 1. (a) Section 201 of the Budget and Accounting Act, 1921, 
as amended (31 U. S. C. 11), is further amended by inserting " ( a ) " 
after the words "SEC. 201.''; by changing subsection (a) to subpara-
graph (1); by adding after subparagraph (1) a new subparagraph 
'•'(2) at such times as may be practicable, information on program 
costs and accomplishments"; by changing subsections (b) through 
(j) to subparagraphs (3) through (11), respectively. 
(b) Section 216 of such Act, as amended (31 U. S. C. 24), is further 
amended by inserting " (a)" after the words "SEC. 216." and by adding 
the following new subsections: 
"(b) The requests of the departments and establishments for appro-
priations shall, in such manner and at such times as may be determined 
by the President, be developed from cost-based budgets, 
"(c) For purposes of administration and operation, such cost-based 
budgets shall be used by all departments and establishments and their 
subordinate units. 
Administrative subdivisions of appropriations or 
funds shall be made on the basis of such cost-based budgets." 
64 Stat. 834. 
31 u s e 847. 
64 Stat. 836. 
AMENDMENTS TO THE BUDGET AND ACCOUNTING PROCEDURES ACT OF 19 50 
SEC. 2. (a) The Budget and Accounting Procedures Act of 1950 is 
amended by inserting after section 105 thereof the following new 
section: 
(( 
ACCOUNTING AND BUDGET CLASSIFICATIONS 
"SEC. 106, The head of each executive agency shall, in consultation 
with the Director of the Bureau of the Budget, take whatever action 
may be necessary to achieve, insofar as is possible, (1) consistency in 
accounting and budget classifications, (2) synchronization between 
accounting and budget classifications and organizational structure, 
and (3) support of the budget justifications by information on 
performance and program costs by organizational units." 
(b) Section 113 of such Act (31 U, S, C, 66a) is amended by adding 
at the end thereof the following new subsection: