LIMITATION OF ACTIONS AGAINST SURETIES

SEC. 2. If, upon the statement of the account of any official of the United States, or of any officer disbursing or chargeable with public money, by the General Accounting Office, it shall thereby appear that he is indebted to the United States, and suit therefor shall not be instituted within five years after such statement of said account, the sureties on his bond shall not be liable for such indebtedness. (Aug. 8, 1888, c. 787, § 2, 25 Stat. 387; June 10, 1921, c. 18, § 301, 42 Stat. 23.) (U. S. C., Title 6, § 5.)

ACT OF AUGUST 13, 1894

(Aug. 13, 1894, c. 282, 28 Stat. 279, etc.)

SURETY COMPANIES AS SURETIES

SECTION 1. Whenever any recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking conditioned for the faithful performance of any duty, or for doing or refraining from doing anything in such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking specified, is by the laws of the United States required or permitted to be given with one surety or with two or more sureties, the execution of the same or the guaranteeing of the performance of the condition thereof shall be sufficient when executed or guaranteed solely by a corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States, or of any State having power to guarantee the fidelity of persons holding positions of public or private trust, and to execute and guarantee bonds and undertakings in judicial proceedings: Provided, That such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking be approved by the head of department, court, judge, officer, board, or body executive, legislative, or judicial required to approve or accept the same. But no officer or person having the approval of any bond shall exact that it shall be furnished by a guarantee company or by any particular guarantee company. (U. S. C., Title 6, § 6.)

APPOINTMENT OF AGENTS BY SURETY COMPANIES; SERVICE OF PROCESS

SEC. 2. No such company shall do business under the provisions of this Act beyond the limits of the State or Territory under whose laws it was incorporated and in which its principal office is located, nor beyond the limits of the District of Columbia, when such company was incorporated under its laws or the laws of the United States and its principal office is located in said District, until it shall by a written power of attorney appoint some person residing within the jurisdiction of the court for the judicial district wherein such suretyship is to be undertaken, who shall be a citizen of the State, Territory, or District of Columbia, wherein such court is held, as its agent, upon whom may be served all lawful process against such company, and who shall be authorized to enter an appearance in its behalf. A copy of such power of attorney, duly certified and authenticated, shall be filed with the clerk of the district court of the United States for such district at each place where a term of such court is or may be held, which copy, or a certified copy thereof, shall be legal evidence in all controversies arising under this Act. If any such agent shall be removed, resign, or die, become insane, or otherwise incapable of acting, it shall be the duty of such company to appoint another agent in his place as hereinbefore prescribed, and until such appointment shall have been made, or during the absence of any agent of such company from such district, service of process may be upon the clerk of the court wherein such suit is brought, with like effect as upon an agent appointed by the company. The officer executing such process upon such clerk shall immediately transmit a copy thereof by mail to the company, and state such fact in his return. A judgment, decree, or order of a court entered or made after service of process as aforesaid shall be as valid and binding on such company as if served with process in said district. (U. S. C., Title 6, § 7.)

DEPOSIT OF COPY OF CHARTER

SEO. 3. Every company, before transacting any business under this Act, shall deposit with the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States a copy of its charter or articles of incorporation, and a statement signed and sworn to by its president and secretary, showing its assets and liabilities. If the said Secretary of the Treasury shall be satisfied that such company has authority under its charter to do the business provided for in this Act, and that it has a paid-up capital of not less than two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, in cash or its equivalent, and is able to keep and perform its contracts, he shall grant authority in writing to such company to do business under this Act. (Amended Mar. 23, 1910, c. 109, 36 Stat. 241.) (U. S. C., Title 6, § 8.)

QUARTERLY STATEMENTS

SEC. 4. Every such company shall, in the months of January, April, July, and October of each year, file with the said Secretary of the Treasury a statement, signed and sworn to by its president and secretary, showing its assets and liabilities, as is required by section three of this Act. And the said Secretary of the Treasury shall have the power, and it shall be his duty, to revoke the authority of any such company to transact any new business under this Act whenever in his judgment such company is not solvent or is conducting its business in violation of this Act. He may institute inquiry at any time into the solvency of said company and may require that additional security be given at any time by any principal when he deems such company no longer sufficient security. (Amended Mar. 23, 1910, c. 109, 36 Stat. 241.) (U. S. C., Title 6, § 9.)

JURISDICTION OF SUITS ON BONDS

SEO. 5. Any surety company doing business under the provisions of this Act may be sued in respect thereof in any court of the United States which has now or hereafter may have jurisdiction of actions or suits upon such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking, in the district in which such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking was made or guaranteed, or in the district in which the principal office of such company is located. And for the purposes of this Act such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking shall be treated as made or guaranteed in the district in which the office is located, to which it is returnable, or in which it is filed, or in the district in which the principal in such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking resided when it was made or guaranteed. (U. S. C., Title 6, § 10.)

NONPAYMENT OF JUDGMENT

SEC. 6. If any such company shall neglect or refuse to pay any final judgment or decree rendered against it upon any such recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking made or guaranteed by it under the provisions of this Act, from which no appeal, or supersedeas has been taken, for thirty days after the rendition of such judgment or decree, it shall forfeit all right to do business under this Act. (Amended Jan. 31, 1928, c. 14, § 1, 45 Stat. 54.) (U. S. C., Title 6, § 11.)

ESTOPPEL TO DENY CORPORATE POWERS

SEC. 7. Any company which shall execute or guarantee any recognizance, stipulation, bond, or undertaking under the provisions of this Act shall be estopped in any proceeding to enforce the liability which it shall have assumed to incur, to deny its corporate power to execute or guarantee such instrument or assume such liability. (U. S. C., Title 6, § 12.)

FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS ACT; FORFEITURE

SEC. 8. Any company doing business under the provisions of this Act which shall fail to comply with any of its provisions shall forfeit to the United States for every such failure not less than five hundred dollars nor more than five thousand dollars, to be recovered by suit in the name of the United States in the same courts in which suit may be brought against such company under the provisions of this Act, and such failure shall not affect the validity of any contract entered into by such company. (U. S. C., Title 6, § 13.)

MAXIMUM RATES FOR BONDS

Until otherwise provided by law no bond shall be accepted from any surety or bonding company for any officer or employee of the United States which shall cost more than thirty-five per centum in excess of the rate of premium charged for a like bond during the calendar year nineteen hundred and eight: Provided, That hereafter the United States shall not pay any part of the premium or other cost of furnishing a bond required by law or otherwise of any officer or employee of the United States. (Aug. 5, 1909, c. 7, 36 Stat. 125.) (U. S. C., Title 6, 14.)

DEPOSIT OF UNITED STATES BONDS OR NOTES IN LIEU OF SURETY

SEO. 1126. Wherever by the laws of the United States or regulations made pursuant thereto, any person is required to furnish any recognizance, stipulation, bond, guaranty, or undertaking, hereinafter called "penal bond," with surety or sureties, such person may, in lieu of such surety or sureties, deposit as security with the official having authority to approve such penal bond,

United States Liberty bonds or other bonds or notes of the United States in a sum equal at their par value to the amount of such penal bond required to be furnished, together with an agreement authorizing such official to collect or sell such bonds or notes so deposited in case of any default in the performance of any of the conditions or stipulations of such penal bond. The acceptance of such United States bonds or notes in lieu of surety or sureties required by law shall have the same force and effect as individual or corporate sureties, or certified checks, bank drafts, post-office money orders, or cash, for the penalty or amount of such penal bond. The bonds or notes deposited hereunder and such other United States bonds or notes as may be substituted therefor from time to time as such security, may be deposited with the Treasurer of the United States, a Federal reserve bank, or other depository duly designated for that purpose by the Secretary, which shall issue receipt therefor, describing such bonds or notes so deposited. As soon as security for the performance of such penal bond is no longer necessary, such bonds or notes so deposited shall be returned to the depositor: Provided, That in case a person or persons supplying a contractor with labor or material as provided by the act of Congress, approved February 24, 1905 (33 Stat., 811), entitled "An act to amend an act approved August thirteenth, eighteen hundred and ninety-four, entitled 'An act for the protection of persons furnishing materials and labor for the construction of public works,' "shall file with the obligee, at any time after a default in the performance of any contract subject to said acts, the application and affidavit therein provided, the obligee shall not deliver to the obligor the deposited bonds or notes nor any surplus proceeds thereof until the expiration of the time limited by said acts for the institution of suit by such person or persons, and, in case suit shall be instituted within such time, shall hold said bonds or notes or proceeds subject to the order of the court having jurisdiction thereof: Provided further, That nothing herein contained shall affect or impair the priority of the claim of the United States against the bonds or notes deposited or any right or remedy granted by said acts or by this section to the United States for default upon any obligation of said penal bond: Provided further, That all laws inconsistent with this section are hereby so modified as to conform to the provisions hereof: And provided further, That nothing contained herein shall affect the authority of courts over the security, where such bonds are taken as security in judicial proceedings, or the authority of any administrative officer of the United States to receive United States bonds for security in cases authorized by existing laws. The Secretary may prescribe rules and regulations necessary and proper for carrying this section into effect. In order to avoid the frequent substitution of securities such rules and regulations may limit the effect of this section, in appropriate classes of cases, to bonds and notes of the United States maturing more than a year after the date of deposit of such bonds as surety. phrase "bonds or notes of the United States" shall be deemed, for the purposes of this section, to mean any public-debt obligations of the United States and any bonds, notes, or other obligations which are unconditionally guaranteed as to both interest and principal by the United States. (Feb. 26, 1926, c. 27, § 1126; 44 Stat. 122; amended Feb. 4, 1935, c. 5, § 7, 49 Stat. 22.) (U. S. C., Title 6, § 15.)

TITLE 7—AGRICULTURE

ACCESS TO INTERNAL REVENUE RECORDS

The

The Secretary of Agriculture shall have access to the tobacco records of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and of the several collectors of internal revenue for the purpose of obtaining lists of the persons subject to this Act and for the purpose of aiding the collection of the information herein required, and the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and the several collectors of internal revenue shall cooperate with the Secretary of Agriculture in effectuating the provisions of this Act. (Jan. 14, 1929, c. 69, § 5, 45 Stat. 1080, amended Aug. 27, 1935, c. 749, § 3, 49 Stat. 894.) (U. S. C., Title 7, § 505.)

AGRICULTURAL ADJUSTMENT ACT

(May 12, 1933, c. 25, 48 Stat. 39, etc.)

SEC. 10 (d) The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to make such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the powers vested in him by this title. (U. S. C., Title 7, § 610 (d).)

SUPPLEMENTARY REVENUE PROVISIONS

EXEMPTIONS AND COMPENSATING TAXES

SEC. 15. (a) If at any time the Secretary of Agriculture finds, upon investigation and after due notice and opportunity for hearing to interested parties,

that any class of products of any commodity is of such low value, considering the quantity of the commodity used for their manufacture, that the imposition of the processing tax would prevent in whole or in large part the use of the commodity in the manufacture of such products and thereby substantially reduce consumption and increase the surplus of the commodity, then the Secretary of Agriculture shall so certify to the Secretary of the Treasury, specifying whether such result will in his judgment most effectively be prevented by a suspension of the imposition of the processing tax or a refund of the tax paid, with respect to such amount of the commodity or any product thereof as is used in the manufacture of such products, and thereafter, as shall be specified in such certification, (1) the imposition of the processing tax shall be suspended with respect to such amount of the commodity as is used in the manufacture of such products, and thereafter, as shall be specified in such certification, (2) the imposition of the processing tax shall be suspended with respect to such amount of the commodity as is used in the manufacture of such products until such time as the Secretary of Agriculture, after further investigation and due notice and opportunity for hearing to interested parties, revokes his certification to the Secretary of the Treasury, or (3) the Secretary of the Treasury shall refund (in accordance with the provisions of, to such persons and in such manner as shall be specified in, such certification) the amount of any tax paid (prior to the date of any revocation by the Secretary of Agriculture of his certification to the Secretary of the Treasury, upon further investigation and after due notice and opportunity for hearing to interested parties) under this title with respect to such amount of the commodity or any product thereof as is used after the date of such certification in the manufacture of such products, or shall credit against any tax due and payable under this title the amount of tax which would be refundable. During the period in which any certificate under this section is effective, the provisions of subsection (e) of this section shall be suspended with respect to all imported articles of the kind described in such certificate; and notwithstanding the provisions of section 21, any compensating taxes, which have heretofore, during the period in which any certificate under this section has been effective, become due and payable upon imported articles of the kind described in such certificate, shall be refunded by the Secretary of the Treasury if the same have been paid, or, if the same have not been paid the amount thereof shall be abated. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 21, the Secretary of the Treasury shall refund or credit any processing tax paid on or before June 12, 1934, with respect to such amount of cotton as was used in the manufacture of large cotton bags (as defined in the Certificate of the Secretary of Agriculture, dated June 12, 1934) between June 13 and July 7, 1934, both inclusive. (U. S. C., Title 7, § 615 (a).)

(c) Any person, including any State or Federal organization or institution, delivering any product to any organization for charitable distribution, or use, including any State or Federal welfare organization, for its own use, whether the product is delivered as merchandise, or as a container for merchandise, or otherwise, shall, if such product or the commodity from which processed is under this title subject to tax, be entitled to a refund of the amount of any tax due and paid under this title with respect to such product so delivered, or to a credit against any tax due and payable under this title of the amount of tax which would be refundable under this section with respect to such product so delivered: Provided, however, That no tax shall be refunded or credited under this section, unless the person claiming the refund or credit establishes, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury (1) that he has not included the tax in the price of the product so delivered or collected the amount of the tax from the said organization, or (2) that he has repaid, or has agreed in writing to repay, the amount of the tax to the said organization. The word "State" as used in this section shall include a State and any political subdivision thereof. (Amended June 16, 1934, c. 551, 48 Stat. 973, amended June 26, 1934, c. 759, § 1, 48 Stat. 1241, amended Aug. 24, 1935, c. 641, § 21, 49 Stat. 768.) (U. S. C., Title 7, § 615 (c).)

(e) Upon the sale or other disposition of any article processed wholly or in chief value from any commodity with respect to which the existing rate of the processing tax is to be increased, or decreased, that on the date such increase, or decrease, first takes effect with respect to the commodity, is held for sale or other disposition (including articles in transit) by any person, and upon the production of any article from a commodity in process on the date on which the rate of the processing tax is to be increased or decreased, there shall be made a tax adjustment as follows:

(1) Whenever, on or after June 1, 1934, the rate of the processing tax on the processing of the commodity generally or for any designated use or uses, or as to any designated product or products thereof for any designated use or uses, or as to any class of products, is decreased, there shall be credited or refunded to such person an amount equivalent to the difference between the rate of the processing tax payable or paid at the time immediately preceding the decrease in rate and the rate of the processing tax which would have been payable with respect to the commodity from which processed, if the processing had occurred on such date: Provided, however, That no such credit or refund shall be made in the case of hogs unless the rate of the processing tax immediately preceding said decrease is equal to, or less than, the rate of the processing tax in effect on the date on which any floor stocks tax was paid prior to the adoption of this amendment. In the case of wheat the provisions of this paragraph and of paragraph (2) of this subsection shall apply to flour, prepared flour and cereal preparations made chiefly from wheat, as classified in Wheat Regulations, Series 1, Supplement 1 only; in the case of sugarcane and sugar beets the provisions of this paragraph and of paragraph (2) of this subsection shall apply to sugar only.

(3) Whenever the processing tax is suspended or is to be refunded pursuant to a certification of the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of the Treasury, under section 15 (a) of this Act, the provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection shall become applicable. (Amended June 26, 1934, c. 759, § 1, 48 Stat. 1241, amended Mar. 18, 1935, c. 32, § 10, 49 Stat. 48, amended Aug. 24, 1935, c. 641, § 25, 49 Stat. 769, amended June 22, 1936, 9 p. m., c. 690, § 601 (g), 49 Stat. 1740.) (U. S. C., Title 7, § 616 (e).)

EXPORTATIONS

SEO. 17. (a) Upon the exportation to any foreign country (and/or to the Philippine Islands, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the Canal Zone, and the island of Guam) of any product processed wholly or partly from a commodity with respect to which product or commodity a tax has been paid or is payable under this title, the tax due and payable or due and paid shall be credited or refunded. Under regulations prescribed by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury, the credit or refund shall be allowed to the consignor named in the bill of lading under which the product is exported or to the shipper or to the person liable for the tax provided the consignor waives any claim thereto in favor of such shipper or person liable for the tax. In the case of rice, a tax due under this title which has been paid by a tax-payment warrant shall be deemed for the purposes of this subsection to have been paid; and with respect to any refund authorized under this section, the amount scheduled by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue for refunding shall be paid, any provision of law notwithstanding. In the case of sugar beets and sugarcane, this subsection shall be applicable to exports of products thereof to the Philippine Islands, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the Canal Zone, and/or the island of Guam only if this title with respect to sugar beets and sugarcane is not made applicable thereto. The term "product" includes any product exported as merchandise, or as a container for merchandise, or otherwise. (Amended May 9, 1934, c. 263, § 12, 48 Stat. 676; amended Mar. 18, 1935, c. 32 § 11, 49 Stat. 48; amended Aug. 24, 1935, c. 641, § 28, 49 Stat. 770.) (U. S. C., Title 7, § 617 (a).)

REFUNDING OF PROCESSING TAXES

REVENUE ACT OF 1936

(June 22, 1936, c. 690, 48 Stat. 1739, etc.)

TITLE IV-EXPORT, CHARITABLE, ETC., REFUNDS AND FLOOR STOCKS ADJUSTMENT UNDER AGRICULTURAL ADJUSTMENT ACT

SEC. 601. REFUNDS UNDER AGRICULTURAL ADJUSTMENT ACT ON EXPORTS, DELIVERIES FOR CHARITABLE DISTRIBUTION OR USE, ETO.

(a) The provisions of sections 10 (d), 15 (a), 15 (c), 16 (e) (1), 16 (e) (3), and 17 (a) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, as amended, are hereby reenacted but only for the purpose of allowing refunds in accordance therewith in cases where the delivery for charitable distribution or use, or the exportation, or the manufacture of large cotton bags, or the decrease in the rate of the processing tax (or its equivalent under section 16 (e) (3)), took place prior to January 6, 1936.