the Purchasing Agent, the triplicate retained on file, and the duplicate attached to the contractor's invoice when prepared for payment. (h) Open-market purchases. Requisitions for articles not under contract shall be made on the Purchasing Agent by the superintendent, director, or chief of the division requiring the supplies, approved by the head of the bureau. The Purchasing Agent, after ascertaining that there is no contract under which the purchase may be made, shall issue proposals and specifications and, when practicable, send them to three or more responsible dealers, so as to reach them at least three days prior to the date fixed for the opening of the bids. If samples are available, they shall accompany the specifications calling for proposals, or a statement shall be made as to where samples may be seen. Bids received by the Purchasing Agent and bidders' samples, if furnished, shall be submitted to the Committee of Awards, or to the officer making the requisition, who shall examine them, recommend an award, mark the accepted samples, and return bids and samples to the Purchasing Agent for his action. If a purchase is made, the order shall be drawn in the manner prescribed in paragraph (g) of this section. The approved bid shall be held by the Purchasing Agent to be attached to the contractor's invoice, and the accepted sample, if any, shall be forwarded to the board of inspection. (i) Purchase forms. Forms prescribed by the Comptroller General shall be used for purchases for the Post Office Department and for the postal service. Two copies of the proper form shall accompany each order sent to the contractor, except where statements are rendered monthly or at other stated periods, in which case the invoice may be made to cover all orders during the period. (j) Board of inspection. A board of inspection, appointed by and acting under the direction of the Postmaster General, shall, except as hereinafter provided, receive and inspect all supplies purchased which are delivered in Washington, reporting their findings in triplicate to the Purchasing Agent. Each copy of the report shall be signed by not less than two members of the board. The Purchasing Agent, after endorsing his action on the report, shall attach the original to the contractor's invoice, re tain the duplicate on file, and return the triplicate to the board of inspection. The board shall retain custody of the articles until they are accepted or rejected by the Purchasing Agent. If accepted, the articles shall be turned over to the requisitioning officer, who shall give a receipt therefor. If rejected, they shall be disposed of under direction of the Purchasing Agent: Provided, That when inspections in the field are necessary the Purchasing Agent shall request the Postmaster General to designate one or more persons to perform this duty, and they shall report their findings in the same manner as prescribed for inspections made by the board of inspection in Washington. In emergent cases, when the requisitioning officer shows the necessity therefor, the Purchasing Agent may waive the inspection, and in such cases he shall state the reasons for the waiver on the invoice when it is prepared for payment. The Purchasing Agent shall have the right to make an independent inspection, and for this purpose may ask the Postmaster General for any necessary assistance. (k) Invoices. All invoices shall be received by the Purchasing Agent. Those for accepted supplies shall be properly prepared, certified for payment, and transmitted by him to the requisitioning officer, who will enter them on the Postmaster General's journal and then forward the invoice with the journal for payment. A copy of that portion of the journal authorizing payment for purchases shall be sent to the Purchasing Agent for his information. (1) Rejected supplies. If supplies are rejected, the Purchasing Agent shall immediately notify the contractor, the requisitioning officer, and the board of inspection, giving the reasons therefor. If contractors fail to remove supplies within the time specified by the Purchasing Agent, the supplies may be sent to storage by the Purchasing Agent at the contractors' risk and expense. (m) Accounts. The bureau officers shall be responsible for the appropriations under their control and shall keep an accurate account of the expenditures authorized thereunder. The bureau officers shall furnish the Purchasing Agent a statement of the balances of the appropriations under their jurisdiction out of which supplies are purchased as frequently as they are determined. The Purchasing Agent shall keep individual ledger accounts with contractors and such general accounts of expenditures for purchases as he may deem necessary. (n) Correspondence. Correspondence with contractors and others from whom supplies are purchased shall be conducted by the Purchasing Agent. The Purchasing Agent shall also issue any necessary instructions to postmasters regarding inspection of supplies. Correspondence with postmasters and other postal officials in regard to supplies shall be conducted by the officer controlling the appropriation to which the supplies are chargeable. (0) Supplies for the Department. All appropriations for supplies for the Post Office Department shall be under the control of the Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel of the Department, except the appropriation for post-route maps, which shall be under the control of the Fourth Assistant Postmaster General. The regulations herein before prescribed shall govern purchases under these appropriations. § 6.9 Delivery of supplies by contractor. In making contracts for [postal cards], stamped envelopes, stamped paper, and all other supplies, the Postmaster General may require the contractor, under such regulations as he may prescribe, to make delivery at such points in the United States as he may direct, whenever, in his opinion, any such contract can be made at a saving to the Government. (Sec. 2, 28 Stat. 106; 39 U. S. C. 359) (See $$ 6.5, 6.12, 8.7, and 8.10 of this chapter.) PROPERTY § 6.12 Postmaster General to contract for envelopes for all Government departments-(a) Authority. The Postmaster General shall contract, for a period not exceeding four years, for all envelopes, stamped or otherwise, designed for sale to the public, or for use by the Post Office Department, the Postal Service, and other executive departments, and all Government bureaus and establishments, and the branches of the service coming under their jurisdiction, and may contract for them to be plain or with such printed matter as may be prescribed by the department making requisition therefor. (34 Stat. 476; 39 U. S. C. 355) (b) Envelopes, labels, and other articles bearing penalty indicia. All envelopes, labels, wrappers, cards, and other articles, bearing the indicia pre scribed by law for matter mailed free of postage under the penalty privilege by all executive departments and agencies, all independent establishments of the Government, and all other organizations and persons authorized by law to use the penalty privilege, shall be procured or accounted for through the Postmaster General under such regulations as he shall prescribe. The head of each such department, agency, establishment, or other organization, or each such person, shall submit to the Postmaster General within 60 days after the close of each fiscal year a statement showing the number of envelopes, labels, wrappers, cards, and other articles bearing such indicia on hand at the close of such fiscal year. This act shall take effect July 1, 1944. (Sec. 1 and 8, 58 Stat. 394, 395; 39 U. S. C. 321c) § 6.13 Blank forms and supplies for money-order service. [Except as provided in 44 U. S. C. 111, or otherwise provided by law] all blanks, blank books, and printed or engraved matter supplied to postmasters by the Postmaster General or used in his department for the transaction of the money-order business shall be obtained from the lowest responsible bidders for furnishing printed and engraved matter, respectively, under separate advertisements calling for proposals to furnish the same upon such conditions as the Postmaster General may prescribe: Provided, That the Director of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing of the Treasury Department shall submit estimates of the cost of furnishing such printed and engraved matter as may be required for use in the money-order business, and shall furnish such printed and engraved matter whenever upon his estimates of cost the expenditure therefor will be less than upon proposals made as above provided for. (Sec. 2, 22 Stat. 527, as amended; 39 U. S. C. 715) offices in the United States. (Sec. 1, 20 Stat. 240; 39 U. S. C. 367) § 6.15 Metric postal balances. The Postmaster General shall furnish to the post offices exchanging mails with foreign countries, and to such other offices as he may deem expedient, postal balances denominated in grams of the metric system, fifteen grams of which shall be the equivalent for postal purposes, of one-half ounce avoirdupois, and so on in progression. (R. S. 3880; 39 U. S. C. 810) § 6.17 Unserviceable property and waste materials—(a) Procedure for handling. Unserviceable property and waste materials accumulating in the department proper, the Washington, D. C., post office and the Mail Equipment Shops shall be handled in the following manner: Reports covering unserviceable property and waste materials shall be made to the Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel, describing the property, and when practicable, giving the record number of each piece. The board of inspection, or such special committee as may be designated by the Postmaster General, when so directed, shall make a careful inspection and report to the Postmaster General, with respect to each article, as to whether it should be condemned and sold or otherwise disposed of. If the report of the board or committee is approved by the Postmaster General, the Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel shall dispose of the property as recommended, keeping a record thereof in his files. The property condemned shall be in the custody of the Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel, who shall dispose of same in accordance with the law and Executive orders of the President. (b) Waste paper. The Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel shall dispose of waste paper accumulating in the Washington, D. C., post office and Mail Equipment Shops in accordance with the law and Executive orders of the President. shall be disposed of in the following manner: Whenever sufficient unserviceable property or waste materials accumulate to justify inviting bids for its sale, a list thereof shall be prepared by the postmaster. The postmaster shall appoint a committee of three, to consist of supervisory employees when possible, who shall be required to make a careful inspection of each article and submit a report to the postmaster for approval as to whether it should be condemned or sold or otherwise disposed of. After approval of the report the postmaster shall prepare proposals inviting competitive bids, covering unserviceable property and waste materials recommended to be disposed of. Copies of said proposals shall be distributed as widely as possible and mailed to all known dealers in the materials to be sold, etc. As much as possible shall be realized from such sales and the proceeds shall be accounted for as miscellaneous receipts. (e) Surplus-property officer. The Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel of the Post Office Department is the surplus-property officer for the department and entire postal service. All surplus property accumulating in the department or field service shall be reported through proper channels to the Chief Clerk and Director of Personnel, who, under such rules and regulations as the Postmaster General may promulgate, shall issue the necessary instructions relative to the final disposition thereof. § 6.18 Sale of unsuitable airplanes and aviation material. The Postmaster General may sell under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe any airplanes, parts thereof, field equipment, tools, and other aviation material which have become unsuitable in the postal service or which will deteriorate and become unsuitable before it can be used. The proceeds of such sales shall be covered into the Treasury as "Miscellaneous receipts." (Sec. 1, 41 Stat. 1031; 39 U. S. C. 468) § 6.19 Gifts and bequests for library of Post Office Department-(a) Authority to accept. The Postmaster General is hereby authorized to accept, receive, hold, and administer gifts and bequests of personal property, and loans of personal property other than money, from individuals or others for the benefit of the library of the Post Office Department, its collections, or its services. Gifts or bequests of money shall be deposited in the Treasury of the United States under the title "Library fund of the Post Office Department," and shall be subject to disbursement by the Postmaster General for the purposes in each case specified. (b) For tax purposes deemed gift to United States. For the purpose of Federal income, estate and gift taxes, gifts and bequests accepted by the Postmaster General under the authority of this Act shall be deemed to be a gift or bequest to or for the use of the United States. (c) Investment of funds. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized, upon request of the Postmaster General, to invest or reinvest the funds, or any part thereof, deposited in the Treasury pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section in securities of the United States Government or in securities guaranteed by the United States Government. The interest accruing from such securities shall be deposited to the credit of the library fund of the Post Office Department. (Secs. 1-3, 60 Stat. 924; 5 U. S. C. 393) § 6.22 Waste paper and twine—(a) Preservation and sale of. Postmasters shall carefully preserve all waste paper, which shall include dead and unclaimed domestic printed matter, facing slips that have been used, and all other useless paper and all waste twine including remnants of twine unfit for use. As much as possible shall be realized from this waste matter, competitive bids being procured if feasible. All proposals, except as provided for in paragraph (b) of this section, for the sale of such material accumulated in Federal buildings in which post offices are located and in classified stations and branches thereof, and also in post offices and classified stations and branches thereof located in leased quarters, shall be procured and sent to the Fourth Assistant Postmaster General, Division of Federal Building Operations, by the custodians of the Federal buildings and by the postmasters of post offices located in leased quarters. When practicable such waste material should be sold before the expiration of the quarter and the proceeds accounted for as postal funds. Form 1096 (Revised) should be used for the purpose of giving and securing a receipt for moneys collected and deposited. Waste paper and twine shall not be sent free in the mails to a purchaser and mail bags shall not be used to store or carry it away. If, after exhausting every resource, a profitable market cannot be found, such waste material shall be disposed of, without expense to the Department if practicable. Undeliverable printed matter such as picture cards, newspapers, magazines, and other periodical publications, falling within the term "waste paper," for which no sale can be effected, may, if suitable for the purpose, be delivered by postmasters, on application therefor, to the proper local municipal authorities for distribution to hospitals, asylums, or other charitable or reformatory institutions. NOTE: For a list of dealers in paper stock communicate with the local chamber of commerce or board of trade, or those of nearby cities. Sales should be made in the neighborhood of post offices, if possible. (b) Magazines and periodicals. At offices designated by the First Assistant Postmaster General, and under instructions issued by him, such undeliverable magazines and periodicals as may be deemed suitable shall be segregated from publications subject to disposal as waste, and sold to the highest bidder as magazines and periodicals. Complete records of such sales shall be kept and the funds resulting therefrom shall be deposited by postmasters as part of the postal revenue and accounted for under "Miscellaneous Receipts" of the monthly and quarterly report, with a separate supporting schedule. A quarterly report of the magazine sales shall be transmitted to the Bureau of the First Assistant Postmaster General. DISPOSAL OF FUNDS AND PROPERTY UPON CHANGE OF POSTMASTERS Sec. 7.27 Disposal of property upon change of postmasters. 7.28 Disposal of funds upon change of postmasters. AUTHORITY: §§ 7.1 to 7.28 issued under R. S. 161, 396, secs. 304, 309, 42 Stat. 24, 25; 5 U. S. C. 22, 369. SOURCE: §§ 7.1 to 7.28 appear at 13 F. R. 8857. SOURCES OF REVENUE § 7.1 Revenues to be deposited in Treasury or designated depositaries. Revenues from all sources except so much of the receipts at post offices as may be needed to pay the authorized expenditures thereof, shall be deposited in the Treasury or designated depositaries for the use of the Post Office Department. NOTE: The revenues of the Postal Service are derived from: (a) Postage. (b) Box rents. (c) Money-order and postal-note fees. (e) Fines and penalties. (f) Balances from foreign countries. (h) Unpaid money orders more than one (1) Excess of profit accruing from postalsavings deposits or investment of postal-savings funds. Money-order funds are not part of the postal revenues, although the net proceeds of the money-order business ultimately become part of postal receipts. § 7.2 Miscellaneous receipts. Unclaimed money in dead letters for which no owner can be found; all money taken from the mail by robbery, theft, or otherwise, which may come into the hands of any agent or employee of the United States, or any other person whatever; all fines and penalties imposed for any violation of the postal laws, except such part as may by law belong to the informer or party prosecuting for the same; and all money derived from the sale of waste paper or other public property of the Post Office Department, shall be deposited in the Treasury, under the direction of the Postmaster General, as part of the postal revenue. And the Postmaster General shall cause to be placed to the credit of the Treasurer of the United States, for the service of the Post Office Department, the net proceeds of the money-order business; and the receipts of the Post Office Department derived from this source during each quarter shall be entered by the bureau of accounts in the Post Office Department in the accounts of such department, under the head of "revenue from moneyorder business." (R. S. 4050, as amended; 39 U. S. C. 782) CARE OF PUBLIC FUNDS § 7.3 Safety of public money-(a) Provision. Postmasters shall keep safely without loaning, using, depositing in an unauthorized bank, or exchanging for other funds, all the public money collected by them, or which may come into their possession, until it is ordered by the Postmaster General to be transferred or paid out. All money collected on mail delivered at their respective offices shall be deemed to be public money in the possession of the postmasters within the meaning of this section. (R. S. 3846, as amended; 39 U. S. C. 46) (b) Regulations applicable to various funds. The regulations relative to the care of public funds shall apply to money-order, postal-note, key-deposit, and postal-savings funds as well as postal funds. § 7.4 Care of public funds and property-(a) Funds to be segregated. Postmasters shall exercise all possible care for the protection of the public funds and property in their custody. Public funds shall be kept entirely separate from all other moneys in the possession of the postmaster and shall not be mingled with personal funds. (b) Under lock when office is closed. During business hours money and stamps shall be kept in places inaccessible to the public and concealed from view. Funds and stamps left in a post office at night, or when the office is closed temporarily during the day, shall be kept in locked iron safes or in vaults, if such have been provided; otherwise they shall be kept in strong drawers or other fixed receptacles, which shall be fastened with good locks. Money and stamps shall not be left at night or when the office is closed temporarily during the day in tin or iron boxes even though locked, nor in cash drawers secured by finger-combination locks. Funds and stamps shall not be hidden about the office or elsewhere. The doors and windows of the office shall be made as secure as possible. (c) Safes to be completely locked; combinations. At night or when the office is left without occupants iron safes with 819603-49- -5 |