accordance with the regulations issued under the provisions of sections 134-134h of this title, this section, and section 738a of this title; (2) if substantially the entire check is presented and surrendered by the owner or holder and the Secretary of the Treasury is satisfied as to the identity of the check presented and that any missing portions are not sufficient to form the basis of a valid claim against the United States; (3) if the Secretary of the Treasury is satisfied that the original check is not negotiable and cannot be made the basis of a valid claim against the United States; (4) if the amount of the check is not more than $200; (5) if the owner or holder is the United States or an officer or employee thereof in his official capacity, a State, the District of Columbia, a Territory or possession of the United States, including the Commonwealth of the Philippine Islands, a municipal corporation or political subdivision of any of the foregoing, a corporation, the whole of whose capital is owned by the United States, a foreign government, or a Federal Reserve bank: Provided, however, That in any of the foregoing classes of cases the Secretary of the Treasury may require an undertaking of indemnity if he deems it essential to the public interest.

(c) Checks drawn on depositaries in foreign countries or United States Territories and possessions; liability for erroneous issuance. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this section whenever it is clearly proved to the satisfaction of the Secretary of the Treasury that any original check of the United States drawn on a depositary in a foreign country or a Territory or possession of the United States, including the Panama Canal Zone and the Philippine Islands, is lost, stolen, or wholly or partly destroyed, or is so mutiliated or defaced as to impair its value to its owner or holder, the drawer of the original check or such other officer or employee of the United States as may be authorized by the Secretary of the Treasury with the concurrence of the head of the department or agency upon whose behalf the original check was issued is authorized, before the close of the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which the original check was issued, to issue to the owner or holder thereof a substitute under current date showing such information as may be necessary to identify the original check, drawn against the account of the drawer of the original check or such other account as may be available for the payment of such substitute, upon the receipt and approval by the Secretary of the Treasury of an undertaking, to indemnify the United States, in such form and amount and with such surety, sureties, or security, if any, as the Secretary of the Treasury may require; but no such substitute shall be payable if the original check shall first have been paid. Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to relieve any certifying officer or his sureties or any disbursing officer or his sureties of any liability to the United States on account of any payment resulting from the erroneous issuance of the original check. (d) Rules and regulations. The Secretary of the Treasury shall have the power to make such rules and regulations as he may deem necessary for the administration of the provisions of this section.

(e) Post Office Department check.-Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this section, whenever any original check of the Post Office Department has been lost, stolen, or destroyed, the Postmaster General may authorize the issuance of a

substitute, marked "duplicate" and showing the number, date, and payee of the original check, before the close of the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which the original check was issued, upon the execution by the owner thereof of such bond of indemnity as the Postmaster General may prescribe: Provided, That when such original check does not exceed in amount the sum of $100 and the payee or owner is, at the date of the application, an officer or employee in the service of the Post Office Department, whether by contract, designation, or appointment the Postmaster General may, in lieu of an indemnity bond, authorize the issuance of a substitute check or warrant upon such an affidavit as he may prescribe, to be made before any postmaster by the payee or owner of an original check

(f) Payment of substitute check.-Substitutes issued under this section, drawn on the Treasurer of the United States, except those for checks issued on account of public-debt obligations and transactions regarding the administration of banking and currency laws, shall be deemed to be original checks and shall be payable under the conditions set forth in section 725t of this title. Substitutes for checks issued on account of public-debt obligations and transactions regarding the administration of banking and currency laws shall be payable without limitation of time.

(g) Definitions.-The term "original check" wherever used in this section means any check, warrant, or other order for the payment of money, payable upon demand and not bearing interest, drawn by a duly authorized officer or agent of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the District Unemployment Compensation Board, on their behalf against an account or funds of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the District Unemployment Compensation Board, including instruments issued by any corporation or other entity owned or controlled by the United States, the funds of which are deposited and covered into the Treasury of the United States or deposited with the Treasurer of the United States, but does not include money, coins, or currency of the United States; as used in subsection (e) of this section it means such an instrument drawn by a duly authorized officer or employee of the Post Office Department.

(h) Delegation and redelegation of authority.-Any power, authority, or discretion conferred upon the Secretary of the Treasury by this section may be delegated by him, in whole or in part, subject to such terms and conditions as he may prescribe, to such individuals as he may designate within the Treasury Department or to the head of any other department or agency of the Government or of any Federal Reserve bank, and the head of such department or agency or Federal Reserve bank may, when such action is not inconsistent with the terms and conditions of the delegation by the Secretary of the Treasury, redelegate any power, authority, or discretion conferred upon him pursuant to this subsection to any officer or employee within such department, agency, or Federal Reserve bank. (As amended Dec. 3, 1945, ch. 515, § 1, 59 Stat. 592.)

AMENDMENTS

1945 Subsec. (a) amended generally by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text.

Subsec. (b) amended by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text, which amended entire subsec. generally.

Subsec. (c) added by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text.

Subsec. (d), formerly subsec. (c), was relettered and reenacted without change by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text.

Subsec. (e), formerly subsec. (d), was relettered, "(c), and (d)" was substituted for "and (d)" following "subsections (a), (b)," and "$100" was substi tuted for "$50" in proviso by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text.

Subsec. (f), formerly subsec. (e), was relettered and amended generally by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text.

Subsec. (g), formerly subsec. (f), amended by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text, which relettered subsec. (f) to be subsec. (g) and substituted "subsection (e)" for "subsection (d)" following "as used in."

Subsec. (h) added by act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text.

. EFFECTIVE DATE

Section 3 of act Dec. 3, 1945, cited to text, provided that this section should become effective on Dec. 1, 1945.

§ 529. Advances of public moneys; prohibition against.-No advance of public money shall be made in any case unless authorized by the appropriation concerned or other law. And in all cases of contracts for the performance of any service, or the delivery of articles of any description, for the use of the United States, payment shall not exceed the value of the service rendered, or of the articles delivered previously to such payment. It shall, however, be lawful, under the special direction of the President, to make such advances to the disbursing officers of the Government as may be necessary to the faithful and prompt discharge of their respective duties, and to the fulfillment of the public engagements. The President may also direct such advances as he may deem necessary and proper, to persons in the military and naval service employed on distant stations, where the discharge of the pay and emoluments to which they may be entitled cannot be regularly effected. (As amended Aug. 2, 1946, ch. 744, § 11, 60 Stat. 809.)

Act Aug. 2, 1946, cited to text, qualified first sentence to permit advances authorized by an appropriation or other law.

This section is made inapplicable to subscription charges for newspapers, magazines and other periodicals for official use by section 118b of title 5.

Advances of public money to various agencies of the Govenment, see sections 532, 533, 534, 535, 536, 539, 542, 550 of this title.

Department of Agriculture employees stationed abroad, payment of official expenses in advance, see section 543b of Title 5, Executive Departments and Government Officers and Employees.

FINANCIAL CONTROL OF GOVERNMENT CORPORATIONS (NEW)

SUBCHAPTER I.-PURPOSES.

§ 841. Declaration of policy.-It is declared to be the policy of the Congress to bring Government corporations and their transactions and operation under annual scrutiny by the Congress and provide current financial control thereof. (Dec. 6, 1945, ch. 557, § 2, 59 Stat. 597.)

POPULAR NAME

Congress in enacting this legislation provided by section 1 of act Dec. 6, 1945, cited to text, that the title of this act should be the "Government Corporation Control Act."

SUBCHAPTER II-WHOLLY OWNED GOVERNMENT CORPORATIONS

§ 846. Definition of "wholly owned Government corporation."— As used in this chapter the term "wholly owned Government corpora

tion" means the Commodity Credit Corporation; Federal Intermediate Credit Banks; Production Credit Corporations; Regional Agricultural Credit Corporation; Farmers Home Corporation; Federal Crop Insurance Corporation; Federal Farm Mortgage Corporation; Federal Surplus Commodities Corporation; Reconstruction Finance Corporation; Defense Plant Corporation; Defense Supplies Corporation; Metals Reserve Company; Rubber Reserve Company; War Damage Corporation; Federal National Mortgage Association; the RFC Mortgage Company; Disaster Loan Corporation; Inland Waterways Corporation; Warrior River Terminal Company; The Virgin Islands Company; Federal Prison Industries, Incorporated; United States Spruce Production Corporation; Institute of Inter-American Affairs; Institute of Inter-American Transportation; Inter-American Educational Foundation, Incorporated; Inter-American Navigation Corporation; Prencinradio, Incorporated; Cargoes, Incorporated; Export-Import Bank of Washington; Petroleum Reserves Corporation; Rubber Development Corporation; U. S. Commercial Company; Smaller War Plants Corporation; Federal Public Housing Authority (or United States Housing Authority) and including public housing projects financed from appropriated funds and operations thereof; Defense Homes Corporation; Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation; Home Owners' Loan Corporation; United States Housing Corporation; Panama Railroad Company; Tennessee Valley Authority; and Tennessee Valley Associated Cooperatives, Incorporated. (Dec. 6, 1945, ch. 557, title I, § 101, 59 Stat. 597.)

§ 847. Preparation of annual budget program; form, content, and manner of presentation.-Each wholly owned Government corporation shall cause to be prepared annually a budget program, which shall be submitted to the President through the Bureau of the Budget on or before September 15 of each year. The Bureau of the Budget, under such rules and regulations as the President may establish, is authorized and directed to prescribe the form and content of, and the manner in which such budget program shall be prepared and presented. The budget program shall be a business-type budget, or plan of operations, with due allowance given to the need for flexibility, including provision for emergencies and contingencies, in order that the corporation may properly carry out its activities as authorized by law. The budget program shall contain estimates of the financial condition and operations of the corporation for the current and ensuing fiscal years and the actual condition and results of operation for the last completed fiscal year. Such budget program shall include a statement of financial condition, a statement of income and expense, an analysis of surplus or deficit, a statement of sources and application of funds, and such other supplementary statements and information as are necessary or desirable to make known the financial condition and operations of the corporation. Such statements shall include. estimates of operations by major types of activities, together with estimates of administrative expenses, estimates of borrowings, and estimates of the amount of Government capital funds which shall be returned to the Treasury during the fiscal year or the appropriations required to provide for the restoration of capital impairments. (Dec. 6, 1945, ch. 557, title I, § 102, 59 Stat. 598.)

§ 848. Transmission of budget programs to Congress; amendments; effective date.-The budget programs of the corporations as modified, amended, or revised by the President shall be transmitted to the Congress as a part of the annual Budget required by sections 1, 2, 11, 13-18, 20-24, 41-55, 471, and 581 of this title. Amendments to the anual budget programs may be submitted from time to time.

Budget programs shall be submitted for all wholly owned Governmentment corporations covering operations for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1946, and each fiscal year thereafter. (Dec. 6, 1945, ch. 557, title I, § 103, 59 Stat. 598.)

§ 849. Consideration of programs by Congress; enactment of necessary legislation; effect of section on certain existing authority of corporations.--The budget programs transmitted by the President to the Congress shall be considered and if necessary, legislation shall be enacted making available such funds or other financial resources as the Congress may determine. The provisions of this section shall not be construed as preventing wholly owned Government corporations from carrying out and financing their activities as authorized by existing law, nor shall any provisions of this section be construed as affecting in any way the provisions of section 831 of Title 16. The provisions of this section shall not be construed as affecting the existing authority of any wholly owned Government corporation to make contracts or other commitments without reference to fiscal-year limitations. (Dec. 6, 1945, ch. 557, title I, § 104, 59 Stat. 598.)

§ 850. Audit of financial transactions; rules and regulations; retention of certain powers of Tennessee Valley Authority; place of audit; access to books, records, etc.; effective date.-The financial transactions of wholly owned Government corporations shall be audited by the General Accounting Office in accordance with the principles and procedures applicable to commercial corporate transactions and under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Comptroller General of the United States: Provided, That such rules and regulations may provide for the retention at the offices of such corporations, in whole or in part, of any accounts of accountable officers, covering corporate financial transactions, which are required by existing law to be settled and adjusted in the General Accounting Office, and for the settlement and adjustment of such accounts in whole or in part upon the basis of examinations in the course of the audit provided by this section, but nothing in this proviso shall be construed as affecting the powers reserved to the Tennessee Valley Authority in section 831h (b) of Title 16. The audit shall be conducted at the place or places where the accounts of the respective corporations are normally kept. The representatives of the General Accounting Office shall have access to all books, accounts, financial records, reports, files, and all other papers, things, or property belonging to or in use by the respective corporations and necessary to facilitate the audit, and they shall be afforded full facilities for verifying transactions with the balances or securities held by depositaries, fiscal agents, and custodians. The audit shall begin with the first fiscal year commencing after the enactment of this chapter. (Dec. 6, 1945, ch. 557, title I, § 105, 59 Stat. 599.)