Page images
PDF
EPUB

acquisition of their property by the Government. They should be able to expect equitable treatment.

Mr. President, I realize that the bill I am introducing is long and, at first glance, complicated. But as I have said, most of its provisions have already been accepted-unanimously-by this body. Only titles VI and IX are new, and I hope they will be thoroughly studied by all Members.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be reprinted in the RECORD at this point.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The bill will be received and appropriately referred; and, without objection, the bill will be printed in the RECORD, and held at the desk, as requested by the Senator from Maine.

The bill (S. 698) to achieve the fullest cooperation and coordination of activities among the levels of government in order to improve the operation of our federal system in an increasingly complex society, to improve the administration of grants-in-aid to the States, to provide for periodic Congressional review of Federal grants-in-aid, to permit provision of reimbursable technical services to State and local government, to establish coordinated intergovernmental policy and administration of grants and loans for urban development, to authorize the administration of grants and loans for urban development, to authorize the consolidation of certain grant-in-aid programs, to provide for the acquisition, use, and disposition of land within urban areas by Federal agencies in conformity with local government programs, to establish a uniform relocation assistance policy, to establish a uniform land acquisition policy for Federal and federally aided programs, and for other purposes, introduced by Mr. MUSKIE (for himself, Mr. BOGGS, Mr. JACKSON, Mr. MUNDT, and Mr. Moss), was received, read twice by its title, referred to the Committee on Government Operations, and ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:

[S. 698, 90th Cong., second sess.]

AMENDMENTS Intended to be proposed by Mr. MUSKIE to S. 698, a bill to achieve the fullest cooperation and coordination of activities among the levels of government in order to improve the operation of our federal system in an increasingly complex society, to improve the administration of grants-in-aid to the States, to provide for periodic congressional review of Federal grants-in-aid, to permit provision of reimbursable technical services to State and local government, to establish coordinated intergovernmental policy and administration of grants and loans for urban development, to authorize the consolidation of certain grant-in-aid programs, to provide for the acquisition, use, and disposition of land within urban areas by Federal agencies in conformity with local government programs, to establish a uniform relocation assistance policy, to establish a uniform land acquisition policy for Federal and federally aided programs, and for other purposes

On page 2, line 4, strike out "1967" and insert in lieu thereof "1968". On page 2, line 19, strike out "title VIII and title IX" and insert in lieu thereof "titles VIII, IX, and X.".

On page 59, after line 4, insert the following new title:

"TITLE X-ACCOUNTING, AUDITING, AND REPORTING OF FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FUNDS

"STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

"SEC. 1001. It is the purpose of this title to encourage simplification and improved coordination of accounting, auditing, and financial reporting requirements of Federal assistance programs, to survey the adequacy and effectiveness of the accounting and auditing systems of recipient jurisdictions, and to authorize the Comptroller General of the United States to prescribe rules and regulations for using State and political subdivision accounting and auditing in meeting financial management requirements of such programs.

"MORE UNIFORM FINANCIAL REPORTING

"SEC. 1002. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the President shall have authority to promulgate rules and regulations simplifying and, to the extent feasible, unifying financial reporting requirements of Federal assistance programs.

"ACCEPTANCE OF ACCOUNTING AND AUDITING OF STATES AND THEIR POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS

"SEC. 1003. (a) The Comptroller General of the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget shall conduct a

[blocks in formation]

joint study of the principles, standards, and related requirements of executive agencies, as defined in chapter 1 of title 5, United States Code, for accounting and auditing of Federal assistance programs. Such study shall emphasize ways and means of developing governmentwide accounting and auditing procedures that foster closer cooperation and coordination among the financial management officials of the different levels of the executive agencies, avoid unnecessary duplication, and minimize the amounts of time required to perform the accounting and auditing functions. Such study with recommendations shall be submitted to Congress not later than twelve months after the date of enactment of this Act.

"(b) The Comptroller General shall study and review the accounting and auditing systems of States and political subdivisions receiving Federal assistance in order to determine (1) the adequacy and effectiveness of such systems, and (2) the nature of any changes in the accounting and auditing procedures employed in such systems which would be required for compliance with the principles, standards, and related requirements prescribed by the Comptroller General for protecting the interests of the United States with regard to accounting for expenditures of Federal assistance funds by States and their political subdivisions.

"(c) The Comptroller General, after consulting the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget concerning their accounting and auditing needs, and considering statutory requirements and the needs of executive agencies responsible for administering Federal assistance programs, shall prescribe rules and regulations whereby such agencies may substitute for their accounting and auditing the accounting and auditing performed by States and political subdivisions receiving Federal assistance, when such accounting and auditing meet the requirements prescribed by the Comptroller General applicable to the administration of such assistance received by such States and political subdivisions. The Comptroller General shall make a report to Congress on the operations of this subsection at the end of each fiscal year, beginning with the first full fiscal year following the date of enactment of this Act."

[From the Congressional Record, May 8, 1968]

INTERGOVERNMENTAL COOPERATION ACT OF 1967-AMENDMENTS (MAY 8, 1968)

AMENDMENT NO. 748

Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, I submit, for appropriate reference, amendments which I intend to propose to S. 698, the intergovernmental cooperation bill, now pending in the Subcommittee on Intergovernmental Relations, Committee on Government Operations.

The amendments I will offer are intended to encourage simplification and improved coordination of accounting, auditing, and financial reporting requirements of Federal assistance programs.

Every Federal agency administering Federal assistance programs to State and local governments is charged by the Congress and by the regulations of the Comptroller General with assuring proper legal use of Federal funds made available to State and local governments through such programs. As a result each administering agency and each major bureau engaged in grant-in-aid administration deploys a number of fiscal auditors throughout the States at various times to audit grant-in-aid accounts. The General Accounting Office has its own field operations with its "spot audit" program, which is geared to ascertaining the effectiveness of agency audits of Federal expenditures and which also involves audits of grant expenditures at the State and local levels.

Yet, Federal agency auditing and accounting activities have had to keep pace with the growth in the number and variety of Federal assistance programs. Moreover, State governments in recent years and many local governments have made strenuous efforts to improve the capability of their own accounting and auditing systems thanks to the rapid growth of State and local programs and expenditures.

Federal assistance programs differ in objectives, magnitude, governments, and governmental agencies involved, and the clientele served and in many other characteristics. Such programs then can hardly be expected to yield completely to uniform accounting and auditing requirements. Nevertheless, there remains the question as to whether the existing financial reporting, accounting, and

auditing requirements are reasonable in their demands. Most State and local officials feel they are not. Some Federal aid administrators feel they are not. The recent experience of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and the Office of Economic Opportunity in placing reliance on State and local auditing, accounting, and reporting systems suggests that a rigid adherence to the status quo is not the best way to improve intergovernmental relations in this area. To help correct this condition, the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations in its fiscal balance report adopted a three-pronged recommendation urging enactment of general legislation by the Congress applicable to Federal grantsin-aid to States whereby: first, the Comptroller General would study and review the accounting and auditing systems of the States receiving Federal grants-inaid and ascertain their general adequacy and integrity; second, for those States certified by the Comptroller General as meeting standards of adequacy and integrity, the results of State audits of expenditures of Federal grant funds would be accepted by the administering Federal agencies in lieu of their own fiscal audits with such acceptance to cease if the Comptroller General finds that the accounting and auditing system of a particular State no longer meets prescribed standards; and, third, this authorization would be extended at the discretion of the Comptroller General to units of local government receiving sizable grant-in-aid funds from Federal agencies.

The amendments I intend to propose are based on this recommendation. First, they would assign authority to the President to promulgate rules and regulations on a Government-wide basis for simplifying and, to the extent practicable, unifying the financial reporting requirements in Federal grant-in-aid programs. At the present time thanks to diverse enabling legislation, appropriation acts, departmental regulations and various other factors the procedures, format, frequency, and intensity of financial reporting requirements differ greatly from department to dearptment and frequently from program to program within a department. The amendments are designed to provide the President with sufficient authority to achieve greater consistency, simplicity, and order in an area of grant-in-aid administration that thus far largely has also been ignored.

The amendments also provide the basis for acceptance of the accounting and auditing system in certain States and certain political subdivisions in lieu of Federal efforts in these fields. The Comptroller General, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget are mandated to conduct a joint study of the principles, standards, and related requirements of executive agencies as they relate to the accounting and auditing of Federal grants-in-aid with a view to identify ways and means of developing Government-wide accounting and auditing procedures that foster greater interdepartmental coordination among financial management officials in the various Federal agencies administering grant programs. These provisions are designed then to reduce unnecessary duplication and excessive time required to perform these vital fiscal functions.

The Comptroller General is authorized to study and review the accounting and auditing systems of the States and their political subdivisions in order to determine the adequacy and effectiveness of their respective systems and what changes, if any, would be required in them to comply with the principles, standards, and related requirements prescribed by him in the area of grant-in-aid financial accountability. After consulting with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget and after assessing the statutory requirements and the administrative needs of executive agencies administering grants-in-aid, the Comptroller General is authorized to prescribe rules and regulations that would permit such agencies to substitute the accounting and auditing systems of States and local governments when their systems meet standards prescribed by him as they relate to the administration of Federal assistance programs.

The intent of these amendments is not to shortcut in any way the exercise of fiscal prudence and accountability at all levels of government. But they seek to develop new intergovernmental arrangements in the accounting and auditing field which would lead to a significant saving in time and energy and would provide the impetus for significant improvements in the whole area of intergovernmental fiscal management.

[S. 735, 90th Cong., first sess.]

A BILL To provide for periodic review of Federal programs of grant-in-ald assistance to the States

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Federal Grant-in-Aid Review Act of 1967".

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

SEC. 2. (a) It is the purpose and intent of this Act to establish a uniform policy and procedure whereby programs, which may be enacted hereafter by the Congress, for grant-in-aid assistance from the Federal Government to the States or to their political subdivisions shall be made the subject of sufficient subsequent review by the Congress to insure that (1) the effectiveness of grant-in-aid programs as instruments of Federal-State-local cooperation is improved and enhanced; (2) grant-in-aid programs are revised and redirected as necessary to meet the new conditions arising subsequent to their original enactment; and (3) grant-in-aid programs are terminated when they have substantially achieved their purpose.

(b) It is further the purpose and intent of this Act to provide for a continuing review by Congress of existing Federal programs for grant-in-aid assistance to the States or their political subdivisions with a view to developing legislation terminating those grant-in-aid programs whose purposes clearly have been achieved and revising or redirecting all other existing grant-in-aid programs to improve and enhance their effectiveness as instruments of Federal-State-local cooperation or to meet new conditions arising subsequent to their original enactment.

EXPIRATION OF GRANT-IN-AID PROGRAMS

SEC. 3. Whenever any Act of Congress enacted in the Ninetieth or any subsequent Congress authorizes any program for grant-in-aid assistance to two or more States or to political subdivisions of two or more States and there is no termination date otherwise specified for such authority, the authority to make any grant-in-aid under such Act to any State, political subdivision, or other beneficiary from funds not theretofore obligated shall, unless the provisions of this section are specifically excepted from application to such program, expire not later than June 30 of the fifth calendar year which begins after the calendar year in which the effective date of such Act occurs.

COMMITTEE STUDIES OF GRANT-IN-AID

SEC. 4. (a) Whenever any Act of Congress enacted in the Ninetieth or any subsequent Congress authorizes the establishment of any program for grant-inaid assistance over a period of three or more years to two or more States or to political subdivisions of two or more States, each standing committee of the Senate and House of Representatives which exercises legislative jurisdiction and oversight with respect to such program shall, during the period beginning not later than twelve months immediately preceding the date on which the authority by such program is to expire, separately or jointly, conduct studies and appraisals of such program. Each such committee shall report the results of its study and appraisal to its respective House, together with recommendations for such legislation as it deems appropriate, not later than one hundred and twenty days before the authority for such program is due to expire.

(b) (1) In the case of any existing statute authorizing the establishment of any program for grant-in-aid assistance over a period of three or more years to two or more States or to political subdivisions of two or more States, each standing committee of the Senate and House of Representatives which exercises legislative jurisdiction and oversight over such program shall review and study, on a continuing basis, the application, operation, administration, and execution of such program.

(2) To assist it in carrying out this review and study function, each standing committee of the Senate and House of Representatives is entitled to employ a review specialist as a member of the professional staff of such committee in addition to the number of members of such professional staff to which such committee otherwise is entitled. Such review specialist shall be selected and appointed by the chairman of such committee, with the prior approval of the ranking minority member, in a permanent basis, without regard to political affiliation, and solely on the basis of fitness to perform the duties of the position. (3) Each standing committee of the Senate and House of Representatives shall submit, not later than March 31 of each year, to the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively, a report on its activities under this subsection during the immediately preceding calendar year.

(c) The studies referred to in subsections (a) and (b) with respect to any program of grant-in-aid assistance shall be conducted by each standing committee of the Senate and House of Representatives involved with a view to ascertaining, among other matters of concern, the following:

(1) The extent to which the purposes for which such grants-in-aid authorized have been met;

are

(2) The extent to which the purposes for which such program can be carried on without additional financial assistance from the United States:

(3) The extent to which such program is adequate to meet any growing and changing needs related to the purposes for which it was originally designed; and

(4) Whether or not any changes in purpose, direction, or administration of the original program, or in procedures and requirements applicable thereto, should be made.

SEC. 4. As used in this Act

DEFINITIONS

(a) The term "State" means any of the several States of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, any territory or possession of the United States, or any agency or instrumentality of a State, but does not include any political subdivision of a State;

(b) The term "political subdivision of a State" means any local unit of government of a State, including, but not limited to, a county, parish, municipality, city, town, township, village, or school or other special district created by or pursuant to State law; and

(c) The term "grant-in-aid" means money, or property provided in lieu of money, paid or furnished by the United States under a fixed annual or aggregate authorization

(1) to a State; or

(2) to a political subdivision of a State; or

(3) to a beneficiary under a State-administered plan or program which is subject to approval by a Federal agency

if such authorization (A) requires such State or political subdivision to expend non-Federal funds as a condition for the receipt of money or property from the United States: or (B) specifies directly, or establishes by means of a formula, the amounts which may be paid or furnished to such State or political subdivision, or the amounts to be allotted for use in such State by such State or political subdivision; but such term does not include (i) shared revenues, (ii) payments of taxes (iii) payments in lieu of taxes, (iv) loans or repayable advances, (v) surplus property or surplus agricultural commodities furnished as such, (vi) payments under research and development contracts or grants which are awarded directly and on similar terms to all qualifying organizations, whether public or private, or (vii) payments to States political subdivisions as full reimbursement for the costs incurred in paying benefits or furnishing services to persons entitled thereto under Federal laws.

[S. 458, 90th Cong., first sess.]

or

A BILL To provide for periodic congressional review of Federal grants-in-aid to States and to local units of government

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

SECTION 1. It is the purpose and intent of this Act to establish a uniform policy and procedure whereby programs for grant-in-aid assistance from the Federal Government to the States or to their political subdivisions which may be enacted hereafter by the Congress shall be made the subject of sufficient subsequent review by the Congress to insure that (1) the effectiveness of grants-in-aid as instruments of Federal-State-local cooperation is improved and enhanced; (2) grant programs are revised and redirected as necessary to meet new conditions arising subsequent to their original enactment; and (3) grant

« PreviousContinue »