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B-302993 1 (2004-06-25)

handle is hein.gao/gaobacytl0001 and id is 1 raw text is: I G A 0Comptroller General .. . .Accountability * Integrity * Reliability of the United States United States General Accounting Office Washington, DC 20548 D .. Decision Matter of: Use of Appropriated Funds to Purchase Kitchen Appliances File: B-302993 Date: June 25, 2004 DIGEST The U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM) may use appropriated funds to purchase refrigerators, microwaves, and commercial coffee makers for central kitchen areas in its new headquarters building. Appropriations are available to pay for items ordinarily considered to be personal in nature, such as kitchen appliances, when the primary benefit of their use accrues to the agency, notwithstanding a collateral benefit to the individual. USPACOM has demonstrated that equipping the workplace in this manner is reasonably related to the efficient performance of agency activities and provides other benefits to the agency, including assurance of a safe workplace. Earlier GAO decisions reflecting similar proposed uses of appropriations, such as B-276601, June 26, 1997, B-210433, Apr. 15, 1983, and 47 Comp. Gen. 657 (1968), are modified accordingly. In applying this decision, agencies should develop an agency policy to ensure uniformity in the use of appropriations to acquire this equipment and determine the usefulness of appliances such as these in light of operational benefits, such as employee health and productivity, and the responsibility to provide a safe work environment. DECISION The Chief of Staff of the U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM), U.S. Army, has requested an advance decision under 31 U.S.C. § 3529 on the propriety of using appropriated funds to procure major kitchen appliances, such as refrigerators, microwaves, and commercial quality coffee makers, that would be placed in common areas for the use of personnel at the site. As explained below, because we have determined that the appliances contribute to the efficient operation of the agency, and USPACOM, not individual employees, receives the primary benefit of the

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