About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

B-205851 1 (1982-06-17)

handle is hein.gao/gaobadkkl0001 and id is 1 raw text is: WI .4* ~ THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL DEfISuON IP THU UNITIED STATIES WAtHINGTON, DC, 200548 FILE: B-205851 DATEI June 17, 1982 MATTER OF: Veterans tdministration--Payment of vouchers with under $30 price variances DIGMEST; Veterans Administration requests approval of modified voucher paymeit system whereby all freight charges or price discrepancies between purchase order and invoice amount of under $30 that are not covered by contract will be paid at the invoiced amount without further inquiry, GAO cannot approve proposal since it is without statutory basis, The Assistant Deputy Administrator fer Budget and Finance of the Veterans Administration (VA) has requester our approval of a proposed change in the VA voucher payment system whereby all freight charges or price discrepancies between purchase order amount and invoiced amount of less than $30, which are not covered by a specific contract, will be paid without further inquiry, Sinze we are aware of no statutory basis for permitting deliberate overpaymente by the Government, even where the cost to the Governnent of ascertaining correct information exceeds the amount overpaid, we cannot approve the proposed modifica- tion, The VA bases its proposal on a test wich its payment center in Austin, Texas, conducted during April, May, and June of 1901. Te test showed that during this period, 249 variances of under $30 were investigated and resolved. The average variance was $5.30, Of the 249 variances, 108 were attributable to freight charges (average variance: $4.85), and 141 were attributable to price discrepancies (average variance: $5.64). The Supply Service of the VA Medical Cen- ter in Dallas, Texas, reviewed another 155 similar variances, and concluded that 94, or 61 percent, would have been resolved against the vendor and 61, or 39 percent, would have been approved at the vendor's price. he VA also conducted a detailed study on the vendor inquiries generated by the variances and the ensuing suspension of payment pend- ing resolution. Based on its calculations of the average time required by its Fiscal and Supply Services to process vendor inquiries for vari- ances of under $30, and the hourly rate of compensation paid the em- ployees responsible for such processing, the VA estimated the average cost for processing a vendor. Inquiry to be $6.54. Using its time study, the VA calculated that: i * * conducting inquiries on the 249 variances paid I, the Data Processing Center for the test period would . ivo required approximately 385 hours of work, wich

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most