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B-198419 1 (1980-11-25)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabjdt0001 and id is 1 raw text is: COMPTROLLER GENERAL Or THE UNITED STATES WASHIINOTON D.C. 204S 13-198419 NOi 261980 The ionorable Cl iborne Pell Chairman, Ccmniutee on Rules and Administration A ,!a% er., , I.. ) I , I , it 1. United States Senate Rar fir. Ch-Arnan: Follcmlng our letter of July 8, 1980 (b-198419), you asked for further clarification of our views on business cards for Senators, and their pec1-mnal aind Senate Ccrnittee staffs. Specifically, you ask whether ou-' previous decisions prohibiting the use of appropriated funds to purchase business cards in executive branch agencies apply to the Senate, and whether Senator's office expense allowances other than the 10 Pocent discretionary allowance may be charged with the expense of business card printing. For the reasons expressed below, we would not objeet to the use of the Contingent Fund of the Senate and the home state office expense allcwance and stationery allavance which derive the':efraa to pay for necessary business card printing. We reach this conclusion through analysis of our earliest decisions or, thin question. Our original rule had both a legal and practical basis. Wien first presenteJ with this question, tle Ccxptoller of the Treasury analyzed the use of business cards and found that they served to intro- duce and identify a Government employee dealing with external offices in the course of perforning official duties, lie then held that such intro- '. ductions, though customary, co .rteous and useful, were not necessary to the conduct of Governent business, and -herefore, cards could not be charged to appropriations. 10 Ccnp. Dec. 506 (1904). The practical rea- son was articulated in a later decision. Acknowledging that business cards might b1 $necessary for salc few officials to conduct Governent business, the Canptroller nonetheless found it necressary to enforce the rule prohi- biting business cards across the xxrd, hecaLSC it was imw1ssiblo to draw a fair, enforceabie line distinguishin those who were and those who were not in need of cards. 20 Comlp. Dc. 248 (1913). hen the General Acccuntlng Office was established, we adopted that rule and the tmnwrlyinj rationale, applyinvj it ever since to executive branch agencies. ee, 0.9_., 12 Cmnp. Gen. 565 (1933); 13-13161t, flay 24, 1957; 42 Ccuip. Gon. 19 (1962); B-195036, July 11, 1979. These and our other decisions on this subject have all relied on the .olint Camittee on PctlnLinj'l; Printilt9 and llindinj Repclf.ations, which state at Paragraph 20 that: Printin or engjravlncj of calin'; or greetingW cards is corl dJr(d to b.e L..,,or L h rthr hn ot.ficial imd sihall nOt c 1 l t: ,t C-itvuri:,,-L CX .n!;(.Ae. (1977 edl.) A/ 'i.w.i I . .4

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