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B-202129 1 (1981-06-30)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabkbu0001 and id is 1 raw text is: COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES WASHINGTON D.C. 20548 ~.) \~ 4 >':s B-202129 CEDl-210 Jut z 1 The Honorable Bob Packwood Chairman, Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation United States Senate Dear Mr. Chairman: We understand that the Senate is considering or will soon consider a proposal for changing the Federal role in the Consol- idated Rail Corporation. The proposal would establish a board to determine the Corporation's profitability, comprised of the Secretaries of Transportation and the Treasury, the Chairman of the United States Railway Association, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Corporation, and the Comptroller General. If the board determined that the Corporation had not made a profit by December 1, 1982, Corporation assets could be sold piecemeal rather than only as a whole. The Comptroller General's participation in this board's executive decisions could create a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest because of the General Accounting Office's responsibilities to review and evaluate Corporation activities, including the process of changing and/or terminating the Government's relationship with the Corporation. We have been quite active in this area in the past, having issued 15 reports concerning Corporation activities (see enclosure). The proposal would make the Comptroller General a part of the process he is responsible for evaluating. We have consistently opposed legislation giving the Comp- troller General executive authority over programs and activities he audits on behalf of the Congress. The conflict inherent in acting under both an executive and audit capacity is obvious and hardly needs elaboration. Irrespective of our utmost care, the Congress will have effectively lost the ability to obtain fully objective audit and review information from the General Account- ing Office on certain transportation matters if the Comptroller General is made a member of this review board. We believe that the General Accounting Office can better serve the Congress by independently reviewing processes such as determining the Corpor- ation's profitability rather than by becoming a part of the process. We therefore strongly urge that the proposal be amended to exclude the Comptroller General from membership in the board determining the Corporation's profitability. f L(990511) lU 6 7Y

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