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Comments on False Travel Authorization for Presidential Transition Team Members

B-149372 Published: Feb 14, 1978. Publicly Released: Feb 14, 1978.
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Highlights

Pursuant to congressional requests, GAO reviewed the expenditure of funds appropriated for the Ford-Carter presidential transition, focusing on reports that members of President Carter's transition team received travel advances for trips never taken and that the advances covered personal loans to the staffers until they received their first paychecks. GAO noted that: (1) the money had been returned; (2) although advances of public moneys were prohibited unless authorized by law, in all but a relatively few cases the employees had worked for sufficient time to earn the amounts paid them; and (3) although generally those making or aiding in false or fraudulent claims against the United States were subject to certain civil penalties, the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Division decided to take no action in the matter, but the matter was still under consideration within DOJ at the time of GAO's report.

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Advance paymentsFederal employeesFraudPresidential transitionRefunds to governmentTravel allowancesExpenditure of fundsPersonal loansGovernment operations