Request for Relief

An agency requested a review of a decision which denied relief to an employee for the loss of two $1000 Treasury bonds. The relief was denied because the employee's negligence was the proximate cause of the loss. On appeal, the agency contended that the employee was acting in accordance with office procedures and in an official capacity when the loss occurred. The agency further contended that it suffered no loss, since the bonds had not been cashed and a stop payment notice was placed on them. GAO held that the employee was never authorized to accept the bonds in the first place, and then failed to follow office procedures in attempting to store them. Also, the stop notice placed on the bonds does not prevent them from being cashed, nor does it completely extinguish the Government's liability to pay on them. Accordingly, the previous decision not to grant relief was reaffirmed.