[Request for Comment on Legality of S. 353 Expenditures]

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed whether the funds appropriated from the Senate contingency fund to investigate the attempted defection of a Soviet citizen can be lawfully made and approved. GAO found that: (1) the activities proposed for funding are within the Senate's authority and are specifically incorporated in a Senate regulation; (2) since the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe has a broader mandate than the investigation specified, it would not be required to devote its own resources to the investigation; (3) it would not object to an arrangement in which one federal entity provides services to another federal body on a reimbursable basis; and (4) the statutory authorization for the Senate contingency fund provides the Senate Rules and Administration Committee with considerable flexibility in approving expenditures from the fund.