B-145268, MAR. 28, 1961

B-145268, MAR. 28, 1961

TO MR. GEORGE H. BEECK:

WE REFER TO YOUR TELEGRAM OF FEBRUARY 20 AND YOUR LETTER OF JANUARY 24, 1961, IN WHICH YOU REQUEST REVIEW OF OUR SETTLEMENT OF DECEMBER 19, 1960, REGARDING YOUR INDEBTEDNESS TO THE UNITED STATES FOR $320.46 FOR SHIPMENT OF AN EXCESS AMOUNT OF HOUSEHOLD GOODS AND PERSONAL EFFECTS FROM METZ, FRANCE, TO BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, IN 1957, IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR RETURN FROM OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY.

EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 9805, PREDICATED UPON SECTION 1 OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES ACT OF 1946, 60 STAT. 806, 5 U.S.C. 73B-1, IS THE BASIC AUTHORITY FOR THE SHIPMENT OF THE EFFECTS OF GOVERNMENT PERSONNEL. SECTION 17 OF THAT EXECUTIVE ORDER AS AMENDED BY EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 10196 PRESCRIBES LIMITATIONS UPON THE AMOUNT OF HOUSEHOLD GOODS AND PERSONAL EFFECTS WHICH MAY BE SHIPPED FOR EMPLOYEES ASSIGNED OVERSEAS. THE LIMIT SET IS 7,000 POUNDS UNLESS PACKING AND CRATING ARE NECESSARY IN WHICH CASE THE GROSS WEIGHT OF THE SHIPMENT MAY NOT EXCEED 8,750 POUNDS. THAT LIMIT, WHEN CHARGES ARE BASED UPON MEASUREMENT RATHER THAN WEIGHT, IS "25 MEASUREMENT TONS OF 40 CUBIC FEET EACH INCLUSIVE OF PACKING.' SEE ALSO DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, CIVILIAN PAY REGULATIONS, T3.5. THE TOTAL WEIGHT AND VOLUME OF THE HOUSEHOLD GOODS AND PERSONAL EFFECTS SHIPPED FOR YOU EXCEEDED THE ALLOWABLE AMOUNTS.

PARAGRAPH 17 (C) OF THE CITED EXECUTIVE ORDER PROVIDES:

"/C) WEIGHT AND VOLUME ON SAME SHIPMENT. WHEN SHIPMENT MUST BE MADE OVER SUCH A ROUTE THAT THE TRANSPORTATION NECESSARILY INVOLVES CHARGES BASED UPON WEIGHT OVER PART OF THE DISTANCE AND UPON MEASUREMENT OVER ANOTHER PART OF THE DISTANCE, THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS SHALL APPLY: (1) IF THE WEIGHT DOES NOT EXCEED THE LIMITATIONS PRESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (A) PAYMENT SHALL BE ALLOWED FOR ACTUAL CHARGES OVER THE ENTIRE DISTANCE REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE MEASUREMENT IS IN EXCESS OF THE LIMITATIONS IMPOSED BY SUBSECTION (B); (2) IF BOTH WEIGHT AND MEASUREMENT ARE IN EXCESS OF THE PRESCRIBED LIMITATIONS PAYMENT SHALL NOT BE ALLOWED FOR THE EXCESS BY WEIGHT OVER THAT PART OF THE DISTANCE WHERE CHARGES ARE BASED ON WEIGHT, OR FOR THE EXCESS BY MEASUREMENT OVER THAT PART OF THE DISTANCE WHERE CHARGES ARE BASED ON MEASUREMENT.'

YOUR EFFECTS WERE TRANSPORTED BY THE MILITARY SEA TRANSPORTATION SERVICE FROM FRANCE TO PORT OF ENTRY IN THE UNITED STATES. THE RATES CHARGED FOR THAT SERVICE WERE BASED UPON THE VOLUME OF THE GOODS TRANSPORTED RATHER THAN UPON THEIR WEIGHT. LAND TRANSPORTATION OF YOUR GOODS WAS BY RAIL AT RATES BASED UPON WEIGHT. THEREFORE, THE QUOTED PARAGRAPH MUST BE APPLIED.

SECTION 22 OF EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 9805 ALSO IS APPLICABLE TO YOUR SHIPMENT. IT PROVIDES IN PERTINENT PART:

"* * * IF PROPERTY IN EXCESS OF THE AMOUNT ALLOWABLE UNDER THESE REGULATIONS IS SHIPPED ON A GOVERNMENT BILL OF LADING OR PURCHASE ORDER, THE EMPLOYEE SHALL IMMEDIATELY UPON COMPLETION OF THE SHIPMENT PAY TO THE PROPER OFFICER OF THE DEPARTMENT OR ESTABLISHMENT AN AMOUNT EQUAL TO THE CHARGE FOR THE TRANSPORTATION OF SUCH EXCESS COMPUTED FROM THE TOTAL CHARGES ACCORDING TO THE RATIO OF EXCESS WEIGHT TO THE TOTAL WEIGHT OF THE SHIPMENT.'

YOUR EFFECTS WERE TRANSPORTED IN THREE SHIPMENTS. THE WEIGHTS AND CUBIC MEASUREMENT OF THOSE SHIPMENTS ARE SHOWN ON THE GOVERNMENT BILLS OF LADING UNDER WHICH THEY WERE TRANSPORTED FROM THE PORTS OF ENTRY TO BALTIMORE. THE SHIPMENTS WERE AS FOLLOWS: 1. BILL OF LADING WY7160803, BROOKLYN ARMY TERMINAL TO BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, 679 POUNDS, 48 CUBIC FEET (1.2 MEASUREMENT TONS). 2. BILL OF LADING WY 6879539, NORFOLK, VIRGINIA, TO BALTIMORE, 4,839 POUNDS, 590 CUBIC FEET (14.75 MEASUREMENT TONS). 3. BILL OF LADING WY 6987592, NORFOLK TO BALTIMORE,8,685 POUNDS, 1,001 CUBIC FEET (25.025 MEASUREMENT TONS).

IN THE FIRST TWO SHIPMENTS THE GOVERNMENT SHIPPED ON YOUR ACCOUNT A TOTAL OF 5,518 POUNDS, 15.95 MEASUREMENT TONS. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE AMOUNT OF THOSE SHIPMENTS AND YOUR TOTAL ALLOWANCE IS THE LIMIT OF THE GOVERNMENT'S LIABILITY FOR THE THIRD SHIPMENT ON YOUR ACCOUNT. THUS, THE GOVERNMENT'S LIABILITY FOR THE COST OF THAT SHIPMENT IS LIMITED TO THAT PORTION OF THE COST AS 3,232 POUNDS OF 9.05 MEASUREMENT TONS BEARS TO THE TOTAL WEIGHT OR VOLUME OF THAT SHIPMENT. WE NOTE THAT IN ALL PREVIOUS COMPUTATIONS 10.05 MEASUREMENT TONS WAS USED AS THE REMAINING ALLOWANCE AFTER THE FIRST TWO SHIPMENTS. THE PRESENT COMPUTATION MUST BE BASED UPON THE CORRECT FIGURE, 9.05 MEASUREMENT TONS.

THE EXCESS COST OF OCEAN TRANSPORTATION OF THE THIRD SHIPMENT IS AS FOLLOWS:

SCHEDULE 9.05 REMAINING ALLOWANCE -------------------------- BY $337.09 COST OF SHIPMENT EQUALS $121.90 25.025 TOTAL SHIPMENT GOVERNMENT LIABILITY.

EXCESS COST $215.19 ($337.09 LESS $121.90).

THE EXCESS COST OF LAND TRANSPORTATION OF THE THIRD SHIPMENT IS AS FOLLOWS:

SCHEDULE 3232 REMAINING ALLOWANCE ------------------------- BY $136.80 COST OF SHIPMENT EQUALS $50.91 8685 TOTAL SHIPMENT GOVERNMENT LIABILITY.

EXCESS COST $85.89 ($136.80 LESS $50.91).

YOUR INDEBTEDNESS AS RECOMPUTED ABOVE IS $301.08 ($215.19 PLUS $85.89). WE NOTE THAT THE COST OF THE SHIPMENT FROM NORFOLK TO BALTIMORE HAS PREVIOUSLY BEEN STATED AS $183.60. THAT FIGURE WAS BASED ON A HIGHER RATE THAN THAT BILLED BY THE RAILROAD FOR THE SHIPMENT INVOLVED, THEREFORE, IN THE PRESENT COMPUTATION THE ACTUAL CHARGE FOR THE SHIPMENT HAS BEEN SUBSTITUTED.

IN VIEW OF THE EVIDENCE AS TO THE WEIGHT AND CUBIC MEASUREMENT OF THE HOUSEHOLD GOODS AND PERSONAL EFFECTS SHIPPED BY YOU AND IN VIEW OF THE CITED PROVISIONS OF EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 9805 AS AMENDED, THE SETTLEMENT OF DECEMBER 16 WAS CORRECT EXCEPT AS HEREINBEFORE NOTED AND YOU ARE LIABLE FOR THE COST OF EXCESS SHIPMENT AS COMPUTED ABOVE OR $301.08. SINCE THAT AMOUNT REPRESENTS THE EXCESS COSTS INCURRED BY THE UNITED STATES FOR YOUR ACCOUNT NO BASIS FOR A COMPROMISE EXISTS.

THEREFORE, PAYMENT OF THE AMOUNT CLAIMED SHOULD BE MADE TO THE U.S. GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE, POST OFFICE BOX 2610, WASHINGTON 13, D.C. SHOULD YOU BE UNABLE AT THIS TIME TO MAKE PAYMENT IN FULL YOU SHOULD MAKE A PARTIAL PAYMENT AND SUBMIT A DEFINITE PLAN FOR PAYMENT OF THE BALANCE WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME.