B-174174, September 24, 1974

B-174174, September 24, 1974

The Honorable Wright Patman Chairman, Committee on Banking and Currency House of Representatives

Dear Mr. Chairman:

Your letter of September 21, 1971, requested that our Office look over correspondence that you have had with the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, which concerns a thrift plan which the Board has had established for the employees of the Federal Reserve System. Under this plan employees contributions to a fund are matched by the Federal Reserve. You characterize the Federal Reserve's matching as contributions of the Federal Government and ask that by Friday, September 24, you be advised as to whether contributions to such a fund would be legal for any other agency of the United States Government.

Section 3678 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, 31 U.S.C. 628, requires that sums appropriated to the various branches of expenditures in public service shall be applied solely to the objects for which they are made and for no others. Thus, in the absence of specific legislative authority, agencies of the Federal Government whose operations are financed with appropriated funds would not be legally authorized to make contributions to a fund of this type.

In the limited time available to us for review of the matter we have not been able to make a full research, however, we are not aware that such specific authority has been granted to any Federal agency operating with appropriated funds. Also, we are not in a position at this time to state a conclusion with regard to those few Federal agencies which operate with other than appropriated funds.

Sincerely yours,

PAUL G. DEMBLING Acting Comptroller General of the United States