Request for Relief From Liability for the Loss of Imprest Funds

An employee of the International Communication Agency (ICA) requested relief from the liability for the loss of imprest funds. GAO has authority to grant relief to accountable officers for the physical loss of funds upon concurrence with the agency head or his delegate. In this request, although ICA did not expressly make the requisite determination that the loss occurred while the employee was acting in the discharge of his official duties, the recital of facts clearly suggested that this was the agency's conclusion. The question of relief, therefore, turns on the presence or absence of negligence. Based on an investigation, ICA determined that a robbery occurred without fault or negligence by the employee. Therefore, GAO concurred in the administrative determination that the employee should be relieved of liability.