Proposal to Treasury Department To Change Administration of Compensation of the President Account]

GAO comments were requested on a proposal to the Treasury Department to change the administration of the Compensation of the President account. It was proposed that payments from the expense subaccount portion of the compensation account be certified directly by the White House Administrative Office rather than by the Comptroller General. Because the proposal would merely apply administrative procedures which are presently utilized in the certification of payments from other White House accounts, and because GAO was aware of no statutory requirements to the contrary, GAO did not object to the proposal. GAO currently certifies payments from both the salary and expense accounts. The Comptroller General assumed the responsibility for certifying the President's compensation payments as one of the duties performed by his predecessor. The account was treated as part of the President's salary. Thus, GAO would certify the funds from the expense subaccount as well as the actual salary payments. The White House plans to ask Congress to appropriate the President's expense subaccount together with the other White House expense accounts, rather than as a part of his compensation appropriation. Since GAO sees no particular need to certify payments from this subaccount, GAO had no objection to the White House Administrative Office certifying the President's expenses from this account in the same manner as the other White House accounts.