REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF THE DIVISION OF ACCOUNTS 



AND DISBURSEMENTS. 



United States Department of Agriculture, 



Division of Accounts and Disbursements, 



Washington, D. C, October 11, 1922. 



Sir : I am transmitting herewith the annual report of the Division 

 of Accounts and Disbursements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 

 1922. 



Very respectfully, 



A. Zappone, 



Chief of Division. 

 Hon. Henry C. Wallace, 



Secretary of Agriculture. 



CHARACTER OF THE WORK. 



The Chief of the Division of Accounts and Disbursements, in accord- 

 ance with law and regulation, pays accounts submitted by the various 

 bureaus, divisions, and services of the department. Accounts are 

 examined to ascertain that approvals are genuine, that extensions 

 and additions are correct, and that there are appropriations out of 

 which they are legally pa3\able. A cashbook record is maintained 

 of all individual payments, and ledger records are kept of disbursing 

 and appropriation debits and credits of all funds of the department. 

 Through the use of a card index duplicate payments are prevented 

 and a ready reference to payments is available. The division also 

 supervises the placing of funds to the official credit of temporary 

 special disbursing agents and other fiscal officers of the department, 

 and after making a record thereof transmits their accounts to the 

 General Accounting Office. It receives and accounts for all moneys 

 due the department from various sources; makes advances of public 

 funds to employees for the payment of their expenses while traveling 

 on official business: maintains a record of liabilities and disburse- 

 ments in connection with purchases of lands under the Weeks forestry 

 law; keeps the departmental record of amounts withheld from em- 

 ployees' salaries under the provisions of the retirement act of May 22, 

 1920, and, under the direction of the Secretary and the Budget officer, 

 compiles the annual estimates of appropriations. Miscellaneous finan- 

 cial reports are prepared from time to time as required. During the 

 fiscal year 1922 this office also received and deposited in the Treasury 

 all the collections of farmers' seed grain loans, and maintained the file 

 of notes and mortgages and a detailed record of the repayaients 

 thereunder. 



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