31 USC 1554 – Audit, control, and reporting
(a) Any audit requirement, limitation on obligations, or reporting requirement that is applicable to an appropriation account shall remain applicable to that account after the end of the period of availability for obligation of that account.
Terms Used In 31 USC 1554
- Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
(b)(1) After the close of each fiscal year, the head of each agency shall submit to the President and the Secretary of the Treasury a report regarding the unliquidated obligations, unobligated balances, canceled balances, and adjustments made to appropriation accounts of that agency during the completed fiscal year. The report shall be submitted no later than 15 days after the date on which the President’s budget for the next fiscal year is submitted to Congress under section 1105 of this title.
(2) Each report required by this subsection shall—
(A) provide a description, with reference to the fiscal year of appropriations, of the amount in each account, its source, and an itemization of the appropriations accounts;
(B) describe all current and expired appropriations accounts;
(C) describe any payments made under section 1553 of this title;
(D) describe any adjustment of obligations during that fiscal year pursuant to section 1553 of this title;
(E) contain a certification by the head of the agency that the obligated balances in each appropriation account of the agency reflect proper existing obligations and that expenditures from the account since the preceding review were supported by a proper obligation of funds and otherwise were proper;
(F) describe all balances canceled under sections 1552 and 1555 of this title.
(3) The head of each Federal agency shall provide a copy of each such report to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Governmental Affairs, and other appropriate oversight and authorizing committees of the Senate.
(c) The head of each agency shall establish internal controls to assure that an adequate review of obligated balances is performed to support the certification required by section 1108(c) of this title.