Act of Congress Establishing the Treasury
Department
(a)
,
That there shall be a Department of Treasury,
in which shall be the following officers,
namely: a Secretary of the
Treasury, to be deemed head of the
department; a Comptroller, an Auditor, a Treasurer, a Register, and an Assistant to the Secretary of
the Treasury, which assistant shall be
appointed by the said Secretary.
, That it shall be the duty
of the Secretary of the Treasury to digest
and prepare plans for the improvement and
management of the revenue, and for the
support of public credit; to prepare and
report estimates of the public revenue, and
the public expenditures; to superintend the
collection of revenue; to decide on the forms
of keeping and stating accounts and making
returns, and to grant under the limitations
herein established, or to be hereafter
provided, all warrants for monies to be
issued from the Treasury, in pursuance of
appropriations by law; to execute such
services relative to the sale of the lands
belonging to the United States, as may be by
law required of him; (b) to
make report, and give information to either
brach of the legislature, in person or in
writing (as he may be required), respecting
all matters referred to him by the Senate or
House of Representatives, or which shall
appertain to his office; and generally to
perform all such services relative to the
finances, as he shall be directed to
perform.
, That it shall be the duty
of the Comptroller to superintend the
adjustment and preservation of the public
accounts; to examine all accounts settled by
the Auditor, and certify
the balances arising thereon to the Register; to countersign all
warrants drawn by the Secretary of the Treasury, which
shall be warranted by law; to report to the
Secretary the official forms of all papers to
be issued in the different offices for
collecting the public revenue, and the manner
and form of keeping and stating the accounts
of the several persons employed therein. He
shall moreover provide for the regular and
punctual payment of all monies which may be
collected, and shall direct prosecutions for
all delinquencies of officers of the revenue,
and for debts that are, or shall be due to
the United States. (c)
, That it shall be the duty
of the Treasurer to receive and keep the
monies of the United States, and to disburse
the same upon warrants drawn by the Secretary of the Treasury,
countersigned by the Comptroller, recorded by the Register, and not otherwise;
he shall take receipts for all monies paid by
him, and all receipts for monies received by
him shall be endorsed upon warrants signed by
the Secretary of the Treasury, withouth which
warrant, so signed, no acknowledgement for
money received into the public treasury shall
be valid. And the said Treasurer shall render
his accounts to the Comptroller quarterly (or
oftener if required,) and shall transmit a
copy thereof, when settled, to the Secretary
of the Treasury. He shal. moreover, on the
third day of every session of Congress, lay
before the Senate and the House of
Representatives, fair and accurate copies of
all accounts by him from time [to time]
rendered to, and settled with the Comptroller
as aforesaid, as also, a true and perfect
account of the state of the Treasury. He
shall, at all times, submit to the Secretary
of the Treasury, and the Comptroller, in the
sum of one hundred and fify thousand dollars,
payable to the United States, with condition
for the faithful performance of the duties of
his office, and for the fidelity of the
persons to be by him employed, which bond
shall be lodged in the office of the
Comptroller of the Treasury of the United
States.
, That it shall be the duty
of the Auditor to receive all public
accounts, and after examination to certify
the balance, and transmit the accounts with
the vouchers and certificate to the Comptroller for his decision
thereon: , That if
any peson whose account shall be so audited,
be dissatisfied therewith, he may within six
months appeal to the Comptroller against such
settlement. (d)
, That is shall be the duty
of the Register to keep all accounts of the
receipts and expenditures of the public
money, and of all debts due to or from the
United States; to receive from the Comptroller the accounts which
shall have been finally adjusted, and to
preserve such accounts with their vouchers
and certificates; to record all warrants for
the receipt or payment of monies at the
Treasury, certify the same thereon, and to
transmit to the Secretary of
the Treasury, copies of the certificates
of balances of accounts adjusted as is herein
directed.
, That
whenever the Secretary shall be removed from
office by the President of the United States,
or in any oter case of vacancy in the office
of Secretary, the Assistant shall, during the
vacancy, have the charge and custody of the
records, books, and papers appertaining to
the said office.
, That no person appointed
to any office instituted by the Act, shall
directly or indirectly be concerned or
interested in carrying on the business of
trade or commerce, or be owner in whole or in
part of any sea-vessel, or purchase by
himself, or anoter in trust for him, any
public lands or other pulic property, or be
concerned in the purchase or disposal of any
public securities of any State, or of the
United States, or take or apply to his own
use, any emolument or gain for negotiating or
transacting any business in the said
department, other than what shall be allowed
by law; and if any person shall offend
against any of the prohibitions of this Act,
he shall be deemed guilty of a high
misdemeanor, and forfeit to the United States
te penalty of three thousand dollars, and
shall upon conviction be removed from office,
and forever therafter incapable of holding
any office under the United States: ,
That if any other person that a public
prosecutor shall give information of any such
offence, upon which a prosecution and
conviction shall be had, one half the
aforesaid penalty of three thousand dollars,
when recovered, shall be for the use of the
person giving such information.
September
2, 1789.Persons appointed to office under
this act. Prohibition upon.
(a) The acts, in addition
to this act which have been passed relating
to the Treasury Department, have been: Act of
March
3, 1791; Act of May
8, 1792; Act of March
3, 1809, chap.28; Act of November
22, 1814; Act of March
3, 1817, chap.45; Act of February
24, 1819, chap. 43; Act of May
1, 1820, chap. 50; act of May
15, 1820, chap. 107. (return to text)
(b) By "an Act for the
establishment of a general land office in the
Department of the Treasury," passed April
25, 1812, the direction of the sales of
public lands was assigned to the Secretary of
the Treasury. By "an Act to provide for the
collection, safe keeping, transfer and
disbursement of the public revenue," passed
July
4, 1840, chap. 18, sec.1, the fire-proof
vaults and safes provided by the Treasurer in
the new building erected at the seat of
government, were "constituted and declared to
be the Treasury of the United States." This
act was repealed by the Act of August
13, 1841, chap.7. (return
to text)
(c) See the Act of March
3, 1809, chap. 28, sec. 2. The
Comptroller of the Treasury has a right to
direct the marshal to whom he shall pay money
received on executions, and payment according
to such directions is good. (return to text)
(d) See Act of May
8, 1792; Act of March
3, 1809, chap. 28. (return to text)
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