PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
IITC.O-885
17 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
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shall approve.
A trial balance of the Ledger will be made as soon as each month's account has been posted, and a summary of the balance sheet under its principal divisions, but excluding the balances of the accounts of funded debt and sinking funds, will be published in the Official Gazette. This summary will form the statement of the General Assets and Liabilities of the Colonial Government, and show the excess of Assets over Liabilities as a balance identical with the balance of the Surplus and Deficit account.
345 The Surplus and Deficit account will be posted exclusively from the accounts of revenue and expenditure, and will accordingly furnish the accurate record of the balance between thein, from month to month and from year to year.
346. The Monthly Abstract will be posted from the totals in the Daily Abstract, us soon as they have been completed for the month.
347. The Treasurer will keep a subsidiary Journal, in which will be recorded the details of transfers between heads and subheads, and of other transactions which cannot be shown in the principal Journal and Ledger.
348. Every head of a department will keep a Departmental Vote Account in such form as will clearly show at any time the exact amount of expenditure charged against the vote or votes for his department, and also the expenditure authorised to be incurred.
§ 32. Audit.
349. The Treasurer will render his accounts for audit monthly, in the prescribed form, as soon as possible after the close of the month to which they relate.
350. The monthly accounts should consist of the under-mentioned documents :-
(.) An Abstract Account of cash receipts and payments showing, under the several heads, the totals of the receipts and payments in the month and in the then expired period of the year, together with the balances at the commencement and close of the periods;
(6.) Schedules of the vouchers, under each head of receipt and payment, setting
out the various items, arranged according to subheads;
(c) Vouchers for all items arranged in the order of the schedules.
In Colonies in which the accounts are audited direct from the Treasury books, it will not be necessary to prepare the documents (a.) and (b.).
351. Copies of the reports of all Boards of Survey on the various Treasury Chests will be attached to the Treasurer's accounts, together with a certificate, signed by the manager of the bank, of the bank balance on the last day of the month.
352. As soon as possible after the expiration of each year, the Treasurer will furnish an Annual Abstract Account showing the whole of the receipts and payments in the year, and the full opening and closing balances.
353. The Annual Abstract Account will be accompanied by detailed statements of revenue and expenditure, showing the amounts actually received or expended during the year as compared with the estimates under cach subhead, together with explanations of the differences.
354. With the Annual Account, there will also be furnished the Statement of the Assets and Liabilities of the Colony at the close of the year, together with the following documents :--
(a.) A statement of Advances and Repayments of Advances within the year; (6.) A statement of Deposits received and repaid within the year;
(e.) A statement of Investments, showing the amount of stock held on the last day of the year, together with the actual cost and the market value ut that date;
(d.)
statement of the outstanding amount of funded debt or loans, and of any accumulated sinking funds.
355. The Auditor is responsible for the audit and inspection of all public accounts of the Government, whether such accounts be of general revenue and expenditure, or accounts of special funds, or departmental accounts.
356. He will satisfy himself that the laws of the Colony, the Colonial Regulations, and the instructions of the Governor in all matters of finance and account, are strictly observed, and will bring to the notice of the Governor any failure in their observance.
357. He will from time to time examine the cash books and compare the entries with the various receipt and payment vouchers; he will also from time to time examine the Journal and follow the entries into the Ledger in order to ascertain that they are correctly and punctually posted. He will periodically scrutinise the bank pass book ;
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and he will compare the bank balance, as shown in the Ledger and in the Cash Book, with the actual balance at the bank.
358 He will examine and check the subsidiary books, and the accounts of the authorised imprests and advances, and ascertain whether such imprests and advances are punctually accounted for and repaid. In the event of any imprest having been made to an officer without special authorization, before a previous imprest has been accounted for, he will report the fact to the Governor. He will at once report any unauthorized advance to any officer or account or any other unauthorized disbursement appearing in the books. In his examination of the deposit accounts he will ascertain that all deposits which have remained unclaimed for five years are, in the absence of special reasons to the contrary, written off to revenue.
359. He will call attention to any apparent neglect in the collection of arrears of revenue. He will see that proper records are kept of all rents receivable and that an efficient system cxists for their due collection and for ensuring that they are regularly brought to account.
360. He will check the counterfoils of receipt books, and will see that the pages of all such books bear printed consecutive numbers and that the books are intact. He will also satisfy himself that stamps used in payment of revenue are affixed to the proper documents and have been effectually cancelled in the authorised manner. He will also, by test examinations of documents filed in previous years, ascertain that stamps have not been improperly removed therefrom.
361. He will promptly make such examination of the customs vouchers as will satisfy him that the duty has been correctly calculated according to the Customs Law. In order to satisfy himself that the customs revenue has been fully collected, he will ascertain that the examination of ships' manifests with the corresponding revenue vouchers is regularly and promptly carried out by the Customs Department, and he will also from time to time make a test examination of a certain number of examined manifests.
362. He will examine the Customs warehouse books and will also make occasional test surveys of the contents of the warehouses. He will satisfy himself by occasional examination of the contents of packages and comparison with the invoices, that due precautions are taken to prevent evasions of the Customs Law,
363. He will examine the Excise vouchers and satisfy himself that the duty has been correctly computed. He will also examine the Warehouse and Excise books and registers, and maké occasional surprise surveys of the contents of warehouses and distillery
stores.
364. He will examine tax rolls and assessment lists of rents, rates, land and house taxes, and other direct taxes, and will, as far as possible, satisfy himself that all persons liable have been included, that the dues are promptly and fully collected and that warrants to levy have been issued when required and duly put into execution.
365. He will satisfy himself as to the due collection of school, hospital and dispensary fees, and similar revenue; and also of the fees, fines and executions leviable by the Courts of Law.
366. He will examine the monthly accounts of the Post Office and will satisfy himself that the adjustment of the accounts with the Post Offices of the United Kingdom and other countries is correctly carried out. He will examine the accounts of stamps, postal notes, money orders, post cards, registered envelopes and all stamped forms in the hands of the various Postmasters, and will ascertain by the frequent inspection of stocks that the proceeds of sales are duly brought to account.
367. He will examine the Court accounts and will compare them with the books kept by the Registrars. He will also examine and compare with the Orders of Court the accounts of all money under the administration of the Court.
368. He will examine the accounts of the Government Savings Bank. In addition to the verification of all deposits and withdrawals, his examination will include, as far as possible, the comparison of the bank, ledgers with the pass books of the depositors. Interest due or paid to depositors will be checked in detail.
369. He will in all cases refer to the authorities regulating the expenditure provided for in the estimates, and will see that the expenditure is in accordance therewith. In the case of expenditure which has not been provided for in the estimates he will ascertain whether the necessary funds have been voted by the Legislature, and whether the expenditure has been duly sanctioned by the Secretary of State. He will see that in every charge against a head the money expended has been applied to the purpose or purposes for which such head was intended to provide, and that it is charged to the proper sub-head.