Handling, Custody, and Disposition of the Cashbook of Accountable Officers

November 16, 1977 REVENUE MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. 55-77 SUBJECT : Handling, Custody, and Disposition of the Cashbook of Accountable Officers TO : All Accountable Officers, Revenue District Collection Supervisors, Revenue District Officers, Chief Accounting Division, Regional Directors and Others Concerned. It has been observed that outgoing collecting officers turn over their money and property responsibilities to their successors without following strictly the prescribed instructions for the handling, custody, and disposition of the cashbook of accountable officers. Consequently when they retire, resign or leave the service, the issuance of their clearances are invariably delayed. cdt For the information, guidance, and compliance of all concerned, there are quoted hereunder the pertinent instructions in GAO Memorandum Circular No. 584 dated May 13, 1969 and Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 16-69 dated July 25, 1969: "2. A newly appointed designated cash accountable officer shall start with a new cashbook . Before discharging his duties, the new accountable officer shall undergo training in the office of the auditor on how to correctly record his transactions In the cashbook and other matters related to his work. For records purposes, the completion of such training shall be noted by the auditor in the inside cover of the cashbook." (Emphasis supplied). "3. The cashbook shall be kept in the office of the accountable officer and placed inside the safe or cabinet when not in use. It shall not be removed from his custody without the written approval of the auditor concerned, and if removed, receipt shall invariably be secured from the recipient thereof." "4. When the accountable officer ceases to be one, all his cashbooks shall be submitted to the chief accountant or local treasurer and shall form part of the accounting records. No clearance shall be issued by the chief accountant or local treasurer should the accountable officer fail to submit his cashbooks as required." (Emphasis supplied). cdta For purposes of clarification, the following procedure is hereby promulgated and shall apply to revenue collection officers and other revenue accountable officers using cashbooks, including municipal treasurers designated as acting collection agents: 1. Any revenue accountable officer who ceases to be one due to retirement, resignation, separation from the service, change of designation and assignment, transfer to another station town or other similar causes, shall immediately have his cashbook/s audited by the COA auditor who has jurisdiction in the area. 2. If found in order, the collection officer shall request the auditor to execute his certificate of audit immediately after the last entry in the cashbook. If no space is left in the page containing the last entry, such certificate should be pasted on the inside of the back cover of the cashbook. The certificate of audit should specify, among others, the period covered by the cashbook and/or audit. 3. Upon completion of the auditor's audit and issuance of his certificate of audit, the accountable officer shall immediately surrender and submit his audited cashbook/s to the Chief, Accounting Division thru the Revenue District Officer and the Regional Director or other counterpart superior officers if assigned in other units of the Bureau. 4. The Chief, Accounting Division shall in all cases acknowledge the receipt of the cashbook/s received from the accountable officer. Such receipt shall expressly state the fact of submission or surrender as well as the number of cashbook/s surrendered. The acknowledgment receipt issued by the Chief, Accounting Division shall be serially numbered on an annual basis, to facilitate verification of authenticity when the need arises in the future. 5. Every Incumbent accountable officer shall have each and every cashbook filled up and consumed by him immediately audited and surrendered In accordance with the provisions of this Order. This will preclude the occurrence of delays or loss of certain benefits at the time of retirement, resignation or separation from the service, due to past errors/discrepancies/omissions not timely discovered and remedied during the employees incumbency as accountable officer. 6. The certificate/s of audit issued by the auditor on the occasion of a change or relief of designation and assignment, or transfer to another station town, shall be valid as evidence with respect to the period covered by the certificate of audit for purposes of retirement, resignation, separation from the revenue service and similar purposes requiring clearance of cash accountabilities. 7. For accountable or collection officers designated to assume collection functions on a temporary capacity due to the illness or incapacity of the incumbent, no new cashbook is necessary. In such cases, the cashbook used by the incumbent shall be utilized by the substitute. However, before a substitute makes an entry in said cashbook, a notation shall be made by him immediately under the last entry made therein by the incumbent collection officer as follows: "The undersigned, as of this date, took over the collection function of Mr. ____________________ as his substitute, pursuant to instructions, copy of which is attached to the last page of this book." "Signature _____________" After this notation, the substitute collection officer shall make his daily entry of collections and remittances in the cashbook until relieved by the incumbent. 8. Every remittance advice and collection report to be made by the substitute collection officer shall be in the name of the incumbent collection officer, but underneath, the name of the incumbent shall be the name and signature of the substitute. 9. Upon the return of the incumbent collection officer, his substitute shall account his collections and remittances to his principal made during the entire period of substitution. If the accounting of collections and remittance are complete and in order to the satisfaction of the incumbent collection officer, the following notation shall be indicated in the cashbook. "Date ________________ "This is to affirm that the undersigned collection officers had jointly accounted for the collection and remittances made from _______________ to ______________ and the same were found in order. (Signature) (Signature) Substitute Incumbent Witnesses: 10. In the event that the substitute collection officer becomes permanent because the incumbent shall or can no longer return to duty for any reason, the substitute collection officer (now becoming permanent in such assignment) shall establish his own cashbook. 11. Regional Directors, Revenue District Officers, Revenue District Collection Supervisors and such other officers exercising supervision over revenue accountable officers shall enforce the provisions of this Order and shall be equally responsible for any unjustified non-compliance of its provisions. This Order shall take effect immediately. EFREN I. PLANA Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue TAN P4519-F2828-A-4