Comptroller General of the United States
Encyclopedia
The Comptroller General of the United States is the director of the Government Accountability Office
(GAO, formerly known as the General Accounting Office), a legislative branch agency established by Congress
in 1921 to ensure the fiscal and managerial accountability of the federal government. The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 "created an establishment of the Government to be known as the General Accounting Office, which shall be independent of the executive departments and under the control and direction of the Comptroller General of the United States" and the provided that the "Comptroller General shall investigate, at the seat of government or elsewhere, all matters relating to the receipt, disbursement, and application of public funds, and shall make to the President when requested by him, and to Congress...recommendations looking to greater economy or efficiency in public expenditures."
The Comptroller
General is appointed for a fifteen-year term by the President of the United States
with the advice and consent of the Senate
per . Also per when the office of Comptroller General is to become vacant the current Comptroller General must appoint an executive or employee of the GAO to serve as the Acting Comptroller General until such time as a new Comptroller General is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
The Comptroller General has the responsibility to audit the financial statements that the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget present to the Congress and the President. For every fiscal year since 1996, when consolidated financial statements began, the Comptroller General has refused to endorse the accuracy of the consolidated figures for the federal budget, citing "(1) serious financial management problems at the Department of Defense, (2) the federal government’s inability to adequately account for and reconcile intragovernmental activity and balances between federal agencies, and (3) the federal government’s ineffective process for preparing the consolidated financial statements."
The current Comptroller General is Eugene Louis Dodaro
, who became Comptroller General on December 22, 2010. He was preceded by David M. Walker
. On February 15, 2008, David Walker, then Comptroller General announced that he was resigning from GAO to head The Peter G. Peterson Foundation
. Eugene Louis Dodaro became Acting Comptroller General of the United States on March 13, 2008, and was subsequently appointed by the President on September 22, 2010, and confirmed by the Senate on December 22, 2010, as the Comptroller General. Dodaro was sworn in as Comptroller General at a ceremony at the GAO on December 30, 2010.
Government Accountability Office
The Government Accountability Office is the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress. It is located in the legislative branch of the United States government.-History:...
(GAO, formerly known as the General Accounting Office), a legislative branch agency established by Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
in 1921 to ensure the fiscal and managerial accountability of the federal government. The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 "created an establishment of the Government to be known as the General Accounting Office, which shall be independent of the executive departments and under the control and direction of the Comptroller General of the United States" and the provided that the "Comptroller General shall investigate, at the seat of government or elsewhere, all matters relating to the receipt, disbursement, and application of public funds, and shall make to the President when requested by him, and to Congress...recommendations looking to greater economy or efficiency in public expenditures."
The Comptroller
Comptroller
A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization.In British government, the Comptroller General or Comptroller and Auditor General is in most countries the external auditor of the budget execution of the...
General is appointed for a fifteen-year term by the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
with the advice and consent of the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
per . Also per when the office of Comptroller General is to become vacant the current Comptroller General must appoint an executive or employee of the GAO to serve as the Acting Comptroller General until such time as a new Comptroller General is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
The Comptroller General has the responsibility to audit the financial statements that the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget present to the Congress and the President. For every fiscal year since 1996, when consolidated financial statements began, the Comptroller General has refused to endorse the accuracy of the consolidated figures for the federal budget, citing "(1) serious financial management problems at the Department of Defense, (2) the federal government’s inability to adequately account for and reconcile intragovernmental activity and balances between federal agencies, and (3) the federal government’s ineffective process for preparing the consolidated financial statements."
The current Comptroller General is Eugene Louis Dodaro
Eugene Louis Dodaro
Eugene Louis Dodaro is the Comptroller General of the United States and head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office...
, who became Comptroller General on December 22, 2010. He was preceded by David M. Walker
David M. Walker (U.S. Comptroller General)
David M. Walker served as United States Comptroller General from 1998 to 2008, and is now the Founder and CEO of the Comeback America Initiative.- Career as Comptroller General :...
. On February 15, 2008, David Walker, then Comptroller General announced that he was resigning from GAO to head The Peter G. Peterson Foundation
The Peter G. Peterson Foundation
The Peter G. Peterson Foundation is an American foundation established in 2008 by Peter G. Peterson, a co-founder of the Blackstone Group – an American-based financial-services company...
. Eugene Louis Dodaro became Acting Comptroller General of the United States on March 13, 2008, and was subsequently appointed by the President on September 22, 2010, and confirmed by the Senate on December 22, 2010, as the Comptroller General. Dodaro was sworn in as Comptroller General at a ceremony at the GAO on December 30, 2010.
List of U.S. Comptrollers General
| Comptroller General | Date of Service | Appointing President |
|---|---|---|
| John R. McCarl | July 1, 1921 – June 30, 1936 | Warren G. Harding Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator... |
| Fred H. Brown Fred H. Brown Fred Herbert Brown was an American lawyer and Democratic politician from Somersworth, New Hampshire. He served as mayor of Somersworth and as United States Attorney for New Hampshire before his term as Governor of New Hampshire from 1923 to 1925, and later served in the United States Senate.Brown... |
April 11, 1939 – June 19, 1940 | Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war... |
| Lindsay C. Warren | November 1, 1940 – April 30, 1954 | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
| Joseph Campbell Joseph Campbell (accountant) Joseph Campbell was the fourth Comptroller General of the United States, in office from December 14, 1954 - July 31, 1965. He was born in New York City. His first marriage was to Marjorie Louise Goetze on September 1, 1925. The couple had five boys: Frederick, , , Alan, and... |
December 14, 1954 – July 31, 1965 | Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army... |
| Elmer B. Staats Elmer B. Staats Elmer Boyd Staats was a public servant whose career from the late 1930s to the early 1980s was primarily associated with the Bureau of the Budget and the GAO. Staats was born June 6, 1914, in Richfield, Kansas, to Wesley F. and Maude Staats... |
March 8, 1966 – 1981 | Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States... |
| Charles A. Bowsher | 1981–1996 | Ronald W. Reagan |
| David M. Walker David M. Walker (U.S. Comptroller General) David M. Walker served as United States Comptroller General from 1998 to 2008, and is now the Founder and CEO of the Comeback America Initiative.- Career as Comptroller General :... |
1998–2008 | William J. Clinton |
| Eugene Louis Dodaro Eugene Louis Dodaro Eugene Louis Dodaro is the Comptroller General of the United States and head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office... |
2010–present | Barack H. Obama |