Gen. 736), rules that the Spotswood case controls as to the law relating to payment of the 6 months' death gratuity in the case of naval personnel. The result of these decisions is that funds provided by law for payment to widows, children, and dependent relatives of deceased members of the armed services may go to the estates of certain of the beneficiaries where they are subject to claims of creditors of such estates, and to the payment of the debts of the deceased beneficiary instead of going to the next beneficiary in the line of succession prescribed by the law. It is believed that such a disposition of the gratuity was not intended by the Congress and the proposed legislation is designed to correct the effect of the above interpretations of the law.

A

Section 1 of the proposed legislation seeks to accomplish this result by adding a proviso positively stating that in the event of the death of any beneficiary before payment to and collection of the amount authorized therein, such amount shall be paid to the next living beneficiary in the order of succession before stated. further change is made in the first proviso of the old law which covers the order of succession in cases where the deceased serviceman has no widow, child, or previously designated dependent relative surviving him, in which case the Secretary of the Navy is authorized to cause the amount to be paid to certain dependent relatives. The order of succession has been changed from "grandparent, parent, sister, or brother," to "grandchild, parent, brother, or sister, or grandparent," in order to follow the generally uniform order of descent and distribution established by State laws.

Section 2 of the proposed legislation fixes the right to payments in cases where payments have already been made and cases where there has been a change of status but payment has not been made.

Section 3 of the proposed legislation is designed to insure the same rights of payment and distribution of the gratuity to the beneficiary of members of the Naval and Marine Corps Reserve as is accorded to the members of the Regular Navy and Marine Corps.

Section 4 of the proposed legislation insures the same rights to members of the Coast and Geodetic Survey.

No additional cost to the Government would result from enactment of the proposed legislation.

The Navy Department recommends enactment of the proposed legislation. The Navy Department has been advised by the Bureau of the Budget that there would be no objection to the submission of the proposed legislation to the Congress.

Sincerely yours,

FORRESTAL, Acting.

In compliance with clause 2a of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, there follows the provisions of existing law showing the changes which would be made by the proposed legislation (omit the part in black brackets and insert the part printed in italics):

Immediately upon official notification of the death from wounds or disease, not the result of his or her own misconduct, of any officer, enlisted man, or nurse on the active list of the Regular Navy or Regular Marine Corps, or on the retired list when on active duty, the Paymaster General of the Navy shall cause to be paid to the widow, and if there be no widow to the child or children, and if there be no widow or child, to any other dependent relative of such officer, enlisted man, or nurse previously designated by him or her, an amount equal to six months' pay at the rate received by such officer, enlisted man, or nurse at the date of his or her death. The Secretary of the Navy shall establish regulations requiring each officer and enlisted man or nurse having no wife or child to designate the proper dependent relative to whom this amount shall be paid in case of his or her death. Said amount shall be paid from funds appropriated for the pay of the Navy and pay of the Marine Corps, respectively: Provided, That if there be no widow, child, or previously designated dependent relative, the Secretary of the Navy shall cause the amount herein provided to be paid to any [grandparent] grandchild, parent, [sister, or brother] brother or sister, or grandparent shown to have been dependent upon such officer, enlisted man, or nurse prior to his or her death, and the determination of such fact by the Secretary of the Navy shall be final and conclusive upon the accounting officers of the Government: Provided further, That nothing in this section or in other existing legislation shall be construed as making the provisions of this section applicable to officers, enlisted men, or nurses of any forces of the Navy of the United States other than those of the Regular Navy and Marine Corps, and nothing in this section shall

be construed to apply in commissioned grades to any officers except those holding permanent or probationary appointments in the Regular Navy or Marine Corps: Provided further, That the provisions of this section shall apply to the officers and enlisted men of the Coast Guard, and the Secretary of the Treasury will cause payment to be made accordingly[.]: And provided further, That in the event of the death of any beneficiary before payment to and collection by such beneficiary of the amount authorized herein, such amount shall be paid to the next living beneficiary in the order of succession above stated.

55 STAT. 43; 34 U. S. C. SUPP. 855c-2

* That the benefits provided by section 4 of the Act approved August 27, 1940 (Public, Numbered 775, Seventy-sixth Congress), shall include payment of the gratuity authorized by the Act of June 4, 1920 (41 Stat. 824), as amended by the Act of May 22, 1928 (45 Stat. 710; U. S. C., title 34, sec. 943) or as hereafter amended.

56 STAT. 6; 33 U. S. C. Supp. 870

* * * SEC. 9. The provisions of sections 1 to 5, inclusive, of the Act of April 20, 1940 (54 Stat. 144), relating to the burial expenses of Navy personnel, and the provisions of the Act of June 4, 1920 (41 Stat. 824), as amended by the Act of May 22, 1928 (45 Stat. 710), relating to the payment of a death gratuity to dependents of commissoined officers and other personnel of the Navy or Marine Corps or as hereafter amended shall apply to commissioned officers of the Coast and Geodetic Survey, except that the duties and obligations imposed in said Acts upon the Secretary of the Navy

О

78TH CONGRESS 2d Session

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

{

REPORT No. 1209

AUTHORIZING THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY TO ACCEPT GIFTS AND BEQUESTS FOR THE UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY

MARCH 1, 1944.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. VINCENT of Kentucky, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany S. 1640]

The Committee on Naval Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (S. 1640) to authorize the Secretary of the Navy to accept gifts and bequests for the United States Naval Academy, and for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

The purpose of the bill is to authorize the Secretary of the Navy to accept gifts and bequests to the United States Naval Academy and to administer such gifts after their receipt and acceptance. Provision is also made for a trust fund in the Treasury to be used for the deposit of the proceeds of such gifts and the investment thereof by the Secretary of the Treasury at the request of the Secretary of the Navy.

At present there is statutory authority for the acceptance of gifts for the United States Naval Academy Museum (52 Stat. 119), but whenever a gift is tendered for the general use or benefit of the Naval Academy, specific legislation must be secured. This leads to delay and tends to discourage those who may feel inclined to benefit the Academy by gifts of yachts, boats, paintings, and other inspirational articles.

The bill, by reposing in the Secretary of the Navy the decision as to gifts to be accepted, safeguards the Government from the acceptance of inappropriate gifts or ones that would require excessive maintenance or operating costs.

The bill would permit the expeditious acceptance of gifts and be quests and will stimulate the offering of such gifts.

The following letter from the Secretary of the Navy addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and transmitted by him to the chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs of the House of Representatives sets forth the views and recommendation of the Navy Department on this bill. This letter is hereby made a part of this report.

Hon. SAM RAYBURN,

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

NAVY DEPARTMENT, Washington, January 11, 1944.

MY DEAR MR. SPEAKER: There is transmitted herewith a draft of a proposed bill to authorize the Secretary of the Navy to accept gifts and bequests for the United States Naval Academy, and for other purposes.

The purpose of the proposed bill, as its title indicates, is to provide a ready means for the acceptance of gifts offered to the Naval Academy. In the past, offers of gifts of great value have been made to the academy. Such gifts included sailing yachts and boats for recreational use, paintings and objects of art of traditional and inspirational value, library collections and similar items.

Under existing law, it is necessary to obtain specific legislative authority to accept each individual gift or bequest. An example of such legislation is the act approved April 25, 1936 (49 Stat. 1239), which authorized the Secretary of the Navy to accept on behalf of the United States the collection of ship models bequeathed by the late Col. Henry H. Rogers, of the United States Naval Academy.

Under the provisions of an act approved March 26, 1938 (52 Stat. 119; 34 U. S. C. 1116-1120), the Secretary of the Navy is authorized to accept gifts and bequests for the use and benefit of the United States Naval Academy Museum, but gifts of articles that are not intended for the museum such as boats, cannot be accepted without specific legislation in each case.

The enactment of the proposed legislation will result in no immediate cost to the Government, but the acceptance of some gifts may entail future expenditures for maintenance and operation. Such expenditures would be borne by Regular Navy appropriations, but the discretionary power that would be given to the Secretary of the Navy under the proposed bill will guard against the acceptance of gifts that would require excessive costs for maintenance and operation.

The Navy Department recommends the enactment of the proposed legislation. The Navy Department has been advised by the Bureau of the Budget that there would be no objection to the submission of this proposed legislation to the Congress. Sincerely yours,

о

FRANK KNOX

2d Session

No. 1210

AMENDING THE ACT APPROVED MARCH 2, 1895, AS AMENDED

MARCH 1, 1944.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. GRANT of Indiana, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany S. 1647]

The Committee on Naval Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (S. 1647) to amend the act approved March 2, 1895, as amended, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill, as amended, do pass.

The amendment is as follows:

Strike out all of the bill after the word "following:" in line 8 and substitute therefor the following:

"officers and employees of other civilian agencies of the United States and bonded officers and enlisted men of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard."

The purpose of the bill is to provide that the payment and acceptance of the annual premiums on corporate surety bonds. shall be a compliance with the requirements of present law for renewal of bonds by bonded officers and enlisted men of the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.

Under the act of March 2, 1895, every official charged with the responsibility of approving bonds is required to have all bonds under his cognizance renewed not less frequently than once each 4 years. Treasury Department regulations require that upon execution of a new bond, the bonded officer or man must close out his accounts and reopen them under the new bond.

In times of peace these requirements were not too onerous but in times of war they have been found to be impossible of literal application. Quite often bonded officers and men are outside the United States when their bonds must be renewed and consequently cannot deposit their funds.

These requirements have been eliminated by previous amendment to the basic statute insofar as they relate to the Post Office Department and the bill as introduced would give the same treatment to