Jan. 30 ]
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
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available at all times if required, independently of the hours an office may be open.

317. It is the duty of every member of the New Zealand Military Forces to assist the Commandant in carrying out these regulations.

Command Paymasters, Duties of

318. The District or Command Paymaster shall be responsible for the receipt and disbursement of public moneys in accordance with the regulations and with any instructions or authority issued by the Director of Financial Services.

319. He shall direct and superintend the clerks employed in his office. and will be responsible that they duly fulfil the duties assigned to them, and that discipline is maintained in his branch.

320. The Paymaster shall keep subsidiary books as may be prescribed or required for the registration, notation, or examination of claims by or against the public, contracts or agreements, and other information affecting the work of his office.

321. He shall keep the Assistant Quartermaster-General informed of all expenditure on votes, with the view to assist him to prevent any vote being exceeded.

322. He shall be responsible that all accounts in the Command Pay Office are kept strictly in accordance with the Public Revenues Act and Treasury Regulations. He shall take such steps as will ensure that the accounts of sub-accountants and imprestes are properly kept, and that no excessive balance is held.

He shall inspect such accounts at least once monthly, and at each inspection will obtain and have the bank pass-book made up by the bank for the purpose of checking transactions and verifying the balance.

323. A Paymaster shall be held liable for the amount of any disallowances arising from errors or overissues made or authorized by him in disregard of regulations or without proper authority.

324. Ledger accounts will be kept containing the ledger accounts of all sub-imprestes and such other ledger accounts as the nature of the Paymaster’s transactions may render necessary. The ledgers will be retained for six years from the date of last entry therein.

325. The full terms of all contracts or agreements, as notified to the Paymaster by the heads’ of services and departments, will be carefully recorded by or under the personal supervision of the officer responsible for the detailed examination of the bills or claims connected therewith.

326. A record of hirings and lettings of lands, buildings, &c., as notified by the responsible officers, will be kept in books as prescribed, in which will also be entered the payments in respect of and the receipts arising from each hiring or letting, as the case may be.

327. All particulars of appointments, rates of pay and allowances, leave, &c., of officers and others in the pay of the Paymaster will be recorded in the prescribed registers.

328. Bills and claims passed by the Paymaster for payment will be recorded in accordance with the Treasury Regulations.

329. Where services are carried out by contract the Paymaster will be responsible that each bill passed by him for payment is in accordance with the contract, and has been duly approved by competent authority.

330. All accounts shall pass through the office of the District or Command Paymaster, who shall be responsible that the amount of the appropriation for any vote or item is not exceeded without the authority of the Director of Financial Services.

331. He shall not apply public moneys to any purpose not authorized by regulations, nor shall he advance (except as hereinafter provided), lend, or exchange any sums for which he is accountable; nor shall he exchange private cheques out of public funds. In the case of members of the Forces travelling on duty, where extended absence is probable and cash payments have to be made, an advance may be made up to 75 per cent. of the maximum allowance that can be claimed. Applications for such advances must be made on the prescribed form.

332. He shall not advance any moneys to a member of another military district on account of travelling or other expenses, unless authority has first been obtained for so doing from the Command Paymaster of the district to which the expenditure is to be charged.

333. The Paymaster will carry out a systematic periodical examination of the office records of claims, rents, or other revenue due to the public, adopting such measures as will secure the prompt discharge of claims and the necessary credit to public funds.

334. Should difficulty be experienced in recovering vouchers supporting receipts, statements, &c., or money due from officers or others, the Paymaster shall at once represent the circumstances in writing to the Assistant Quartermaster-General, who shall, if necessary, transmit same to the Director of Financial Services. Upon receipt from the Ordnance Officer of a claim for damages or deficiencies against a unit, the Command Paymaster shall demand payment from the Commanding Officer or other officer responsible, and in the event of such claim not being satisfied within thirty days of such demand the Command Paymaster shall report the fact to the Assistant Quartermaster-General, who shall immediately take such action as may be necessary to obtain immediate settlement of payment, and shall furnish to the Director of Financial Services, within fourteen days of the taking of such action, a report if the claim be then unsatisfied.

335. He shall be responsible for checking all maintenance-grant accounts of units, and shall not forward them to the local Audit Inspector until they are in order.

As witness the hand of His Excellency the Governor-General, this twenty-fourth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and nineteen, in the presence of—

J. ALLEN,
Minister of Defence.