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Article 85, Point 18.- Legislative Power shall be exercised by the General Assembly. It is empowered to elect, the members of the Court of Accounts in a joint session of both Houses; subject to the provisions in the relevant sections.
Article 208.- The Court of Accounts shall consist of seven (07) members who must meet the same requirements as those expected of Senators.
They shall be appointed by the General Assembly by a two thirds majority of the total votes of the members.
The disqualifications for appointment laid down in Articles 122, 123, 124 and 125 shall be applicable.
The members shall cease to hold office when the General Assembly replacing the one that appointed them makes fresh appointments for the new term.
Members may be re-elected. There shall be three substitutes for each one of them in case the seat falls vacant, or in cases of temporary disability or leave taken by the office holder.
Article 209.-The members of the Court of Accounts are accountable to the General Assembly, in a joint session of both Houses, for the faithful and accurate performance of their duties. In case of incompetence, omission or crime, the General Assembly may dismiss them by a two-thirds majority vote of the total number of members.
Article 210.- The Court of Accounts shall be conferred functional autonomy in the performance of its duties that shall be regulated by the law to be drafted by the Court itself. The law may also give it functions that are not specified in this section.
Article 211.- The duties of the Court of Accounts shall be:
a) To provide opinions and reports in respect of budgets.
b) To conduct a cautionary audit of expenditure and payments, in accordance with the regulations to be laid down by the Law, for the sole purpose of certifying their legality and, if need be, to make the required observations. If the body ordering such expenditure or payment insists, it may communicate the same to the Court of Accounts but must nevertheless comply with the stipulations as laid down.
If the Court of Accounts, for its part, upholds its observations, it shall provide detailed information on the matter to the General Assembly, or to whichever authority is replacing the General Assembly.
In government departments, autonomous entities and decentralised services, the duty referred to in this point can be carried out for the same purposes by their own accountants or officers in charge of accounts, who shall perform such duties under the supervision of the Court of Accounts in accordance with the provision of the Law. The Court of Accounts may extend the scope of this rule to cover other public services that also administer funds.
c) To provide an opinion and to report on the submission of accounts and procedures followed by all the State organs, including local governments, autonomous entities and decentralised services, regardless of their nature, as well as to report on the pertinent action in case responsibility is fixed, giving the relevant reasons and observations.
d) To present the annual report to the General Assembly on the submission of accounts as laid down in the previous point.
e) To intervene in all matters relating to financial administration of the all State organs, local governments, autonomous entities and decentralised services and to report, to the concerned authorities, any cases of irregularity in the handling of public funds and any violation of the budget and accounts laws.
f) To frame the accounts ordinances that shall be of compulsory enforcement by all State organs, local governments, autonomous entities and decentralised services, regardless of their nature.
g) To prepare its draft budgets to be submitted to the Executive Power for inclusion in the corresponding budgets. The Executive Power, after making such modifications as it considers appropriate, shall present them to the Legislature and abide by its decision.
Article 212.- The Court of Accounts shall be empowered to supervise all activities in connection with its duties, subject to the provisions of the Organic Law, in all offices dealing with accounts, collection and payments of the State, local governments and decentralised services, regardless of their nature. It may propose such reforms as it considers appropriate to the concerned bodies.
Article 213.- The Court of Accounts shall submit the bill of the Accounts and Financial Administration Law to the Executive Power which, in turn, shall present it to the Legislative Power with its own comments.
The said bill shall include the norms regulating financial and economic administration, and shall particularly regulate the organisation of accounting and collection services; requirements for control purposes, for the acquisition and disposal of assets and contracts affecting the Public Treasury; regulations for conducting preventive auditing of receipts, expenditure and payments; and regulations relating to responsibilities and bonds to which officers involved in the administration of public funds shall be subject.
Article 552.- The Court of Accounts shall be responsible for conducting external control on the administration of finances and assets belonging to the Powers, Organisations and Entities mentioned in Article 451, in accordance with the duties assigned to it by the Constitution of the Republic and the Laws. In particular it shall:
1) Furnish opinions and reports on subjects pertaining to budgets at the express request of the General Assembly, or either one of its Houses, in matters relating to the National Budget. It shall be mandatory for the Court of Accounts to give its opinion on the budgets of industrial or commercial undertakings belonging to the State and Local Governments (Articles 211, point a) 211 and 225 of the Constitution of the Republic).
2) To exercise preventive control over the expenditure and payments to be made by State Entities with the sole purpose of certifying their legality. (Article 211, sub-para b), of the Constitution of the Republic)
3) To furnish opinions and reports on the balance sheets of budgetary execution and submission of accounts that the Executive Power and the Local Governments must prepare, as well as on the balance sheets, results and budgetary execution formulated by Autonomous Entities and Decentralised Services. (Article 211, sub-para c) of the Constitution of the Republic)
4) To provide opinions and information on the statements and balance sheets furnished by non-governmental bodies, services and entities that receive public funds or administer State assets, in such conditions as laid down by the relevant norms.
5) To endorse, prior to publication, the statements and balance sheets that Autonomous Entities and Decentralised Services must prepare periodically, but at least once a year, in accordance with Article 191 of the Constitution of the Republic.
And, in general to control all administration with regard to the Public Treasury; to observe and report any irregularities in the handling of public funds or violations of the laws relating to budget and accounts to the concerned authority; and to inform, when required, on the action to be taken in cases of responsibility.
The Court of Accounts shall lay before the General Assembly, an authenticated copy of the decisions it has taken that will have a bearing on the audits it conducts, and its intervention as referred to in Title VI "Responsibilities" establishing the degree of responsibility entailed by the violation in case the competent body does not pay heed to its observations.
Article 553.- The control functions to be carried out by the Court of Accounts may be exercised through its own auditors assigned to work in the general auditing offices, central auditing offices or accounting services doing audit work, of any section of Public Administration, whether centralised or decentralised.
However, in Government Departments, Autonomous Entities and Decentralised Services, the specific functions of preventive control of expenditure and payments shall be exercised by their respective accountants whenever the Court of Accounts, for reasons of urgency, promptness or convenience, designates them as delegated accountants, in which case they shall perform these tasks under the supervision of the Body (Article 211, sub-section b) "in fine", of the Constitution of the Republic).
The auditors and the delegated accountants designated by the Court of Accounts shall perform their functions pursuant to the regulations laid down in this respect in the Organic Law or in the ordinances framed by the Body within the scope of its authority, clearly defining the subject, and giving the details of the tasks and procedures that the designated accountants must follow in the performance of their duties.
In cases in which the Court of Accounts has entrusted the a priori control of expenditure and payments referred to in Article 211 b) of the Constitution of the Republic to its own auditors or to delegated accountants, any observation formulated by the same, within the scope of the powers conferred on them, shall have the same value as an observation made by the Court of Accounts.
The Court of Accounts may dispense with this control whenever it thinks the reasons are justified.
In all cases of duplication of expenditure and payments by the Bodies being controlled, the upholding of the observations shall be decided by the Court of Accounts itself.
Article 554.- When the Court of Accounts, either by itself or through its auditor or delegated accountant, as the case may be, makes an observation about an expenditure or a payment, it must place its opposition on record. If the person authorising such expenditure or payments insists, this decision shall be conveyed to the Court of Accounts and such person may go ahead and execute his decision bearing sole responsibility for it.
If the Court of Accounts upholds its observation, it shall furnish a detailed note to the General Assembly or its substitute, or to the concerned Local Government Councils. In cases of autonomous or decentralised administration, it shall also give the note to the Executive Power.
Article 555.- Notwithstanding the performance of the functions assigned to it in Section XIII of the Constitution of the Republic and the provisions contained in special laws, as also in this law, the Court of Accounts must convey to the General Assembly and the Local Government Councils, as the case may be, its opinion with regard to the cost of services and eventually a comparison of the costs incurred with the results obtained in respect of the budget programmes and the efficiency of the Bodies in charge of those programmes.
Article 556.- It is binding on all departments of public bodies to submit to the inspections or verifications that the central auditing office, or the general auditing office of each jurisdiction or the Court of Accounts, decides to conduct. For this purpose they must always have the records and the documentation at their disposal, they must facilitate the work of the officers or employees, and provide such information as might be required. In the performance of its specific task, the general auditing office of each jurisdiction shall be empowered to act directly in any department.
Article 557.- As regards those Bodies that do not, either temporarily or permanently, have a central accounts office or an administrative accounts service, the job shall be entrusted to the concerned general accounts office.
Article 558.- No amount may be received unless it is against the handing over of the corresponding receipt, and no payment can be made unless there is a receipt signed by the duly identified person, after verifying that he is authorised to collect the payment in case he is not the same person whose name appears on the payment order.
Article 559.- The Court of Accounts and the concerned office of general accounts must conduct periodic examinations, controls and audits following the generally accepted control and auditing practices, either before or after the accounts are submitted, while also taking the necessary measures to ensure rotation of the inspectors and auditors.
Article 560.- Any government servant or agent of the State having knowledge of administrative irregularities or acts that could result in loss to the public treasury, is obliged to inform his immediate superior in the hierarchy and the Court of Accounts in writing.
Article 561.- The administrative analysis of costs and returns, and information pertaining to the efficiency of the Bodies and completion of programmes, shall be the responsibility of the national, municipal or sectoral Planning and Budget Offices, notwithstanding the steps taken in this respect by the concerned Bodies.
For this purpose, the accounts offices, or the administrative services doing accounts work, shall send them the information pertaining to cost, and the executing units shall send statistics on the performance.
Article 562.- External control on the efficiency shall be the responsibility of the Court of Accounts, for which purpose, regardless of the steps the Court of Accounts may already have taken, the accounts offices and the executing units must send a copy of the information referred to in foregoing Article.
Article 563.- The Presentation of Accounts and the Balance Sheet on the Execution of the Budget, as prescribed in Article 214 of the Constitution of the Republic, must contain the following demonstrative statements:
1) On the extent to which the objectives and goals laid down in the plan have been met, indicating the projected goals vis-à-vis the achievements, and their resulting costs.
2) On the results of the financial year, by way of a comparison between the commitments entered into and the actual amounts collected for their financing.
3) On the implementation of the budget in relation to the credits indicating:
a) The amount of the original credit.
b) Modifications brought about in the course of the financial year.
c) Final amount at the year-end closing.
d) Commitments entered into, including residue liabilities and, if required, the implementation of the outlays.
e) Unutilised balance.
4) On the execution of the budget in relation to the calculation of resources under different types of income heads, indicating:
a) The amount estimated.
b) The amount actually collected.
c) The difference between the amount estimated and the amount collected.
5) On the use of the resources for the purpose for which they were instituted, indicating the amount of the special appropriations in respect of each type of receipt.
6) On the movement of funds and assets, indicating:
a) Inventory at the beginning of the financial year.
b) Income.
c) Expenditure.
d) Inventory at the year closing.
7) On the evolution of the residue liabilities, classified by funding.
8) On the status of the treasury, indicating the credits, liabilities and the balance.
9) On the Public Debt, classified in consolidated and floating, indicating the issue of loans and other long term operations, and the Public Debt in circulation at the beginning and end of the financial year.
10) On the different sources of funding that have been used in the financial year.
Article 564.- The central accounts offices shall compile the statements indicated in points 3) to 8) of Article 563 and shall forward them to the corresponding general accounts office, certified by the auditor of the Court of Accounts, or by the Court of Accounts itself in case there is no auditor, before the 1st of March of the year following the financial year closing.
The general accounts offices shall check the said statements and, after making sure that they tally with the records, shall prepare the respective summaries and the statement indicated in point 2) of Article 563.
The General Accounts Office of the Nation shall also prepare the statement indicated in point 9) of Article 563.
The national, municipal or sectoral office of Planning and Budget, as the case may be, shall prepare the statement indicated in point 1) of Article 563 on the basis of information referred to in Article 561. The Planning and Budget Offices of the Autonomous Entities and Decentralised Services must provide them the information required to prepare the statement.
Article 565.- Without detriment to the autonomous entities that are established by the Constitution of the Republic or explicitly determined by the law, the General Accounts Office of the Nation shall consolidate all the accounts and shall formulate an integrated general balance sheet containing the same information referred to in Article 563 in a synthetically summarised manner, duly classified and totalled so that the State accounts would be demonstrative of the overall result of the administration of its Bodies. For this purpose the general accounts offices shall sent it a copy of the accounts they have complied before the 30th of April of the year following the financial year closing.
For purposes of uniformity, clarity and organisation of the accounts, the General Accounts Office of the Nation, with the consent of the Court of Accounts and the Planning and Budget Office, shall draft the relevant forms that will be compulsory for everyone to use and can not be modified without prior consent.
The laying of the Statement of Accounts and Balance Sheet of Budgetary Execution in the General Assembly or the Local Government Council, shall be done by the Bodies that must present them within six months of the financial year closing and, at the same time, a duplicate copy shall be sent to the Court of Accounts.
Article 566.- Those entities of a commercial and industrial nature are exempt from the provisions listed under this Title, -save what is indicated in points 1), 3) and 4) of Article 563-, that must prepare their financial balance sheets and statements in accordance with the nature of the job they perform and subject to the relevant organic laws, publish them in accordance with Article 191 of the Constitution of the Republic and send them to the Executive Power, through the respective Ministry, before the 31st of May of the year following the financial year closing, for laying before the General Assembly.
Article 567.- All officers or employees, as well as any natural person or company receiving funds in their capacity as collectors, depositories or payers, or those that administer, use or safekeep other State assets or property, with or without legal authorisation, are obliged to submit accounts with supporting documents and proof or their description, use or administration.
Article 568.- Discharges from funds and value accounts shall be made:
1) In the General Accounts Office:
a) Provisionally, against the presentation of supporting documents of proof.
b) Finally and conclusively, when the documents of proof have been checked and confirmed and, at the same time, reviewed and approved by the auditor in the Court of Accounts or by the Court of Accounts in default of an auditor.
2) In the General Accounts Office: against receipt of the release order signed by the authorised officer of the central accounts office or certified by the auditor of the Court of Accounts or by the latter in default of an auditor. The above mentioned firm and its certification implies that the signatories have approved the release and that the documents do not present any problems or reasons to be rejected.
The documentation shall be maintained in the files of the central accounts office for a period of not less than 10 years and must be kept in an easily accessible manner so that that it may be examined and consulted at any time.
No account can be fully and finally discharged without certification from the auditor in the Court of Accounts or from the Court of Accounts itself in case there is no auditor.
No amount can be kept without being accounted for more than two months after the month in which it was received.
Accounts shall be submitted every three months to the General Accounts Office.
Article 569.-The charges and discharges of assets and property that is not for consumption or precarious use shall be prepared by the central audit offices each and every time that there is a variation in the stock or purpose of the same, and sent to the officer who is in charge of the department or service using such assets or property.
Goods that are for consumption or precarious use shall be the responsibility of the officer in charge of their storage or distribution from the time they are received by such person and shall be discharged by the documents proving their supply.
The discrepancies shall be reported every year to the concerned general accounts office after examination and certification by the auditor of the Court of Accounts or the latter in case there is no auditor.
Article 571.- For purposes of the stipulations contained in the foregoing Article, the general accounts offices shall prepare the relevant charge accounts in respect of the movement of general treasury’s’ funds and securities and movement of State assets; and the central accounts offices shall prepare such charge accounts in relation with similar services of the departments to which they belong.
Article 572.- Administrative responsibility in respect of matters pertaining to finance and accounts devolves on all civil servants performing tasks or duties connected with the administration of State property, each and every time an illegality is committed in the handling of moneys or public securities, or in the custody or administration of state assets.
It also covers those control officers who audited the illegal or irregular act, or who did not oppose the same, as well as non-governmental entities or persons and their directors or employees unduly using public funds, or incorrectly administering State assets.
Any infringement of the provisions of this law shall constitute administrative errors, even if they do not entail financial losses for the Treasury. The responsibilities shall be graded according to the hierarchy of the offender and the level of his responsibility in the matter.
In all cases, the guilty parties shall be subject to the administrative or disciplinary sanctions applicable; and when required, to the resulting civil, penal or political responsibilities, in accordance with the prevailing constitutional, legal and regulatory provisions as well as those laid down in the following Articles.
Article 573.- Responsibilities for non-observance or violation of this law shall include:
1) Those persons who are answerable for others who have stopped submitting accounts or for those persons whose documentation has not been approved.
2) Officers of any type who have taken decisions that are in conflict with the provisions of this law or its regulations.
3) Officers or agents of the State who, due to their fault or negligence, have caused damage or losses to the Treasury, due to undue delivery of assets under their charge or custody, or due to loss, theft or incorrect use, care or maintenance of the same.
4) Collection agents for sums that due to their fault or negligence, were not collected.
5) The collection or payment agents who do not deposit the funds in the manner stipulated in this law or its rules.
6) The persons ordering expenditure or payments for liabilities assumed, or who order the settlement or payment, in the absence of sufficient prior credit, save in the circumstances envisaged in Articles 464, 466 and 468 of this law.
Article 574.- Responsibility jointly and severally covers all persons who decided, disposed, executed or were involved in the irregular acts or facts.
Members of Boards of Directors or professional bodies, who were opposed to the act and have placed their opposition on record in writing, as well as those officers in the hierarchy who, at the time of their involvement, also placed on record their observations and the reasons for the same in writing, are exempt.
Article 575.- When there is knowledge or presumption of irregularities in the administration and handling of public funds, the competent authority shall order an administrative or summary investigation to be conducted with the guarantees of the due proceedings being followed, in order to determine and prove the responsibility of the officers involved, the naming of the guilty parties, the entity at fault, clarification of all the facts and the determination of the amount of the damage and losses eventually caused to the treasury.
When required, the government attorney for the summary proceedings shall also solicit expert accounting and auditing reports that would facilitate determining the extent of the losses caused.
The Court of Accounts can control the process and conclusions of the summary as well as the effective implementation of the administrative, disciplinary and judicial measures adopted. For this purpose it may ask that the administrative files be sent to it and it shall have access to all the documents and information.
Article 576.- When the Court of Accounts, at the time of taking a decision or reporting on the submission of accounts, or control performed on the administration of all the State Bodies, finds proof or obtains well founded evidence of irregularities in the handling of public funds or violation of the laws concerning budget and accounting, it shall inform the concerned chief or person issuing the order, through a detailed report giving the relevant considerations and observations, as well as the action required to enforce the responsibilities of the case (points d) and e) of Article 211 of the Constitution of the Republic).
Article 577.- When as a result of the financial-cum-accounting responsibility arising from the administrative decision, (Article 582) loss has been caused to the State wealth, civil responsibility of the guilty party may be presumed.
When it is presumed that a crime has been committed, the concerned chief, notwithstanding the immediate ordering of the investigation or summary in question, shall not delay in formulating the relevant legal reports enclosing all the background information that he possesses.
In such cases the Administration can request that necessary precautionary steps be taken to ensure reimbursement or compensation to the State wealth.
In these situations the period mentioned in Article 841 of the Civil Proceedings Code shall not be counted until ninety days after the final and conclusive decision leading to the summary proceedings.
Article 578.- If the investigation, summary proceedings or steps taken on account of responsibility devolve on the highest authorities or chiefs that, according to the Constitution of the Republic or the laws, must first undergo a political trial, the competent authority, failing which the Court of Accounts, shall furnish a detailed report to the General Assembly, and an order shall be issued to stop their dealings until they cease to hold office.
Article 579.- Suspension from office does not exempt the ex-officer from civil responsibility, except in the following cases:
1) For the administration of finances and assets included in the accounts approved by the control bodies.
2) For the assets in his charge or custody that were discharged in the manner stipulated in Articles 468 and 569.
3) For the discharge of inventories that were approved by the control organs.
The resignation or dismissal from office of the responsible officer does not prevent or stop the examination of his accounts and administration in the handling of public funds and assets, nor does it stop civil action being taken against him for the recovery of such funds or assets.
Article 580.-The specific responsibilities in respect of financial and accounting matters and the resulting civil responsibilities referred to in this Title shall lapse ten years after the date on which the act or fact giving rise to the same took place. In the case of those persons on whom responsibility has been fixed who must first undergo a political trial, the term for lapse shall commence starting from the date on which he ceases to hold the post.
Article 581.- Once the summary is completed and the report and conclusions of the prosecutor have been presented, the competent administrative authority shall require the opinion of the Court of Accounts. It must provide the Court of Accounts all the background to enable it to reach a accurate determination of the consequent responsibilities.
This opinion shall establish whether the person/persons involved in administering the Public Treasury have committed a mistake or not and shall determine the responsibility, its nature and entity bearing the responsibility and, if required, the amount of damage or losses eventually caused to the public treasury.
When responsibilities have to be determined or enforced in a case before ordinary courts, the judges trying civil or penal cases may ask for the opinion of the Court of Accounts for the same purposes.
The General Assembly or any of its Houses may request the same advice in the cases mentioned in Article 578.
In all the cases envisaged in this Article, the Court of Accounts must give its opinion in a period of thirty days, being able to extend this period only in duly justified situations.
Article 582.- The administrative authority, at the time of deciding the investigation or summary proceedings, can come to one of the following conclusions:
1) That there is no case for financial and accounting responsibility, in which case, with no further delay, it shall order the case to be dismissed and shall take the necessary steps to lift any precautionary measures that might have been adopted.
2) That it was a case of responsibility, but no loss was caused to the public treasury, in which case it shall stipulate the disciplinary measures corresponding to the entity that committed an administrative mistake.
3) That there is a case of responsibility and loss to the Administration, but the amount of the same is not yet determined, in which case disciplinary sanctions shall be imposed and legal action may be taken in the relevant civil court for the required refund or compensation.
4) That there is a case of responsibility and loss to the Administration and that the amount of the loss has been determined, in which case it shall proceed in the manner prescribed in the foregoing paragraph. For purposes of civil action, the testimony of the administrative decision and the fact that it is the same as the opinion of the Court of Accounts shall constitute presumption of fact that the entity has suffered loss and can file a claim.
Article 583.- When summary proceedings are initiated against accountants that, pursuant to Article 553 of this law, are working in the capacity of Delegated Accountants of the Court of Accounts, this fact must be conveyed to the said Office and the defendant can not be dismissed from his position without first obtaining the opinion of the Court of Accounts.
