Office of General Counsel

OTHER OBJECTS

Other objects of expense for the Office of General Counsel are as follows:

These funds are for travel needed to assist in training field attorneys, to provide oversight for their operations, to provide professional development training for Central Office attorneys, to send Central Office attorneys into the field to find facts and provide specialized expertise and direction on problem cases, to handle FHA closings on special request from a field office, to handle corporate checks and Federally guaranteed bond closings on New Communities, for GNMA bond closings, to develop manpower performance standards for field legal offices, to participate in, or gather evidence for, administrative hearings and court cases on behalf of the Department, and for similar purposes.

Decentralization of the Department's operations has increased the need for travel funds to provide the communication and monitoring necessary for consistency of legal interpretation among the Department's 49 Area and Regional Offices, which contain roughly two-thirds of the Department's legal and supporting staff. In addition, travel for New Communities and GNMA closings, for litigation, and for administrative hearings has increased in 1974 because of increases in those activ

ities.

In 1975, travel costs are expected to remain at approximately the same level as currently estimated for 1974.

A modest amount is required for transportation of printed materials to field offices and other incidental transportation expenses.

Small amounts are needed for the rental of office machines and other incidental expenses.

Printing and reproduction of briefs, information materials, legal opinions, reprints and duplicating machine copies are anticipated to remain relatively stable. A small decline in 1974 reflects non-recurring 1973 printing of new and revised manuals, handbooks, regulations, forms, etc. The small decline in FY 1975 represents anticipated further decreases in printing of materials associated with new legislative proposals, as it is assumed that major legislative changes will have been enacted prior to FY 1975.

This category includes a wide variety of miscellaneous services such as office equipment repairs, office space alterations, data processing services, and other expenses. The 1974 amounts include $32,000 for courier transmittal of notes and bonds involved in the private financing of projects in which the Department has a legal and financial interest. The $22,000 decrease in 1975 reflects a biennial $22,000 contract in 1974 for State and local legislative materials which does not recur in 1975.

Although most equipment on hand is of reasonable standards, a modest increase of $2,000 for replacement and upgrading is provided.