1. The Governor in Council shall appoint by commission under the Great Seal of the Dominion an officer to be called "The Controller of the Treasury and Deputy Minister of Finance" (hereinafter called the Controller), who shall be the Deputy Head of the Department of Finance and shall have the powers and duties which are set in general terms in the Schedule to this Act.

  2. The Controller shall after a probationary period not exceeding six months during which he may be removed by the Governor in Council hold office during good behaviour and shall be removable only by the Governor on Address of the Legislature Council and the House of Assembly; and he shall be paid out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, in twelve equal monthly instalments, an annual salary to be prescribed by Order in Council, which salary whence once so prescribed shall stand as if prescribed in this Act and shall thereafter not be alterable save by Statute.

  3. The Controller shall notwithstanding anything in any Act to the contrary have the power to make Regulations subject to the approval of the Governor in Council for the doing of any matter or thing with a view to the exercise of control over public moneys in the manner generally described in the Schedule. The expression "public moneys" in this Section shall have the same meaning as is given to it Section 2 (a) of the Consolidated Revenue and Audit Act, 1899.

  4.--(1) No expenditure shall be passed by the Comptroller and Auditor-General as chargeable against the Newfoundland Exchequer Account unless the formal consent of the Department of Finance has been first given thereto in writing, signed by the Controller, in all cases where this is required by the Schedule to this Act or by Regulations made under this Act. (2) This Section shall be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Revenue and Audit Act, 1899.

  5. The Controller shall at all times have free access to the books, accounts and records of every Government Department or office, including those of branches of the Government service which are conducted as corporations.

  6. Section 2 of Chapter 10 of the Consolidated Statutes (Third Series) entitled "Of the Department of Finance and Customs," as amended by Section 1 of the Act 15, George V., Chapter 13, is hereby repealed in so far as it relates to the Deputy Minister of Finance.

  7. This Act shall be read in conjunction with Chapter 10 of the Consolidated Statutes (Third Series) provided that in any case where the two Acts are not in accord this Act shall prevail.

  8. This Act may be cited as "The Treasury Control Act, 1932."

  The principal functions of the Controller shall be:

  1. To exercise "Treasury Control"over the expenditure of the Dominion, and to see that no expenditure is made which is not in accordance with law or for which funds are not available.

  The invariable practice shall be that no new expenditure as hereinafter defined be incurred without the consent of the Department of Finance given in writing by formal letter or upon a form signed by the Controller who will in all important matters consult the Minister of Finance and Customs. If in case of emergency consent is given orally, it shall subsequently be confirmed in writing.

  All proposals for expenditure not provided for in the Vote of a Department for which it is proposed to obtain an Order of the Governor in Council must first be submitted to the Department of Finance in order that the Minister may formally lay his views and those of the Controller upon the proposed expenditure before the Executive Council.

  Any proposal on the part of a Department for new expenditure shall be forwarded in writing to the Controller with the following particulars:--

  (1) The Department's reasons for recommending the scheme in question.
  (2) An estimate of the cost involved and a statement of dates on which payments will have to be made.
  (3) Such further particulars as the Controller may demand.

  The Minister of Finance and Customs and the Controller shall approve the proposed only if they consider that the finances of the Dominion justify the expenditure, and if the necessary funds will be available on the dates required; provided that nothing herein shall prevent either the Minister or the Controller from representing to the Governor in Council their views against any proposal on its merits, notwithstanding that the necessary funds will be available on the dates required.

  No Member of the Legislature or other person whatsoever shall be recognized as having authority to pledge the credit of the Government or to order work or goods on its behalf unless the Minister in charge of the Department concerned has given prior express authority in writing specifying precisely the work to be done, the goods to be ordered or the money to be spent; such prior authority shall not be given in the case of any new work or service without prior reference to the Department of Finance as above mentioned.

  No recommendation for the doing of any work or the incurring of any expense on behalf of the Government shall at any time be made direct to the Department of Finance, but only through the Head of a Department having to do with work or expenditure of the kind in question.

  New expenditure is defined as follows, but this definition may be altered by regulation made under Section 3 of this Act:

  (1) Any new scheme or service which involves or may involve payment from public funds, whether or not this scheme or service is in pursuance of a general policy already adopted by the Government and whether or nor provision has been made for it in the Vote of a Department. (In practice very small services or expenditures are not required to be submitted individually to the Department of Finance but the Department concerned will be authorized to undertake small works up to a definite limit to be specified.)
  (2) The creation of new posts and the appointment of additional staff whether permanent or temporary.
  (3) All increases in salary, other than such automatic increases by seniority or on promotion as are provided under any properly authorized scale or scheme and for which funds have been provided by the Legislature.
  (4) All proposals for additional payments to public servants over and above their respective salaries.
  (5) All proposals for special payments to any other person for services rendered.
  (6) All proposals for pensions, other than such as are provided for under any properly authorized scale or scheme and for which funds have been provided by the Legislature.

  2. To have general control over the collection of Death, Legacy, Estate or Probate Duties, Income Taxes, Profits Taxes, Sales Taxes and other miscellaneous revenue not belonging specifically to any other Department, and to suggest means for improving the collection of any revenue whether of the above mentioned kinds or not; to conduct correspondence relating to the expenditure of the Department of Finance especially in relation to the Public Debt, and to arrange for making such payments as are required in regular course from the Vote of the Department of Finance.

  3. To watch generally in consultation with the Minister of Finance and Customs over the financial position of the Dominion; to have constantly under review the amounts received from all forms of taxation and other revenue and the course of expenditure; to see to the keeping of such accounts as will enable him to review not less often than monthly the position of the finances of the Dominion and to forecast revenue and expenditure; to bring forward proposals for economy or for increased or reduced taxation as may be necessary.

  4. During the absence from the Dominion or the disability from illness of the Minister of Finance and Customs or during a vacancy in the office of Minister, to exercise the powers and perform the duties relating to the Department of Finance which belong to the Minister of Finance and Customs.