In the Matter of the Petition by       ) July 9, 1991
                                        )
 FRANCES LEWIS                          )
 4240 Hutchinson River Pk., East        )
 Apartment 23                           )
                                        )
 at                                     )
                                        )
 Bronx, NY  10475-4746                  ) P. S. Docket No. DCA-97

 APPEARANCE FOR PETITIONER: None.

 APPEARANCE FOR POSTAL SERVICE: James A. Friedman, Esq. Office of Labor
 Law United States Postal Service Washington, DC 20260-1132

By petition filed May 15, 1991, Petitioner Frances Lewis requested a hearing, based solely on written submissions, on a Notice of Involuntary Administrative Offsets Under the Debt Collection Act (Notice) received by her on April 30, 1991. Accordingly, this decision is based on written submissions which consist of the petition and the documents attached thereto and the answer filed by the Postal Service with its attached exhibits. Exhibits referred to in the following findings of fact are those attached to the Postal Service's answer to the petition for hearing.

1. On September 5, 1990, Petitioner Frances Lewis was a Supervisor, Delivery Services, at the Westchester Station, Bronx, New York 10461. On that date she was responsible for final close-out, i.e., counting all cash, checks, and money orders in the custody of the station at the close of her tour of duty and remitting all such funds, exclusive of authorized cash retainage, to Citibank, N.A. (Citibank) for deposit to the account of the Bronx Postmaster.

2. Effective November 17, 1989, the Bronx Post Office adopted new banking procedures because of the assumption by Citibank of responsibility for the Postmaster account. Because of this bank change, station managers were required to adhere strictly to certain guidelines set forth in a letter dated November 13, 1989, from the Manager, Finance, Bronx Post Office (Ex. 2).

3. The guidelines required that stations make three deposits daily, described as Advance Deposit, consisting of cash only, and a Final Deposit consisting of two parts, (a) remaining cash and (b) checks and money orders.

4. During the close out on September 5, 1990, Ms. Lewis prepared the required three deposits. The "Advance" deposit was in the amount of $2,000.00 in cash. The "Checks and Money Orders" deposit was in the amount of $6,423.28. On the face of the deposit slip covering remaining cash she wrote the word "Final" and showed the total amount as $11,721.00. However, on the reverse side of the Postal Service's copy of the "Final" deposit slip Ms. Lewis showed a total of $7,000.00 for "even" packages, consisting of 300 twenty dollar bills and 100 tens, and a total of $11,721.00 for "mixed" packages, consisting of 58 one hundred dollar bills, 81 fifties, 73 twenties, 39 tens, 2 fives and 11 one dollar bills. The total amount of currency so reflected on the reverse side of the deposit slip was $18,721.00. This total should have been shown on the face of the deposit slip.

5. Ms. Lewis says all the cash shown on the reverse side of the slip was counted by her in the presence of a clerk, Marco Sequil, who also counted and initialed each bundle. She says that all the cash, totalling $18,721.00, was placed in a remittance envelope, in the presence of Mr. Sequil, to go to Citibank, that such envelope was sealed, placed in a registry sack and locked.

6. On the "Final" deposit, Citibank credited the Bronx Postmaster account with the amount shown on the face of the deposit slip, $11,721.00. The original deposit slip sent to the bank did not show on the reverse thereof the figures and computations entered by Ms. Lewis on the Postal Service's copy. Citibank never found or credited to the Postmaster account the $7,000.00 represented by the "even" packages which Ms. Lewis claims to have included in the transmittal to Citibank.

7. The Postal Service Form 1412C for the Westchester Station for September 5, 1990, signed by Ms. Lewis, confirms the fact that the deposits in Citibank on that date were $7,000.00 short of the amount which should have been deposited.

8. Ms. Lewis admits that she failed to insert the proper total amount on the face of the "Final" deposit slip and admits that there is a $7,000.00 shortage but says that she is positive she included the $7,000.00 in "even" packages in the remittance envelope and registry bag. She asserts that she did everything humanly possible to safeguard postal funds entrusted to her charge and, therefore, requests relief from responsibility for the shortage.

9. Ms. Lewis, in handling the paperwork related to bank deposits on September 5, 1990, departed from the prescribed banking procedures in several other respects not directly related to the $7,000.00 shortage but reflecting a lack of care in the performance of her duties related to close-out on that date.

Petitioner Frances Lewis, as the supervisor responsible for final close-out of the Westchester Station on her tour on September 5, 1990, was accountable for the postal funds involved in this proceeding. Under paragraph 132 of Chapter 1, Post Office Accounting Procedures (Handbook F-1)^1/ she is to be held strictly accountable for the $7,000.00 loss which occurred on that date unless evidence establishes that she used reasonable care in the performance of her duties related to such loss. Ms. Lewis admits the occurrence of the shortage. The evidence does not show that she used reasonable care in performing her duties related to the loss. Rather, the evidence shows that she failed to enter the proper total on the face of the "Final" deposit slip, thus setting the stage for the loss which would probably have been prevented had that total included the $7,000.00 in "even" packages which she claims to have placed in the deposit envelope and registry sack.

I must conclude, therefore, that Ms. Lewis is accountable for the $7,000.00 loss and that the Postal Service properly issued to her the Notice dated April 25, 1991.

Petitioner made no claim and offered no evidence of severe financial hardship or an alternative offset schedule. Therefore, no change in the amount and schedule of deductions will be made.

The Petition is dismissed.

Quentin E. Grant
Chief Administrative Law Judge

1/ 132 Other Employees

The postmaster consigns postal funds and accountable paper to other employees. Employees are held strictly accountable for any loss unless evidence establishes they exercised reasonable care in the performance of their duties.