Agency.

Budget Phase

Supplies and Materials

DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA
GOVERNMENT

Control Center Name

Office of
the Surveyor

J-90497

Redirections-in (0 pos. O emp.

$+0.2)

The $200 increase in supplies and materials is being
redirected from energy, communications and building rental
to cover the inflationary costs of office supplies.

Redirections-out (0 pos., O emp., $-0.2)

An anticipated savings of $200 in energy, communications, and
building rental will be used to finance inflationary costs
of supplies and materials.

BUDGET REQUEST

Mr. DIXON. Next we have the Office of the Surveyor.

You are Mr. T.E. Koch, Acting Surveyor. This year you are requesting $469,900 and 31 positions for fiscal year 1981, the same as for fiscal year 1980.

Maybe you could just briefly tell me what your function is as the Surveyor for the District.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF OFFICE

Mr. KocH. Mr. Chairman, the Office of Surveyor is probably the oldest department in the District of Columbia. It continues to operate under statutory authority of the District of Columbia Law, 169, Reorganization No. 127, dated April 23, 1953 as amended.

Under these legal authorities this office is a legal office of record for all plats and subdivisions and is charged with the responsibility for the preservation of these records, and has the administrative responsibility for the subdivision and streets and alley closing regulations.

The office is further required by law to execute any orders and to provide a true certified copy within a reasonable time. This office has no program, per se, and our sole purpose or mission is to provide, upon request, the surveying and related services as required by law and regulations to the general public and the various District agencies. It continues to be the policy of this office to provide these services in the most efficient and effective manner as is humanly possible with the available manpower and resources. The budget for this office consists of $460,400 for personal services and $9,500 for printing and office supplies. This does not provide for within-grade advances in the amount of $4,200 which will have to be absorbed.

OFFICIAL SURVEYOR OF DISTRICT

Mr. DIXON. In other words, you are basically the official surveyor for the District and any legal document that I need in order to have a description of property would have to be done by you as required by law?

Mr. KOCH. That is correct.

USE OF PRIVATE SURVEYORS

Mr. DIXON. Even as a private citizen, I could not go out and use a private surveyor?

Mr. KOCH. You can use a private surveyor as per a new law tied to our fee schedule which we increased in 1978. A private surveyor can record a plat, but it is not an official document. It is just installed in a separate set of ledgers.

FEE SCHEDULE

Mr. DIXON. What is your fee schedule?

Mr. KocH. I think it is probably still lower than industry because we have not cranked in a profit factor.