I hereby promulgate the Telecommunication Services Special Account Law. Signed:HIROHITO, Seal of the Emperor This twenty-eighth day of the fifth month of the twenty-fourth year of Showa (May 28, 1949) Prime Minister YOSHIDA Shigeru Law No.110 The Telecommunication Services Special Account Law Contents Chapter I General Provisions (Articles 1-6) Chapter II Capital and Assets (Articles 7-15) Chapter III Funds (Articles 16-20) Chapter IV Budget (Articles 21-29) Chapter V Revenues and Expenditures (Articles 30-33) Chapter VI Settlement of Accounts (Articles 34-38) Chapter VII Miscellaneous Provisions (Articles 39-40) Supplementary Provisions Chapter I General Provisions
(Establishment) Article 1. For the purpose of securing businesslike operation and development of the telecommunication services, a Special Account shall be established as separated from the General Account.
(Scope of the Telecommunication Services) Article 2. In this Law, "the telecommunication services" shall mean the services for rendering any means of transmitting or receiving or both of intelligence by electrical methods of transmission or reception or both such as, but not limited to, telegraph, telephone, facsimile, telephoto whether by wire or by radio, and other businesses incidental thereto.
(Management) Article 3. This Account shall be managed by the Minister of Telecommunications in accordance with laws and ordinances.
(Classification of Accounts) Article 4. In this Account, the balance-sheet accounts and the profit and loss accounts shall be established, in order to show increase, decrease and change of assets and capital together with profit and loss of the telecommunication services. 2 The balance-sheet accounts shall be classified into the assets accounts and the capital accounts. The profit and loss accounts shall be classified into the revenue accounts and the expense accounts. 3 Besides the accounts referred to in the preceding two paragraphs, in order to show the process of accounting, the construction account, the repair-shop accounts and other necessary accounts may be established.
(Principle of Accounting) Article 5. In this Account, the accounting shall be maintained on an actual accounting basis of increase, decrease, and change of assets, regardless of cash receipt and payment. 2 Whether or not the fact of increase, decrease and change of assets mentioned in the preceding paragraph applies to one or another fiscal year shall be determined by the standards established by Cabinet Order.
(Computation of Costs) Article 6. In this Account, the procedures with regard to cost computation necessary to telecommunication services shall be established by the Minister of Telecommunications.
Chapter II Capital and Assets
(Capital and the Classification Thereof) Article 7. In this Account, the capital represents the amount equal to the value of assets belonging to this Account. 2 The capital referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be classified into three groups, the owned capital, the reserve for depreciation, and the borrowed capital. The owned capital shall be sub-divided into the capital proper, the capital transferred from other Accounts, and the reserves. The borrowed capital shall be sub-divided into public bonds, borrowings and other liabilities. 3 The capital proper represents the amount of the capital succeeded to this Account from the Communication Enterprise Special Account. 4 The amount of the capital transferred to this Account from other Accounts represents the amount appropriated for increasing the fixed assets of this Account. 5 The reserves represent the accumulated amount of the reserves referred to in Article 35 paragraph 1. 6 The reserve for depreciation represents the accumulated amount of the reserve for depreciation for the assets belonging to this Account (the amount deducted, if any, the retransferred amount referred to in Article 11 paragraph 2). 7 The borrowed capital represents the amount of public bonds, borrowings, temporary borrowings, accommodation notes, accounts payable, advances receive, cash in custody, and other similar credits to this Account.
(Assets and the Classification Thereof) Article 8. The assets of this Account shall be classified into the fixed assets, the working assets, and the current assets. 2 The fixed assets represent land, buildings, structures, water-craft, telegraph and telephone lines, telegraph and telephone equipments, radio telegraph and telephone equipments, plants under construction, and machines and apparatus, patent rights and other similar franchises, as designated by the Minister of Telecommunications. 3 The working assets represent the articles in store and the work in process. 4 The current assets represent cash, deposits, accounts receivable, advances paid and other similar debits to this Account.
(Value of Fixed Assets) Article 9. The value of fixed assets shall be set on the total amount of direct and indirect expenses incurred in the acquisition thereof being fixed by the Minister of Telecommunications. The fixed assets as contributed to this Account without compensation shall be determined by estimate.
(Depreciation and Replacement) Article 10. Depreciation on the depreciable assets as designated by the Minister of Telecommunications. shall be made every fiscal year in accordance with the standards established by the Minister of Telecommunications. Replacement on the replaceable assets as designated by the Minister of Telecommunications shall be made likewise. 2 As to establishing the standards referred to in the preceding paragraph, the Minister of Telecommunications shall consult with the Minister of Finance.
(Revision and Elimination from the Value of Fixed Assets) Article 11. In such cases where a fixed asset is lost, transferred, withdrawn or otherwise abandoned, the value thereof shall be revised or eliminated according to the degree of the particular cases mentioned above, in accordance with the procedures established by the Minister of Telecommunications. 2 Provided, in case the revised asset or the eliminated assets referred to in the preceding paragraph is a depreciable asset, the amount of the depreciation made so far on the said asset shall be retransferred from the reserve for depreciation.
(Value of Working Assets) Article 12. The value of working assets shall be the purchase price, or the costs required in the manufacture or production. 2 Provided, in case the determination of value under the provision of the preceding paragraph is difficult, or the said provision is inapplicable due to a particular reason, the value shall be determined by estimate.
(Transfer of the Value of Working Assets, etc.) Article 13. When working assets are used for services, eliminating said price from working assets the value thereof shall be transferred to the appropriation for the said services. 2 The expenses necessary for the handling of working assets shall be apportioned to the appropriations referred to in the preceding paragraph in accordance with the procedures established by the Minister of Telecommunications. 3 The expenses for repair on articles not in the category of assets under the provision of Article 15 shall be transferred to the account of the appropriate service utilizing the said articles in accordance with the procedures established by the Minister of Telecommunications.
(Revaluation of Working Assets) Article 14. In such cases where a working asset is damaged, deteriorated, lost or becomes obsolete to any revised standards, the value thereof shall be revised or eliminated according to the degree of the particular cases mentioned above.
(Storing, etc. of Working Assets) Article 15. In this Account, within the designated limit of the appropriations, it is authorized to purchase and store working assets necessary for the operation of the services with the cash belonging to this Account, or to repair articles not in the category of assets.
Chapter III Funds
(Public Bonds and Borrowings) Article 16. In this Account, for plant extention or improvement, or for increasing store articles, it is authorized to raise public bonds or make borrowings, liable to this Account. 2 In this Account, to cover the shortage in the appropriations necessary for the operation of the services, it is authorized to make borrowings, liable to this Account. 3 As to the limit of the amount of public bonds or borrowings raised under the provision of the preceding two paragraphs, the approval of the Diet shall be obtained for the budget concerned.
(Temporary Borrowings and Accommodation Notes) Article 17. In this Account, in the case where cash is insufficient to make payment, it is authorized to make temporary borrowings or to issue accommodation notes, liable to this Account. 2 As to the limit of the amount of temporary borrowings and accommodation notes referred to in the preceding paragraph, the approval of the Diet shall be obtained for the budget concerned. 3 The temporary borrowings and accommodation notes referred to in paragraph 1 shall be redeemed within the current fiscal year;provided, no redemption is made due to decrease in the revenues, the temporary borrowings or accommodation notes, limited to the amount not redeemed, may be renewed. 4 The renewed temporary borrowings or accommodation notes under the proviso to the preceding paragraph shall be redeemed within one year from the date of the renewal.
(Transfer to the National Debt Consolidation Fund Special Account) Article 18. The redemption funds for public bonds borrowings, temporary borrowings, accommodation notes, the interest thereon, and the expenses incurred in the issuance and redemption shall be transferred to the National Debt Consolidation Fund Special Account every fiscal year, except for the redemption funds for temporary borrowings and accommodation notes to be paid within the current fiscal year;provided, where borrowings are made under the provision of Article 16 paragraph 2, or temporary borrowings or accommodation notes are renewed under the proviso to Article 17 paragraph 3, only the redemption funds for public bonds and borrowings may not be transferred to the said Special Account.
(Business Related to Redemption, etc. of Public Bonds, Borrowings, etc.) Article 19. The business related to raising, redeeming and renewing public bonds, borrowings, temporary borrowing and accommodation notes, etc. liable to this Account, shall be performed by the Minister of Finance.
(Operation of Surplus Funds) Article 20. The surplus funds in this Account may be deposited with the Deposits Bureau of the Ministry of Finance.
Chapter TV Budget
(Preparation and Submission of the Statement of Estimated Revenues and Expenditures, etc.) Article 21. The Minister of Telecommunications shall be responsible for the preparation and submission every fiscal year to the Minister of Finance of the statement of estimated revenues and expenditures, and the statement of contract authorizations of this Account. 2 The statement of estimated revenues and expenditures and the statement of contract authorizations shall be attached with the following details: (1) Business operation program; (2) Profit and loss statement, balance-sheet and inventory, for the fiscal year before last; (3) Estimated profit and loss statements and provisional balance-sheets, for the current and the previous fiscal year; (4) As for the contract authorizations extending over to the succeeding fiscal year, the statement of payments made and expected to be made by the end of the previous fiscal year, and the statements of estimated payments for the current and the succeeding fiscal year. As for the contract authorizations extending over to serveral ensuing fiscal years, the plan of payments covering the entire period of the said fiscal years supported by written explanations as to show the progress of the business schedules; (5) Statement of temporary borrowings under the provision of Article 17.
(Classification of the Revenue and Expenditure Budgets) Article 22. The revenue and expenditure budgets for this Account shall be classified into titles and items according to the nature of the revenues and the purpose of the expenditures.
(Preparation and Submission of Budget Estimates) Article 23. The Cabinet shall be responsible for the preparation of the budget estimated for this Account every fiscal year and for submission thereof to the Diet together with the General Account budget estimates. 2 The budget estimates referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be attached with the details prescribed in Article 21 paragraph 2.
(Distribution of the Revenue and Expenditure Budget) Article 24. As to the distribution of the revenue and expenditure budgets to be executed in this Account, the classification of the expenditure budget into details may not be required, regardless of the provision of Article 31 paragraph 2 of the Finance Law (Law No.34 of 1947).
(Transfer of Appropriations) Article 25. The Minister of Telecommunications, as for the appropriations in the business operation program of this Account designated by Cabinet Order, shall not make transfer of appropriations without the approval of the Minister of Finance. 2 The amount of the transferred appropriations under the provision of the preceding paragraph shall be mentioned in the report of business operation results with due explanations therefor.
(Appropriation of Reserve Funds) Article 26. In this Account, the Minister of Telecommunications within the limit of the amount of the plan of acts to incur disbursements designated by the Minister of Finance under the provision of Article 34 paragraph 1 of the Finance Law, is authorized to approve the use of the reserve funds appropriated for the business operating expenses, regardless of the provision of Article 35 paragraphs 2 and 3 of the same Law. 2 The Minister of Telecommunications, when the reserve funds are approved for use under the provision of the preceding paragraph, shall be responsible for the preparation and submission to the Minister of Finance and the Board of Audit of the written explanations for the reason, amount and calculation basis. 3 When the use of the reserve funds is approved under the provision of paragraph 1, the said appropriations are construed as distributed under the provision of Article 31 paragraph 1 of the Finance Law.
(Preparation of the Disbursement Plan) Article 27. The disbursement plan of this Account shall be divided into the following two groups: (1) That which reflects the maximum amount to the extent of which checks or Treasury's cash transfer notes may be issued; (2) That which reflects the maximum amount to the extent of which the official cashiers are authorized to make the payments under the provision of Article 32. 2 The notification to the Bank of Japan of the disbursement plan prescribed in item (2) of the preceding paragraph is not required.
(Carrying Over of Appropriations) Article 28. In this Account, as to the carrying over of the appropriations approved by the Diet under the provision of Article 25 of the Finance Law, the Minister of Telecommunications, provided the said appropriations are within the amount of the plan of acts to incur disbursements approved by the Minister of Finance under the provision of Article 34 paragraph 1 of the Finance Law, is authorized to make the carrying over to the said appropriations to the succeeding fiscal year, regardless of the provision of Article 43 paragraph 1 of the Finance Law. 2 The Minister of Telecommunications shall, when the carrying over is made under the provision of the preceding paragraph, be responsible for the notification to the Minister of Finance and the Board of Audit of the expenditure items, amount and reason. 3 The appropriations carried over under the provision of paragraph 1 are construed as distributed under the provision of Article 31 paragraph 1 of the Finance Law.
(Continuance of the Authorization for Raising Public Bonds and Borrowings) Article 29. In this Account, provided the public bonds or borrowings approved for raising by the Diet are not raised up to the designated limit of amount, the said authorization for the remaining portion of the amount may be continued to the succeeding fiscal year within the amount of the appropriations and payables carried over from the previous fiscal year.
Chapter V Revenues and Expenditures
(Designation of Assistant Disbursement Officials) Article 30. The Minister of Telecommunications when considered necessary, is authorized to designate assistant disbursement officials to charge them with a part of the business of disbursement officials. 2 The Minister of Telecommunications, shall when he designated assistant disbursement officials under the provision of the preceding paragraph, make notification of the designation to the Minister of Finance and the Board of Audit.
(Resources of Funds from which Payments are made) Article 31. For every fiscal year, the total of the disbursed amount of the appropriations and the amount of the payables carried over from the previous fiscal year on this Account shall not exceed the total of the amount which can be devoted to the resources of expenditures among the cash carried over from the previous fiscal year on this Account and the amount of already collected revenues for the current fiscal year.
(Disbursement Orders) Article 32. For the purpose of disbursing the expenditure money, the disbursement official of this Account is authorized, in addition to issuing checks or Treasury's cash transfer notes, to issue disbursement orders to official cashier designated by the Minister of Telecommunications in accordance with the provision of Cabinet Order. 2 The disbursement official, within the limit designated in the disbursement plan prepared under the provision of Article 27, paragraph 1 item (2), is authorized to direct the assistant disbursement official referred to in Article 30 paragraph 1 to issue, in accordance with the provision of Cabinet Order, the disbursement orders of the expenditure money, within the designated limit of the amount, to the official cashier referred to in the preceding paragraph.
(Cash Payments) Article 33. The official cashier referred to in paragraph 1 of the preceding Article, when the disbursement order is to hand, is authorized to make payments with the cash in his custody in accordance with the provision of Cabinet Order. 2 In case the amount of the payment during the current month under the provision of the preceding paragraph exceeds the total of the amount of the revenues held by the official cashier at the beginning of the current month plus the amount of the revenues received by the official cashier during the current month, the Minister of Telecommunications shall deliver the excess amount, in accordance with the provision of Cabinet Order, to the official cashier by the end of the month after next.
Chapter VI Settlement of Accounts
(Preparation of Financial Statements) Article 34. The Minister of Telecommunications shall be responsible for the preparation every fiscal year of the profit and loss statement, the balance-sheet, the inventory, the comparative statement of increased and decreased assets, and the comparative statement of increased and decreased capital.
(Disposition of the Surplus and the Deficit) Article 35. In this Account, any surplus earned in the settlement of accounts shall be added to the reserves every fiscal year, and the deficit shall be settled by deducting from the reserves. 2 In case the deficit referred to in the preceding paragraph exceeds the reserves, the excess amount may be carried forward as the accumulated deficit.
(Preparation and Submission of the Statement of Determined Revenues and Expenditures) Article 36. The Minister of Telecommunications shall be responsible for the preparation and submission every fiscal year to the Minister of Finance of the statement of determined revenues and expenditures. 2 The statement referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be attached with the following details: (1) Report on business operation results; (2) Profit and loss statement, balance-sheet, inventory, comparative statement of increased and decreased assets, and comparative statement of increased and decreased capital for the current fiscal year; (3) Statement of liabilities.
(Form of the Settlement of Revenues and Expenditures) Article 37. The settlement of revenues and expenditures for this Account shall be made as classified into the same titles of accounts as in the budgets for revenues and expenditures, and supported by the following details: (1) Revenues: 1) Amount of estimated revenues; 2) Amount of determined revenues (as for such revenues as are not predeterminable, the amount determined after the receipt is to be included in the amount of the determined revenues); 3) Amount of uncollectibles. (2) Expenditures: 1) Amount of estimated expenditures; 2) Amount of appropriations carried over from the previous fiscal year; 3) Amount of appropriated reserve funds; 4) Transferred amount of accounts; 5) Amount of determined expenditures; 6) Amount of appropriations to be carried over to the succeeding fiscal year; 7) Balance appropriations.
(Preparation and Submission of the Statement of Settled Revenues and Expenditures) Article 38. The Cabinet shall be responsible for the preparation of the statement of settled revenues and expenditures for this Account every fiscal year and for submission thereof to the Diet together with that of the General Account. 2 The statement referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be attached with the details prescribed in Article 30 paragraph 2.
Chapter VII Miscellaneous Provisions
(Transfer to the Postal Services Special Account) Article 39. This Account is authorized to transfer funds to the Postal Services Special Account within the designated limit of the appropriations to cover:the expenses necessary for the performance of the business entrusted to the Ministry of Postal Services in accordance with the provision of Article 6 paragraph 1 of the Ministry of Telecommunications Establishment Law (Law No.245 of 1948);the expenses necessary for the receipt of revenue money of this Account and the expenses necessary for the installation, maintenance and operation of the facilities of the Ministry of Postal Services wholly or partly utilized by the Ministry of Telecommunications in accordance with the agreement between the Minister of Telecommunications and the Minister of Postal Services.
(Matters related to the Enforcement of This Law) Article 40. The necessary procedural and administrative matters for enforcement of this Law shall be prescribed by Cabinet Order.
Supplementary Provision: This Law shall come into force as from June 1, 1949. Minister of Finance IKEDA Hayato Minister of Communications OZAWA Saeki Prime Minister YOSHIDA Shigeru