Mandatory rules, effective January 1, 1922;

              108 HASKINS & SELLS December
Mandatory Rules, Effective January 1, 1922
ON January 1, 1922, certain rules and
regulations prescribed by the Rail­way
Accounting Officers' Association,
which heretofore have been recommenda­tory,
become mandatory, in so far as
carriers who are members of the Associa­tion
are concerned.
As practically all carriers, by rail as
well as by water, are members of the
Association, beginning January 1, 1922,
members of the staff assigned to railroad
engagements should familiarize themselves
with the mandatory rules, as prescribed
by the Association, contained in the Rail­way
Accounting Officers' Association
Synopsis of 1921.
The accounts of carriers are governed by
classifications prescribed by the Interstate
Commerce Commission and must be so
kept. The text of each account in these
classifications has a short description show­ing
what should be included therein for the
guidance of accounting officers and their
clerks; however, the Interstate Commerce
Commission does not prescribe the methods
which carriers shall use to compile the
information required by the classifications.
In 1888, the Association of American
Railway Accounting Officers was formed,
one object of which was to establish uni­form
methods of accounting between
carriers. In 1917, the name was changed
to the Railway Accounting Officers' Asso­ciation.
The Association, through its ex­ecutive,
fiscal and general accounts, stand­ing
freight, passenger disbursements, car
accounts, statistics committees, prescribed
recommendatory rules and regulations, in­cluding
forms, to insure uniform account­ing
among carriers. Being merely recom­mendatory,
these regulations were not
uniformly adopted by all carriers, especially
as to settlements for balances due among
carriers for interline settlements and the
forms used therefor. In consequence, some
roads insisted in settling by voucher, others
by draft, and more or less confusion
existed. The forms used in settlements,
especially for interline freight accounting,
have not been uniform as to size, which
has made binding and filing difficult.
To insure uniformity, all carriers who
are members of the Association, will on
January 1, 1922, conform to the mandatory
rules and regulations prescribed by the
Association.
Accounting."