Per Diem and Travel Expenses While on Temporary Duty

An Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employee sought payment for travel expenses and per diem in connection with his incapacitation due to illness while on temporary duty away from his post of duty. Because the claimant returned to his post of duty by an indirect route in order to obtain further medical treatment, IRS limited reimbursement on his original voucher to the travel expenses and per diem to which he would have been entitled had he returned via a direct route. The claimant suffered a heart attack the day after he arrived at his temporary duty station. The cardiologist recommended that the claimant return to another city, near his permanent duty station, to receive further testing and possible surgery. Based upon the cardiologist's advice, the claimant went to the hospital near his permanent duty station. He remained there until he and his wife departed for his permanent duty station. In his original duty voucher, the employee claimed mileage and per diem from the time of his departure from his permanent duty station to the time of his return. IRS refused to authorize payment for the entire amount claimed. GAO held that applicable statutes are to be liberally construed to accomplish the statutes' equitable purpose. Therefore, an employee who becomes incapacitated while away on temporary duty is entitled to receive up to 14 days of per diem for the period of his incapacitation while away from his post of duty. An employee who becomes incapacitated while away on temporary duty is entitled to reimbursement of those travel expenses sufficient to return the employee from his temporary duty station to his post of duty by a direct and usually traveled route. Accordingly, the claimant's voucher was returned to IRS for payment consistent with this decision.