[Request for Advance Decision Concerning Travel Reimbursement]

The Social Security Administration (SSA) requested an advance decision concerning whether: (1) the higher cost for an employee's official travel was properly denied; and (2) the procedures it used to collect the outstanding travel advance were proper under the Debt Collection Act. GAO found that: (1) the employee must bear the additional costs of indirect travel even though the government's travel service erroneously advised her that the indirect route would only cost $1 more; (2) the government may only pay for the cost of official travel expenses on a direct route; (3) there was no question that the additional fare was $149 more than the usually traveled route; (4) SSA debt collection procedures do not require a hearing for the collection of an outstanding travel advance; (5) SSA complied with the procedural requirements prescribed by implementing regulations; and (6) the fact that the travel agent erroneously advised the employee of the extra cost for indirect travel did not change the employee's liability for the excess cost. Accordingly, the outstanding travel advance may be collected by administrative offset.