B-123749, OCT. 31, 1955

B-123749, OCT. 31, 1955

TO MR. SOFIO SANTIAGO-GONZALEZ:

YOUR LETTERS OF FEBRUARY 21 AND MARCH 7, 1955, TO THE GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE AND YOUR LETTER OF MARCH 11, 1955, FORWARDED HERE BY THE FINANCE CENTER, UNITED STATES ARMY, ALL CONCERNING YOUR CLAIM FOR STATION PER DIEM SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE FOR THE PERIOD SEPTEMBER 4, 1952, TO JANUARY 28, 1953, WHICH WAS DISALLOWED IN OUR SETTLEMENT OF JANUARY 14, 1955, WILL BE CONSIDERED AS CONSTITUTING A REQUEST FOR REVIEW OF THAT SETTLEMENT.

IT APPEARS THAT YOUR ACTIVE DUTY STATUS AS A MEMBER OF THE ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES COMMENCED ON AUGUST 29, 1952, AT FORT BUCHANAN, PUERTO RICO, AND THAT YOU PERFORMED TRAINING DUTY WITH THE 7504TH AU REPLACEMENT TRAINING CENTER, CAMP TORTUGUERO, PUERTO RICO, THROUGH THE PERIOD COVERED BY YOUR CLAIM. A GOVERNMENT MESS WAS AVAILABLE TO YOU DURING THAT PERIOD AND YOU WERE NOT AUTHORIZED TO MESS SEPARATELY. YOU WERE PAID A BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR QUARTERS ON ACCOUNT OF A DEPENDENT FATHER WHO, YOU STATE, RESIDED WITHIN THE LIMITS OF PUERTO RICO DURING THE PERIOD IN QUESTION. YOUR CLAIM IS STATED ON THE BASIS THAT YOUR STATUS WAS THAT OF AN ENLISTED MEMBER WITH DEPENDENTS, WITH GOVERNMENT MESS AVAILABLE, FOR WHICH THE APPLICABLE PER DIEM RATE PRESCRIBED IN THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS WAS $2.25. IN SUPPORT OF YOUR CLAIM THERE WAS SUBMITTED AN EXTRACT COPY OF SPECIAL ORDERS NO. 182, HEADQUARTERS, REPLACEMENT TRAINING CENTER, CAMP TORTUGUERO, DATED SEPTEMBER 2, 1954, PARAGRAPH 21 OF WHICH PURPORTED TO CONFIRM VERBAL ORDERS OF SEPTEMBER 4, 1952, AUTHORIZING THE PAYMENT TO YOU OF STATION PER DIEM ALLOWANCE FOR SUBSISTENCE FOR THE PERIOD SEPTEMBER 4, 1952, TO JANUARY 28, 1953.

REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE PAYMENT OF STATION PER DIEM ALLOWANCES ARE CONTAINED IN THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS. UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH 4300 OF THOSE REGULATIONS, THEN IN EFFECT, ENLISTED MEMBERS WITHOUT DEPENDENTS WERE ENTITLED TO A STATION SUBSISTENCE PER DIEM ONLY FOR PERIODS WHEN GOVERNMENT MESSES WERE NOT AVAILABLE.

UNDER PARAGRAPH 4301-2 AN ENLISTED MAN WAS CONSIDERED TO BE WITHOUT DEPENDENTS FOR STATION PER DIEM PURPOSES UNLESS HIS DEPENDENTS "RESIDE WITH HIM AT OR IN THE VICINITY OF HIS DUTY STATION LOCATED OUTSIDE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES OR IN ALASKA.' TO BE ENTITLED TO THE ALLOWANCE CLAIMED, THEREFORE, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NECESSARY THAT YOUR DEPENDENT FATHER ACTUALLY LIVE WITH YOU AT OR NEAR YOUR DUTY STATION. WHILE YOU STATED THAT HE RESIDED WITHIN THE LIMITS OF PUERTO RICO, YOU DID NOT CONTEND THAT HE LIVED WITH YOU AS A PART OF YOUR HOUSEHOLD, AND NOTHING APPEARING IN THE RECORD INDICATES THAT SUCH WAS THE CASE. IT MUST BE ASSUMED, THEREFORE, IN THE ABSENCE OF EVIDENCE ESTABLISHING OTHERWISE, THAT HE DID NOT RESIDE WITH YOU WITHIN THE CONTEMPLATION OF THE CITED GOVERNING REGULATIONS. YOUR STATUS, CONSEQUENTLY, INSOFAR AS THE ALLOWANCE CLAIMED IS CONCERNED, WAS THAT OF AN ENLISTED MEMBER WITHOUT DEPENDENTS, AND SINCE GOVERNMENT MESS WAS AVAILABLE TO YOU, YOU ARE NOT ENTITLED TO A STATION SUBSISTENCE PER DIEM UNDER THE REGULATIONS.

ACCORDINGLY, ON THE PRESENT RECORD, THE SETTLEMENT OF JANUARY 14, 1955, IS SUSTAINED.