A-75443, NOVEMBER 25, 1936, 16 COMP. GEN. 531

A-75443, NOVEMBER 25, 1936, 16 COMP. GEN. 531

TRAVEL BY AIR - TEMPORARY DUTY STATIONS - APPLICATION OF SALARY SAVINGS TO EXCESS COST OF TRAVEL THE SALARY EQUIVALENT OF THE TIME SAVED BY OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES TRAVELING TO TEMPORARY DUTY STATIONS BY AIR MAY BE APPLIED TO THE EXCESS COST OF SUCH TRAVEL ONLY WHERE THE EARLIER ARRIVAL AT THE TEMPORARY DUTY STATION RESULTS IN AN EARLIER RETURN TO ACTUAL DUTY AT THE PERMANENT STATION, AND THE AMOUNT FOR APPLICATION MAY NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT OF SALARY REPRESENTED BY THE ADDITIONAL DUTY TIME AT THE PERMANENT STATION BY REASON OF THE EARLIER RETURN.

ACTING COMPTROLLER GENERAL ELLIOTT TO THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE, NOVEMBER 25, 1936:

THERE HAS BEEN CONSIDERED YOUR LETTER OF AUGUST 27, 1936, REQUESTING A DECISION AS TO WHETHER THE AMOUNT OF SALARY FOR THE TIME SAVED AT AN EMPLOYEE'S TEMPORARY DUTY STATION BY REASON OF AIR TRAVEL MAY BE ALLOWED AS A CREDIT AGAINST THE EXCESS COST OF SUCH TRAVEL. YOUR LETTER IS AS FOLLOWS:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR DECISION DATED JUNE 30, 1936, NO. A-75443, SETTING FORTH THE BASIS ON WHICH EFFECT WILL BE GIVEN TO PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE 8 OF THE STANDARDIZED GOVERNMENT TRAVEL REGULATIONS AMENDED DECEMBER 10, 1935, WHICH PROVIDES THAT "THE AMOUNT OF THE SALARY OF THE TRAVELER FOR THE TIME THUS SAVED" MAY BE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION IN COMPARING THE COST OF TRANSPORTATION BY AIR LINES WITH THE COST OF TRANSPORTATION BY RAIL PLUS PULLMAN.

IT IS NOTED YOU STATE THAT "THE SALARY IS PAYABLE AT THE SAME RATE WHETHER THE EMPLOYEE IS TRAVELING OR AT HIS OFFICIAL STATION, AND ALL THAT IS GAINED BY THE GOVERNMENT IN THIS RESPECT IS THE ADDITIONAL TIME OF THE EMPLOYEE OR THE VALUE OF HIS SERVICES AT HIS OFFICIAL STATION RESULTING FROM HIS LATER DEPARTURE THEREFROM OR EARLIER RETURN THERETO DUE TO TRAVEL BY AIR INSTEAD OF BY RAIL" AND THAT "CLEARLY THERE IS NO * * * TIME SAVED FOR SUNDAYS, HOLIDAYS, SATURDAY AFTERNOONS, OR OTHER DAYS OR PARTS OF DAYS WHICH ARE NOT OFFICIAL PERIODS OF DUTY AT THE EMPLOYEE'S STATION.'

IN CONNECTION WITH THE TRAVEL DUTY OF EMPLOYEES OF THE BUREAU OF AIR COMMERCE, THERE ARE INSTANCES WHEN THERE IS A SAVING OF THE TIME OF THE TRAVELER AT OTHER THAN HIS OFFICIAL STATION. FOR INSTANCE, AN EMPLOYEE STATIONED AT ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, IS ORDERED TO WASHINGTON FOR TEMPORARY DUTY. HE MIGHT LEAVE ST. LOUIS BY AIRPLANE AT 10:00 P.M. AND ARRIVE IN WASHINGTON AT 7:00 A.M. OR LEAVE ST. LOUIS BY RAILWAY AT 6:00 P.M. AND ARRIVE IN WASHINGTON AT 12:00 NOON. IN THIS INSTANCE, THERE WOULD BE NO SAVING OF THE TRAVELER'S TIME AT HIS OFFICIAL STATION, BUT THE TRAVEL BY AIR WOULD MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR HIM TO DEVOTE ONE-HALF DAY TO OFFICIAL DUTY IN WASHINGTON WHICH WOULD OTHERWISE BE SPENT IN TRAVEL.

ADVICE IS RESPECTFULLY REQUESTED AS TO WHETHER IN SUCH AN INSTANCE, THE SALARY OF THE TRAVELER FOR THE TIME THUS SAVED MAY BE CONSIDERED IN COMPARING THE COST OF AIR LINE TRANSPORTATION WITH THE COST OF TRANSPORTATION BY RAIL PLUS PULLMAN.

THE DECISION OF JUNE 30, 1936, 15 COMP. GEN. 1147, IS IN PART AS FOLLOWS:

PARAGRAPH 8 OF THE STANDARDIZED GOVERNMENT TRAVEL REGULATIONS AS REVISED DECEMBER 10, 1935, PROVIDES, IN PART---

"* * * TRANSPORTATION BY AIR LINES WILL BE ALLOWED, PROVIDED THE COST THEREOF, LESS (1) THE AMOUNT OF SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE SAVED BY MORE EXPEDITIOUS TRAVEL, AND (2) THE AMOUNT OF THE SALARY OF THE TRAVELER FOR THE TIME THUS SAVED, DOES NOT EXCEED THE COST OF RAIL OR STEAMER TRANSPORTATION AND PULLMAN AND/OR STATEROOM FARE BETWEEN THE POINTS OF TRAVEL. * * *"

THE OBVIOUS PURPOSE OF THIS REGULATION IS TO PERMIT AIR LINE TRAVEL WHERE THE EXCESS COST THEREOF IS COMPENSATED BY APPARENT SAVINGS TO THE GOVERNMENT BY REASON OF MORE EXPEDITIOUS TRAVEL. IN THE MATTER OF SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE SUCH SAVINGS ARE CLEAR AND DIRECT WHERE THE TRAVELER LEAVES HIS OFFICIAL STATION LATER OR RETURNS EARLIER, OR BOTH, THAN HE WOULD HAD THE SAME TRAVEL BEEN PERFORMED BY RAIL, FOR THE REASON THAT SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE AT A SPECIFIED RATE IS ALLOWABLE ONLY FOR THE TIME THE TRAVELER IS ABSENT FROM HIS OFFICIAL STATION. THIS IS NOT TRUE OF SALARY PAYMENTS, HOWEVER. SALARY IS PAYABLE AT THE SAME RATE WHETHER THE EMPLOYEE IS TRAVELING OR AT HIS OFFICIAL STATION, AND ALL THAT IS GAINED BY THE GOVERNMENT IN THIS RESPECT IS THE ADDITIONAL TIME OF THE EMPLOYEE OR THE VALUE OF HIS SERVICES AT HIS OFFICIAL STATION RESULTING FROM HIS LATER DEPARTURE THEREFROM OR EARLIER RETURN THERETO DUE TO TRAVEL BY AIR INSTEAD OF BY RAIL.

UNDER THE AMENDED REGULATION THE BENEFIT TO THE GOVERNMENT IN SUCH CASES IS TO BE MEASURED BY ,THE AMOUNT OF THE SALARY OF THE TRAVELER FOR THE TIME THUS SAVED.' CLEARLY THERE IS NO SUCH BENEFIT AND NO TIME SAVED FOR SUNDAYS, HOLIDAYS, SATURDAY AFTERNOONS, OR OTHER DAYS OR PARTS OF DAYS WHICH ARE NOT OFFICIAL PERIODS OF DUTY AT THE EMPLOYEE'S STATION; AND, IN VIEW OF THE WHOLE PURPOSE AND BASIS OF THE REGULATION, THE TERM "THE TIME THUS SAVED" MUST BE CONSTRUED AS EXCLUDING SUCH PERIODS. OTHERWISE, THE REGULATIONS IN THIS RESPECT MIGHT BE VIEWED AS NOT BEING SO REASONABLY RELATED TO THE MATTER INVOLVED AS TO COME WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE REGULATIONS AS AUTHORIZED BY LAW.

IN THE HYPOTHETICAL CASE STATED IN YOUR LETTER THERE IS NO SHOWING OF ANY DUTY TIME SAVED AT THE EMPLOYEE'S PERMANENT STATION, BUT ONLY THAT THE AIR TRAVEL MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR THE EMPLOYEE TO BEGIN DUTY AT HIS TEMPORARY DUTY STATION A HALF DAY EARLIER. OBVIOUSLY THIS REPRESENTED NO SAVING TO THE GOVERNMENT IN TIME OR SERVICE UNLESS IT COULD BE FURTHER SHOWN THAT THE EMPLOYEE WAS THEREBY ENABLED TO COMPLETE THE TEMPORARY DUTY AND TO RETURN TO DUTY AT HIS PERMANENT STATION AT AN EARLIER TIME, AND IF THIS WERE SATISFACTORILY ESTABLISHED THE SAVING OF DUTY TIME WOULD BE SHOWN AT THE PERMANENT DUTY STATION, FOR WHICH DUE CREDIT WOULD BE ALLOWABLE PURSUANT TO THE REGULATIONS AND THE DECISION OF JUNE 30, 1936, SUPRA. IN OTHER WORDS, IF THE EARLIER ARRIVAL AT THE TEMPORARY DUTY STATION MERELY PERMITS THE EMPLOYEE TO SPEND THE EXTRA TIME THERE WITHOUT THE PERFORMANCE OF ANY ASSIGNED ADDITIONAL DUTIES, OR DOES NOT RESULT IN THE EARLIER COMPLETION OF THE CONTEMPLATED TEMPORARY DUTY AND THE EARLIER RETURN TO ACTUAL DUTY AT HIS PERMANENT STATION, THERE HAS BEEN NO NET SAVING TO THE GOVERNMENT OF HIS SERVICE TIME WITHIN THE CONTEMPLATION OF THE REGULATIONS, AND, HENCE, NO BASIS FOR ALLOWING ANY CREDIT IN THE AMOUNT OF HIS SALARY "FOR THE TIME THUS SAVED" AS AN OFFSET AGAINST THE EXCESS COST OF AIR TRAVEL.

ACCORDINGLY, THE QUESTION SUBMITTED MUST BE ANSWERED IN THE NEGATIVE, WITH THE QUALIFICATION THAT CREDIT MAY BE ALLOWED IN SUCH CASES WHERE IT IS CLEARLY ESTABLISHED THAT THE EARLIER ARRIVAL AT THE TEMPORARY DUTY STATION RESULTED IN THE EARLIER RETURN TO ACTUAL DUTY AT THE PERMANENT STATION, IN WHICH INSTANCE, OF COURSE, THE CREDIT MAY NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT OF SALARY REPRESENTED BY THE ADDITIONAL DUTY TIME AT THE PERMANENT STATION BY REASON OF THE EARLIER RETURN.