B-113556, B-117020, JAN 6, 1955

B-113556, B-117020, JAN 6, 1955

PRECIS-UNAVAILABLE

MR. SECRETARY:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF JUNE 16, 1954, WITH WHICH THERE WERE ENCLOSED A DISCUSSION RELATING TO DECISIONS OF THIS OFFICE DATED JUNE 9, 1953, 32 COMP. GEN. 543, AND JANUARY 12, 1954, 33 COMP. GEN. 289, CONCERNING THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF ORDERS IN INSTANCES WHERE TRAVEL UNDER PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION ORDERS WAS PERFORMED BY PRIVATELY OWNED CONVEYANCE, AND A MEMORANDUM FROM THE PER DIEM, TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION ALLOWANCE COMMITTEE SETTING FORTH THE VIEWS OF THAT COMMITTEE ON THE SUBJECT. YOU REQUEST FURTHER CONSIDERATION OF THE CASE INVOLVED IN THE DECISION OF JANUARY 12, 1954, IN VIEW OF THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE ENCLOSURES.

PARAGRAPH 3003-1B OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS PROVIDES THAT THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION ORDERS WHICH DO NOT INVOLVE LEAVE OR DELAY EN ROUTE IS THE DATE OF RELIEF FROM THE OLD STATION (DETACHMENT), AND THAT WHEN LEAVE OR DELAY PRIOR TO REPORTING TO THE NEW STATION IS AUTHORIZED IN THE ORDERS THE AMOUNT OF SUCH LEAVE OR DELAY WILL BE ADDED TO THE DATE OF DETACHMENT FROM THE OLD STATION TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE ORDERS. IN THE DECISION OF JUNE 9, 1953, IT WAS HELD THAT AN ENLISTED MEMBER, WHO UNDER APPLICABLE REGULATIONS WOULD HAVE BEEN ENTITLED TO A MONETARY ALLOWANCE FOR HIS WIFE'S TRAVEL OR CHANGE OF STATION HAD HIS MARRIAGE OCCURRED PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE ORDERS REQUIRING HIS TRAVEL, WAS NOT ENTITLED TO THAT ALLOWANCE BECAUSE OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE CITED PARAGRAPH 3003 1B. THE MEMBER'S MARRIAGE IN THAT CASE OCCURRED AFTER DETACHMENT FROM HIS OLD STATION, AND IT WAS CONSIDERED THAT HIS TRAVEL ORDERS, WHICH CONTAINED NO EXPRESS AUTHORITY FOR LEAVE OR DELAY, DID NOT DIRECT TRAVEL INVOLVING LEAVE OR DELAY EN ROUTE MERELY BECAUSE AUTHORITY WAS GRANTED TO TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED AUTOMOBILE.

THE DECISION OF JANUARY 12, 1954, FOLLOWED THE LONG-ESTABLISHED RULE THAT NO OFFICIAL TRAVEL IS REQUIRED UNDER CHANGE OF STATION ORDERS UNTIL SUCH TIME AS THE TRAVELER MUST DEPART FROM HIS OLD STATION BY ORDINARY MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION (RAIL UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED) TO REACH HIS DESTINATION ON THE DATE DESIGNATED BY THE TRAVEL ORDERS. IT WAS CONCLUDED THAT AN ENLISTED MEMBER WAS NOT ENTITLED TO TRAVEL ALLOWANCES FOR HIMSELF AND HIS WIFE UNDER ORDERS AUTHORIZING LEAVE EN ROUTE, PLUS SUFFICIENT ADDITIONAL TIME TO PERMIT TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED AUTOMOBILE, WHEN THE ORDERS WERE CANCELLED AFTER HIS DEPARTURE FROM THE OLD STATION BUT BEFORE HE WAS REQUIRED TO DEPART BY RAIL TO REACH HIS NEW STATION ON TIME. THAT DECISION SAID THAT NOTHING IN PARAGRAPH 3003-1B OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS REQUIRES ANY MODIFICATION OF THE ESTABLISHED RULE IN THAT RESPECT. THE DISCUSSION AND MEMORANDUM ENCLOSED WITH YOUR LETTER SUGGEST THAT THE LATTER DECISION IS INCONSISTENT WITH THE DECISION OF JUNE 9, 1953.

THE CONCLUSION IN THE DECISION OF JUNE 9, 1953, THAT ADDITIONAL TIME FOR TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED AUTOMOBILE IS NOT DELAY WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH 3003-1B OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS WAS BASED ON THE VIEW THAT THE PHRASE "LEAVE OR DELAY" AS USED IN THAT PARAGRAPH WAS NOT INTENDED TO REFER TO ADDITIONAL TRAVEL TIME REQUIRED BY A SLOWER MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION. THAT PHRASE WAS VIEWED AS REFERRING ONLY TO LEAVE, OR DELAY IN THE NATURE OF LEAVE, CHARGEABLE AGAINST THE TRAVELER AS LEAVE. ON THAT BASIS THE ORDERS CONSIDERED INVOLVED NO LEAVE OR DELAY EN ROUTE. CONSEQUENTLY, THE DATE OF DETACHMENT FROM THE OLD STATION WAS CONSIDERED AS GOVERNING IN THE MATTER, SINCE UNDER PARAGRAPH 7060-3 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS THE RIGHT TO THE ALLOWANCE CLAIMED DEPENDED ON WHETHER THE MEMBER'S MARRIAGE OCCURED BEFORE OR AFTER HIS DETACHMENT. SUCH RIGHT WOULD BE FOR DETERMINATION IN A SIMILAR MANNER UNDER THOSE REGULATIONS WHETHER DETACHMENT WAS ADVANCED IN DATE TO PERMIT TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED CONVEYANCE OR EFFECTED ON THE DATE NECESSARY FOR TRAVEL BY RAIL, OR EVEN IF DELAYED BEYOND THAT DATE IN ANTICIPATION THAT TRAVEL WOULD BE PERFORMED BY AIR, SO LONG AS NO LEAVE OR DELAY WITHIN THE CONTEMPLATION OF PARAGRAPH 3003-1B WAS INVOLVED. THAT IS TO SAY, THE "EFFECTIVE DATE OF ORDERS" (BASED ON THE DATE OF DETACHMENT) AS FIXED BY PARAGRAPH 3003-1B OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS DOES NOT NECESSARILY COINCIDE WITH THE LATEST DATE ON WHICH TRAVEL MAY BEGIN BY ORDINARY MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION TO COMPLY WITH TRAVEL ORDERS WITHIN THE RULE RESPECTING THE CANCELLATION OR CHANGE OF ORDERS.

ON THAT BASIS, THE APPLICATION OF THE ESTABLISHED RULE THAT THE EXPENSES OF TRAVEL UNDER ORDERS CANCELLED PRIOR TO THE DATE OF REQUIRED DEPARTURE ARE NOT CHARGEABLE AGAINST PUBLIC FUNDS APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN PROPERLY APPLIED IN THE DECISION OF JANUARY 12, 1954. RESPECTING YOUR FURTHER INQUIRY, HOWEVER, IN VIEW OF THE BROAD AUTHORITY VESTED BY SECTION 303 OF THE CAREER COMPENSATION ACT OF 1949, 63 STAT. 813, IN THE SECRETARIES CONCERNED TO PRESCRIBE THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION ALLOWANCES SHALL BE AUTHORIZED AND UNDER WHICH TRANSPORTATION FOR DEPENDENTS MAY BE PROVIDED ON PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION, YOU ARE ADVISED THAT THERE WOULD BE NO OBJECTION TO PAYMENTS IN CASES SUCH AS THE ONE INVOLVED IN THAT DECISION IF PROVISION WERE MADE IN THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS TO THE EFFECT THAT TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED CONVEYANCE MAY BE CONSIDERED AS THE ORDINARY MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION CONTEMPLATED BY ORDERS AUTHORIZING THAT MODE OF TRAVEL FOR PURPOSES OF DETERMINING THE DATE OF NECESSARY DEPARTURE ON CHANGE OF STATION TRAVEL.