B-159747, SEP. 19, 1966

B-159747, SEP. 19, 1966

TO MAJOR PARKER PROWIZOR, USAF:

FURTHER REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF JULY 6, 1966, REQUESTING REVIEW OF THE SETTLEMENT OF JUNE 16, 1966, WHICH DISALLOWED YOUR CLAIM FOR PER DIEM FOR TEMPORARY DUTY FOR THE PERIOD JANUARY 25, 1965, TO AUGUST 2, 1965.

BY PARAGRAPH 1, SPECIAL ORDER P-31, ISSUED ON JANUARY 26, 1965, BY HEADQUARTERS, 824TH COMBAT SUPPORT GROUP (PACAF), UNITED STATES AIR FORCE, APO SAN FRANCISCO 96239, YOU WERE RELIEVED FROM YOUR "PRESENT DUTY ASSIGNMENT" TO THE 824TH SERVICE SQUADRON AT THAT STATION AND ASSIGNED TO SPECIAL DUTY AS COMMANDER, DETACHMENT 1, 824TH COMBAT SUPPORT GROUP, PACAF, APPARENTLY FOR PERFORMANCE AT IE SHIMA, A PLACE REMOTE FROM THE DUTY POST FROM WHICH RELIEVED, FOR 179 DAYS EFFECTIVE JANUARY 25, 1965. THE ORDERS STATED THAT THERE WAS NO CHANGE IN ORGANIZATION ASSIGNMENT AND THAT YOUR DEROS (DATE ELIGIBLE FOR RETURN FROM OVERSEAS) WAS CHANGED FROM NOVEMBER 25, 1965, TO AUGUST 17, 1965. THE ASSIGNMENT WAS NOT DESIGNATED AS TEMPORARY DUTY AND THE ORDERS MADE NO PROVISION FOR YOUR RETURN TO THE DUTY FROM WHICH RELIEVED NOR DID THEY OTHERWISE INDICATE YOUR DISPOSITION UPON ITS COMPLETION.

THE AIR FORCE IN TRANSMITTING YOUR CLAIM TO THIS OFFICE STATED THAT UNDER THE ORDERS YOUR DUTY ASSIGNMENT WAS CHANGED WITHIN YOUR SQUADRON TO ANOTHER OPERATING LOCATION, AN OFF-ISLAND SITE APPROXIMATELY 30 MILES DISTANT; THAT NO TEMPORARY DUTY ORDERS WERE ISSUED; THAT THE ONLY ORDERS ISSUED WERE IN THE P SERIES WHICH MERELY NOTED A CHANGE IN DUTY ASSIGNMENT, AND THAT THE ORDER-ISSUING AUTHORITIES HAVE STATED THAT THE DUTY WAS NOT PERFORMED IN A TEMPORARY DUTY STATUS.

PARAGRAPH M4250 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS PROVIDES THAT A MEMBER IS ENTITLED TO TRAVEL PER DIEM ALLOWANCE FOR PERIODS OF TRAVEL AND/OR TEMPORARY DUTY PERFORMED UNDER COMPETENT ORDERS. PARAGRAPH M3003-2 (A) (C) OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS PROVIDES THAT THE TERM " TEMPORARY DUTY , MEANS DUTY AT A LOCATION OTHER THAN THE PERMANENT STATION TO WHICH A MEMBER IS ORDERED TO TEMPORARY DUTY UNDER ORDERS WHICH PROVIDE FOR FURTHER ASSIGNMENT TO A NEW PERMANENT STATION OR FOR RETURN TO THE OLD PERMANENT STATION, AND THAT EXCEPT WHEN SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZED TEMPORARY DUTY ASSIGNMENT WILL BE LIMITED TO 6 MONTHS (180 DAYS). SINCE THE ORDERS OF JANUARY 26, 1965, DO NOT INDICATE AN ASSIGNMENT TO TEMPORARY DUTY BUT MERELY A CHANGE OF DUTY ASSIGNMENT WITHIN YOUR SQUADRON YOU WERE ADVISED IN THE SETTLEMENT OF JUNE 16, 1966, THAT THERE IS NO AUTHORITY FOR ALLOWING YOUR CLAIM.

IN YOUR PRESENT LETTER YOU SAY THAT THE 824TH COMBAT SUPPORT GROUP IS LOCATED AT KADENA AIR BASE, OKINAWA, BUT THAT DETACHMENT 1 OF THE 824TH COMBAT SUPPORT GROUP IS LOCATED ON A SMALL ISLAND IN THE RYUKYUAN CHAIN CALLED IE SHIMA AND THAT DUTY ON IE SHIMA IS REMOTE DUTY. YOU EXPLAIN THAT PERSONNEL ARRIVING THERE FROM MAINLAND OKINAWA ON TEMPORARY DUTY HAVE THEIR TOUR SHORTENED AS A RESULT OF THIS REMOTE DUTY AND CALL ATTENTION TO THE FACT THAT YOUR ORDERS SHORTENED YOUR DEROS BY 3 MONTHS AND THAT UPON COMPLETION OF YOUR DUTY ON IE SHIMA YOU RETURNED TO KADENA AIR BASE FOR CLEARANCE PROCESSING OUT. ALSO, YOU SAY YOUR ORDERS DO NOT SPECIFY "NO PER DIEM AUTHORIZED.' IN ADDITION, YOU REFER TO THE ORDERS ISSUED TO STAFF SERGEANT MAYS FOR 60 DAYS' DUTY WITH DETACHMENT 1, 824TH COMBAT SUPPORT GROUP, IE SHIMA, AND ASK WHY HE WAS PAID PER DIEM.

UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH M3050 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS MEMBERS ARE ENTITLED TO TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION ALLOWANCES ONLY WHILE PERFORMING TRAVEL AND TEMPORARY DUTY AWAY FROM THEIR PERMANENT DUTY STATION UNDER COMPETENT ORDERS. THE SITUATION CONTEMPLATED IS A TEMPORARY ABSENCE FROM THE PHYSICAL LOCATION OF THE MEMBER'S BASIC DUTY ASSIGNMENT. WHETHER AN ASSIGNMENT TO A PARTICULAR STATION IS TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT IS A QUESTION OF FACT TO BE DETERMINED FROM THE ORDERS UNDER WHICH THE ASSIGNMENT IS MADE AND, WHERE NECESSARY, FROM THE CHARACTER OF THE ASSIGNMENT. ORDINARILY, IT IS A FACT WHICH IS WITHIN THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE RESPONSIBLE OFFICER WHO ISSUES THE ORDERS MAKING THE ASSIGNMENT. 24 COMP. GEN. 667, 670.

IN THE MAYS' CASE, THE RECORD SHOWS THAT BY SPECIAL ORDER NO. T 155, DATED FEBRUARY 16, 1965, DESIGNATED AS TEMPORARY DUTY TRAVEL ORDERS, STAFF SERGEANT MARVIN L. MAYS WAS DIRECTED TO PROCEED FROM 824TH CIVIL ENGINEER SQUADRON, APO 96239, ON OR ABOUT FEBRUARY 19, 1965, TO DETACHMENT 1, 824TH COMBAT SUPPORT GROUP, IE SHIMA, FOR APPROXIMATELY 60 DAYS, UPON COMPLETION OF WHICH HE WAS TO RETURN TO HIS STATION AT APO 96239. ITEM 19 ON THE FACE OF THE ORDER SHOWS THAT TEMPORARY DUTY WAS APPROVED BY THE COMMANDER. ITEMS 1 AND 15 ON THE REVERSE OF THE ORDER REFERRED TO THE DUTY AS TEMPORARY AND DIRECTED THE MEMBER TO SUBMIT A TRAVEL VOUCHER WITHIN 5 WORKING DAYS UPON COMPLETION OF THE TRAVEL. (NO MENTION WAS MADE OF A CHANGE IN DEROS AS A RESULT OF THE TEMPORARY DUTY.) SINCE THOSE ORDERS CLEARLY DIRECTED THE MEMBER TO PERFORM TEMPORARY DUTY AWAY FROM HIS PERMANENT STATION AND TO RETURN UPON ITS COMPLETION, THE DUTY ENJOINED WAS OF THE TYPE FOR WHICH PER DIEM IS PAYABLE. THEREFORE, THAT CASE IS NOT DETERMINATIVE OF YOUR ENTITLEMENT TO PER DIEM UNDER YOUR ORDERS.

YOUR ORDERS DID NOT IN ANY MANNER INDICATE A TEMPORARY DUTY ASSIGNMENT BUT MERELY A CHANGE OF PERMANENT DUTY ASSIGNMENT WITHIN YOUR SQUADRON TO ANOTHER OPERATING LOCATION AND THE RECORD SHOWS THAT THE ORDER-ISSUING AUTHORITY DID NOT REGARD IT AS A TEMPORARY ASSIGNMENT. ALSO, THE PERIOD INVOLVED WAS LONGER THAN NORMALLY AUTHORIZED FOR TEMPORARY DUTY. WHILE IT MAY BE THAT DUTY ON THE ISLAND OF IE SHIMA WAS REGARDED AS REMOTE DUTY, THAT YOUR DEROS WAS CHANGED AS A RESULT OF SUCH DUTY, THAT THE ORDERS DID NOT SPECIFY PER DIEM WOULD NOT BE PAID, AND THAT YOU RETURNED TO OKINAWA FOR PROCESSING OUT, SUCH FACTS MAY NOT BE REGARDED AS ESTABLISHING THAT THE DUTY WAS TEMPORARY IN VIEW OF THE LANGUAGE OF THE ORDERS AND THE REPORTED INTENT OF THE ORDER ISSUING AUTHORITY.

DURING THE TIME THE ORDERS OF JANUARY 29, 1965, WERE IN EFFECT, IE SHIMA APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN YOUR ONLY STATION. THUS, IT MUST BE CONSIDERED THAT WHILE THERE YOU WERE NOT AT A TEMPORARY STATION AWAY FROM A PERMANENT STATION UNDER ORDERS WHICH DIRECTED YOUR RETURN TO THE PERMANENT STATION UPON COMPLETION OF THE TEMPORARY DUTY WITHIN THE CONTEMPLATION OF THE CITED REGULATIONS. ACCORDINGLY, THE SETTLEMENT OF JUNE 16, 1966, WAS CORRECT AND IS SUSTAINED.