[Request for Waiver of Overpayment of Allowances]

An Army employee on temporary appointment filed an appeal of a Claims Group decision, which denied his application for waiver of overpayment of a living quarters allowance and a cost-of-living allowance. The employee had been mandatorily retired from the Army and then rehired, as a reemployed annuitant, on temporary appointments for 6-month intervals. Because of his break in service, he was not entitled to foreign allowances at the time of his reappointment; however, due to administrative error, he continued to receive cost-of-living and living quarters allowances for three of the first four pay periods after his break in service. The Army recommended waiver of all overpayments after a certain date. The Claims Group acknowledged that the employee would not have realized that he was not entitled to the foreign allowances when he was rehired; however, it found fault on his part for not promptly inquiring regarding three payments which he received previous to the date beginning the recommended period of waiver. GAO found that, since the employee had been issued two erroneous earnings statements for work during the period in question, it was reasonable under the circumstances for him to assume that he was entitled to cost-of-living and living quarters allowances. Accordingly, since there was no indication of fraud, misrepresentation, fault, or lack of good faith on the part of the employee with regard to the overpayments prior to the commencement date of the recommended period of waiver, collection may be waived under the provisions of statutory law, and repayments made by the employee to the Army on this debt may be returned to him.