[HHS Employee's Claim for Waiver of Erroneous Travel Expenses Payment]

A Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) employee appealed the denial of his request for reimbursement of money HHS collected from him for a travel overpayment, contending that: (1) his secretary did not give him the travel advance which caused the overpayment; (2) he had not authorized anyone to collect the advance for him; (3) if there was an error, he was not responsible; and (4) HHS improperly investigated the matter. GAO held that: (1) HHS followed usual office practice in designating the claimant's secretary to collect the travel funds; (2) the employee was responsible for the loss or theft of the travel advance, since the record indicated that he received it; and (3) HHS could not waive the overpayment, since it occurred prior to the effective date of waiver coverage for travel advances. GAO would not consider the allegations concerning the agency's investigation, since that would require an investigation or adversarial hearing. Accordingly, the claim was denied.