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United States Government Accountability Office: 
GAO: 

Report to Congressional Requesters: 

February 2013: 

Department of Justice: 

Executives' Use of Aircraft for Nonmission Purposes: 

GAO-13-235: 

GAO Highlights: 

Highlights of GAO-13-235, a report to congressional requesters. 

Why GAO Did This Study: 

DOJ components including the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration 
(DEA), and United States Marshals Service (USMS) own, lease, and 
operate a fleet of aircraft primarily to conduct DOJ mission flights, 
including counterterrorism and criminal surveillance and prevention of 
illicit drug trafficking into and within the United States. DOJ 
components also use these aircraft to transport DOJ executives, such 
as the Attorney General and the FBI Director, for official but 
nonmission purposes, and conduct flights to position aircraft for 
security reasons to transport these executives from Washington, D.C. 
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the General Services 
Administration (GSA) have established requirements for federal 
agencies regarding the use of government aircraft, including executive 
travel. 

GAO was asked to review nonmission-related travel by DOJ executives. 
GAO determined, for fiscal years 2007 through 2011, which DOJ 
executives used DOJ aircraft for nonmission travel and the frequency, 
purposes, and costs of such travel. GAO analyzed executive flight data 
from each DOJ component for fiscal years 2007 through 2011, and 
interviewed officials to identify the reasons that DOJ aircraft were 
used to transport DOJ executives for nonmission purposes and the 
frequency and costs of such flights, including flights taken 
specifically to position aircraft to transport executives. For 
purposes of this report, and consistent with executive branch policy, 
GAO defines nonmission travel as any travel conducted by executives 
that is not directly related to mission operations. 

What GAO Found: 

From fiscal years 2007 through 2011, three individuals who served as 
Attorney General (AG) and the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation (FBI) accounted for 95 percent (659 out of 697 flights) 
of all Department of Justice (DOJ) executive nonmission flights using 
DOJ aircraft at a total cost of $11.4 million. Specifically, the AG 
and FBI Director collectively took 74 percent (490 out of 659) of all 
of their flights for business purposes, such as conferences, meetings, 
and field office visits; 24 percent (158 out of 659) for personal 
reasons; and 2 percent (11 out of 659) for a combination of business 
and personal reasons. All AGs and FBI Directors are “required use” 
travelers who are required by executive branch policy to use 
government aircraft for all their travel, including travel for 
personal reasons, because of security and communications needs. 
However, according to DOJ officials, while the AG has historically 
been required to use government aircraft for all types of travel, 
including personal travel, the FBI Director had, until 2011, the 
discretion to use commercial air service for his personal travel. DOJ 
officials told us this explains the AG’s greater use of DOJ aircraft 
for personal reasons than the FBI Director. According to DOJ and FBI 
flight data we reviewed, all AGs and the FBI Director provided 
reimbursements for their personal travel in accordance with federal 
requirements. The FBI also conducts flights from a covert facility to 
Ronald Reagan National Airport to position aircraft to transport the 
AG and the FBI Director. Specifically, $1.5 million of the $11.4 
million for 659 AG and FBI Director flights from fiscal years 2007 
through 2011 was used to fly aircraft from this facility to Ronald 
Reagan National Airport prior to transporting these officials to their 
destinations. According to the FBI, these positioning flights are 
necessary because, among other things, the location where the FBI 
maintains the aircraft is an unmarked covert facility, and at times, 
the FBI initiates sensitive flight operations from this site. 

Figure: Nonmission Flights by DOJ Executives, Fiscal Years 2007 
through 2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: pie-chart] 

Attorney General: 53%; 366 flights; 
FBI Director: 42%; 293 flights; 
Other DOJ executives: 5%; 38 flights. 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

[End of figure] 

View [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-13-235]. For more 
information, contact, David C. Maurer at (202) 512-9627 or 
maurerd@gao.gov. 

[End of section] 

United States Government Accountability Office: 
Washington, DC 20548: 

Contents: 

Letter: 

Background: 

The Attorneys General and the FBI Director Were the Primary Users of 
DOJ Aircraft for Nonmission Purposes from Fiscal Years 2007 through 
2011 at a Cost of $11.4 Million: 

Agency Comments: 

and Our Evaluation: 

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology: 

Appendix II: Comments from the Department of Justice: 

Appendix III: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments: 

Figures: 

Figure 1: United States Marshals Service (USMS) Prisoner Transport 
Plane: 

Figure 2: FBI Gulfstream V Aircraft. 

Figure 3: Example of a Long-Distance Flight a Gulfstream V Aircraft 
Can Take without Refueling: 

Figure 4: FBI Flight Categories: 

Figure 5: Nonmission Flights by DOJ Executives, Fiscal Years 2007 
through 2011: 

Figure 6: Combined Purposes of All Attorney General and FBI Director 
Flights, Fiscal Years 2007 Through 2011: 

Figure 7: Individual Purposes for Attorney General and FBI Director 
Flights, Fiscal Years 2007 through 2011: 

Figure 8: Aircraft Used to Transport the Attorneys General and FBI 
Director from Fiscal Years 2007 through 2011: 

Figure 9: Flight Hour Breakouts for FBI's Two Gulfstream Vs, a de 
Havilland Dash 8 100, and a Citation from Fiscal Years 2007 through 
2011: 

Figure 10: Aircraft Costs for Attorney General and FBI Director 
Flights from Fiscal Years 2007 through 2011: 

Abbreviations: 

AAMS: Alliance Aviation Management System: 

AG: Attorney General: 

APSS: Automated Prisoner Scheduling System: 

ASO: Air Surveillance Operation: 

BOP: Bureau of Prisons: 

DEA: Drug Enforcement Administration: 

DOD: Department of Defense: 

DOJ: Department of Justice: 

FAA: Federal Aviation Administration: 

FMR: Federal Management Regulation: 

FTR: Federal Travel Regulation: 

GSA: General Services Administration: 

JMD: Justice Management Division: 

JPATS: Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System: 

MOU: memorandum of understanding: 

NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration: 

OMB: Office of Management and Budget: 

PFM: Professional Flight Management: 

SFT: Senior Federal Travel: 

USMS: United States Marshals Service: 

[End of section] 

February 26, 2013: 

The Honorable Chuck Grassley: 
Ranking Member: 
Committee on the Judiciary: 
United States Senate: 

The Honorable Jim Sensenbrenner: 
Chairman: 
Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and 
Investigations: 
Committee on the Judiciary: 
House of Representatives: 

Department of Justice (DOJ) components, including the Federal Bureau 
of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and 
United States Marshals Service (USMS) own, lease, and operate a fleet 
of aviation assets, including fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, 
that play a critical role in supporting DOJ's mission-related 
responsibilities and operations. These responsibilities include 
conducting counterterrorism and criminal surveillance, preventing 
illicit drug trafficking into and within the United States, and 
transporting prisoners. In addition to operations that support their 
missions, DOJ components use these aircraft to transport certain DOJ 
executives for travel other than for mission purposes. 

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the General Services 
Administration (GSA) established requirements for federal agencies 
regarding the use of government aircraft, including executive travel 
on these aircraft. OMB Circular A-126 sets forth requirements for 
agencies' use of government aircraft, including the types of travel 
that are appropriate and requirements that travelers reimburse the 
government for use of these aircraft for nonmission purposes.[Footnote 
1] According to the circular, agencies may use their aircraft only for 
official purposes[Footnote 2] and must report semiannually to GSA each 
use of such aircraft for nonmission travel by senior executives. 
[Footnote 3] GSA issued the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR), which 
also requires federal agencies to report on the use of their aviation 
assets, including executive travel. These provisions include the 
presumption that travel by common air carrier is the most advantageous 
method of transportation and must be used when reasonably available. 
[Footnote 4] GSA regulations provide that taxpayers should pay no more 
than necessary for the transportation and that travel on government 
aircraft may be authorized only when a government aircraft is the most 
cost-effective mode of travel.[Footnote 5] In addition, agencies may 
not determine that another mode of transportation is more advantageous 
on the basis of personal preference or inconvenience to the traveler. 
[Footnote 6] 

The circular and related regulations allow for nonmission use of 
government aircraft by government officials when no commercial airline 
or aircraft is reasonably available to fulfill the agency requirement 
or the actual cost of using a government aircraft is not more than the 
cost of using commercial airline or aircraft service.[Footnote 7] In 
addition, government aircraft are available for required use travel, 
which is travel that requires the use of government aircraft to meet 
bona fide communications needs, security requirements, or exceptional 
scheduling requirements of an executive agency.[Footnote 8] Certain 
executives have been designated by the President as "required use" 
travelers. Specifically, two executives within DOJ--the U.S. Attorney 
General and the FBI Director--have been designated as required use 
travelers, meaning they are authorized to travel aboard DOJ or other 
government aircraft regardless of their trip purpose. This includes 
travel for nonmission purposes, such as personal travel, because of 
their need for special protective security measures and secure 
communications while in flight. However, federal guidance requires 
that required use travelers, including the U.S. Attorney General and 
the FBI Director, reimburse the government for any travel that is for 
political or personal reasons.[Footnote 9] However, under departmental 
policy, DOJ noncareer appointees are generally prohibited from 
engaging in political activities, and DOJ officials stated that 
departmental policy prohibits travel for political purposes. We did 
not identify any trips taken by DOJ executives for political purposes, 
as discussed later in this report. 

While DOJ executive travel aboard component aircraft may be approved 
as required use travel on a trip-by-trip basis in accordance with 
federal guidance, the Attorney General and the FBI Director, as 
designated required use travelers, account for a significant number of 
all nonmission flights within DOJ and approval for these types of 
flights for DOJ executives other than the Attorney General or FBI 
Director is rare. 

You asked us to review the circumstances in which DOJ aircraft are 
being used to transport executives for nonmission purposes, including 
the costs of these flights. Specifically, for fiscal years 2007 
through 2011, we determined which DOJ executives used DOJ aircraft for 
nonmission travel and the frequency, purposes, and costs associated 
with such travel. 

While travel aboard government aircraft must be for official purposes, 
and may be mission or nonmission related,[Footnote 10] for the 
purposes of this report, consistent with executive branch policy, we 
define nonmission flights as those that do not constitute the 
discharge of any agency's official responsibilities; in other words, 
flights that are not directly related to mission operations.[Footnote 
11] These nonmission flights could include travel to participate in 
coordination meetings with other U.S. government entities and foreign 
organizations, field office site visits, and any personal travel by 
executives required to use government aircraft.[Footnote 12] We 
discuss the definition of nonmission flights in more detail later in 
this report. We did not review DOJ mission flight information as part 
of this review. We also did not review any DOJ executive travel aboard 
other U.S. government aircraft, such as executive flights aboard 
Department of Defense (DOD) or Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 
aircraft. In addition, because three different individuals served as 
U.S. Attorneys General within the time frames of our review and this 
report covers the tenure of all three; we report the percentage of 
nonmission flights taken by the Attorneys General in the aggregate. 
[Footnote 13] 

To identify which DOJ executives used DOJ aircraft for nonmission 
travel and the frequency, purposes, and costs of this travel, we 
determined which components owned, operated, or leased aircraft, and 
interviewed officials from these components to determine how they 
categorize and track executive travel, and which executives traveled 
on their aircraft. We then obtained and analyzed flight data records 
for fiscal years 2007 through 2011 from the FBI, DEA, USMS, and Senior 
Federal Travel (SFT) data that each of these components previously 
reported to GSA. We also obtained flight data records from DOJ's 
Justice Management Division for Attorney General travel for the same 
time period. To assess the reliability of DOJ executive flight data, 
we spoke with DOJ officials to gain an understanding of the processes 
and systems used to collect and record flight data and to understand 
any known limitations. We also verified the flight data estimated 
costs provided to us by multiplying aircraft flight hours by estimated 
variable costs per flight hour. Furthermore, we compared data provided 
to us by DOJ with executive flight data it had previously reported to 
GSA from fiscal years 2007 through 2011. However, because the FBI 
stopped reporting executive flight data to GSA at the end of fiscal 
year 2008, we were only able to make comparisons of the FBI's data for 
fiscal years 2007 and 2008. To assess the reliability of FBI flight 
data not reported to GSA, we reviewed all available flight source 
documents for Attorney General and FBI Director flights taken in 
fiscal years 2010 and 2011. We found that the FBI flight data provided 
to us were sufficiently reliable for the purposes of our report. For 
additional information on our scope and methodology, see appendix I. 

We conducted this performance audit from March 2012 through February 
2013 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing 
standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit 
to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable 
basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. 
We believe that the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for 
our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. 

Background: 

DOJ Component Aircraft: 

Within DOJ, USMS, DEA, and the FBI own, lease, and operate government 
aircraft primarily to accomplish and provide support for their various 
mission operations, such as transporting prisoners; preventing illicit 
drug trafficking into and within the United States; and conducting a 
variety of counterterrorism, intelligence, and criminal surveillance 
activities. For example, USMS operates 12 aircraft primarily for air 
surveillance and prisoner transport.[Footnote 14] DEA and the FBI also 
own and operate aircraft, including fixed-wing aircraft and 
helicopters, to prevent, among other things, illicit drug trafficking 
into and within the United States; to conduct counterterrorism and 
criminal surveillance operations; to conduct aerial photography; and 
to transport personnel, evidence, and equipment during a crisis or in 
support of time-sensitive investigations. 

The FBI primarily uses its aircraft for mission operations, but also 
operates a small fleet of large-cabin, long-range business jets, 
including two Gulfstream Vs, for both mission and nonmission travel. 
These aircraft possess long-range capabilities that enable FBI to 
conduct long-distance domestic and international flights without the 
need to stop for refueling--which is vital to support certain missions 
related to counterterrorism and other sensitive FBI investigations. 
FBI also authorizes the use of these aircraft for executives, 
including DOJ executives who travel for nonmission purposes, such as 
required use travel or other official travel visits to FBI field 
offices and coordination meetings with other U.S. government entities 
or organizations.[Footnote 15] These aircraft provide secure 
communication capabilities allowing officials aboard to remain in 
constant contact with government officials and various organizations 
on the ground. While DOJ may authorize executives' use of these 
aircraft for nonmission purposes, a significant portion of this travel 
comprises required use travel by the Attorney General and the FBI 
Director, who must use government aircraft for all of their travel 
because of the secure communications onboard. According to FBI 
officials, DOJ rarely approves nonmission travel aboard these aircraft 
for DOJ executives other than the Attorney General and the FBI 
Director. In addition, because the Attorney General and the FBI 
Director are based in Washington, D.C., aircraft are often moved, or 
"positioned," from other locations to Ronald Reagan National Airport 
to transport them. Figures 1 and 2 provide examples of DOJ component 
aircraft, and figure 3 provides an example of the type of long-
distance flights these aircraft can take without stopping to refuel. 

Figure 1: United States Marshals Service (USMS) Prisoner Transport 
Plane: 

[Refer to PDF for image: photograph] 

Source: USMS. 

[End of figure] 

Figure 2: FBI Gulfstream V Aircraft. 

[Refer to PDF for image: photograph] 

Source: FBI. 

[End of figure] 

Figure 3: Example of a Long-Distance Flight a Gulfstream V Aircraft Can 
Take without Refueling: 

[Refer to PDF for image: illustrated world map] 

Initial departure location: 
Reagan National Airport, Washington, D.C. 
Destination: Afghanistan; 
Gulfstream V: flight range of over 6,000 miles allows for nonstop 
flight. 

Source: GAO; Map Resources (map). 

[End of figure] 

Federal Requirements for Executive Travel aboard Government Aircraft: 

OMB Circular A-126 and related GSA implementing regulations require 
that federal agencies operate government aircraft only for official 
purposes, and also define the categories of official use.[Footnote 16] 
These categories include travel that is (1) mission required (i.e., to 
meet mission requirements), (2) required use, and (3) other travel for 
the conduct of agency business. 

[Side bar: Presidentially Designated Required Use Travelers: 

The President of the United States has determined that within DOJ all 
Attorney General and FBI Director travel qualifies as required use 
regardless of whether it is for official, personal, or political 
purposes. According to a July 1993 and a March 2004 White House 
memorandum, the responsibilities of these individuals are such that 
they require instantaneous secure communications capability with the 
White House, their departments, and other agencies. In addition, in an 
emergency, they must return to Washington, D.C., or to other 
destinations on an expedited basis. These individuals have a 
heightened need for security because of their official duties and 
public visibility, a fact that substantially increases the likelihood 
of threats to their personal safety. Accordingly, government aircraft 
have been made available to these officials for both official and 
unofficial travel. According to DOJ officials, the AG has historically 
been required to use government aircraft for all types of travel, 
including personal travel, and the FBI Director had, until 2011, the 
discretion to use commercial air service for his personal travel, but 
is now also required by DOJ to use government aircraft for all travel. 
End of side bar] 

* Mission required is travel that constitutes the discharge of an 
agency's official responsibilities, such as intelligence and 
counternarcotic activities, transportation of prisoners, training, and 
other such travel. 

* Required use is travel by an executive agency officer or employee, 
where the use of government aircraft is required for bona fide 
communications or security needs of the agency or exceptional 
scheduling requirements. Agencies may designate officials as required 
use travelers on a trip-by-trip basis. However, certain high-level 
government officials, such as the Attorney General and the FBI 
Director, are presidentially designated as required use travelers for 
all of their travel and travel aboard DOJ or other government 
aircraft, including for personal purposes, even though it may be more 
costly than the price of comparable common carrier flights. 

* Other official travel is defined as official travel that is not 
required use or mission travel. It shall be authorized only when there 
is no commercial airline or aircraft service that is reasonably 
available to effectively fulfill the agency requirement or the actual 
cost of using a government aircraft is not more than the cost of using 
commercial airline or aircraft service. 

OMB Circular A-126 does not specifically define the category of 
nonmission travel aboard government aircraft; however, it does provide 
examples of activities that should not be categorized as mission 
required, such as travel to give speeches, attend conferences or 
meetings, and make routine site visits. Furthermore, OMB Circular A-
126 provides requirements for senior federal officials traveling on 
government aircraft, and reimbursement required for such travel, 
including required use travel.[Footnote 17] Specifically, the circular 
provides that required use travelers must reimburse the government the 
full coach fare for travel that is for wholly personal or political 
purposes, and the appropriate share of the full coach fare for trips 
that include only a portion of travel for personal or political 
reasons.[Footnote 18] However, under departmental policy, DOJ 
noncareer appointees are generally prohibited from engaging in 
political activities, and DOJ officials stated that departmental 
policy prohibits travel for political purposes. We did not identify 
any trips taken by DOJ executives for political purposes. 

In addition, GSA issued the FTR, which applies to federal agencies 
that authorize travel on government aircraft, and also requires that 
these agencies report on a semiannual basis to GSA information about 
senior federal officials and nonfederal travelers who fly aboard the 
agency's aircraft.[Footnote 19] Specifically, the FTR provides that 
agencies must report the person's name, whether the person is a senior 
federal official or a nonfederal traveler, and the official purpose of 
the trip and destination. For official travel, agencies must also 
report the comparable commercial fare for the flight taken,[Footnote 
20] and for personal or political travel, the amount the traveler must 
reimburse the government (i.e., the full coach fare or appropriate 
share of that fare), among other information. DOJ and component 
officials said that components, specifically the FBI, DEA, and USMS, 
were responsible for tracking DOJ executives' use of component 
aircraft and reporting this information to GSA. However, in 2009, FBI 
officials determined that as an intelligence agency, the bureau was 
exempt from reporting to GSA on senior federal officials who travel on 
government aircraft, and therefore, stopped reporting this information 
to GSA.[Footnote 21] 

The Attorneys General and the FBI Director Were the Primary Users of 
DOJ Aircraft for Nonmission Purposes from Fiscal Years 2007 through 
2011 at a Cost of $11.4 Million: 

Mission versus Nonmission Travel: 

DOJ does not have aviation assets assigned to the department's 
headquarters; however, DEA, USMS, and the FBI, which are the only DOJ 
components with aviation assets, each house, maintain, and operate 
aircraft to support their respective missions. DOJ components apply 
guidance from OMB circulars and travel categories differently 
depending primarily on the purposes for which they use their aircraft, 
and no DOJ component categorizes travel as nonmission. For example, 
DEA officials stated that they use only two travel categories--mission 
required and required use--and that they did not have a separate 
category for nonmission or other official travel because they do not 
approve flights for purposes that are not relevant to the mission of 
their agency. DEA's flight data for fiscal years 2007 through 2011 
showed a total of 114 executive flights on DEA aircraft categorized as 
either mission required or required use for which DEA provided all 
available records. According to DEA officials, while they did not have 
a category or definition for nonmission travel, they used their 
professional judgment to identify a small percentage of these flights 
as executive travel that they said could be considered as being for 
nonmission purposes. We analyzed the list of flights that DEA provided 
to us and reviewed the source documents for those flights but were 
unable to independently determine the purpose of these flights. As a 
result, we did not include data from DEA in our analysis. DEA 
officials told us they are in the process of updating their Aviation 
Operation Handbook to ensure they are better categorizing and 
documenting the purpose of all DEA flights, including flights that 
could be categorized as nonmission. 

USMS officials also told us that they did not have a category for 
nonmission travel and stated they use USMS aircraft only for mission 
purposes. According to USMS officials, if an executive or nonfederal 
traveler flies aboard a USMS aircraft, that person does so aboard USMS 
prisoner transport flights.[Footnote 22] According to USMS flight data 
for fiscal years 2007 through 2011, there were a total of 10 flights 
in which an executive was on board USMS aircraft, but all of these 
flights were for the purposes of prisoner transport. For example, on 
May 18, 2009, a DOJ executive official traveled aboard a prisoner 
transport flight from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; to Harrisburg, 
Pennsylvania; to Atlanta, Georgia; and back to Oklahoma City to 
observe prisoner drop-off and pickup operations and procedures. 
However, USMS officials told us this flight is considered a mission 
flight because they are transporting prisoners, which is part of their 
official mission responsibilities. 

As shown in figure 4, the FBI also does not have a category for 
nonmission travel. Instead it uses two travel categories: (1) mission 
required and (2) other official travel. FBI officials explained that 
the other official travel category includes all flights that are not 
directly related to mission operations, such as flights to transport 
executives for purposes of attending meetings and making field office 
visits. FBI officials also told us that almost all of the other 
official travel aboard FBI aircraft is travel conducted by the 
Attorney General and the FBI Director. For these required use flights, 
FBI uses subcategories to define trip purpose: (1) business, such as 
speaking engagements on behalf of the agency or meetings with 
government officials; (2) wholly personal, such as travel to an 
executive's home; and (3) a combination of business and personal or 
political.[Footnote 23] For purposes of our analysis, we are using the 
term "nonmission travel" to refer to all required use or other 
official travel on DOJ aircraft. 

Figure 4: FBI Flight Categories: 

[Refer to PDF for image: illustration] 

FBI flight categories: 

Mission-required: 
Flights in support of counterterrorism and criminal surveillance 
operations, aerial photography, and transportation of witnesses and 
equipment, among other things. 

Other official travel: 
Any flight not directly related to mission operations, including 
executive travel for coordination meetings with other U.S. government 
entities and foreign organizations, field office site visits,
and any personal travel by executives required to use government 
aircraft. 
Almost all other official travel is conducted by the Attorney General 
and FBI Director as required use flights. The FBI uses three 
subcategories to clarify required use flight purpose: 
* Business: Speaking engagements on behalf of the agency or meetings 
with government officials; 
* Wholly personal: Travel for personal reasons, such as a vacation or 
travel to an executive's home; 
* Combination of business and personal or political. 

Source: GAO. 

[End of figure] 

DOJ Executive Nonmission Travel: 

From fiscal years 2007 through 2011, three individuals who served as 
Attorneys General and the FBI Director were the primary users of DOJ 
aircraft for other official travel purposes (i.e., 
nonmission).[Footnote 24] Specifically, as figure 5 illustrates, our 
analysis of DOJ and component executive travel data showed that 
Attorneys General and the FBI Director's travel constituted 95 percent 
(659 out of 697 flights) of all DOJ executive flights categorized as 
other official travel.[Footnote 25] The total cost of these 659 
Attorney General and FBI Director flights was $11.4 million.[Footnote 
26] Travel by the Attorney General composed 53 percent of the flights 
(366 out of 697), while the FBI Director's composed 42 percent (293 
out of 697). The remaining 5 percent of flights (38 out of 697) were 
taken by other DOJ executives, such as the FBI's Deputy Director, at a 
total cost of $1 million. 

Figure 5: Nonmission Flights by DOJ Executives, Fiscal Years 2007 
through 2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: pie-chart] 

Attorney General: 53%; 366 flights; 
FBI Director: 42%; 293 flights; 
Other DOJ executives: 5%; 38 flights. 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

[End of figure] 

As shown in figure 6, the Attorneys General and the FBI Director 
collectively took 74 percent (490 out of 659) of all of their flights 
for business purposes, such as conferences, meetings, and field office 
visits; 24 percent (158 out of 659) of all flights for personal 
reasons; and 2 percent (11 out of 659) for a combination of business 
purposes and personal reasons.[Footnote 27] 

Figure 6: Combined Purposes of All Attorney General and FBI Director 
Flights, Fiscal Years 2007 Through 2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: pie-chart] 

Business: 75%; 491 flights; 
Personal: 24%; 158 flights; 
Combined business and personal: 2%; 10 flights. 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

Note: Because we performed calculations before rounding, some 
percentages may not add up to 100. 

[End of figure] 

On an individual basis, Attorneys General took 56 percent (206 out of 
366) of flights for business reasons and 41 percent (151 out of 366) 
for personal reasons,[Footnote 28] while the FBI Director took 97 
percent (284 out of 293) for business reasons and 2 percent (7 out of 
293) for personal reasons, as shown in figure 7.[Footnote 29] 
According to FBI flight data we reviewed, the Attorneys General and 
the FBI Director provided reimbursements of the applicable full coach 
fare for their personal travel, which are transferred to the 
Department of the Treasury.[Footnote 30] 

Figure 7: Individual Purposes for Attorney General and FBI Director 
Flights, Fiscal Years 2007 through 2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: 2 pie-charts] 

Attorney General: 

Business: 56%; 206 flights; 
Personal: 41%; 151 flights; 
Combined business and personal: 2%; 10 flights. 

FBI Director: 

Business: 97%; 285 flights; 
Personal: 2%; 7 flights; 
Combined business and personal: less than 1%; 1 flight. 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

Note: DOJ officials stated that the Attorney General has historically 
been required to use government aircraft for all travel, including 
personal travel, while FBI officials stated that the FBI Director had, 
until recently, the discretion to use commercial air service for 
personal travel, which he elected to do most of the time to save on the 
use of government funds. Because we performed calculations before 
rounding, some percentages may not add up to 100. 

[End of figure] 

According to DOJ officials, the requirement to use government aircraft 
for personal travel has not always been the same for the Attorney 
General and the FBI Director. DOJ officials stated that the Attorney 
General has historically been required to use government aircraft for 
all travel, including personal travel, while FBI officials stated that 
the FBI Director had, until recently, the discretion to use commercial 
air service for personal travel, which he elected to do most of the 
time to save on the use of government funds. FBI officials told us 
that in 2011, for reasons related to the Director's need to access 
secure communication systems while traveling, DOJ made a policy change 
requiring the Director to use government aircraft for all of his 
travel, including personal travel.[Footnote 31] As a result, both the 
FBI Director and the Attorney General must now use government aircraft 
for all travel regardless of its purpose. FBI officials told us this 
explains the differences in the use of FBI aircraft for personal 
reasons between the Attorneys General and the FBI Director. 

Aircraft Usage and Costs for Attorney General and FBI Director Flights: 

According to the FBI, three aircraft are primarily used to transport 
the Attorneys General and the FBI Director. As shown in figure 8, from 
fiscal years 2007 through 2011, 61 percent (405 out of 659) of flights 
were aboard one of the two Gulfstream V aircraft, and 25 percent (165 
out of 659) of flights were aboard the FBI's CE-750 (Citation). The 
remaining 14 percent (89 out of 659) of flights were aboard other FBI 
aircraft. 

Figure 8: Aircraft Used to Transport the Attorneys General and FBI 
Director from Fiscal Years 2007 through 2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: pie-chart] 

Gulfstream V (2 in inventory): 61%; 405 flights; 
Citation (CE-750) (1 in inventory): 25%; 165 flights; 
Other FBU aircraft: 14%; 89 flights. 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

[End of figure] 

FBI officials told us that these Gulfstream Vs and the Citation were 
the three aircraft primarily used for Attorney General and FBI 
Director travel because they have secure communications, larger 
passenger capacity, and the long-distance range that is necessary for 
their required use travel. However, FBI officials also noted that 
these aircraft are used for executive transport only when they are not 
needed for mission purposes--that is, mission purposes always take 
first priority. Specifically, investigative/operational missions are 
the first priority, required maintenance and pilot training is the 
second priority, and executive travel is the third priority. FBI 
officials stated that when they receive a nonmission flight request 
for an aircraft that is prescheduled for a mission-required flight, 
the Attorney General or the FBI Director makes the final determination 
for how the flight will be prioritized, but that they always adhere to 
these priorities to ensure that no mission flights are canceled 
because of a nonmission flight request. According to FBI officials, 
they are aware of one instance in which a nonmission flight was 
terminated because of a conflict, and that the FBI has been able to 
avoid such terminations because of the availability of multiple 
aircraft in its fleet capable of transporting executives.[Footnote 32] 

As shown in figure 9, while the majority of FBI aircraft are used 
primarily for mission flights, some FBI aircraft had more flight hours 
associated with nonmission flights than mission flights from fiscal 
years 2007 through 2011. Specifically, from fiscal years 2007 through 
2011, 60 percent (2,206 of 3,657) of all flight hours for the FBI's 
two Gulfstream V aircraft were associated with nonmission flights to 
transport the Attorneys General, FBI Director, and other DOJ 
executives. However, the FBI's Citation had 29 percent of its flight 
hours (596 of 2,063) associated with nonmission flights, and the de 
Havilland Dash 8 100 (DHC-8) had 6 percent of its total flight hours 
(127 of 1,966) associated with nonmission flights. For these aircraft, 
38 percent of their flight hours (2,929 of 7,686) were associated with 
transporting the Attorneys General, the FBI Director, and other DOJ 
executives for nonmission flights.[Footnote 33] 

Figure 9: Flight Hour Breakouts for FBI's Two Gulfstream Vs, a de 
Havilland Dash 8 100, and a Citation from Fiscal Years 2007 through 
2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: horizontal bar graph] 

Aircraft: Gulfstream V (2 in inventory); 
Mission and other flight hours: 39%; 
Nonmission flight hours: 61%. 

Aircraft: de Haviland Dash Q 400 (DHC-8); 
Mission and other flight hours: 93%; 
Nonmission flight hours: 7%. 

Aircraft: Citation (CE-750) (1 in inventory); 
Mission and other flight hours: 71%; 
Nonmission flight hours: 29%. 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

[End of figure] 

From fiscal years 2007 through 2011, the cost for all Attorney General 
and FBI Director nonmission travel was $11.4 million: $5.8 million (51 
percent) for the Attorney General and $5.6 million (49 percent) for 
the FBI Director.[Footnote 34] Of the $5.8 million for Attorney 
General flights, about $4 million (69 percent) was for business travel 
and $1.6 million (28 percent) was for personal flights.[Footnote 35] 
For the FBI Director, $5.5 million (98 percent) was for business 
flights, while the remaining costs were for seven personal flights. In 
addition, because 86 percent of all Attorney General and FBI Director 
nonmission flights were taken aboard the FBI's Gulfstream Vs or 
Citation, the total flight costs generally resulted from the use of 
these aircraft. For example, the total cost of the 570 flights taken 
aboard these three aircraft was $11 million--96 percent of all flight 
costs for the Attorneys General and the FBI Director from fiscal years 
2007 through 2011. As figure 10 illustrates, 405 flights were taken 
aboard the FBI's Gulfstream Vs at a cost of $9 million, and 165 
flights were on the Citation at a cost of $2 million.[Footnote 36] 

As previously noted, OMB Circular A-126 requires that the government 
be reimbursed for any personal travel at the full coach fare between 
cities. This reimbursement amount, or equivalent commercial fare, is 
generally less than the cost of operating a government aircraft. For 
example, a personal trip taken by the Attorney General to New York in 
November, 2010 using the FBI's Gulfstream V had an estimated flight 
cost of $15,894, but the reimbursement at the equivalent commercial 
fare was $420.80. The FBI's flight data showed that the FBI Director 
took a total of 10 trips aboard FBI aircraft that required 
reimbursement from fiscal years 2007 through 2011, and he reimbursed 
the equivalent commercial fare for these flights totaling $4,556 in 
equivalent commercial cost, while 88 of the Attorney General's trips 
required reimbursements during the same time period, and he reimbursed 
the equivalent commercial fare for these flights totaling $46,982. DOJ 
and FBI officials explained that while the Attorney General and FBI 
Director did not use DOJ aircraft to travel for political purposes, 
they provided reimbursements for travel involving personal purposes in 
accordance with federal requirements.[Footnote 37] DOJ officials told 
us that the Attorney General sends his reimbursements via check to 
DOJ's Finance Office, which is responsible for depositing these funds 
to the Department of the Treasury. Similarly, FBI officials told us 
that the FBI Director pays reimbursements for his personal travel 
through the FBI Finance Division, which is responsible for depositing 
these funds to the Department of the Treasury. 

Figure 10: Aircraft Costs for Attorney General and FBI Director 
Flights from Fiscal Years 2007 through 2011: 

[Refer to PDF for image: pie-chart] 

Gulfstream V (2 in inventory): 61%; 405 flights ($9 million); 
Citation (CE-750) (1 in inventory): 25%; 165 flights ($2 million); 
Other FBI aircraft: 14%; 89 flights ($300,000). 

Source: GAO analysis of Department of Justice data. 

[End of figure] 

In addition, the costs of individual flights can vary depending on the 
aircraft being used and the length of the flight. For example, a 2-
hour flight aboard the FBI's Gulfstream V on May 15, 2010, cost 
$9,940, while a 2-hour flight aboard the FBI's Citation on September 
9, 2010, cost $7,408 because the Citation costs about $1,000 less per 
hour to operate than the Gulfstream V. Further, a 2-hour domestic 
flight on the Gulfstream V aircraft cost $9,940; while an almost 15-
hour international flight on the same aircraft cost $75,440. 

FBI Positions Aircraft to Transport the Attorney General and FBI 
Director: 

Because the Attorney General and FBI Director are based in Washington, 
D.C., FBI aircraft are often flown from another location to Ronald 
Reagan National Airport to pick these officials up and take them to 
their destination--on what is called a positioning flight. 
Specifically, the FBI conducts these flights from a storage facility 
to Ronald Reagan National Airport to pick up the Attorney General and 
the FBI Director and then returns the aircraft to this facility once 
each trip is completed.[Footnote 38] Of the 659 Attorney General and 
FBI Director flights taken from fiscal years 2007 through 2011 for 
nonmission purposes, 505 (77 percent) had an associated positioning 
flight. The total cost of these positioning flights accounted for $1.5 
million of the $11.4 million total spent on Attorney General and FBI 
Director travel.[Footnote 39] According to the FBI, these positioning 
flights are necessary because, among other things, the location where 
FBI maintains its aviation fleet is an unmarked, covert facility, and 
at times, the FBI initiates sensitive flight operations from this 
site. As a result, these aircraft need to be housed there instead of 
at more public airports closer to Washington, D.C., a location that 
could compromise operations. As discussed above, because the majority 
of Attorney General and FBI Director flights taken during this time 
period were aboard one of three FBI aircraft (two Gulfstream Vs and a 
Citation), almost all of the positioning costs associated with 
Attorney General and FBI Director nonmission flights were for these 
three aircraft.[Footnote 40] 

Agency Comments and Our Evaluation: 

We provided a draft of this report to DOJ for official review and 
comment. DOJ provided written comments on the draft report, which are 
reproduced in full in appendix II. DOJ also provided technical 
clarifications, which we incorporated where appropriate. DOJ's letter 
stated that departmental policy prohibits travel for political 
purposes even though OMB guidance and GSA regulations allow required 
use travel for business, personal or political purposes. Our review of 
data on executive use of DOJ aviation assets found no trips taken by 
DOJ for political purposes. We also reflect in several places 
throughout our report that DOJ policy prohibits travel for political 
purposes. 

As agreed with your offices, unless you publicly announce the contents 
of this report earlier, we plan no further distribution until 30 days 
from the report date. At that time, we will send copies to the 
Attorney General and other interested parties. This report will also 
be available at no charge on GAO's website at [hyperlink, 
http://www.gao.gov]. 

If you or your staff have any questions about this report, please 
contact me at (202) 512-9627 or maurerd@gao.gov. Contact points for 
our Office of Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may be found 
on the last page of this report. Key contributors to this report are 
listed in appendix III. 

Signed by: 

David C. Maurer: 
Director: 
Homeland Security and Justice Issues: 

[End of section] 

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology: 

To identify, for fiscal years 2007 through 2011, which Department of 
Justice (DOJ) executives used DOJ aircraft for nonmission travel and 
the frequency, purposes, and costs associated with such travel, we 
interviewed DOJ and component officials to determine which components 
owned, operated, or leased government aircraft. After determining that 
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement 
Administration (DEA), and United States Marshals Service (USMS) were 
the three DOJ components with government aircraft, we then interviewed 
officials from these components to determine how they each categorize 
and track executive travel, and which DOJ executives traveled on their 
aircraft. To better understand relevant federal requirements governing 
the management and use of government aircraft, including executive 
travel aboard government aircraft, we reviewed the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-126, the General Service 
Administration's (GSA) Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) and Federal 
Management Regulation (FMR) as contained in Title 41 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations, and DOJ-and component-specific guidance governing 
the management and use of agency aircraft. We also interviewed DOJ 
component officials to obtain an understanding of component-specific 
guidance they used for the approval of executive travel on government 
aircraft. 

We then obtained and analyzed DOJ executive flight data from each 
component's flight data systems for fiscal years 2007 through 2011, 
including flight records from the FBI's and DEA's Professional Flight 
Management (PFM) systems, USMS's Automated Prisoner Scheduling System 
(APSS), and Senior Federal Travel (SFT) data that each component 
reported to GSA. We analyzed these data to identify the number of DOJ 
executive flights taken for nonmission purposes, including which DOJ 
executives used these aircraft, which aircraft they used, the 
frequency with which they used these aircraft, and the cost of each 
flight. We verified the flight data estimated costs provided to us by 
multiplying aircraft flight hours by estimated variable costs per 
flight hour. These aircraft-specific estimated variable costs per hour 
were provided by Conklin and de Decker software that is updated 
annually. We obtained documentation for the current version of the 
Conklin and de Decker software that the FBI uses, verified the Conklin 
and de Decker cost categories that the FBI uses, and reviewed the 
Conklin and de Decker website to better understand the company, 
software, and cost categories. Conklin and de Decker flight hour cost 
estimates are considered the government-wide and industry standard for 
aviation cost accounting and are widely used in private industry as 
well as government agencies, including GSA, the Federal Aviation 
Administration (FAA), and the National Aeronautics and Space 
Administration (NASA). For each flight and flight segment, we 
identified the travel date(s), flight location (i.e., domestic or 
foreign), the type of nonmission travel (i.e., personal, political, or 
business travel), estimated per hour flight cost and total estimated 
flight cost, and reimbursement costs for any DOJ executive nonmission 
travel for personal reasons. 

To identify the reasons and rationales for which the FBI positioned 
aircraft at Ronald Reagan National Airport to transport the Attorney 
General and the FBI Director, we interviewed FBI officials to better 
understand the purposes for which these types of flights may occur. To 
determine the frequency and costs of such travel, we obtained and 
analyzed relevant DOJ component flight data for fiscal years 2007 
through 2011 to identify the number of positioning flights taken, the 
specific costs of these flights, and the specific aircraft used for 
these flights. 

To assess the reliability of DOJ executive flight data, we interviewed 
DOJ component officials to gain an understanding of the processes and 
databases used to collect and record flight data and to understand 
existing quality control procedures and any known limitations. We also 
compared executive flight data provided to us by DOJ with executive 
flight data it had previously reported to GSA for fiscal years 2007 
through 2011. To conduct this comparison, we used the flight date as a 
common identifier for each flight record, and identified for each 
flight, the passengers (i.e., DOJ executives), estimated flight cost, 
type of travel (i.e., personal, business, or combination), aircraft 
type, total flight hours (including positioning flight hours), and 
related reimbursement information for personal travel. However, 
because the FBI stopped reporting executive flight data to GSA in 
2009, we were only able to compare the FBI's data with GSA's data for 
fiscal years 2007 and 2008. Specifically, in 2009, FBI officials 
determined that as an intelligence agency, the bureau was exempt from 
reporting to GSA on senior federal officials who travel on government 
aircraft, and therefore, it stopped reporting this information to GSA. 

Because we were not able to compare GSA and FBI data for fiscal years 
2009 through 2011, we reviewed Attorney General and FBI Director 
flight records for fiscal years 2010 and 2011 and for any other senior 
DOJ executives traveling aboard FBI aircraft from fiscal years 2007 
through 2011, for nonmission purposes. Specifically, we compared the 
FBI flight data records with available source documents, which 
included the Passenger Manifest, Special Operations Flight Request 
Form, After Action Report, Professional Flight Management (PFM) 
reports, and other internal memorandums, as available. The source 
documents for helicopter flights included Senior Federal Travel Form 
(GSA Form 3641), HRT/THU Flight Strip, HRT Flight Operations Mission 
Brief, and a memorandum for the Deputy Attorney General. We also 
compared the FBI's Attorney General flight data records for fiscal 
years 2007 through 2011 with Attorney General flight data records 
maintained by DOJ's Justice Management Division (JMD). On the basis of 
the results of our comparison of FBI, JMD, and GSA executive flight 
data for fiscal years 2007 through 2011 and our review of executive 
flight data for fiscal years 2010 and 2011, we determined that FBI's 
flight data records were sufficiently reliable for the purposes of 
this report. 

To assess the reliability of the DEA flight data records, we discussed 
with DEA officials their process for tracking, documenting, and 
reporting DOJ and component executives' use of DEA aircraft and 
conducted an on-site review of the agency's executive travel records. 
We found that DEA officials categorize executive travel on agency 
aircraft as either mission required or required use. While DEA's 
flight data for fiscal years 2007 through 2011 showed a total of 114 
executive flights aboard DEA aircraft that were categorized as either 
mission or required use, DEA officials identified a small percentage 
of these flights that could be considered as being for nonmission 
purposes primarily from their recollection of the flight purpose and 
whether or not it was associated with a specific case. In addition, we 
reviewed the list of flights DEA officials provided to us that they 
considered to be nonmission travel and reviewed the source documents 
for those flights. These source documents included DEA Aircraft 
Mission Report (DEA Form 379), VIP Transport, SES A-126 Travel 
Checklist, printouts from DEA's Alliance Aviation Management System 
(AAMS), and e-mails. However, we were unable to determine the purpose 
of these flights from reviewing DEA's flight documentation. 

Because DEA does not have guidance that specifically addresses how the 
agency applies definitions outlined in OMB Circular A-126 to its 
aviation operations, including identifying mission versus nonmission 
travel, DEA officials did not maintain completed documents related to 
each flight they determined as nonmission. Moreover, DEA officials did 
not consistently document comments related to the specific purpose for 
travel on either Form 379 or A-126--DEA's primary source documents for 
executive flight records. As a result, we were unable to verify how 
DEA officials determined whether flights including a DOJ or DEA 
executive were for nonmission versus mission purposes. Additionally, 
since we could not use the documentation DEA provided us to identify a 
subset of nonmission flights for DEA executive travel, we determined 
that DEA nonmission flight data records were not sufficiently reliable 
for the purposes of this report. 

We conducted this performance audit from March 2012 through February 
2013 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing 
standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit 
to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable 
basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. 
We believe that the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for 
our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. 

[End of section] 

Appendix II: Comments from the Department of Justice: 

U.S. Department of Justice: 
Washington, DC 20530: 

February 19, 2013: 

David C. Maurer: 
Director: 
Homeland Security and Justice Team: 
Government Accountability Office: 
441 G Street, NW: 
Washington, DC 20548: 

Dear Mr. Maurer: 

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Government 
Accountability Office's draft report entitled: Department of Justice: 
Executives' Use of Aircraft for on Mission Purposes (GAO-13-235). 
While the report made no recommendations to the Department of Justice
(Department), we would like to clarify that Department political 
appointees do not travel for political purposes even though such 
travel may be allowable under Executive branch policy. Longstanding 
DOJ policy prohibits such travel and the Departmental Ethics Office has
confirmed this policy. Any reference to political travel in the report 
should clearly reflect that Department policy prohibits travel for 
political purposes. 

Also, the Department appreciates GAO's effort to incorporate into the 
report many of the detailed technical comments the Department has 
provided separately. If you need further assistance, please do not 
hesitate to contact me. 

Sincerely, 

Lee J. Lofthus: 
Assistant Attorney General for Administration: 

[End of section] 

Appendix III: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments: 

GAO Contact: 

Dave Maurer, (202) 512-9627 or maurerd@gao.gov: 

Staff Acknowledgments: 

In addition to the contact named above, Chris Currie, Assistant 
Director; Chris Ferencik, Analyst in Charge; Richard Brown; Vanessa 
Dillard; Stan Kostyla; Octavia Parks; Janet Temko; and Lara Miklozek 
made significant contributions to the work. 

[End of section] 

Footnotes: 

[1] Government aircraft means any aircraft owned, leased, chartered, 
or rented and operated by an executive agency. 

[2] OMB Circular No. A-126(7), Improving the Management and Use of 
Government Aircraft (May 22, 1992). In addition, 31 U.S.C. § 1344 
provides that agency funds may be expended only for the maintenance, 
operation, or repair of any passenger carrier to the extent that the 
carrier is used to provide transportation for official purposes. 
According to OMB Circular A-126, official travel means (1) travel to 
meet mission requirements, (2) required use travel, and (3) other 
travel for the conduct of agency business. 

[3] OMB Circular A-126 (10)(c). In response to a February 10, 1993, 
presidential memorandum, "Restricted Use of Government Aircraft," OMB 
Bulletin No. 93-11, Fiscal Responsibility and Reducing Perquisites 
(Apr. 19, 1993), directed agencies to report all uses of government 
aircraft by senior executive branch officials, including mission 
travel, and directed GSA to modify the current guidance on agency 
reports on nonmission uses of government aircraft to incorporate this 
requirement. Federal agencies are also required to report information 
on members of the families of senior federal officials and any 
nonfederal travelers, with certain exceptions. 

[4] FTR §§ 301-10.5(a), 301-70.101(b). The GSA regulations also 
pertain to common carrier travel by rail and bus as the most 
advantageous modes of transportation. 

[5] FTR § 301-10.260; see also FTR § 301-70.800. This includes common 
carrier travel by air, rail, or bus. 

[6] FTR § 301-70.101(b). 

[7] OMB Circular A-126(8)(a); FTR § 301-10.261. In addition, "space 
available" travel is authorized when an aircraft is already scheduled 
for use for official travel and a traveler's use of the aircraft does 
not require a larger aircraft or result in more than minor additional 
cost to the government, among other things. 

[8] OMB Circular A-126(5)(d); FTR § 300-3.1. Under FTR § 300-3.1, 
examples include a need for 24-hour secure communication, highly 
unusual circumstances that present a clear and present danger, or a 
national emergency or another compelling operational consideration. 

[9] Under OMB Circular A-126 and GSA regulations, required use travel 
may include travel for official, personal, or political reasons, and 
required use travelers must reimburse the government the full coach 
fare for a wholly personal or political trip, the appropriate share of 
the full coach fare for an official trip during which the traveler 
engages in political activities, or the excess of the full coach fare 
for an official trip during which the traveler flies to more than one 
location for personal reasons. 

[10] 31 U.S.C. § 1344(a)(1). 

[11] See OMB Circular A-126. 

[12] See OMB Circular A-126 for additional examples of mission and 
nonmission purposes. 

[13] The following three individuals served as U.S. Attorney General 
for fiscal years 2007 through 2011: Alberto Gonzales (February 2005 
through September, 2007), Michael Mukasey (November 2007 through 
January 2009), and Eric Holder (February 2009 to the present). 

[14] USMS has two aviation operations divisions, the Air Surveillance 
Operation (ASO) and the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation 
System (JPATS). ASO's primary mission is to provide air surveillance 
capabilities to the Investigative Operations Divisions and the USMS 
District Field Offices in their efforts to pursue and apprehend 
fugitives. JPATS's mission is to transport federal detainees, 
deportable aliens and prisoners, and sentenced individuals, whether in 
the custody of USMS or the Bureau of Prisons (BOP). JPATS also 
provides prisoner transportation for DOD, state, and local law 
enforcement agencies on a reimbursable, space-available basis. Of the 
aircraft that USMS operates, it owns 10 and leases 2. Specifically, 
JPATS leases 2 McDonnell Douglas MD-83s and owns 2 Hawker 800As and a 
SABB 2000, and ASO owns 6 Cessna T206s and a Cessna 208. 

[15] Under departmental policy, DOJ noncareer appointees are generally 
prohibited from engaging in political activities, Office of the 
Attorney General, Restrictions on Political Activities, (Aug. 8, 
2000), and DOJ officials stated the departmental policy prohibits 
travel for political purposes. We did not identify any trips taken by 
DOJ executives for political purposes. 

[16] See OMB Circular A-126(5), (7), and (8). 

[17] Senior federal officials are persons employed at the Executive 
Service level or above, and include presidential appointees. 

[18] According to OMB Circular A-126, for required use travel in which 
an employee engages in political activities, the government shall be 
reimbursed for the appropriate share of the full coach fare of the 
entire trip. Full coach fare is the coach fare available to the 
general public between the day that the travel was planned and the day 
the travel occurred. In addition, for required use travel in which an 
employee flies to one or more locations for personal reasons, the 
government shall be reimbursed the excess of the full coach fare of 
all flights taken by the employee on the trip over the full coach fare 
of the flights that would have been taken by the employee had there 
been no personal activities on the trip. 

[19] The FTR is found at 41 C.F.R. chs. 300-304. According to the FTR, 
its purpose is to implement statutory requirements and executive 
branch policy for travel by federal civilian employees and others 
authorized to travel at the government's expense. The Federal 
Management Regulation (FMR) states that it is applicable to all 
federally funded aviation activities that use government aircraft to 
accomplish official business, with certain exceptions. Additionally, 
GSA issued the FMR, which requires that federal agencies report to GSA 
inventory, cost, and utilization data on government aircraft on a 
quarterly basis as well as information on the senior federal officials 
and others who travel on government aircraft. The portion of the FMR 
dealing with government aircraft is found at 41 C.F.R. pt 102-33. 

[20] This includes the comparable city-pair fare (if available to the 
traveler) or the full coach fare if the city-pair fare is not 
available. The City Pair Program is a program established by GSA and 
the airline industry to provide lower rates to federal and military 
employees on official travel. Federal and military travelers on 
official business are required to use the contract carrier unless a 
specific exception applies. City-pair fares may not be used by 
contractors. 

[21] We are currently following up with GSA on the FTR reporting 
requirements, including how GSA has determined which federal aviation 
travel activities are exempt from these requirements. 

[22] According to USMS officials, DOJ and component executives 
typically travel aboard agency aircraft to observe how the prisoner 
transport system works. 

[23] According to DOJ and FBI officials we spoke with, the Attorney 
General and the FBI Director are prohibited from traveling for 
political purposes and, as such, do not use DOJ aircraft for political 
travel purposes. 

[24] While flights for other official travel purposes (i.e., 
nonmission) are approved for the Attorney General and the FBI 
Director, FBI officials told us these individuals often travel with 
several other officials who are traveling in support of DOJ and FBI 
official business, such as protective security details and operational 
support personnel. 

[25] An individual fight is counted per calendar day. As a result, 
each flight occurrence represented could include one or more flight 
legs if the flight occurred on the same calendar day. 

[26] FBI officials told us that other official travel (i.e., 
nonmission travel) by senior executives other than the FBI Director or 
Attorney General is highly discouraged by the department, and only on 
very rare occasions will FBI executives request the use of government 
aircraft to engage in other travel for the conduct of agency business. 
When such a request is made, the FBI's Office of General Counsel 
reviews the request and, if appropriate, sends it to the Associate 
Deputy Attorney General for approval. In addition, all costs are 
estimated costs consisting of total flight hours multiplied by 
estimated variable costs per hour. 

[27] From fiscal years 2007 through 2011, the Attorneys General took 9 
flights that were categorized as a combination of business and 
personal, while the FBI Director took 2 flights that were categorized 
as a combination of business and personal. 

[28] The remaining 2 percent (9 out of 366) of Attorneys General 
flights were for a combination of business and personal reasons. In 
addition, because we performed calculations before rounding, some 
percentages may not add up to 100. 

[29] The FBI Director took 2 flights that were a combination of 
business and personal. 

[30] Reimbursement at the applicable full coach fare must also be 
provided for any individuals accompanying the Attorney General and the 
FBI Director on their personal travel aboard government aircraft, such 
as family members. 

[31] FBI officials told us that more specific information surrounding 
this policy change is classified. 

[32] According to the FBI, in 2002, the bureau established a 
memorandum of understanding (MOU) with FAA to allow FBI use of FAA's 
Gulfstream IV aircraft on an as-needed basis for mission-related and 
required use travel, including for use as alternative transportation 
to resolve conflicts in flight scheduling for mission or required 
travel. However, FBI officials also told us they have yet to exercise 
this agreement because they have not needed to use FAA's Gulfstream IV 
aircraft as a result of being able to effectively resolve conflicts in 
flight scheduling with its current fleet of aircraft. 

[33] These aircraft include two Gulfstream V's, the DHC-8, and the 
Citation. 

[34] All costs are estimated costs consisting of total flight hours 
multiplied by estimated variable costs per hour. 

[35] About $166,000 was used for a combination of business and 
personal flights. 

[36] The remaining 89 flights were taken aboard other FBI aircraft at 
a cost of roughly $300,000. These other aircraft included an FBI 
tactical helicopter and DHC-8. 

[37] Three individuals served as U.S. Attorney General for fiscal 
years 2007 through 2011, and according to DOJ and FBI officials we 
spoke with, none of them used DOJ aircraft for political purposes, but 
did provide reimbursements for any personal travel in accordance with 
federal requirements. 

[38] The specific location of the covert facility was deemed highly 
sensitive by the FBI and cannot be publicly reported. 

[39] Of the 659 total Attorney General and FBI Director flights taken 
for nonmission purposes from fiscal years 2007 through 2011, 154 
flights did not have a positioning cost associated with them. These 
were generally flights departing from foreign airports or helicopter 
flights. 

[40] Specifically, of the $1.5 million spent from fiscal years 2007 
through 2011 to position aircraft for the purposes of Attorney General 
and FBI Director travel, $43,347 was spent to position an aircraft 
other than one of the FBI's Gulfstream V aircraft or the Citation. 

[End of section] 

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