Reimbursement of Lodging Expenses

A decision was requested as to whether a public member of the National Advisory Committee for the White House Conference on Aging (WHCOA) may be reimbursed the cost of lodging incurred in connection with scheduled committee meetings. The member's claim was not certified for payment on the basis of: (1) regulations which prohibit the payment of per diem instead of subsistence either at the employee's permanent duty station or the place of abode from which the employee commutes daily to his or her official station; and (2) the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) travel policy which precludes reimbursement of official travel expenses in the metropolitan area of the employee's permanent duty station. The member's voucher was administratively approved because her lodging was incurred for the convenience of the committee and not for the employee's convenience. Some members met informally each night to discuss the conference agenda. The White House Conference on Aging Act provides that members may be allowed travel expenses while away from their homes or regular places of business, including per diem in lieu of subsistence for persons employed intermittently by the Federal Government. The Act states that the actual and necessary expenses of official travel are reimbursable, in lieu of a per diem allowance, for travel in high rate geographical areas. Individuals employed intermittently in the Government service as consultants or experts are allowed travel and transportation expenses, not to exceed the maximum precribed rate, while traveling on official business for the Government away from their homes or regular places of business and while at places of Government employment or service. Therefore, the general rule that a Federal employee may not be paid a per diem allowance or actual subsistence expenses at his permanent duty station was not applicable, nor was the HHS travel policy which precludes reimbursement in the metropolitan area of the employee's permanent duty station. There is no doubt that the member incurred additional expenses because of her advisory committee duties and that travel to her home would have been impractical due to the lateness of the meetings. The lodging expenses were administratively approved by the agency as necessarily incident to travel on official business and were within the prescribed allowable rates. Accordingly, the member was entitled to reimbursement of the cost of the lodging expenses.