[Reconsideration of Claim for Reimbursement of Travel Costs to Duty Station]

A civilian employee of the Navy appealed a Claims Group disallowance of his claim for reimbursement for travel in a privately owned vehicle. The Navy recruited the employee from the University of Puerto Rico for an engineering position in California. The employee was informed that he would be reimbursed in full for his moving expenses. His travel orders stated that he was authorized to take a commercial airline flight from Puerto Rico to Florida and then to use his own automobile to travel from Florida to California. The block in his travel orders which ordinarily signifies whether the use of a car is or is not advantageous to the Government was not checked. After completing his travel, the employee claimed reimbursement for the applicable mileage, per diem, and air travel costs. However, his claim was denied because the Claims Group found that both the employee's travel orders and the pertinent regulations limited the amount of reimbursement to air fare. The employee filed an appeal because he believed that, regardless of the wording of the travel orders, agency regulations prescribe payment of his claim. GAO found that travel regulation provisions establish that the use of a privately owned automobile for first duty station travel is the most advantageous method. Accordingly, the Claims Group settlement was overruled, and the employee's claim may be paid.