[Response to Request for Decision Concerning Independent Contractor's Reimbursement for Travel Costs]

The National Mediation Board (NMB) requested a decision concerning whether a neutral board member was entitled to reimbursement of expenses incurred when he traveled by an indirect route. NMB denied the member's claim for reimbursement for air fare because he had also conducted personal business during the trip. GAO held that the member was entitled to reimbursement for travel by an indirect route in an amount not to exceed the cost of travelling by the direct route or the actual cost. Accordingly, the claim was allowed.