[Response to USDA Request for Advance Decision Concerning Employee's Entitlement to Reimbursement of Relocation Expenses]

The Department of Agriculture requested an advance decision regarding a transferred employee's claim for reimbursement for: (1) a fee he paid to deed back his residence to the mortgage holder; and (2) legal fees related to the title transfer. GAO held that: (1) the fee that the employee paid to deed back his residence was nonreimbursable because it constituted a loss due to market conditions; and (2) the employee's legal fees were related to the title transfer and, as such, were reimbursable. Accordingly, the claim was denied in part and allowed in part.