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B-183563, MAY 4, 1976

B-183563 May 04, 1976
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EMPLOYEE'S 16 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER WAS ILL AND UNABLE TO ACCOMPANY HIM AND HIS WIFE WHEN THEY PERFORMED PERMANENT TRANSFER OF STATION TRAVEL BY AUTOMOBILE. EMPLOYEE IS ENTITLED TO MILEAGE AND PER DIEM WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED IF DAUGHTER HAD ACCOMPANIED PARENTS TO NEW STATION SINCE. ALTHOUGH NO FARE WAS PAID FOR DAUGHTER. SHE COULD NOT HAVE TRAVELED WITHOUT ESCORT AND DELAY IN HER TRAVEL WAS DUE TO ILLNESS. WHEN THE DAUGHTER WAS WELL ENOUGH TO TRAVEL. THE CHILD WAS ACCOMPANIED BY AN ADULT. THE ONLY CHARGE FOR THE TRIP WAS THE FARE FOR ONE ADULT. HE IS CLAIMING THE MILEAGE AND PER DIEM WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWABLE HAD THE DAUGHTER TRAVELED TO OAK RIDGE IN THE AUTO WITH HIM AND HIS WIFE.

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B-183563, MAY 4, 1976

EMPLOYEE'S 16 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER WAS ILL AND UNABLE TO ACCOMPANY HIM AND HIS WIFE WHEN THEY PERFORMED PERMANENT TRANSFER OF STATION TRAVEL BY AUTOMOBILE. EMPLOYEE PAID ADULT'S AIR FARE WHEN SHE BROUGHT DAUGHTER TO NEW STATION. EMPLOYEE IS ENTITLED TO MILEAGE AND PER DIEM WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED IF DAUGHTER HAD ACCOMPANIED PARENTS TO NEW STATION SINCE, ALTHOUGH NO FARE WAS PAID FOR DAUGHTER, SHE COULD NOT HAVE TRAVELED WITHOUT ESCORT AND DELAY IN HER TRAVEL WAS DUE TO ILLNESS, AN ACCEPTABLE COMPELLING REASON.

M.K. FARNSWORTH - DEPENDENT'S TRAVEL EXPENSES - ESCORT FOR CHILD TRAVELING ALONE BY AIR:

THIS ACTION CONCERNS A REQUEST BY JAMES F. WAGNER, ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION, FOR AN ADVANCE DECISION AS TO THE PROPRIETY OF CERTIFYING FOR PAYMENT THE CLAIM OF AN EMPLOYEE, M.K. FARNSWORTH, FOR REIMBURSEMENT OF TRAVEL EXPENSES INCURRED IN BEHALF OF HIS INFANT DAUGHTER, INCIDENT TO MR. FARNSWORTH'S TRANSFER FROM RICHLAND, WASHINGTON, TO OAK RIDGE, TENNESSEE, IN APRIL 1974.

THE RECORD INDICATES THAT ON MARCH 31, 1974, MR. FARNSWORTH AND HIS WIFE AND CHILD TRAVELED FROM RICHLAND, WASHINGTON, TO PORTLAND, OREGON. APRIL 1, 1974, MR. FARNSWORTH AND HIS WIFE DEPARTED PORTLAND AND ARRIVED AT OAK RIDGE ON APRIL 8, 1974. THEIR DAUGHTER, AGE 16 MONTHS, REMAINED IN PORTLAND BECAUSE OF ILLNESS. ON APRIL 25, WHEN THE DAUGHTER WAS WELL ENOUGH TO TRAVEL, SHE TRAVELED BY COMMERCIAL AIRLINE FROM PORTLAND, OREGON, TO OAK RIDGE, TENNESSEE. SINCE AIRLINE REGULATIONS DO NOT ALLOW A CHILD OF THAT AGE TO FLY ALONE, THE CHILD WAS ACCOMPANIED BY AN ADULT, THE EMPLOYEE'S COUSIN. BECAUSE THE AIRLINE DOES NOT CHARGE FOR CHILDREN UNDER 2 YEARS OF AGE, THE ONLY CHARGE FOR THE TRIP WAS THE FARE FOR ONE ADULT.

MR. FARNSWORTH HAS SUBMITTED A VOUCHER LISTING THE ACTUAL TRAVEL EXPENSES OF HIS DAUGHTER, INCLUDING THE ONE-WAY AIR FARE FOR THE COUSIN ACCOMPANYING THE CHILD. HOWEVER, INSTEAD OF CLAIMING THE ACTUAL COSTS, HE IS CLAIMING THE MILEAGE AND PER DIEM WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWABLE HAD THE DAUGHTER TRAVELED TO OAK RIDGE IN THE AUTO WITH HIM AND HIS WIFE. THE LATTER AMOUNT IS LESS THAN THE ACTUAL COSTS.

GENERALLY, TRAVEL INCIDENT TO A CHANGE OF STATION, INCLUDING THAT OF THE IMMEDIATE FAMILY, SHOULD BE ACCOMPLISHED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. HOWEVER, WHEN TRAVEL IS DELAYED FOR ACCEPTABLE COMPELLING REASONS, THE RIGHT TO REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE EXPENSES OF SUCH TRAVEL WILL NOT BE AFFECTED. SEE B-178790, AUGUST 1, 1973. IN THE PRESENT CASE, THE ILLNESS OF THE EMPLOYEE'S DAUGHTER, WELL DOCUMENTED IN THE FILES, IS AN ACCEPTABLE COMPELLING REASON FOR THE DELAY IN THE DAUGHTER'S TRAVEL. CF. B-94493, JUNE 16, 1950.

THE USE OF A PRIVATELY OWNED AUTOMOBILE FOR TRAVEL TO AN EMPLOYEE'S NEW PERMANENT DUTY STATION IS DEEMED ADVANTAGEOUS TO THE GOVERNMENT. FEDERAL TRAVEL REGULATIONS (FPMR 101-7) PARA. 2-2.3A (MAY 1973). HOWEVER, THERE IS NO REQUIREMENT THAT DEPENDENTS ACCOMPANY THE EMPLOYEE IN THE PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE. THUS, THE FACT THAT THE EMPLOYEE'S DAUGHTER TRAVELED BY A DIFFERENT MODE OF TRANSPORTATION DOES NOT BAR RECOVERY OF THE EXPENSES OF SUCH TRAVEL. SEE FTR PARA. 2-2.2 (MAY 1973).

THE AMOUNT OF REIMBURSEMENT ALLOWABLE FOR EXPENSES IN CONNECTION WITH THE TRAVEL OF A DEPENDENT IS LIMITED TO THE ACTUAL COST OF THE TRAVEL OF THAT DEPENDENT. IN THE PRESENT CASE, THE ONLY ACTUAL COST SHOWN IN SUPPORT OF THE CLAIM WAS THE COST OF AN AIRLINE TICKET MADE OUT TO THE EMPLOYEE'S COUSIN. THE COUSIN WAS NOT ENTITLED TO TRAVEL EXPENSES IN HER OWN BEHALF SINCE SHE WAS NOT A DEPENDENT OF THE EMPLOYEE. THUS, THE COST OF HER TICKET MAY BE REIMBURSABLE ONLY IF IT IS ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE TRAVEL OF THE CHILD. THE AIRLINE RATE FOR A CHILD UNDER 2 YEARS OF AGE IS ZERO. HOWEVER, THE INFANT WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO TRAVEL ON THE AIRLINE UNLESS SHE IS ACCOMPANIED BY AN ADULT. THEREFORE, IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR THE EMPLOYEE'S DAUGHTER TO JOIN HIM UNLESS SOME COST WAS INCURRED. THAT COST WAS THE PRICE ON ONE ADULT FARE, REQUIRED BY AIRLINE REGULATION, IN ORDER THAT THE CHILD COULD FLY. NO LESSER COST COULD HAVE BEEN INCURRED IN TRANSPORTING THE CHILD BY COMMERCIAL AIRLINE. CONSEQUENTLY, THE COST OF THE ADULT COUSIN'S TICKET FROM PORTLAND, OREGON, TO KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE, WAS A COST OF THE TRAVEL OF THE EMPLOYEE'S INFANT DAUGHTER.

MR. FARNSWORTH HAS SUBMITTED ADEQUATE SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION TO SATISFY US THAT HE ACTUALLY PAID FOR THE COST OF THE AIRLINE TICKET FROM PORTLAND TO KNOXVILLE. HOWEVER, SINCE HIS TRAVEL AUTHORIZATION DID NOT CONTEMPLATE TRAVEL BY HIM AND HIS DEPENDENTS BY DIFFERENT MODES OF TRAVEL, REIMBURSEMENT SHOULD BE LIMITED TO CONSTRUCTIVE COST HAD THE INFANT TRAVELED WITH HER PARENTS BY PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE.

ACCORDINGLY, MR. FARNSWORTH'S CLAIM FOR REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE CONSTRUCTIVE COSTS OF THE TRAVEL OF HIS DAUGHTER BY PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE FROM PORTLAND, OREGON, TO OAK RIDGE, TENNESSEE, IN THE AMOUNT OF $144.42, MAY BE ALLOWED, IF OTHERWISE PROPER.

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