B-130527, APR 3, 1974

B-130527, APR 3, 1974

MEMBER ASSIGNED PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION FROM KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, TO ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA, AUTHORIZED TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE, MAY NOT BE PAID FOR ADDITIONAL MILEAGE BASED ON SPEEDOMETER READINGS, AS UNDER APPLICABLE REGULATIONS, MILEAGE PAYMENT MUST BE BASED ON OFFICIAL DISTANCES OVER SHORTEST USUALLY TRAVELED HIGHWAY ROUTES.

TO COL. ROLLAND W. HAMELIN:

WE REFER TO YOUR LETTER OF JANUARY 18, 1973, IN WHICH YOU IN EFFECT APPEAL THE TRANSPORTATION AND CLAIMS DIVISION SETTLEMENT OF SEPTEMBER 22, 1971, WHICH DENIED REFUND OF COLLECTION FOR EXCESS MILEAGE, AND YOU REQUEST FURTHER CONSIDERATION OF YOUR CLAIM FOR ADDITIONAL MILEAGE FOR PERSONAL TRAVEL INCIDENT TO A PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION FROM KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, TO ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA.

BY LETTER ORDER NO. 26-68, DATED MAY 7, 1968, DEFENSE ATTACHE OFFICE, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, YOU WERE DETACHED FROM DUTY AT KABUL AND DIRECTED TO PROCEED AND REPORT TO ADDIS ABABA, FOR DUTY. UNDER THESE ORDERS, YOU WERE AUTHORIZED TO TRAVEL BY PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE AND TO TRAVEL IN IRAN, IRAQ, SAUDI ARABIA, AND KUWAIT. YOU AND YOUR WIFE, FOLLOWING THIS ROUTE, DEPARTED KABUL ON JULY 2, 1968, AND DROVE TO ASMARA, ETHIOPIA, FROM WHICH POINT YOU COMPLETED YOUR TRAVEL BY GOVERNMENT PLANE AND YOUR WIFE CONTINUED TO ADDIS ABABA BY AUTOMOBILE.

YOU WERE PERMITTED MILEAGE ALLOWANCES BASED UPON YOUR SPEEDOMETER READINGS OF 5,495 MILES FOR YOUR TRIP FROM KABUL TO ASMARA, AND 6,163 MILES FOR YOUR WIFE'S TRIP FROM KABUL TO ADDIS ABABA. THEREAFTER, IT BEING DETERMINED THAT THE OFFICIAL DISTANCE BETWEEN KABUL AND ASMARA IS 4,140 MILES, AND THAT BETWEEN KABUL AND ADDIS ABABA IS 4,808 MILES, COLLECTION WAS MADE FROM YOU IN THE AMOUNT OF $162.60, REPRESENTING THE DIFFERENCE AT $0.06 A MILE OF 2,710 MILES (1,355 MILES EACH FOR YOU AND YOUR WIFE). YOU WERE LATER ASSESSED AN ADDITIONAL $25.40, IN THAT YOUR TRIP BY PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE WAS COMPLETED BY GOVERNMENT CARRIER AND CONSTITUTED "MIXED TRAVEL" WITHIN THE MEANING OF PARAGRAPH M4154 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS (CH. 174, JULY 1, 1967), ENTITLING YOU TO ONLY $0.05 A MILE FOR YOUR TRIP BY AUTOMOBILE BUT PERMITTING YOU AN ALLOWANCE FOR TWO DAYS PER DIEM. YOU NOW REQUEST FURTHER CONSIDERATION OF YOUR CLAIM FOR MILEAGE IN EXCESS OF THE OFFICIAL DISTANCES CALCULATED BY THE FINANCE CENTER, U.S. ARMY.

YOUR ROUTE, AS AUTHORIZED BY YOUR TRAVEL ORDERS, TOOK YOU FROM KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, TO TEHRAN, IRAN, AND TO BAGHDAD, IRAQ. FROM BAGHDAD YOU TRAVELED THROUGH KUWAIT AND ACROSS SAUDI ARABIA, THROUGH THE CITIES OF RIYADH AND JIDDAH. YOU CROSSED THE RED SEA BY SHIP FROM JIDDAH TO MASSAWA, ETHIOPIA, AND DROVE FROM THERE TO ASMARA.

IT APPEARS THAT THE OFFICIAL ROUTE ROUGHLY PARALLELS YOUR OWN FROM KABUL TO BAGHDAD. AT BAGHDAD, HOWEVER, THE OFFICIAL ROUTE TURNS INTO JORDAN, THROUGH JERUSALEM AND ISRAEL, ACROSS THE SINAI TO ISMAILIYA, EGYPT, AND TRAVERSES EGYPT AND THE SUDAN, PROCEEDING TO ASMARA, ETHIOPIA.

YOU REFER TO LETTER DATED JULY 18, 1972, FROM OUR TRANSPORTATION AND CLAIMS DIVISION AND YOU INDICATE THAT THE OFFICIAL ROUTE CHOSEN BY OUR OFFICE IS "IMPOSSIBLE" IN THAT ONE "CANNOT CROSS THE JORDON BORDER AT JERUSALEM, DRIVE ACROSS ISRAEL AND THE SINAI DESERT, ENTER EGYPT AND PROCEED TO ASMARA." CONTRARY TO YOUR APPARENT BELIEF, THE MILEAGE AND OFFICIAL ROUTE SHOWN IN LETTER OF JULY 18, 1972, WAS BASED ON INFORMATION FURNISHED US BY THE FIELD SERVICES OFFICE, DISTANCE DIVISION, FINANCE CENTER, U.S. ARMY, THE SERVICE RESPONSIBLE FOR DETERMINING OFFICIAL MILEAGE INCIDENT TO TRAVEL OF MILITARY PERSONNEL.

UNDER SECTIONS 404 AND 406 OF TITLE 37, U.S.C. MEMBERS OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICES ARE ENTITLED ON PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION TO RECEIVE, FOR PERSONAL AND DEPENDENT TRAVEL, TRANSPORTATION OR MILEAGE ALLOWANCES BASED ON DISTANCES ESTABLISHED "*** OVER THE SHORTEST USUALLY TRAVELED ROUTE, UNDER MILEAGE TABLES PREPARED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY ***."

PARAGRAPHS M4151, M4155, AND M7003-3 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS REQUIRE THAT MILEAGE PAYMENTS TO MEMBERS AND DEPENDENTS BE BASED UPON THE "OFFICIAL DISTANCE" BETWEEN PERMANENT DUTY STATIONS AS DETERMINED, UNDER DIRECTION OF THE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY, BY THE FINANCE CENTER, U.S. ARMY.

THE STATUTORY PROVISIONS CONTEMPLATE THAT THE OFFICIAL DISTANCES ESTABLISHED UNDER THE SECRETARY'S DIRECTION SHALL BE USED IN COMPUTING THE ENTITLEMENT OF MEMBERS OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICES FOR TRAVEL BY THEM UNDER COMPETENT ORDERS. RECOGNIZING THIS INTENT, WE SAID IN OUR DECISION B- 166267 OF APRIL 17, 1969 (COPY ENCLOSED):

"*** THE QUESTION OF WHAT ROUTES ARE TO BE USED IN ESTABLISHING THOSE OFFICIAL DISTANCES IS A MATTER SOLELY WITHIN THE DISCRETION OF THE SECRETARY, AND OUR OFFICE MAY NOT QUESTION THE LEGALITY OR CORRECTNESS OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE METHOD USED IN ESTABLISHING THE HIGHWAY DISTANCES."

FOR YOUR INFORMATION, IN PARAGRAPH 5B OF ARMY REGULATION 55-61 (SEPTEMBER 18, 1967), CONTAINING THE OFFICIAL TABLE OF DISTANCES FOR FOREIGN TRAVEL, IT IS STATED THAT THE DISTANCES HAVE BEEN COMPUTED OVER THE SHORTEST USUALLY TRAVELED HIGHWAY ROUTES AS SHOWN ON THE LATEST AVAILABLE MAPS.

ACCORDINGLY, ON THE RECORD BEFORE US, SINCE YOU ARE ENTITLED ONLY TO AN ALLOWANCE FOR THE OFFICIAL DISTANCE BETWEEN KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, AND ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA, AND SINCE YOU WERE PAID ON THAT BASIS, WE MUST THEREFORE DISALLOW YOUR CLAIM FOR ADDITIONAL MILEAGE ALLOWANCE. THE SETTLEMENT OF SEPTEMBER 22, 1971, IS SUSTAINED.