B-140320, FEB. 17, 1960

B-140320, FEB. 17, 1960

TO HONORABLE ANGUS WARD:

THIS REFERS TO THE CERTIFICATE OF SETTLEMENT ISSUED BY OUR CLAIMS DIVISION ON MAY 5, 1959, CONCERNING YOUR TRAVEL EXPENSE CLAIMS AND, ALSO, TO YOUR VARIOUS REPLIES CONCERNING THE ITEMS DISALLOWED AND THE SETOFF ACTION TAKEN IN THAT SETTLEMENT TO RECOVER CERTAIN AMOUNTS ALREADY PAID TO WHICH OUR OFFICE HAD TAKEN EXCEPTION.

THE FIRST ITEM SHOWN IN THE CERTIFICATE OF SETTLEMENT AS HAVING BEEN DISALLOWED IS:

"COST OF SHIPPING YOUR SAFARI CAR OR TRUCK FROM KARACHI, PAKISTAN TO GENOA, ITALY ($735.84) AND STORAGE THEREON AT GENOA FROM MARCH 25, 1956 TO APRIL 3, 1956 ($9.11) DISALLOWED. NO REIMBURSEMENT AUTHORIZED FOR SHIPMENT OF MORE THAN ONE CAR. $744.95.'

UPON REVIEW, WE NOTE THAT THE REASON FOR DISALLOWANCE GIVEN IN THE SETTLEMENT THAT NO REIMBURSEMENT IS AUTHORIZED FOR SHIPMENT OF MORE THAN ONE CAR IS IN ERROR, AS POINTED OUT IN YOUR REPLY. THIS ITEM WAS ADMINISTRATIVELY SUSPENDED BY THE STATE DEPARTMENT FOR THE PROPER REASON THAT REIMBURSEMENT OF THE COST OF A SHIPMENT MADE BY FOREIGN VESSEL WOULD BE CONTRARY TO PROVISIONS OF LAW. THAT IS THE REASON WHY THE DISALLOWANCE OF THE SHIPPING COSTS ($735.84) MUST BE SUSTAINED. HOWEVER, SINCE TWO CARS WERE NOT INVOLVED, THE STORAGE COST OF $9.11 AT GENOA MAY NOW BE ALLOWED.

THE SECOND ITEM OF DISALLOWANCE OF $95.23 FOR MILEAGE CLAIMED FROM KABUL TO KARACHI, WAS NOT RECLAIMED BY YOU. FOR THE RECORD, HOWEVER, THE DISALLOWANCE IS AFFIRMED FOR THE REASONS GIVEN IN THE SETTLEMENT.

THE DISALLOWANCE OF $15.91 FOR VARIOUS BUS, TAXI, AND SUBWAY FARES, AND PERSONAL EXPENSES WILL BE AMENDED TO ALLOW $4.80, REPRESENTING THE "SUPPLEMENTAL FARES" PAID TO AMERICAN EXPORT LINES ON TWO STEAMSHIP TICKETS FROM ALGECIRAS TO NEW YORK, SINCE THE TARIFFS SHOW THIS TO BE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF THE FARES.

OF THE COST OF YOUR TICKET ON THE SS INDEPENDENCE, GENOA TO NEW YORK, THE AMOUNT OF $354.50 WAS ADMINISTRATIVELY DISAPPROVED BY THE STATE DEPARTMENT ON THE CONSTRUCTIVE BASIS OF WHAT THE MINIMUM FIRST CLASS FARE WOULD HAVE BEEN ON THE SS FOUR ACES. IN OUR CLAIMS DIVISION SETTLEMENT OF MAY 5, 1959, YOU WERE ALLOWED AN ADDITIONAL $40 BASED ON THE MINIMUM FIRST CLASS FARE ABOARD THE SS INDEPENDENCE. IN EFFECT, THAT ACTION APPROVED YOUR SAILING ON THE SS INDEPENDENCE; THAT IS, WE ACCEPTED YOUR REASONS FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO BOOK PASSAGE ON THE SS FOUR ACES. HOWEVER, IN THE ABSENCE OF A SHOWING BY YOU THAT THE ACCOMMODATIONS YOU ACTUALLY OCCUPIED--- WHICH WERE SUPERIOR TO MINIMUM FIRST CLASS--- WERE, IN FACT, THE LOWEST FIRST CLASS ACCOMMODATIONS AVAILABLE ON THE SS INDEPENDENCE AT THE TIME YOUR PASSAGE WAS BOOKED, WE ARE UNABLE TO ALLOW YOU MORE THAN THE MINIMUM FIRST CLASS FARE ON THAT SHIP, AS WAS DONE, LEAVING THE AMOUNT OF $314.50 DISALLOWED.

THE AMOUNT OF $107.39 REPRESENTS THE COST OF MOVING YOUR EFFECTS FROM STORAGE IN COIN TO YOUR RESIDENCE. SINCE THE DEPARTMENT HAS APPROVED YOUR RECLAIM BECAUSE THE STORAGE FOR A LONGER PERIOD THAN 90 DAYS WAS CLEARLY BEYOND YOUR CONTROL, THE AMOUNT OF $107.39 WILL NOW BE ALLOWED.

OF THE AMOUNT SETOFF IN THE SETTLEMENT ON ACCOUNT OF UNCOLLECTED OVERPAYMENTS TO YOU AS SHOWN ON VARIOUS NOTICES OF EXCEPTION ISSUED BY OUR OFFICE AGAINST ITEMS ON VOUCHER NO. 213651, ACCOUNTS OF J. F. CANNON, THE AMOUNTS OF $170 (OCEAN FREIGHT ON CAMIONETTE CAR FROM GENOA TO ALGECIRAS); $24 (LIGHTERAGE AT ALGECIRAS); AND $12.22 (UNLOADING 89 CASES OF EFFECTS AT TORREMOLINAS), WILL NOW BE ALLOWED ON THE BASIS OF YOUR EXPLANATIONS IN THE REPLY TO THE NOTICE OF EXCEPTION. ALTHOUGH WE NOTE THAT YOU DO NOT RECLAIM THE AMOUNT OF $654 AS THE COST OF SHIPPING 89 CASES OF EFFECTS FROM KARACHI TO GENOA, WHICH WAS DISALLOWED BECAUSE THE SHIPMENT WAS BY A FOREIGN VESSEL, THAT DISALLOWANCE IS HEREBY AFFIRMED FOR PURPOSES OF RECORD.

THE REMAINING ITEMS TO BE CONSIDERED REPRESENT VARIOUS AMOUNTS SETOFF ON ACCOUNT OF UNCOLLECTED OVERPAYMENTS AS SHOWN ON NOTICES OF EXCEPTION ISSUED BY OUR OFFICE AGAINST ITEMS ON SEVERAL VOUCHERS IN THE ACCOUNTS OF HELEN M. NAGAY. AFTER A COMPLETE REVIEW OF YOUR ENTIRE TRAVEL EXPENSE ACCOUNT UNDER THE TRAVEL ORDERS INVOLVED IN THOSE SHIPMENTS, WE HAVE CONCLUDED THAT WHILE YOUR OVER-ALL WEIGHT ALLOWANCE OF 24,000 POUNDS DEFINITELY WAS EXCEEDED, YOUR VOLUME ALLOWANCE OF 2,400 CUBIC FEET WAS NOT. THEREFORE, THE EXCEPTIONS TAKEN ON THE BASIS THAT BOTH YOUR OVER-ALL WEIGHT AND VOLUME ALLOWANCE WAS EXCEEDED WILL NOW BE REMOVED. THE EVIDENCE IN FILE, HOWEVER, CLEARLY SHOWS THAT THE SHIPMENTS OF LIQUORS DID EXCEED YOUR ALLOWANCE OF 480 POUNDS (2 PERCENT OF 24,000) AND 24 CUBIC FEET (1 PERCENT OF 2,400--- NOT 2 PERCENT AS YOU BELIEVED) AND, THEREFORE, THE EXCEPTIONS TAKEN ON THAT BASIS ARE AFFIRMED. CERTAIN OF THE VOUCHERS AND INVOICES INVOLVED CONTAINED SHIPMENTS OF LIQUOR ALONG WITH OTHER ITEMS AND, ON THOSE, WE HAVE PRORATED THE CHARGES TO ALLOW THE SHIPPING COST OF THE OTHER ITEMS WHILE MAINTAINING THE DISALLOWANCE AS TO LIQUORS. THE VOUCHERS INVOLVING THOSE SHIPPING CHARGES ARE SUMMARIZED:

TABLE

PREVIOUSLY NOW VOUCHER NO. ITEM

DISALLOWED ALLOWED

737 LIQUOR AND OTHER ITEMS $ 31.33 $ 13.60

166 LIQUOR 13.25 --

950 LIQUOR 16.82 -

638 LIQUOR AND OTHER ITEMS 242.38 231.52

152 GROCERIES 78.92 78.92

527 PAPER AND MILLET 44.53 44.53

ALSO, WE HAVE DETERMINED TO ALLOW THE AMOUNT OF $90.65, ON VOUCHER NO. 166 AS MILEAGE ON YOUR CHEVROLET TRUCK WHILE MOVING YOUR EFFECTS FROM KARACHI TO KABUL, SINCE IT IS APPARENT THAT THIS FIGURE APPROXIMATES YOUR ACTUAL COST AND, FURTHER, THAT THE COST TO THE GOVERNMENT OF MOVING THE EFFECTS BY OTHER MEANS WOULD HAVE BEEN GREATER.

WE ARE INSTRUCTING OUR CLAIMS DIVISION TO ISSUE SETTLEMENT IN YOUR FAVOR IN THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $786.74, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS DECISION.