B-238352, October 4, 1991, 71 Comp.Gen. 6

B-238352, October 4, 1991, 71 Comp.Gen. 6

MILITARY PERSONNEL - Travel - Travel expenses - Dependents - Training - Security safeguards DIGEST: Joint Federal Travel Regulations may be amended to allow payment of travel of military dependents to attend briefings and training when the Department of Defense determines it to be necessary to prepare them for life in countries where they may be endangered by terrorism or political unrest due to the member's service in that country.

Use of Invitational Travel Orders for Military Dependents to Attend Anti- Terrorism Briefings:

This action is in response to a request for a decision from the Per Diem, Travel and Transportation Allowance Committee about the propriety of amending the Joint Federal Travel Regulations (JFTR). The proposed amendment would allow the Department of Defense (DOD) to pay for the travel of dependents of military members under invitational travel orders (ITO) to attend briefings and training sessions to prepare themselves for life in areas where they may be in danger from terrorist activities or political unrest. The Committee advises that the members themselves currently pay for their dependents' travel to and from the briefings and training.

We see no basis to object to the proposed amendment.

Before 1988, Paragraph C6000, Item 3, of the Joint Travel Regulations (JTR) allowed payment of travel expenses under ITOs pursuant to 5 U.S.C. Sec. 5703, which allows them for an employee "serving intermittently in the government service as an expert or consultant and paid on a daily when -actually-employed basis or serving without pay or at $1 a year ... while away from his home or regular place of business and at the place of employment or service." The JTR paragraph listed 14 examples of persons to whom ITOs may be issued, including lecturers in DOD programs, members of the Executive Reserve and Boards of Visitors, and situations where the individual's attendance and participation at a conference or meeting would be in DOD's best interest.

On July 1, 1988, Item 3 was changed to prohibit payment of travel expenses for individuals under ITOs merely to attend conferences or meetings except in cases where the invitee confers on an official defense matter with DOD officials, and thereby performs a direct service to DOD. Currently, Paragraph U7700 of the JFTR quotes section C6000 regarding invitational travel and incorporates that change.

The July 1988 change was made in response to our decision at 55 Comp.Gen. 750 (1976), in which we discussed the relationship between 31 U.S.C. Sec. 1345 (formerly 31 U.S.C. Sec. 551) and 5 U.S.C. Sec. 5703. Section 1345 of title 31 states that appropriations may not be used to pay travel expenses for meetings unless specifically provided by law, except that agencies may pay the expenses of officers and employees carrying out official government duties.

Our 1976 decision concerned a plan by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to pay for the transportation and lodging expenses, under 5 U.S.C. Sec. 5703, for state officials at the National Solid Waste Management Association Convention, an event sponsored jointly by EPA and the Association. We pointed out that the prohibition in 31 U.S.C. Sec. 1345 covers government employees, and that agency appropriations generally do not cover anyone else. The exception for non-government employees in 5 U.S.C. Sec. 5703 is limited, according to the legislative history, to persons performing a direct service for the government, such as experts, consultants, and other advisors. We said that being called upon to confer with agency staff on official business is different from merely attending a meeting or convention in which the federal agency also has an interest.

We do not view our 1976 decision as precluding the proposed amendment to the JFTR. In our view, travel to participate in training or conferring with agency staff, in which the Department of Defense imparts critical knowledge and information to the dependents of members which they will need when moving to and residing abroad as a result of the member's prospective service clearly constitutes significantly more than mere attendance at a conference or meeting. Essentially, the briefings and training sessions are integral aspects of the proper execution of the member's own reassignment and his or her family's attendant change of station entitlements.

Unlike many other types of employees, military members and their dependents are frequently required as part of their duties to travel and reside in foreign countries where there is danger and political unrest. These members and their families are representatives of both the branch of the service and the United States and are placed in additional danger on the basis of their status as military families. We note that other agencies such as the State Department for similar reasons require orientation and language training for dependents of employees stationed abroad. Numerous incidents abroad emphasize the need for members of military families to know what dangers they face and what steps they must take to avoid such danger both in traveling to and residing in those countries.

In addition, as noted by the Committee, the cost of this travel can negate greater government losses in the future in terms of both financial and other considerations. It is our view that when the Department of Defense deems it necessary for the protection of American lives and property to confer with, and provide information and training to, these dependents prior to their departure, the Department receives a primary and direct benefit at that time.

Accordingly, we do not object to the proposed change to the JFTR.