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B-149694, SEP. 19, 1962

B-149694 Sep 19, 1962
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TO MAJOR MONTELL KYLER: FURTHER REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF JULY 24. YOU WERE AUTHORIZED TO PROCEED FROM APO 43 TO APO 613 TO AWAIT TRANSPORTATION TO THE UNITED STATES FOR THIRTY DAYS' EMERGENCY LEAVE BECAUSE YOUR MOTHER WAS ILL AT ANNAPOLIS. YOU WERE PLACED ON TEMPORARY DUTY AT OAKLAND ARMY TERMINAL. YOU WERE RELIEVED FROM ASSIGNMENT WITH THE UNITED STATES ARMY JAPAN EFFECTIVE UPON EXPIRATION OF LEAVE AND ASSIGNED TO FORT KNOX. WERE REIMBURSED FOR TRAVEL ON THE BASIS OF THE DISTANCE FROM COLUMBUS TO FORT KNOX. WAS DISALLOWED BY THE SETTLEMENT OF AUGUST 15. YOU SAY YOU WERE NOT RETURNED TO YOUR DUTY STATION BECAUSE AT THAT TIME UNITED STATES ARMY JAPAN WAS PARTICIPATING IN OPERATION "ROLL UP.

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B-149694, SEP. 19, 1962

TO MAJOR MONTELL KYLER:

FURTHER REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF JULY 24, 1962, REQUESTING REVIEW OF THE SETTLEMENT OF AUGUST 15, 1958, WHICH DISALLOWED YOUR CLAIM FOR ADDITIONAL MILEAGE FOR TRAVEL FROM OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, TO FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, DURING THE PERIOD JANUARY 23 TO FEBRUARY 19, 1958.

THE RECORD SHOWS THAT BY SPECIAL ORDERS NO. 14, DATED JANUARY 20, 1958, YOU WERE AUTHORIZED TO PROCEED FROM APO 43 TO APO 613 TO AWAIT TRANSPORTATION TO THE UNITED STATES FOR THIRTY DAYS' EMERGENCY LEAVE BECAUSE YOUR MOTHER WAS ILL AT ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND. BY APO 613 LETTER ORDER 1-499, DATED JANUARY 21, 1958, YOU WERE PLACED ON TEMPORARY DUTY AT OAKLAND ARMY TERMINAL, CALIFORNIA, FOR THE PURPOSE OF BEING GRANTED THIRTY DAYS' EMERGENCY OR COMPASSIONATE LEAVE AT ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND. THE ORDERS PROVIDED THAT UPON COMPLETION OF LEAVE YOU WOULD REPORT TO U.S. ARMY OVERSEAS REPLACEMENT STATION, OAKLAND ARMY TERMINAL, CALIFORNIA, FOR AIR TRANSPORTATION FOR RETURN TO YOUR PARENT ORGANIZATION. THE ORDERS FURTHER SPECIFICALLY PROVIDED THAT THE TRAVEL AND TEMPORARY DUTY PERFORMED THEREUNDER CONSTITUTED DUTY OF A TYPE CONTEMPLATED BY PARAGRAPH 6454 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS.

YOU ARRIVED AT SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ON JANUARY 23, 1958, AND DEPARTED ON LEAVE THE SAME DATE. BY DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY MESSAGE 311077 ADDRESSED TO YOU AT COLUMBUS, INDIANA, WHILE ON LEAVE, YOU WERE RELIEVED FROM ASSIGNMENT WITH THE UNITED STATES ARMY JAPAN EFFECTIVE UPON EXPIRATION OF LEAVE AND ASSIGNED TO FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, ON A PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION. IN COMPLIANCE WITH SUCH MESSAGE YOU TRAVELED FROM COLUMBUS, INDIANA, TO FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, REPORTED THERE ON FEBRUARY 19, 1958, AND WERE REIMBURSED FOR TRAVEL ON THE BASIS OF THE DISTANCE FROM COLUMBUS TO FORT KNOX. YOUR CLAIM FOR ADDITIONAL MILEAGE BASED ON TRAVEL FROM OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, TO FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, WAS DISALLOWED BY THE SETTLEMENT OF AUGUST 15, 1958, FOR THE REASON STATED THEREIN. IN YOUR PRESENT LETTER YOU REQUEST REIMBURSEMENT FOR TRAVEL PERFORMED FROM OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, TO COLUMBUS, INDIANA, BASED ON OUR DECISION B-148759, DATED JULY 11, 1962, 42 COMP. GEN. - . YOU SAY YOU WERE NOT RETURNED TO YOUR DUTY STATION BECAUSE AT THAT TIME UNITED STATES ARMY JAPAN WAS PARTICIPATING IN OPERATION "ROLL UP," REDUCING IN STRENGTH AND CONCENTRATING IN THE ZAMA AREA, AND SINCE YOU HAS SERVED IN KOREA DURING 1950 TO 1951 YOU COULD NOT BE USED IN THAT THEATER OF OPERATIONS AND WERE NOT NEEDED.

SECTION 303 (A) OF THE CAREER COMPENSATION ACT OF 1949, AS AMENDED, 37 U.S.C. 253 (A), PROVIDES THAT UNDER REGULATIONS PRESCRIBED BY THE SECRETARIES CONCERNED, MEMBERS OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICE SHALL BE ENTITLED TO RECEIVE TRAVEL AND TRANSPORATION ALLOWANCES FOR TRAVEL PERFORMED UNDER COMPETENT ORDERS UPON A CHANGE OF PERMANENT STATION, OR OTHERWISE, WHICH PRESUPPOSES TRAVEL ON PUBLIC BUSINESS. PARAGRAPH 3050-1, JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS, ISSUED PURSUANT TO THAT ACT, PROVIDES THAT MEMBERS ARE ENTITLED TO TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION ALLOWANCES AS AUTHORIZED IN ACCORDANCE WITH EXISTING REGULATIONS ONLY WHILE ACTUALLY IN A "TRAVEL STATUS" AND THAT THEY SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE IN A TRAVEL STATUS WHILE PERFORMING TRAVEL AWAY FROM THEIR PERMANENT DUTY STATION, UPON PUBLIC BUSINESS, PURSUANT TO COMPETENT TRAVEL ORDERS. PARAGRAPH 6454 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS PROVIDES EXPRESSLY THAT EXPENSES INCURRED DURING PERIODS OF TRAVEL UNDER ORDERS WHICH DO NOT INVOLVE PUBLIC BUSINESS ARE NOT PAYABLE BY THE GOVERNMENT; AND IT HAS CONSISTENTLY BEEN HELD THAT ALLOWANCES ARE NOT PAYABLE FOR TRAVEL PERFORMED SOLELY FOR LEAVE PURPOSES, THE TRAVEL BEING CONSIDERED AS MADE FOR PERSONAL REASONS AND NOT HAVING BEEN PERFORMED ON PUBLIC BUSINESS. PERRIMOND V. UNITED STATES, 19 CT.CL. 509; DAY V. UNITED STATES, 123 CT.CL. 10, 18. FURTHER, PARAGRAPH 4156, CASE 7 (A) OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS IN EFFECT AT THE TIME HERE INVOLVED PROVIDED THAT WHEN THE STATION OF A MEMBER IS CHANGED WHILE HE IS ON LEAVE HE WILL, ON JOINING THE NEW STATION, BE ENTITLED TO ALLOWANCES FROM THE PLACE WHERE HE RECEIVED THE ORDERS DIRECTING THE CHANGE, NOT TO EXCEED THE DISTANCE FROM THE OLD STATION TO THE NEW. SINCE YOU WERE REIMBURSED ON THAT BASIS AND SINCE THE TRAVEL FROM OAKLAND TO COLUMBUS WAS IN A LEAVE STATUS, THERE IS NO AUTHORITY FOR THE PAYMENT OF YOUR CLAIM.

IN THE DECISION OF JULY 11, 1962, THERE WAS CONSIDERED THE ENTITLEMENT OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMY TO RECEIVE PAYMENT OF TRAVEL ALLOWANCES WHEN BY REASON OF THE GRANTING OF EMERGENCY LEAVE THEY ARE RETURNED TO THE UNITED STATES PRIOR TO THE COMPLETION OF THEIR SCHEDULED OVERSEA TOUR OF DUTY UNDER PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION ORDERS ISSUED PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH 236 (1), ARMY REGULATIONS 614-30. IT WAS HELD THAT TRAVEL BY THE MEMBER FROM HIS OVERSEA STATION TO HIS NEW PERMANENT STATION IN THE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES, "PURSUANT TO PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION ORDERS ISSUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF SUCH REGULATIONS" WILL BE REGARDED AS HAVING BEEN PERFORMED ON PUBLIC BUSINESS, ENTITLING THE MEMBER TO RECEIVE THE APPROPRIATE CHANGE OF STATION ALLOWANCES. SINCE YOU WERE NOT RETURNED TO THE UNITED STATES ON A PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION PURSUANT TO THOSE REGULATIONS BUT WERE TRAVELING IN A LEAVE STATUS AND WERE ASSIGNED TO A NEW PERMANENT STATION WHILE ON LEAVE, THAT DECISION DOES NOT AFFORD A BASIS FOR THE ALLOWANCE OF YOUR CLAIM.

ACCORDINGLY, THE SETTLEMENT OF AUGUST 15, 1958, WAS CORRECT AND IS SUSTAINED.

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