Procurement of Lodgings and Meals for Employees on Temporary Duty

A certifying officer of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) requested a decision on certain issues which arose when BIA contracting officers directly procured rooms and meals from hotels for travelers during the performance of the travelers' temporary duty. The first issue was whether a Government contracting officer may contract for rooms and meals for employees on temporary duty. Since there was no express prohibition that would prevent such procurement, GAO found that a contracting officer may enter into a contract with a commercial concern for rooms and meals for employees on temporary duty. Appropriated funds are not available, however, to pay per diem or actual subsistence expenses in excess of the amount allowed by statute. Due to the absence of a clear precedent, the appropriations limitation was only to be applied to travel performed after the date of the decision. The second issue raised the question as to whether the amount paid by the Government for a contract with a vendor for lodging or meals for an employee on temporary duty should be applied to the normal per diem rate for such expenses. GAO held that, when it is known in advance that rooms will be furnished to an employee under a contract for the entire trip, the lodgings-plus system is inappropriate. In such cases, a flat per diem at a reduced rate should be established in advance. The third issue was whether lodging procured by a Government contracting officer should be considered Government-furnished quarters. GAO found that when the Government rents rooms or meals for employees on temporary duty, those rooms or meals should be treated as Government furnished. Thus, a reduction in per diem otherwise due is required in such cases. One of the BIA employees submitted a single voucher covering three separate trips he had made, raising the question as to how to compute the correct per diem rate for the trips. GAO held that, in such cases, the average cost of lodging is determined by dividing the total amount paid for lodging by the number of nights for which lodging was required.