Reimbursement of Excess Commutation Costs During New York Transit Strike

During a 10-day New York City transit strike, Federal employees who normally relied on public transit to commute to city offices were forced to find alternate means of transportation, often at a cost in excess of normal transit fares. After the strike, two Federal employees submitted vouchers requesting reimbursement for the excess cost of commuting via privately-owned vehicles, and another submitted a voucher for the rental fees on a Government vehicle and other associated costs. The certifying officer refused to certify these vouchers, and the matter was referred to GAO for an advance decision. In its decision, GAO stated that employees must bear the cost of transportation between their residences and official duty locations. The fact that emergency conditions necessitate additional increases in commuting costs does not alter the employees' responsibility. The unavailability of public transportation does not shift the responsibility to the Government. Exceptions have been made in emergency situations where transportation was unavailable, and Government operations were closed down except for a few essential personnel who were ordered to report to work. None of these circumstances applied in this case. The employees were under a liberal leave policy during the strike. The employees did not have any advance expectation of reimbursement. The employee who used the Government vehicle lacked the authority to obligate agency funds for this purpose. GAO affirmed the certifying officer's action denying reimbursements to the employees.