Operational Memorandum # 23

Completion of Travel Statement Required Upon Return from AACS Out-of-Area Travel.

Perhaps staff need to be reminded that regardless of whether agency business travel is performed with a travel advancement or on reimbursement only following the travel, an AACS Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement form (the official AACS travel form) must be completed and required receipts attached within seven (7) days of the return from the out-of-area travel. This requirement also pertains equally to any other persons traveling at AACS expense, including Board members, Head Start Policy Council members or others.

Potential Problem on AACS Travel Advancements.

Failure to properly close-out and document travel upon the traveler's return would be a serious problem and employee infraction. This isparticularly serious when an advancement of AACS funds was provided to the traveler because there has been no proper accounting for those funds until the travel has been closed out with the Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement form, receipts attached, and a refund of any overpayment on the advance returned to the agency or a claim for the balance on reimbursement due to the traveler made to the agency.

Review/Settlement On AACS Travel.

Accordingly, I am issuing this directive to assure that there is a proper accounting and close-out made for all agency travel and for all advancements for agency travel. The AACS fiscal department may be asked to pull all Request(s) for Travel Advancement in order to cross-check with the close-out Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement(s) and to determine those instances, if any, where agency travel on an advancement is yet to be documented, closed, and a final settlement made. Any such cases, if found, will be settled immediately.

Fiscal Department Procedures for Handling/Cross-checking Travel Advancements.

Upon receipt of any claims for a travel advance, the Fiscal Officer/Payables Manager will process the approved Request for Travel Advancement form and issue the advance in a timely manner. The original copy of the advance request will be filed in the numerical file as supporting documentation attached to the appropriate copy of the computer payables check and the coding sheet; a copy of the computer payables check will be filed in the employee's, board member's, policy council member's personal travel/AACS claims "vendor" file. Should the advancement be paid with a regular non-computer check, the payables officer will maintain the original copy of the advance request in an appropriate file by project. These will serve as documentation for the disbursements for auditing purposes.

The second phase of the fiscal operation will be to cross-check and assure a proper close-out of all travel for which an advancement is issued. To accomplish this purpose a duplicate copy will be made of all Request(s) for Travel Advancement, the duplicate to be maintained in a cross-check file awaiting the travelers' submission of the Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement(s) upon their return from the approved travel for which the advancement was issued. Upon their submission of the close-out form, supporting documentation, and return of overpayment (over advancement), if any, the payables officer will pull the duplicate advancement form (previously noted with the check numbers for the advance payment - and whether computer check or regular check -- for use in tracking the entire transaction from advancement through close-out) and attach it to the traveler's final close-out or claim for additional reimbursement.

Any unmatched (pulled and attached to final claim) Request for Travel Advancement forms in the cross-check file will indicate those cases of AACS travel for which an advancement was issued but the close-out form is yet to be received. Those cases not closed in a timely manner (7 days) will be referred to the Executive Director for follow-up.

Procedures for Handling/Filing Settlements on Advances for Out-of-Area Travel.

AGENCY OWES EMPLOYEE: If the AACS owes additional payments (reimbursed) to the traveler, the Fiscal Officer/Payables Manager will file the first copy of the payables check (with travel documentation attached) for the reimbursable balance in the fiscal department's numerical file. The second copy of the reimbursement check will be filed in the employee's alphabetical file for cross-referencing purposes. Should the reimbursable balance be paid with a non-computer check, the payables officer will maintain the original copy of the Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement form and all attached supporting documentation in an appropriate file by project. A copy of the final form should be made and the copy filed in the employee's alphabetical file for reference.

EMPLOYEE OWES AGENCY: If the employee owes the AACS for an over-advancement based on the close-out Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement, the employee shall make a prompt settlement of the amount owed, preferably by personal check, payable to the agency upon his/her submission of the close-out report to the fiscal department. The payables manager will receive the final expense statement and the employee's reimbursement check. The employee's check and final travel expense report shall be forwarded immediately to the AACS Fiscal Officer/Receivables Manager. A prompt deposit of the employee's reimbursement check shall be made to the AACS account from which the travel advance was issued.

The receivables manager shall maintain the original copy of the employee's close-out voucher (noted with appropriate information concerning the employee's return of the overpayment) in a "deposits" maintained by each respective AACS project. A copy of the close-out voucher (noted as specified above) shall be made and the copy filed in the employee's alphabetical file for cross-referencing purposes.

ZERO DIFFERENCE FROM AMOUNT OF ADVANCEMENT
(Neither the agency nor the employee owes the other, as supported by the close-out report):

The payables manager will receive the close-out Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement which will subsequently be filed (original copy only) in the employee's alphabetical file for reference purposes.

Travelers' Procedure for Assuring Travel Close-out.

According to AACS policy, agency out-of-area travel must be closed out within seven (7) days of the traveler's return. Each traveler should employ a means to assure his/her timely completion and submission of the Out-of-Area Travel Expense Statement with receipts attached and return of overpayment, if any, made to the AACS. I recommend that each traveler retain a copy of his/her Request for Travel Advancement for a reminder to close out the travel and for attachment to the final statement. (This will aid the payables officer in matching up her cross-check copy of the travel advance form when you file your final statement.)

All charges in the amount of $10.00 or more when itemizing expenditures and $15.00 or more when computing expenses on a per diem basis regardless of the nature of the item, or type of claim, must be substantiated by a receipt. Additionally, receipts will be attached to vouchers and claims for reimbursement for all items, regardless of the amount, as follows: lodging, carrier transportation, and lot parking. Receipts for taxi and limousine fares will be attached unless such receipts are unobtainable; usually, they can be obtained.

Computing Per Diem Rates and Allowable Quarters for Reimbursement.

Again, the following is a verbatim repeat of existing policy on the computation and allowability of per diem:

Computation of Per Diem - Per diem is computed by multiplying the time out of the area on approved, official business times the appropriate rate. The time shall be determined on the basis of quarter days. In computing the per diem in lieu of subsistence for continuous travel of more than twenty-four (24) hours, the calendar day (midnight to midnight) will be the unit; and for fractional parts of a day at the commencement or ending of such continuous travel constituting a travel period, one-fourth of the rate for the calendar day will be allowed for each period of 6 hours or fraction thereof if more than thirty (30) minutes.

After computing the amount to reimburse per quarter day - the number of quarter day periods is computed as follows:

Each 24-hour day, midnight to midnight, is cut into six hour periods -- as shown in the pie graphs. A traveler can be paid per diem for each quarter day spent away from home on travel status - including the quarter day in which he/she leaves and the quarter day in which he/she returns (except for the 30 minute rule as listed above).

Example: A traveler whose per diem "pie chart" shows travel starting in the second quarter (9 a.m.) of the first day, and returning in the fourth quarter (9 p.m.) of the second day is allowed to count seven (7) quarters as allowable per diem. The traveler's seven quarters per diem would be based at the quarterly equivalent of the Federal "Meals & Incidental Expenses" (M&IE) rate designated on the federal schedule already explained.

See also: Per Diem Rates, 1998

Part-Day Per Diem - The new (December, 1996) Federal Travel Regulations changed the computation of per diem allowance for a partial day of travel. The new travel regulations abolished the quarter-day method of computing the M&IE (meals and incidental expenses) rate on a partial travel day. This eliminated the requirement for an employee to record departure and arrival times on the travel voucher.

Under the December 1996 policy change, there are now basically two types of statuses:

1) Travel of more than 12 hours when lodging is required; and
2) Travel of more than 12 hours but not exceeding 24 hours when no lodging is required.

Under the first -- travel of more than 12 hours when lodging is required, the rules provide these requirements for travel of more than 12 hours when lodging is required:

1. The day travel begins an employee is reimbursed three-fourths (³/₄) of the applicable M&IE rate;
   
2. For each full calendar day that an employee is in travel status, reimbursement is at full M&IE rate, and
   
3. The day that travel ends, reimbursement is three-fourths (³/₄) of the applicable M&IE rate.
Under the second -- travel of more than 12 hours but not exceeding 24 hours when no lodging is required, the rules for travel of less than 24 hours when lodging is not required:
1. Prohibits the payment of per diem for travel of 12 hours or less; and
2. Establishes three-fourths of the applicable M&IE rate as the appropriate per diem allowance payment for travel of more than 12 hours but not exceeding 24 hours when no lodging is required.

AACS Travel Policy Statements. Please review the pertinent AACS travel policies: The general policies are in the Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual, Section 9 The out-of-area travel policy relative to the close-out and documentation of the official travel is found in the agency's Operational Memorandum # 22 on travel entitled "Travel Regulations." There is also a memorandum which covers the rules pertaining to the computation and claiming of a part-day per diem for reimbursement of out-of-pocket subsistence expense when actually incurred. That memorandum also includes the rules for out-of-area travel. The existing policy and regulations for AACS travel remain unchanged, but this directive does impose a procedural requirement on the AACS Finance Department for the monitoring of travel advances and the subsequent close-out of those advances, and directs the traveling staff and/or other parties to implement personal action to assure their submission to the Finance Department of the proper (required) forms and supporting documentation upon their return from the approved travel.

If you have any questions, please consult the executive director, your immediate supervisor, and/or your project director. Thank you.

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