Posts by admin3

There are many government and military car rental programs offered to federal government employees for business and pleasure travel. These programs offer many benefits and savings.  There are approximately 5000 car rental locations. Be sure to check with your rental company to determine if they charge by calendar day or a 24-hour day.  This can make a big difference in your overall total.  Airport fees can add a lot to your rental rate.  If you are flexible, check the rates at various locations throughout the city. The car rental agreements between the federal government and the car rental companies include many benefits that are not available to the general public. Many times if you book in advance or travel during off-peak times, you can get a cheaper...

Domestic or international, request assistance or book on-line are all factors of how much a traveler will be charged for their government travel reservations. Government travelers are still struggling with the different fees that appear on their travel documents. First there are the Travel Management (TMC) fees. The TMC fee is charged at the time the ticket is issued for airfare and when the hotel reservation is booked. The rate of the fee is based upon the service that is provided to the traveler. The TMC fee is significantly lower if the traveler books reservations on-line rather than calling an agent for traditional service. Also the fee for international reservations is higher when the traveler requests assistance due to the complexity of the travel. The...

Twenty years ago I was assigned to the office that was responsible for travel processing.  In 1989 very few employees had computers and most of the work continued to be done as it had been for decades – by paper.   At that time a traveler would work with their secretary to complete a multi-carbon copy travel authorization.  The per diem rates were looked up in a GSA published book and the secretary would complete the estimates after calling the airline and hotel to make reservations.  Once the paper authorization or voucher was completed it was sent to several people for signature and eventually ended up in the Finance Office. Once the Finance Office received the documents, a technician verified the per diem rates and quarter day calculations for first and...

Last year I wrote about the emphasis on reduced travel budgets and gaining cost savings and efficiencies related to Federal Government travel.  Since that time, the Congress and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) have further reduced travel funding.  The President signed an Executive Order entitled “Promoting Efficient Spending” dated November 9, 2011 asking agencies to review policies and procedures to find savings and efficiencies related to official travel, and in other areas such as fleet, IT and printing.  The Order calls for reductions of not less than 20% below fiscal year 2010 budget totals, effective by 2013. The Order states: “As they serve taxpayers, executive departments and agencies also must act in a fiscally responsible...

The City Pair Program began in 1980 with 11 City pairs and has grown to over 5,000 city pairs, both domestic and International.  The airfares offered under this program are discounted considerably off comparable commercial fares saving the federal government billions of dollars annually.  The City Pair Program is administered by the General Services Administration (GSA) for use by all government travelers. The CPP is important to the government and the airlines though it only represents 2% of the airline business.     Each year GSA awards contract fares for air fare for travelers on official government travel under the city pair program.  These contract awards are based on the best overall value to the government, taking into consideration type,...

With over two years remaining on GSA’s ten-year E-Gov Travel Service (ETS) contracts, it may sound odd to say that federal agencies need to accelerate their planning for transitioning to ETS2, the successor fifteen-year contract that is projected for award in Spring 2012.   Yet that is exactly the case.  Given that ETS2 will be awarded to one or two contractors, and given that there are 3 current ETS contractors, every agency must plan for the “worst case scenario” of transitioning to a new contractor and new service offering.  ETS2 transition is a complex project that requires each agency to: 1)     Allocate budget for ETS2 implementation, plus any transition-out services required from the agency’s current ETS contractor 2)     Conduct its...

At the travel agency in which I am currently employed I work in the call center of our government department.  I am the government client services representative for all government accounts and I oversee much of the travel authorization procedures on a daily basis.  From my perspective it is simple to see the benefits of producing travel authorizations on-line for the government agency, the TMC and all employees and travelers involved. Although we service many different government agencies there are two specific ones that come to mind when comparing the benefits of authorizations being created on-line versus manually. Our two largest government accounts are very different in the way that travel authorizations are provided for ticketing.  Client A is completely...

As a government traveler, I appreciate the City-Pair Program (CPP) administered by the General Services Administration (GSA).  I was surprised to learn that the CPP only represents 2% of the airline business.  This number may be larger today with the down economy and fewer leisure travelers.  At least in my line of work – facility inspections – travel is a necessary part of the job.  Thus, the many benefits of the CPP are routinely utilized.  There have been many times when I have had to change or cancel my flight itinerary and the no fee penalty and fully refundable ticket benefits for YCA Fares have definitely saved my agency a lot of money.  Recently, however, I have noticed both for myself and fellow colleagues that non-contract carriers frequently...

Each month I am involved in the CBA (Centrally Billed Account) reconciliation process for our largest government client.  This client’s current bank card vendor is JP Morgan Chase. Each month our agency receives an electronic file from JP Morgan Chase for this client’s 19 CBA accounts.  This file is generally received by our accounting department around the 8th of each month for the previous month.  After receiving the file we have approximately 3 to 5 days to match transactions in the data file to information in our back office.  Our reconciliation team works relentlessly to match all data as accurately as possible in order to provide the information to the client in a timely manner so that they may pay their bill which is due around the 20th of each...

The material covered in 4a (Payment Methods) has a particular significance in understanding some of the relationships between government and the current economy. In essence, it covers how payment is ensured to the airlines and the issuance of credit by the banks to the government for travel expenses. In essence, the macro relationship is that the banks extend credit (via IBAs or CBAs) to the government, which purchases travel from the airlines. The credit extended by the banks is paid back by the government using funds from various taxes (income, transportation, levies on financial transactions). A short, open source search did not reveal if the airlines pay more or less in taxes than they receive in government travel income. Likewise, it is unknown the ratio...

GSA now has “Smart Pay 2” as its travel card, but it was not the first or even second card to be used by GSA.  While I am not old enough to have first hand knowledge I do have a dinosaur around the house (love you honey) who happened to have used three of the four GSA issued credit cards during his military and government service. The first was Diners Card while it may be one of the oldest credit cards in the world it was not taken in many place within the United States such as fast food places, small chain motels/hotels, and rental moving trucks, which many lower level GSA/military personnel often used to stay within their per diem rate and reimbursable expenses while traveling or relocating for business. However the Diners Card did not have these same...

Our government agency processes payments for several customers.  Therefore, it is common for us to receive a telephone call regarding a travel reimbursement. We can issue reimbursements in four ways: electronic funds transfer (EFT), individually billed accounts (IBA), centrally billed accounts (CBA) and checks.  We also receive funds from travelers when they have been overpaid.  The flexibility is necessary to accommodate different travel situations. The following scenarios show travelers going on the same trip.  All of the travelers need a flight on Tuesday from Washington, DC to Atlanta, GA for a three day conference.  Each traveler will take a taxi to and from the airport, stay in the same Atlanta hotel and eat the same meals, but their method of...

Implementing an E-Gov Travel System was quite a challenge.  While there was detailed and sometimes complex work involved with configuring the E-Gov Travel System and interfacing it with our financial management system, the biggest challenge involved the change for our travelers, arrangers, and approvers. My agency went from a very effective, simple in-house electronic authorization and vouchering system (with very few online bookings, done in a separate system) to using one of the three E-Gov Travel Systems.  In some ways I think it might have been easier to go from paper authorizations and vouchers to an E-Gov Travel System, but the shock may have been too great for end users. The old electronic travel authorization and voucher system did its job very well,...

Never in my wildest thoughts would I have imagined how much knowledge, accreditation, reporting, and rule following went into being a travel agent or having a travel agency! I always accepted and expected that commissions were paid to the travel agencies but now to learn that they have been phased out completely is quite shocking.  Granted, transaction fees have taken the place of commissions, but the ways these transaction fees are now calculated makes me wonder how and why travel agencies stay in business. I am beginning to see that travel management for government travelers has had to evolve over the past twenty some years due to major changes and how security also keeps changing. Technology has had a big impact on this evolution. The route to the present...

Background: In the old days and before the 1978 Airlines Deregulation Act, the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) used to decide the fares between any two cities. They decided which airline flew from/to cities and how much they should charge. Well, the 1978Airline Deregulation Act changed the dynamics and working ways of the airline industry. It allowed airlines to decide where to fly and how much they can charge. Competition was the name of the game. What was the government reaction to the deregulation act? In 1980, the government using the sheer volume of business it controls was able to negotiate and establish “government fares or CITY PAIR PROGRAM”. “Fly America Act” requires the use of US flag carriers or US Code Share flights. These fares were to become...

The Travel Management Center (TMC) is an accredited travel agency that is under contract with the Government to provide travel services for official Temporary Duty (TDY) travel. The TMC issues tickets that are requested and approved through the E-Gov Travel Service. Travel agencies are professional organizations that sell airline tickets and provide other travel services. The TMC needs to be reimbursed for their portion of making travel arrangements. This is done by charging a TMC Fee for online booking in the E-Gov Travel Service. The online booking feature initiates automated contact with the TMC’s booking, reservation, and ticketing systems. Travelers are encouraged to use the online booking because it is the most cost effective for the government. ...

In January of this year I had the privileged opportunity to attend a FTR Workshop, which was hosted by the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Defense (DOD). GSA & DOD collaboratively enlisted the help of an outside contractor to assist with the task of researching the feasibility of creating a streamlined and updated Federal Travel Regulation draft. Any new draft of the FTR would need to be approved by various high-level government entities, including OMB, and the US Congress on Capitol Hill. During the FTR workshop, the brainstorming sessions became very interesting, as we discussed various possible directions we could take with regards to the FTR. One of the options mentioned (and the most favorable) was to eliminate a lot of the...

In sections 4a and 4b of the Certified Government Travel Professional Training Course, the areas of Payment Methods and Business Intelligence, Data Mining, and Data Warehouse are explained. These are relatively short sections but included a lot of great information. The electronic payment and reimbursement procedures used by the U.S. Postal Service are very easy and efficient. All authorized personnel who travel on a regular basis are issued VISA GSA SmartPay 2 cards. When we make our reservations thru our online Omega procedures, our credit card information is already in the system and our airline charges are automatically billed. Upon return from travel, we have a system called “E-Travel” and we enter all of our authorized travel expenses in the program. It...

To be honest with you, I was so nervous, I am afraid to fail. I do not even know where and how to start completing the requirements of this certification but glad I had the guts to start the program. I procrastinated since the time my agency paid the dues last year but I spoke with Rick Singer and convinced me that I can easily pass and complete the program in no time. Being in the travel industry for so long, when I say long, it means that the airlines back then use Raytheon computers with green screen and computers were primarily used to assist in getting load factors – seats and cargo, that’s all.  I was fortunate enough to be on the first year class at the University of Santo Thomas in Manila, Philippines when the Dean of Education decided to put a...

It is very interesting how different agencies interact with their Travel Management Center.  My first experience as a travel administrator was while working for a bureau at the Department of State.  It’s there that I initially learned the relationship between the TMC, the administrators, and travelers.  We had our TMC actually on-site, located on the first floor.  If travelers had problems with their tickets, or making reservations, they could just walk into the TMC office and get immediate assistance.  This was a very convenient arrangement as a travel administrator.  With travelers going directly to the TMC for reservation issues, more of my time as an administrator could be focused on solving problems travelers were incurring using the ETS system. My...

CONFERENCE LODGING By: Deva Wilson                 General Services Administrative (GSA) issued conference and conference planning guidelines in 2000.  The policy allows for conference per diem expenses, when approved to be reimbursed under the ‘Conference Lodging Allowance.’   The ‘Conference Lodging Allowance’ is a pre-determined maximum allowance of up to 125 percent increase of the applicable locality lodging ceiling portion of the per diem rate.   It is not an actual expense allowance (AEA).   Conference attendees may be reimbursed the actual lodging amount incurred not to exceed the conference lodging allowance under this reimbursement method.  You must obtain authorization/approval for the conference lodging...

One of the most misunderstood and under advertised benefit to Government travelers is the _CA fare. This is the capacity-controlled coach class fare mentioned in Section 2B Airlines. During regular training classes on our E-Gov Travel System, I continue to be astonished at the misperception and fear of choosing these _CA fares. These fares are still fully refundable, fully changeable; but they are not last-seat availability. If travelers can make their arrangements far enough in advance, sometimes airlines will offer a certain number of seats at the lower _CA pricing. This can save an office $20.00, $40.00, even hundreds of dollars per leg off the full YCA fare. Travelers misunderstand the capacity limit to mean that they either will not get a seat on the aircraft...

Within my agency we use the Defense Travel System (DTS) which is the ETS for Department of Defense. On March 28, 2008, the former Under Secretary for Reserve Affairs David Chu made it mandatory that DTS was to be use the Secretary of Defense mandated the use of DTS. This was as a result of the John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 1997. My agency started using the system in 2007. It was a hard transition not only for me, but the travelers.  I was always use to processing travel the manual way. Therefore, my knowledge of this system was zero.  We hired a contractor for six month to help sat up our organization. A few months thereafter, I attended Defense Travel Administrator Training. As I worked with the program, I became familiar with providing guidance with...

According to Wikipedia, per diem is Latin for “per day” or “for each day”. Travelers are authorized per diem when they perform temporary duty (TDY) travel. TDY travel is generally when government employees travel 50 miles or more away from their permanent duty station (PDS). When individuals are gone for more than 12 hours, they are entitled to per diem. The per diem allowance for the government traveler includes lodging, meals, and incidental expenses. It does not include transportation expenses. Per diem rates for the continental US (CONUS) are established by the General Service Administration (GSA). Rates outside the continental US (OCONUS) are established by the Department of State. These are generally referred to as foreign. Rates outside the...

Transitioning to a new E-Gov Travel Service 2 (ETS2) system in the next few years will be challenging, and change management will likely be the key to success.  There will be complex, more technical work to be completed – migrating user data and settings from the old E-Gov Travel Service (ETS) system, configuring the ETS2 system for agency travel policies, interfacing ETS2 with our financial management system – but assisting travelers, travel arrangers, and approvers in changing from the old system to the new will be key. My agency went from a very effective, simple in-house electronic authorization and vouchering system to using one of the three ETS systems 5 years ago.  The old electronic travel authorization and voucher system did its job very well,...

This posting will be a discussion of the different payment methods for various travel expenses in the EGOV Travel application.  Four types of payment methods exist in the EGOV Travel application which include Traveler, Gov-cc, CBA, and Direct.  Expenses that the travelers select have a pre-determined payment method selected in the EGOV Travel application, but payment methods for expenses can be customized for each agency.  This posting, however, will just discuss the standard payment method mapping. Expenses with payment method of Traveler are slated to be reimbursed directly to the traveler’s personal bank account.  The EGOV Travel application maps the following expenses to the method of reimbursement of Traveler: meals and incidental reimbursements,...

The various points in this section were not only concise conclusions to the topic of government travel but this section also included a brief history of the travel industry. As one would expect, the changes to move into an electronic travel system were uncomfortable in the beginning for many. Now that time has passed, the systems are in place, and the ideal functions have been achieved, government travel management personnel have an easier time in the day-to-day operations. One positive aspect of working through all the changes is that there is now an extensive resource of training available to help to keep professionals and government financial managers current. All the work and training is for one end result – to ensure the traveler receives approval for a...

The federal government has a responsibility to manage federal funds efficiently and responsibly.  To meet this obligation federal agencies need to capture their travel activity for reporting and evaluation.  To assist agencies with travel management reporting the E-Gov Travel System (ETS) has the capability of interfacing with a variety of business systems across the government.  ETS provides the federal travel manager with resources for obtaining travel information and financial data that include the travel management centers, travel service providers, and their internal federal financial systems. The federal travel manager’s initial reporting source is their agency’s internal financial system.  The travel manager can generate reports to monitor...

CONFERENCE LODGING By: Deva Wilson                 General Services Administrative (GSA) issued conference and conference planning guidelines in 2000.  The policy allows for conference per diem expenses, when approved to be reimbursed under the ‘Conference Lodging Allowance.’   The ‘Conference Lodging Allowance’ is a pre-determined maximum allowance of up to 125 percent increase of the applicable locality lodging ceiling portion of the per diem rate.   It is not an actual expense allowance (AEA).   Conference attendees may be reimbursed the actual lodging amount incurred not to exceed the conference lodging allowance under this reimbursement method.  You must obtain authorization/approval for the conference lodging...

I took the first two modules of the CGTP certification, and it appears to be pretty complete.  I did notice one flaw between the study material and the exam.  The study material indicates that the GSA experimented with its first city-pair program in 1980 with 11 city-pair contract air fares.  The exam asks how many airlines the GSA contracted with in 1980. It almost reads as a trick question to help define the differences between and city-pair and an airline.   As we know, a city-pair is a pairing of cities.   Either the reading material should indicate how many airlines, or the exam question should be written to say how many city-pairs were originally contracted. The first two sections seem to be a 30,000 foot view and what the GSA and Federal...

There are different types of payment methods that are used in the E-Gov Travel Service. These methods are used to indicate how an expense is to be reimbursed. The four types of payment methods I am going to be focusing on are: CBA, GOVCC, Traveler, and Direct. Most of the expenses will have a default payment method. However, travelers and document preparers must make sure they select the correct method of reimbursement. The CBA or Centrally Billed Accounts are paid directly by the government to the bank. Agencies establish these accounts through task orders. Many times if a traveler doesn’t have a government credit card, this account is used for airfare and lodging reservations. The GOVCC or Individually Billed Accounts are paid by the employees who...

Taking the Certified Government Travel Professional Certification Course is going to introduce you to learning outside the classroom. This is now becoming an easier way for a working adult to either continue their education or in this case start to gain a professional certification in our own industry. In the paragraphs below you will see that there are additional opportunities for you to continue your education or for many, finally have the opportunity to earn a college degree. There was a time that most of us thought that education really only took place in a classroom environment, either at a school or in a conference room. There are some new education alternatives that give you the opportunity to learn a subject or pursue a degree outside of the classroom. One...

As a government employee, there are times that arise when I am asked to travel somewhere in order to receive training for my job or to train others for theirs. Working in the Travel department within my agency, I know the importance of following regulations to find a hotel within per diem at the location I am traveling to. In the past, I would search the internet in order to find a hotel, but may have to go to numerous hotel sites to find a hotel that is within the allowed per diem. FedRooms has now made this job a simpler process. By logging into one website, I am able to find hotels from several chains that are within the per diem amount. Not only does FedRooms make hotel rooms easier to find, it also helps government travelers with guarantees that the hotels...

In the hotel industry I have seen a RFP from a government contractor, trying to secure the government bid but also trying to save their company money for hotel stays, since most of the time they will be coming in and staying weekly or even monthly. When they send out RFP’s then tend to send to several different hotels or even upload it to a RFP process center, where your company can go online and bid on the contracts with the other hoteliers. The contractor is not just looking to better a price but what is offered with that price. “More for the money. Also it states certain items that are required within the RFP. We have many steps for this process. We are signed up with the NECO Navy website that sends daily procurements that have to be filled out by noon and...

US Government business is often very different from commercial business, largely due to the extensive rules in place to ensure fairness in the award of contracts that use public funds.  Not only is the Government the customer it also acts at the overseer of contracts. Detailed rules on reimbursement are designed to prevent the taxpayer from paying for costs that are against public policy. For Government Contractors the creation of a Travel Policy is not only a resource for cost effective travel it also incorporates laws that must be followed in order to perform travel for the Federal Government.  Two of the most important documents that must be included in the Travel Policy are the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and Federal Travel Regulation (FTR).  These...

Loyalty programs are structured marketing efforts that reward, and therefore encourage, loyal buying behavior — behavior which is potentially of benefit to the company that is offering them.  After spending a decade trying to stay afloat, airlines are turning their focus back on the travelers that matter the most- the high yield passenger. In April of 2002, the General Services Administration (GSA) amended the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) to remove the provisions which stated that promotional benefits, including frequent flyer miles earned on official travel are considered the property of the government and may only be used for official travel.  This change was a result of a provision of the National Defense Authorization Act, which provides that federal...

The Bureau of the Public Debt performs reimbursable administrative services to other Government agencies.  Our office administers travel services that include GovTrip E-Travel services and travel policy.  In the current economic climate with all the focus on cost savings and reduced budgets, saving travel dollars is taking center stage. Agencies are faced with reduced funding for travel and using video conferencing wherever feasible. The Government is tracking the ‘carbon footprint’ of their trips and setting targets for reductions.  This stemmed from a Presidential Executive Order last year and has been highly visible since reporting began. Also centralizing reporting for adherence to Federal and agency travel policies is appearing with the new GSA...

The Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO) has managed the rental car program for the Federal government since October 2007.  The Government Car Rental Program is designed to be used for official government business to meet mission requirements. There are many benefits of the Government Rental Car Program.  One of the most significant benefits to government personnel on official business is the collision damage waiver (CDW) insurance.  This insurance is included at no extra charge.  Besides attractive rates, other benefits include unlimited mileage, age restriction reduced from 25 to 18, and much more. Rental cars can be reserved using the E-Gov Travel System (ETS) or by contacting the Travel Management Center (TMC).  The preferred method of payment is the...

The existence of multiple Global Distribution Systems presents challenges for United States Government agencies’ efforts to manage travel. One such challenge involves determining which Global Distribution System an agency’s Travel Management Center should use, although my sense is that most agencies do not direct their Travel Management Center on which Global Distribution System to use. (Contractually, an agency may or may not even have the ability to determine which Global Distribution System their Travel Management Center uses.) Some Global Distribution Systems do not allow for the booking of tickets for certain airlines – although this is often driven by which airlines choose to participate in which Global Distribution Systems. In addition, the various...

All over the United States, Americans are discussing the issue of whether the government is spending too much money.   Everyone can agree that there are definitely items in the budget that can be eliminated.  There are also areas that need a major overhaul.  But regardless of the debt situation that needs to be addressed in our country, government agencies are being affected with budget restraints now.  With budgets on hold or declining, agencies must begin to do more with less.  They try to implement the necessary cuts to stay within budget but also to ensure that the work continues to be completed without issues or delays. One area where agencies seem to be able to cut down their budgets is on travel expenses.  With technology advancing every day, a...

Learning the basics to enable one to function within the government sector is only the tip of the iceberg. Keeping current on regulations and changes is an entirely different matter. To be recognized as a true professional one needs to plot a systematic approach to achieving that end, it doesn’t just happen! Establishing an information pipeline, continuing education, networking, and credibility is what will cause you to grow and become a resource whom others use and on whom others shall depend, as well as, advancing your career within your own organization. Information Pipeline: Certain ‘feeds’ need to be established. Tap into FedBizOpps, register for federal government updates, such as from the GSA Per Diem Committee; subscribe to publications...

The prudent person rule in the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) requires travelers to take the same care in incurring travel expenses as they would if they were traveling on personal business.  The FTR mandates the use of the electronic travel system (ETS) for travel reservations and the use of city pair fares for flights.  However, it should be noted that there is a provision within the FTR which allows the traveler an approved exception to either one of these mandates. The City Pair Program (CPP) which was developed by the General Services Administration (GSA) to provide discounted air transportation services to Federal Government travelers with an average savings of 60-69% below commercial air fares.  The CPP is projected to save the Federal Government...

As the government spends about 2.5 billion annually on business employee travel expenses, the travel industry and the government have created a well- rounded partnership. This partnership explains in depth the understanding of the contracting requirements, acquisition rules and travel regulations. Communication on this information is essential between the two partners. The travel industry initiated different methods in order for government employees to have a thorough understanding of the travel industry and its regulations, etc. These methods were presented to the employees by means of conferences and educational sessions. These educational events are very informative for people to learn and expand their knowledge inn this industry. Educational conferences are...

My agency uses both the Centrally Billed Accounts (CBA) and Individually Billed Accounts (IBA) for travel expenses.  Agency travelers are required to use their GSA SmartPay2 program cards (government travel charge cards) issued by US Bank to pay for lodging and rental car expenses.  Previously, travelers also used their IBA to pay for airfare expenses, but all transportation expenses are currently being paid by a CBA, along with the e-travel transaction fees.  After a traveler submits an expense report, our agency financial system issues split disbursements through Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).  Charges made to the IBA are paid directly to the bank and out of pocket expenses owed to the employee (miscellaneous expenses, taxi, parking, etc) are made directly...

I have seen a number of different issues arise with regards to rental car use for official Government travel.  Perhaps other travelers have also run into similar situations and could share their stories as well. One situation was when a non-Government traveler rented a rental car.  Since we handle these types of travelers as “invitational travelers”, we use our ETS to book rental car reservations.  So I wonder if non-Government travelers (traveling on Government business) are allowed to use the DTMO rate with the same rental car privileges.  When this particular non-Government traveler showed up to rent her car, she paid for the CDW (liability insurance that is included in the DTMO rate).  I would have thought that since we booked the rental car through...

When obtaining a rental car for government travel you must arrange travel in accordance with the FTR through the E-Gov Travel Service that your agency makes available to you.  Your agency may grant an exception to requiring you to use the ETS if it would result in unreasonable burdens of the mission, special needs, national security interest or would cause endangerment to your life. The agency must determine that use of a rental vehicle is advantageous to the Government and must specifically authorize such use by approval through the ETS system.  If the exception is not approved you will then be responsible for any additional costs resulting from failure to use the E-Gov Travel Services.  The agency has the right to also take appropriate disciplinary...

The responsibilities of an Approving Official include a variety of knowledge and understanding in the Federal Travel Regulations. Even though the traveler must also have knowledge of the FTR and agency travel policies to ensure their travel claims are entered correctly within the guidelines of the policies, the ultimate responsibility for verifying expenses are valid and necessary for official business and meet the agency’s mission lies with the approver. Along with the FTR the approver should be knowledgeable of their agency’s inner policies and that their travelers abide by them as well. When reviewing authorizations the Approving Official should make sure the traveler has entered reservations and expenses as any prudent traveler would, in making sure...

An Agency/Organization Program Coordinator (A/OPC)  has overall responsibility for the Travel Card program within his/her Agency/Organization.   A/OPC’s make every effort to control government traveler abuse when cardholders use their Individually Billed Travel (IBT) charge card.  Each agency puts several controls in place such as running specific reports to detect abuse, applying monthly credit limits and ATM withdrawal limits, and blocking several non-travel related Merchant Category Codes (MCC) as well. One form of what I consider “abuse”, is the fact that merchants can “force” a transaction through the pipeline financially and the charge will post to the cardholder’s account.  The merchant has the ability to override a...

The introduction of electronic travel systems for civilian agencies was initiated in 2002 by the General Services Agency (GSA) to create an end-to-end travel service to connect travel authorizations, reservations, and expense voucher processing. This initially began as the e-Travel Project, which eventually evolved to E-Gov Travel Service (ETS). The Federal Travel Regulations were amended to require use of a Travel Management Service (TMS) and the ETS for cost efficiency. This comes from 301-73.106. Federal agencies were given their choice of three ETS vendors: Carlson Wagonlit Government Travel’s E2 Solutions, EDS’s FedTraveler, or Northrop Grumman Mission System’s GovTrip. I happen to be the Bureau system administrator for ETS, so I have been very involved...

There are two types of government fares that our travelers can book in the E Travel System, GSA City Pair Fares and Government fares. In 1980 the General Services Administration (GSA) developed the City Pair Program (CPP) to provide discounted air passenger transportation services to Federal government travelers. In the beginning, this service only covered 11 markets, but has grown to over 5,000 city pairs. The average savings is 63%-77% below commercial full fares. A critical aspect of travel planning is flexibility and the CPP has many features that allow Government travelers all the flexibility possible. Features of the Service include: Non-stop service was awarded on 95% of the markets where non-stop service was offered. Fares are priced on one-way routes,...

The Global Distribution System (GDS) is an integral part of the E-Gov Travel System (ETS).  All three of the possible ETS solutions access the GDS and allow travelers to select and reserve their own airline, hotel, and rental car accommodations.  This concept was new to many of us in 2004 when we started implementing ETS and we also hadn’t realized the challenges that it would present. Up until this time, we relied solely on the Travel Management Center (TMC) to provide service for all aspects of reservations, ticketing, and any other general airline question.  Since the reservations are now integrated, travelers began calling our help desk with the questions that they use to ask the TMC’s.  At this time, we began to realize how little we really...

E-Gov Travel is a government wide initiative that is mandated by the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) for all federal travelers and is one of 24 E-Gov initiatives outlined in the President’s Management Agenda (PMA). The E-Gov Travel Service (ETS) vendors include Carlson Wagonlit Government Travel’s E2 Solutions, EDS’s FedTraveler and Northrop Grumman Mission System’s GovTrip. The vendor hosts and maintains the software and GSA administers the contract. ETS travel systems replaced several in-house systems, COTS software, and manual processes throughout government. The ETS systems are E-Gov travel and FTR compliant that requires no client installation and can be accessed 24/7 from the Internet. These systems embed the reservation component in the...

The General Services Administration contracts with airlines for reduced airfares for official government travel. Travelers who are on official travel are required to use these reduced fairs in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulations.  GSA has urbanized a tremendously successful Airline City Pair Program. This service originally covered only 11 markets, but over the last 27 years, it has stretched to over 5,000 city pairs. The airfares offered under this program are discounted considerably off comparable commercial fares–saving the federal government billions of dollars annually. Each year, the General Services Administration awards contracts for air transportation for travelers on official government travel. Contracts are awarded competitively based...

Today’s technology (whether you like it or not) has now given the traveler two types of tickets available when making a reservation with an airline:  One, there is the paper ticket, and two, there is the electronic ticket (e-ticket).  This new automation has also brought along with it a few pros and cons concerning an electronic ticket versus using a paper ticket. Paper tickets are so named because the actual piece of paper contains the exact flight information and is labeled as a flight coupon in paper form.  With an electronic ticket, information is stored within the airline’s reservation system.  The person traveling on an electronic ticket is given a copy of his or her itinerary, which does includes the contract carrier name.  However, this is...

Overview:  The largest membership base within SGTP are smaller companies such as travel agencies, individual hotels, and or other industry suppliers that are currently or looking to enter or increase sales revenue within the government travel sector. Challenge: To communicate effectively with our membership in a two way dialogue of the SGTP resources and have them utilize them to better understand the government travel marketplace.  And to assist in creating developing increased sales for their organization in his $20 billion annual spend by arena. Issue: New members are continuously joining SGTP on a year round basis.  And though we would like all to be successful immediately with positive results we are aware of the lengthy process, time commitment and...

The approving official has a very important role in the processing of travel requests.  Approving officials need to complete training on their eGov Travel application. Many agencies offer classroom or online training. Approving officials are setup in routing lists in the eGov Travel application.  There is often more than one approving official in a routing list to allow for unavailability.  The approving official can be an administrator, part of the finance office or required for specific agency business rules.  When a document is routed to the approving official it is their responsibility to review the document in a timely manner. The review of the authorization must be timely by the approving official to allow the traveler to confirm the reservations and...

Over the last decade the car rental industry has undergone dramatic changes; notably is the transfer of rental car company ownerships from automobile manufactures to entrepreneurial corporations. Rental car companies have entered into formal agreements with the government with approved vendor status including several domestic and international companies. The government car rental program is available to all U.S. Government personnel traveling on official business. Even though the monies spent on car rental is small in comparison to the industry as a whole, the government portion is considered of great value. It offers many benefits and availability to all government drivers who are authorized and licensed. Car rental rates can be discounted at any location, but...

How do I travel without a cash advance and without writing a check to pay off my IBA? OK, the question is slightly misleading but it got your attention I hope.  My method doesn’t work 100% of the time, but way more often than not. Here is what I DON’T want to do.  One, I DON’T want to request and then make sure I receive a cash advance prior to leaving on a trip.  (And I certainly don’t want to have to concern myself with returning a cash advance if my trip gets canceled.)  Two, I DON’T want to have to write a check or otherwise make a payment for my personal travel card after the trip is over. Let assume a “normal” trip – airfare, rental car, & hotel. I make my airfare, rental car, & hotel reservations online in our E-Gov Travel...

As an authorizing official for my agency, there is so much I can say on what is right and wrong. A question I have for you is where do you need to draw the line with travel expenses? Yes, we are suppose to stick to the rules, but how about the people who expect you to break them and get you into trouble for their own selfish reasons… or should I say their own lazy ways. For example, parking at valet parking versus long term parking… In the name of I didn’t know… or having the person dropping the off park at the daily parking just to talk them in… and you are suppose to pay for the hourly parking in addition to mileage for the drop off? Seriously, I say! I believe in treating people fair and not matter what level you are the rules are the rules. The FTR...

The travel process can be a very complicated process without the proper training. The Bureau of the Public Debt offers training for all agencies in which we perform travel for. Many people are involved each time an individual goes on travel. Everyone involved has a specific duty to perform in order to make the travel process run smoothly. The following is the normal process an individual would follow when traveling for the government. The first step of the travel process is being asked to perform travel. Whatever the need is for the travel, the authorization to travel must be approved by management. Once management has approved the need for travel, they may give specific limitations, exceptions, approvals that pertain to the travel at hand. This information will...

Reports, reports, and more reports – every member of management has had a need for a report of some sort at some time or another.  Reports are crucial in today’s business world.  A report can advise management of budget constraints.  A good report also tells management where a company is spending, and maybe even losing, money.   Reports can also indicate how much time was spent on particular jobs/assignments. It is nearly impossible to function without reports. My agency receives many requests from our customers for various reports.  Nearly every day, we receive a new request for information.  In addition to the requests that we receive from our customers, we also receive data calls from the Department and General Services Administration (GSA). ...

My agency offers E-Gov travel reimbursable services to other government agencies as a means for them to more cost effectively provide travel and let’s the agency concentrate on their core mission. In support of this, we offer a travel Help Desk. Initially, our intent was to offer better service administrating E-Gov Travel and travel policy questions for our customers than we felt the vendors could provide, and we were able to accomplish this. (We were used to doing this even before E-Gov Travel). However we have noticed that our Helpdesk has expanded somewhat in the scope of questions being asked. We receive more than just the routing administration questions such as routing lists and group changes. Travelers have questions about finding the correct flights...

In thinking about how to improve the government travel system(s) and the amount of work that goes into running and contracting Travel Management Centers / Commercial Travel Offices, it occurs to me that all-in-all, the taxpayer is getting a lot of “bang for their buck”. Government travelers expect and receive travel benefits equal to most commercial travelers, at greatly reduced rates. In some cases, the government’s deal is much better than the commercial equivalent. Where can this be improved upon? What can be done to make it better? I would make two suggestions. First, find ways to reward travelers to save money. Much of the course has discussed the systems and regulations in place to force compliance and keep costs in line. While “doing the right...

The electronic ticketing system has certainly altered the travel industry. Subsequent to June 2008, most airlines were continuing to issue paper tickets.  Paper tickets and electronic tickets mutually worked in the same capacity. They show proof that a  passenger has actually purchased their airline ticket.  We recall the tribulations experienced with paper tickets.  Airlines always charged more for issuing the paper tickets verses the electronic ones.  Travelers would often forget their airline ticket  at home.  Furthermore, there were also tons of fees associated with paper tickets. According to Bryan Wilson of the International Air Transport Association the elimination of paper tickets will reduce airline costs by as much as $3 billion worldwide and cut...

In reviewing FAR Part 301-52, which was covered by this chapter, I was interested to find out about the late payment fees required of the Government when a filed voucher is not paid within 30 days. According to this FAR provision, when the Government fails to meet the requisite deadline, it becomes liable for a Prompt Payment Act payment which must be equal to or in excess of what the employee may be charged by the credit card company, or where the employee pays the bill, what he or she would have been charged. Interestingly enough, the language concerning the tax consequences of these payments is far from clear. In this regard, §301-52.22 notes that the payment is not reported as wages, but rather, is “in the nature of interest.” The section goes on...

Interfacing ETS systems with financial systems is an intricate process that plays a major role in travel operations.  To begin with, for people that are not very familiar with financial systems, lines of accounting can seem very complicated and intimidating.  When I first started working as a travel administrator a few years ago I had to become familiar with financial system lingo, and accounting structure.  Travel preparers, especially new preparers, would contact me inquiring what line of accounting they should use for their traveler. The problem I would have is that their specific team/office may have several accounting codes to choose from, but I had no idea which code they needed to know.  This has happened at every stop I’ve been at.  During my...

Let’s take a look at where government travel will be in the future. To see what a government traveler will experience, we’ll need to look at the various aspects of the travel system covered in our course, and extrapolate the current trends ten years down the road. The major trends in the Global Distribution world are connections across the internet and controlling distribution costs. In the next few years we are likely to see suppliers using focused distribution channels rather than the GDS to control their costs. By distributing on more effective channels, the suppliers not only safe, but gain more control over their inventory. No doubt, these channels will be internet based as the new systems coming online now are all web riding. This trend will impact...

I have noticed that this training course book touches on some topics very succinctly. On page 57 for example, the term ‘Fly America Act’ was used for international travel. I wanted to learn more so Wikipedia was my first stop. There I found out that this “Act refers to the provisions enacted by Title 49 of the United States Code…”regarding government financed air transportation. What makes this topic a bit more interesting to me is that this Act applies equally to non-U.S. nationals and non-U.S. companies both within the U.S. and ex-territorially, regardless of enforcement difficulties or possible infringement of international law and personal liberty that this could represent.  So, because of this, the Act is generally regarded by non-U.S. interests as...

From what I remember, the private sector about 10 years ago was working on a way to have the credit card charges on corporate issued Individual Billed Accounts (IBA) linked to an internal website where the traveler would do their expense account and submit it for payment. The government saw this as a way to start driving more compliance with their charge cards and adapted the same basic system. It used to be that if you charged an expense on your card, you did not have to submit receipts for those expenses. Life seemed really good then as all those paper receipts were not always required. You of course had to add “Manual Expense Items” basically those items that you would pay in cash for things like a cab ride. It really did not take that much time to...

I found the material in both of these lessons (2b and 2c) informative regarding airline and hotel requirements. Particularly useful are the sections on City Pair fares and FEMA hotel requirements. While the target audience for the material is travel agents or those in the travel industry dealing directly with government employee travel, there is an opportunity to expand to those working for government contractors by outlining how these regulations apply or do not apply to the government contractor. Government contractors have to abide by many of the same regulations, though not all. For example, the GSA on its Contractor Fact Sheet (http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/102009) has made it clear that City Pairs are not required of, because they cannot be used by,...

The City Pair Program (CPP) is a mandatory program administered by the General Services Administration (GSA) and is available to all government travelers.  This program offers competitive air fares at a significantly reduced price.  Along with the reduced price, there are also other benefits such as: Tickets are fully refundable Last seat availability No advance purchase requirement No blackout periods No penalties No cancellation fees While the CPP has been in existence since 1980, many travelers were not aware of the program until recent years.  Once agencies started implementing an E-Gov Travel System (ETS), travelers could see a variety of flights, some were city pair flights and some were not.  Prior to this time, the traveler just picked up the phone,...

In making a reservation with a TMC/CTO travel agent, the traveler first provides their name to the agent. Upon learning the name of the traveler, the agent will pull up the traveler’s profile, which pre-populates the relevant fields in the Passenger Name Record (PNR) or travel record. The traveler then tells the agent the basic requirements of their trip, including, but not limited to: origin; destination; time preferences; dates; lodging preference; car rental; and any other requirements the traveler may require. Upon gathering the aforementioned basic travel information from the traveler, the agent will use the GDS to search for the appropriate air, lodging and car rental. The government rules and regulations are scripted into the GDS in a master profile...

Working in the travel arena for several years, I have sampled my share of travel vouchers for compliance to the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR). I have seen many vouchers that I felt was just following the public’s perception of government, wasteful spending. I am not required to travel often, but when I do, I do everything within my power to spend as little as possible. I guess you can say I am the “prudent” traveler, but also a taxpayer. I do not look at travel as a way to make a few extra dollars. Unfortunately, I think a lot of individuals take advantage of travel as a way to gain “free money” The FTR is the rules listing the travel guidelines, but I also think they are the reason so many people within government look at travel...

Is there a more efficient way for the travel charge cardholder to track charges and make payments or for agencies to monitor misuse of the individually billed travel charge card? The individually billed travel (IBT) charge card is issued to individuals to be used for approved official government travel expenses.   Expenses that must be charged to the card include common carrier charges such as airfare or train, lodging facilities, and rental car.  When practical, the card can be and should be used for meals, parking, tolls, taxi fares, and other miscellaneous allowable travel expenses.  When necessary, the card can be used for cash advances for those out of pocket expenses that are more convenient to pay with cash.  While the government travel card becomes...

In 2003 General Services Administration (GSA) awarded three companies with E-Gov Travel Service contracts.  Once the contracts were awarded, agencies were given until December 2004 to select an ETS vendor. I was hired in 2005 to support travelers with this new eTravel system.  The agency that I work for provides administrative support services on a competitive and full cost-reimbursable basis to other government agencies.  We operate like a public business and do not receive any appropriated funds. We have two branches within travel  – Relocation and Temporary Duty (TDY).  I work in the TDY branch.  Our services include E-Gov Travel implementation, help desk support, training, travel-related payments, travel policy, and charge card administration. In the...

Following the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, domestic airline members of the Air Transport Association (ATA) operating the Area Settlement Plan (ASP), that had agreed to and signed the ARC Carrier Service Agreement, created the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC).  This Arlington VA based, self-governing corporation, appoints travel agencies to sell airline tickets and oversees the financial details of tracking payments to airlines and the disbursement of commissions to travel agencies for the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  It processes approximately 150 million ticket transactions per year for its customers, which now include approximately 30,000 travel agents, and more than 150 domestic and international participating airline and...

An approving official is an employee with the authority to approve or direct travel for official government business.  The approving official is included in the routing lists in the ets.  They are sometimes an administrator or part of the finance office.  There are often more than one or two to provide for unavailability.  The approving official must be knowledgeable of the federal travel regulations (ftr) and any other agency specific policy.  Some of the roles of an approving official are that the  approving official must determine if the travel is essential to the agency mission, ensure adequate funds are available prior to authorizing travel, make sure that the mode of transportation selected in the authorization is most advantageous to the...

Seize The Spend, maximizing card usage improves data. The more spending we capture through our SmartPay Card Program, the better the data and reconciliation with greater benefits. What are the traits of high-spend capture organizations? Companies that capture at least 75 percent of travel and entertainment spending on a corporate card is good but not excellent. The lower capture group is mainly looking at reconciliation processing, a basic utilization of card data in the managed corporate program.  ACTE and Citi recommended the following tactics to capture the largest possible portion of T&E spending on cards: Secure a senior management champion with influence across the enterprise to sponsor the program and communicate the policy. **We at the Galley have...

Web access becomes almost universal, and travel one of the most common types of e-commerce, more and more federal employees are turning to computers to help them plan trips, check regulations, and more. GENERAL FEDERAL TRAVEL http://pub.fss.gsa.gov/services/citypairs/citypairs-mid.html The mother lode of information on the government’s low negotiated airline fares, including schedules, fares and more. http://nasdac.faa.gov/internet/fw_search.htm A Federal Aviation Administration page devoted to aviation safety data. From here you can search the National Transportation Safety Board Aviation Accident/Incident Database; the FAA Incident Data System; the Near Midair Collisions System database; NTSB Safety Recommendations to the FAA with FAA responses; and the...

While transitioning our franchise customers over to our current agency’s E-Gov Travel System (ETS), we encountered the same question over and over—Who should have access to the ETS?  After much discussion with our agency, GSA, Chief Counsel’s Office, and other agencies, our Bureau has developed the following policy in regards to this question. Access to the ETS is limited to employees who have a need to use the system including travelers, document preparers, budget reviewers, approving officials, or other identified staff.  Because personal services contractors (PSCs) have an employer-employee relationship and are considered employees, they may have access to the ETS as long as they are trained to use the system and are familiar with the Federal Travel...

As a Government traveler, I am often astounded by the differences in airline ticket prices when I travel.  I may have paid $350 for a Government-fare seat in coach class while the business traveler in the seat beside me paid $1,200.  This is the result of yield management.  In this instance, airlines are trying to sell the right seats to the right type of customer at the right time and for the right price. Yield management uses information about customer purchasing behavior and product sales to develop pricing and inventory controls that produce greater revenues and deliver products that are better matched to the customers’ needs. Yield management is well-suited for travel service providers because of the following characteristics: Perishable...

In 2002, General Services Administration (GSA) initiated the introduction of electronic travel systems to create an end-to-end travel process that included: authorizations, travel reservations and voucher filing. The system also had to incorporate the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR).   The system, better known as E-Gov Travel Service or ETS, had to include a service for booking common carrier, lodging, and rental car reservations.  It also had to take into consideration Government wide travel policies, ticketing requirements, contract city-pair fares, per diem rates, Fedrooms and FEMA approved properties. Along with these requirements, the system had to have reporting functionalities.  It had to be able to determine the number of reservations by type of...

The Fly America Act was first approved by congress with the Air Transporation Fair Competitive Practice act of 1974. In 1981 it was amended to include the verbiage requiring Federal Employees and their dependents, consultants, contractors, grantees and others performing United States Government financed foreign air travel to travel by US flag carriers. In April 2007 the US-EU Open Skies Agreement was signed this agreement amended the earlier Fly America Act to provide airlines of the European Community or its Member States the right to transport passengers and cargo on scheduled or charter flights for US Government transportation. In October of 2008 the United States Government signed an Open skies agreement with Australia and Switzerland.   These agreements...

According to the text, Travel Management Centers (TMCs), applying for the GSA Schedule are expected to offer prices better than those offered their best customer. This raises some interesting questions. Does GSA truly get the best rate? First, were this truly the case, it would be of no advantage for agencies to negotiate non-schedule TMC arrangements. They presumably could not get a better rate and presumably the $1.50 transaction fee is not enough to make the issuance of a Request for Proposals (RFP) and competition, an expensive process, a profitable alternative. Why than would an agency choose to run its own competition? Is it solely to add additional requirements not available under the schedule? Does GSA require that TMCs on the schedule offer services in...

On November 14, 2008, the General Services Administration (GSA), the Department of Defense (DOD), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) issued a final rule (73 FR 67651), amending 48 CFR Parts 2, 22, and 52, to change the rules on Employment Eligibility Verification.  These new rules require Government contractors to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Government to use the Federal E-Verify system to confirm the immigration status of employees working on Government contracts performed within the United States.  Prior to the effective date of the new regulation, January 15, 2009, the use of the E-Verify system was voluntary. Government contractors, as well as businesses in general, have long been obligated to check...

Starting in 2005 the lodging per diem rates have been based on the average daily rate (ADR) data, which is a measure based upon a property’s room rental revenue divided by the number of rooms rented as reported by the hotel property to the contractor.  GSA reviews each specific property to make sure they meet their criteria for geography, fire safe certification, and various property’s demography combined with their ADR to help determine market rates.  This calculation provides GSA with the average rate that rooms rent in a given area.  The goal is to find properties that have the best mid-range hotels in the market. For fluctuations, GSA has created seasonal rate periods in many markets where there is a sustained period (two or more months in...

Post payment auditing is a service we provide to our customers. These audits are performed using the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR). Our goal is to make sure that the travelers are reimbursed in accordance with the FTR. The Post payment auditing that we perform is on the voucher in the E-Gov Travel Service System and our accounting system. We conduct the audits using a Statistical sampling checklist, which is used on each voucher that is sampled. The amount of audits conducted can vary from month to month. This is determined by the number of vouchers that were paid the previous month. The vouchers are reviewed using the Statistical Sampling Checklist, which outlines multiple items to ensure the voucher is in compliance with the FTR. The voucher is...

I have played a major role with the travel industry and can relate because of my more than twenty-four years in working in the industry.  At the very beginning of my travel career, I worked with a company called CATO (Combined Airlines Ticket Office).  Very similar to SATO, CATO was owned by fourteen different airlines and we supported such federal agencies as The Department of State.  I was responsible for reviewing airline charges on a large printed report that would deliver to our office from Diner’s Club, the excitement of moving to a paperless and automated travel process was very much welcomed by me. Even though General Services Administration (GSA) establishes policy and guidance for travel, agencies still struggle with internal guidance which allows a...

With the invention of each new tool comes an additional problem.  When the eTravel systems were developed, they were meant to make things easier on all involved in the government travel process.  In most ways, they are successful.  The one area that is key to making the system work is keeping everyone informed (both internal staff and customers).  I’ve found through my experience that no matter how much you try, you can never give out too much information to the travelers.  If there are any problems with the system, it’s better to inform the traveler before they find it on their own.  If they’re trying to do something and come across the issue then they tend to get a little more worked up.  If they are aware of the problem before they run...

Implementing an E-Gov Travel System was quite a challenge.  While there was detailed and sometimes complex work involved with configuring the E-Gov Travel System and interfacing it with our financial management system, the biggest challenge involved the change for our travelers, arrangers, and approvers. My agency went from a very effective, simple in-house electronic authorization and vouchering system (with very few online bookings, done in a separate system) to using one of the three E-Gov Travel Systems.  In some ways I think it might have been easier to go from paper authorizations and vouchers to an E-Gov Travel System, but the shock may have been too great for end users. The old electronic travel authorization and voucher system did its job very well,...

To see this whitepaper, please click on the link below: http://www.cgtp.net/documents/travelpandemic.pdf

I often think about the Electronic Travel Systems (ETS) that have recently been developed by contractors and implemented by the government, and I can’t help recalling the “not so good-old-days” when the less sophisticated systems ruled this environment.  Consequently, things were much more cumbersome and time consuming. Before today’s technology the tools we were constrained to from a hotel perspective seem primitive.  Although I have never had the prodigious opportunity to utilize the ETS/DTS from an end user vantage, I believe my experience can lend testimony to the giant technological leaps and improved systems we have come to develop and implement in a very short time.  I feel the same holds true in most aspects of business and life. Before global,...

The CGTP course provided me with a wealth of information. I especially like the basics provided in the beginning of the course and the beginning of every weeks presentation, giving the history of government travel. The assignments were also very beneficial, because they caused me to do more research on the topics for the week. They also, allowed me to use what I had read to relate to my daily tasks… I would have to say, I learnt more on government travel from this course than I have on the job… Thank you! Anna K.

In some instances the Government Contact who is coming for the site visit or is making contact with the Sales Person is not the one who is making the final decision that their group will be using the accommodations and meeting space.  I have seen the final decision being made by the Contractor, the Meeting Planner and sometimes a small committee of people.  In one instance I showed a small group of three ladies around.  They were in town to see multiple properties.  Since they came to us first and our competition second we were not given an opportunity to negotiate.  I thought that this was really unfair.  Since our location is downtown, we charge for parking.  Our competition is a little bit outside of town and has a huge parking lot.  The three ladies...

Two of the best decisions made by the General Services Administration, when developing and implementing a customized on-line Electronic Travel System for their civilian agencies, were to award the E-Travel contracts to more than one vendor, and to work closely with the Department of Defense to learn from their ‘experiences’. When the GDS were first introduced to the public by American Airlines (Sabre) and United Airlines (Apollo) in the 70′s, it was a very basic reservation system. In fact, often times, the determining factor of which product a customer finally chose was the air carrier that had the majority of lift out of the airports from which the agency served its customers, since the agency only had last seat availability to offer their...

The government has implemented an excellent hotel program providing great benefits to its agencies while lowering cost to provide the best services to its travelers. Hotels have contracted with the government per diem rates, different types of properties, special amenities and charge cards, special negotiation rates and specialized lodging programs. The travelers have access to great hotels, meeting their needs and beyond. In addition to the great hotel services and amenities the travelers are provided with a convenient payment charge card and/or direct billing to their federal agency. This helps eliminate out of pocket payment.  This is a great advantage as many other public or private companies fail to provide these services to its employees.  For example, I...

Were the old days of travel processing considered the “good old days?”  It doesn’t quite seem that way to me.  While people are usually reluctant to any type of change, I find that most of my colleagues think things are better now than they were in the past.  Over the past few years there has been much progress in the tools used in processing travel for Government employees.  I admit that I was not part of the “good ol days” of travel.  As a relatively young travel administrator in the Government I hear many stories about the old days, back when employees had to write out their own travel authorizations, when everything was done on paper, and employees knew nothing about electronic ticketing. When you think about it, it’s quite amazing how far...

There are many regulations a federal traveler must following when selecting lodging for official business travel.  The government establishes per diem rates for locations world-wide.  The per diem allowance is intended to limit the amount a federal traveler spends on lodging, meals and incidental expenses.   Travelers should use an e-Travel system,  which will provide a list of hotels within the government rate.  Travelers without access to an e-Travel system can get the rates from the GSA website.  Per diem rates are reviewed annually and adjusted based on the assessment of trends and lodging needs.  General Services Administration (GSA) submits the new rates to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval.  Once approved by OMB, GSA...

‘Code Sharing’ is the industry term for an agreement that allows airlines to sell one another’s flights as if they were their own.  The ‘Code’  is identified by two letters on the ticket so that the airlines can identify who booked the reservation. After September 11, 2001, there was a decreased demand for air travel and cuts in schedules had to be taken. Code Sharing was a way that airlines could attract customers even as they cut their networks. Affiliations among carriers were formed to expand flight networks and to keep cost low and, with current financial struggles, code sharing is supposed to help sell more tickets. Code Sharing agreements require approval of regulators. The text book states on page 49 that “This Offers...

The airline industry has seen many changes in the past few years.  For government travelers the most significant change occurred in 1980 with the implementation of the City Pair Program (CPP).  Governed by the General Services Administration (GSA), CPP started out with 11 city pairs but has now expanded to over 5,000 city pairs for both domestic and international locations.  The program offers competitive rates which saves the government an average of 50% to 70% off unrestricted coach fares. Government travelers, following the requirements set forth in the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR), must use a contract fare when available unless the traveler has a valid justification.  Some of the justifications are: There are no seats available on a contract...