Industry Postings

Our agency is improving processing of travel by implementing the CBA Reconciliation module in DTS. This module simplifies reconciling the agency’s Centrally Billed Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) Account, or CBA. The transactions placed on the CBA are transportation charges, such as tickets for air or rail travel, or Commercial Travel Office (CTO) service fees, and may include full or partial credits created by refunds or cancellations. To summarize the module’s functionality, DTS processes the payment of invoices received from, the GTCC vendor. When charges are billed against a CBA, the CBA Reconciliation module reconciles the transactions on the card vendor’s invoice with the traveler’s DTS trip document. Reconciliation refers to matching the...

On January 27, 1998, the government mandated the use of furnished travel charge cards and the implementation regulations were published the following year. The SmartPay program provides purchase, travel and fleet charge cards to over 350 government agencies and organizations; this is the largest program of its kind in the world. The SmartPay program is available to all government personnel subject to a minimum set of qualifications, Savings are achieved through accurate and prompt audits. In 2008 the SmartPay2 programs replaced the charge card program and will continue until the end of November 2018. It is contracted through Citibank, JP Morgan Chase and US Bank. Central Billed Accounts (CBA) are used for the purchase of air/rail/bus transportation and other...

“In 2003, the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) amendment 2003-07, FTR Case 2003-303, E-Gov Travel Service, was published in the Federal Register. This rule requires agency-wide use of the eTravel Service now known as E-Gov Travel” The proposed amendment to the Federal Travel Regulation requiring executive branch agencies to begin implementing the ETS no later than December 31, 2004 with complete agency-wide migration no later than September 30, 2006. According to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA): “The E-Gov Travel Service (ETS) is government-wide, web-based, world-class travel management service. It was launched in April 2002 to save significantly on costs and improve employee productivity.” Well stated, so why does my agency not use the E-Gov...

The various transaction fees associated with Government travel are a source of confusion for travelers.  Whether using an embedded Travel Management Center (TMC) from the ETS Master Contract, or an accommodated (third party) TMC – usually from the Travel Services Solutions (TSS) Schedule 599 – there are multiple fees that need to be understood. If an agency’s TMC services are provided via the ETS Master Contract, there are two primary fees to be concerned with in the most common domestic Temporary Duty (TDY) travel scenario which includes air and/or rail.  First is the TDY voucher processing fee, ranging from $10.28 to $13.50 per voucher.  I have heard users of my agency’s E-Gov Travel system wonder why they now have to pay to process travel...

This posting will be a discussion regarding the air ticket selection methods along with the pros and cons for each method.  The traveler can select and book tickets through one of the following methods: (1) accessing the EGOV Travel application and selecting the air tickets directly through the application or (2) calling the travel management center directly to book the tickets. Generally, tickets for any domestic trip can easily be selected by using the EGOV Travel application. Travelers are always encouraged to select air tickets through the EGOV Travel application as this is the most cost effective method for the government.  Selecting the ticket through the EGOV Travel application ensures that all the detailed information regarding the air ticket has been...

Government Sabre is a product that enables travel agencies to streamline the travel booking process for government travelers.  Government Sabre delivers access to government negotiated rates, policy compliance automated at the point of sale, and automation to improve efficiency in the government travel booking process. Government Sabre includes access to government negotiated rates, policy compliance automated at the point of sales, automation to improve efficiency of overall government travel booking process, and provides access so the agent will only see government approved rates. Government Sabre offers the following features: Access to Preferred Rates. CONUS and OCONUS rates for lodging and transportation, which are approved government per diem rates. Rates...

In today’s economic climate, most hoteliers have a strong sense of urgency in doing more business with the U.S. Federal Government. Perhaps one of the most important factors in accomplishing this is having a comprehensive understanding of how government contracting works.  It goes without saying the federal government has its own set of unique processes and rules.  I have found one consistent, absolute condition always surfaces related to government group contracts, which is something called Force Majeure. Force Majeure is a French term which means “greater force.”  Nearly every government contract and/or letter of intent will have a force majeure clause.  This clause excuses an interested party from liability if some unforeseen event beyond the...

I thought that these 2 chapters (Chapter 4a & 4b) were very fascinating.  I can relate to these topics because there have been a few instances where we have had some billing issues with certain government agencies.  The first instance that I can think of was with an agency we had booked at the Gettysburg Hotel last year.  During their meeting they ended up adding AV equipment on to make their master account higher than what it was originally approved for.  It only ended being a small amount under $100 but in order to be paid the full amount, the agency would have had to gone back and gotten the full amount approved which could have taken months.  Instead we wrote off the added amount just to get the majority of our money while they were there. A second...

The Federal Travel Regulations are an important part of the work we perform in our office on a daily basis.  We provide other agencies with a full service travel help desk in which our personnel is often asked to quote the FTR and clarify any confusion the government traveler may be experiencing while traveling for business purposes. However, in order to answer more complex questions, we have two policy experts within our office who research issues and respond to the traveler in a timely manner. We also perform post-payment audits of travelers’ vouchers on a monthly basis.  We must ensure that travelers are complying with the FTR in areas in which the E Gov travel system isn’t capable of verifying.  For instance, the FTR requires that a traveler...

When it comes to data mining and collecting all of the information available to review compliance and leverage travel spend, once a completely integrated tool is developed and proven, we will still conduct our analysis the manual way.    The primary pieces that states have access to is the back end reporting provided by the travel agency and the credit card transaction reports. Oregon also has access to car rental information from our contracted car rental provider. Gathering airline and car rental spend is easy, just contact the TMC or car rental contractor.  The challenge that we face is gathering the hotel spend, especially the instate hotel spend where there is no air travel involved.   Since only ten percent of the states travelers use the...

Just because you are traveling with a rate guideline does not mean you need to just find a hotel that offers the government per diem or even if it is less than the government per diem.  Do you research! If you are not able to go into the DTS system to search for a room you could always search www.fedrooms.com or www.fedtravel.com that has a list of hotels that are standardized to the regulations or procedures or are FEMA approved. I would do more research and if you are not familiar with the area but have access to the internet, check out this websitewww.tripadvisor.com search for the FEMA approved hotels that are listed as approval hotels and see what reviews say about this hotel. Also visit the hotels own website to see what they have to offer. This could...

The Defense Travel Management Office established in 2006, is a positive example of how government can streamline best practices and procedures into one government entity. The DTMO serves to establish direction, set policy and centrally manage the defense departments commercial travel programs. DTMO is responsible for the DTS online booking tool and monitors the usage, cost and customer satisfaction in order to determine the efficiency and effectiveness. Since the implementation of DTS (Defense Travel System) in 2006 the system now operates over 9,500 sites worldwide and has approximately 75,000 users accessing it on a daily basis. The positive customer service results and the efficiency of the tool have been hard to ignore. Per the Transportation Reform Act of...

The Joint Travel Regulations (JTR) authorizes additional travel and transportation expenses for those with disabilities or special needs.  In accordance with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, these provisions are intended to accommodate an employee with a special need or disability. These provisions are intended to accommodate an employee with a disability or special need by providing for reimbursement of necessary additional travel and transportation expenses incurred in the performance of official travel. The JTR also authorizes employees with a disability o r special need to be reimbursed for travel expenses when using Premium Class Travel. The premium class accommodations may be authorized by an approving official if the travel presents a medical...

The electronic travel system (ETS) benefits the federal traveler, program office, and finance office with management and evaluation of travel activity.  To the traveler the ETS is a mechanism for electronically booking common carrier, lodging accommodations, and car rental services, and for claiming reimbursement of travel expenses.  The ETS provides the program office a system to manage travel activities, to insure compliance to the Federal Travel Regulations and to electronically account for use of program funds. To us in the finance office, the ETS provides the required documentation to account for and disburse federal funds. The electronic travel document corresponds to an accounting transaction. In order for the travel system to communicate the travel and...

On September 22, 2006, the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) was amended to mandate the use of the receipt management tool for agencies that deployed an electronic travel system. Under the Per Diem Expenses section, a note was added to §301–11.25 stating that hard copy receipts should be electronically scanned and submitted with the electronic travel claim if  the agency has this capability available with the use of ETS. The system used by my agency has this capability and is used accordingly. 301-11.25  Must I provide receipts to substantiate my claimed travel expenses? Yes. You must provide a lodging receipt and a receipt for every authorized expense over $75, or  provide a reason acceptable to your agency explaining why you are unable to furnish the...

There various fees which can be added to the trip total of a traveler when using an eGov Travel system.  Some of the fees include the TMC, IFF and eGov Travel contractor transaction fee. The TMC (Travel Management Center) fee is paid to the travel agency under contract with the Federal Government to provide reservation services for airline tickets, hotel reservations and car rentals.  The fee is determined by using comprehensive economic models and approved by GSA.  Travelers are always encouraged to select air tickets through the eGov Travel application as this is the most cost effective method for the government.  Due to the complexities of the some foreign travel, it is appropriate at times to contact the travel management center directly to obtain...

The travel business is constantly changing which makes my job interesting and challenging.  When I first started working for my agency, the travel software was a simple program with limited capability.  The software we are currently using is much more complex with features enabling the traveler to access airline, hotel, and car rental reservations all within one program.  Specializing in one particular area is very helpful and having a team of people to work from every aspect makes a travel team complete.  As an analyst in the Accounting area of our office for five years, I acquired knowledge of the E Gov Travel system.  Even though the main objective was to reimburse the traveler in a timely manner, many factors entered into the equation.   A lot of...

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...

Travel authorizations are documents that Government travelers complete to itemize travel expenses and obligate funds.  This document serves as the official travel orders and is approved by the authorizing official. By using an electronic travel system, (ETS), authorizations are completely automated.  The automation process allows you to set up the itinerary, make the reservations, add the expenses, select the line of accounting and sign the authorization to start routing to the appropriate approving officials.  You can book the airline or train reservation, book a rental car, and select your hotel all while completing your travel orders. It’s important to include any expense you may incur, while in official travel status, on the travel authorization and...

My supervisor calls me the debit memo queen.  This is because I believe in staying on top of debit memo’s as they are received and believe it or not I actually enjoy the task.  I began working with debit memos for the purpose of assisting account managers with timely resolution and to keep the total amount of outstanding memos to a minimum.  Before I began working with debit memos our ARC team would forward all of those incoming to the proper account manager as they were received.  Due to the vast responsibilities of the managers such as ensuring 100% customer satisfaction, keeping staffing properly balanced, providing guidance to agents, and being on the front line in regards to ticketing procedures memo’s easily became a burden for them.  Dealing with...

All federal employees on official travel are subject to Federal Travel Regulations, more commonly known as the FTR.  These regulations cover nearly every aspect of travel including, but not limited to:  POV mileage, per diem, airfare, and other miscellaneous expenses.  The FTR does not cover every possible scenario, of course, but it does, at the very least, clearly define which expenses are reimbursable.  A good example is the allowance for Meals and Incidentals (M&IE).  Travelers are entitled to 3/4 of the allowance on their first and last days of travel, but are entitled to the full amount on days in between.  Exceptions to this are meals that are provided or if leave is taken.  If any meals are provided, the traveler must note this in their voucher...