The General Services Administration Wednesday released 1999 per diem rates for federal travelers.
The government will cover travel expenses up to the per diem rates when employees travel on federal business. The rates released Wednesday cover travel in the continental United States.
The standard per diem rates for the continental United States-$50 for lodging and $30 for meals and incidental expenses-did not change this year. However, rates for specific localities changed, with some increasing and some decreasing.
For the first time, the 1999 rates do not include an allowance for taxes.
"We were finding that lodging properties would use that combined rate as their new room rate, and then add taxes on top of it. This frequently caused employees to absorb taxes out of their own pocket or request actual expense authority," GSA officials explained in a fact sheet. "Taxes will now be paid separately from the room rate based on the actual tax expense incurred by the traveler."
This year, GSA set separate per diem rates for cities and their suburbs, since travel costs often differ between downtown areas and locations surrounding cities. For example, Alexandria and Arlington, Va. now have separate per diem rates from Washington, D.C.
In the past, GSA has set one per diem rate per county. This year, GSA set several per diem rates within counties where lodging costs vary.
GSA also used to set only in-season and off-season rates. Now, GSA has added additional seasonal rates in areas where rates fluctuate more frequently. For instance, Palm Springs, Calif., now has a January through May rate, a June through August rate and a September through December rate.
Additional minor changes were announced in the Federal Register.
To see the new rates, click here.
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