DoD travelers can stay at pricier hotels, eat free snacks

Defense Department travelers can be reimbursed up to 25 percent above standard per diem rates if they're staying in hotels hosting conferences, under changes to DoD travel regulations approved earlier this month.

The increase in per diems for DoD employees attending conferences is effective for travel on or after March 7, nearly two months after the increase took effect at all other federal agencies under travel regulations issued by the General Services Administration. At DoD, the adoption of the new "conference lodging allowance" took until March 14 to work its way through the Defense Department approval process.

"A federal traveler attending a conference is authorized the use of the conference lodging allowance when the traveler is: 1) notified by the conference sponsor that the conference lodging allowance is necessary; or 2) authorized or approved by the traveler's agency," according to a bulletin from S.W. Westbrook, director of the DoD Per Diem, Travel and Transportation Allowance Committee.

The change applies to both the Joint Federal Travel Regulations, which cover military personnel, and the Joint Travel Regulations, which cover civilian personnel.

The new rule is designed to make it easier for federal travelers to stay at hotels where conferences are being held. Conferences are typically held at three- and four-star hotels, while federal per diem rates are based on lodging costs at two- and three-star hotels.

The DoD per diem committee also announced that Defense organizations hosting conferences can offer employees light refreshments at government expense. Under previous rules, employees had to buy refreshments themselves.

GSA also revised the governmentwide refreshments regulation in January.