Travel charge card mandate finally goes into effect

Federal travelers, get your charge cards ready. A long-delayed mandate requiring federal travelers to use plastic for most travel expenses takes effect governmentwide today.

Under the 1998 Travel and Transportation Reform Act, federal employees must use the travel charge cards, which agencies issue to employees, for everything but minor travel expenses, such as taxis, laundry and tips.

Monday marks the final deadline for agencies to start complying with the law. Although three such deadlines have already passed with last-minute extensions granted, the General Services Administration says it is standing firm on the May 1 start date.

Last month, GSA revised some of its rules concerning the new law. Now federal employees don't have to use travel charge cards for most relocation expenses, and agencies do not have to reimburse employees for relocation expenses within 30 days, which is the reimbursement time limit for all other travel expenses.

Getting the new travel charge card requirement in place hasn't been easy. GSA issued interim regulations in July 1999, setting the start date for the requirement as Jan. 1, 2000. But on Jan. 19, GSA announced that it would delay the requirement's start date until Feb. 29. Then on March 3, the Defense Department announced that it was again delaying the start date until May 1. On March 30, GSA buckled and delayed the governmentwide start date until May 1, too. Meanwhile, some agencies had already begun requiring travelers to use their charge cards for expenses.

Much of the delay has been due to problems in getting agency financial systems ready for the change. The 1998 law penalizes agencies that fail to reimburse employees for travel expenses within 30 days. If an agency fails to meet that deadline, the agency must pay the employee a late fee, originally based on the Prompt Payment Act interest rate. Now agencies can calculate flat late fees if they don't want to use the Prompt Payment Act rate.

But agency financial systems haven't been ready to handle the late fee calculations. Several financial officials have already said their systems will not meet the May 1 deadline. The Defense Department said it will simply manually process any late interest payments.

The charge card mandate doesn't apply to all employees. Governmentwide, exemptions include employees who have an application pending for the travel charge card, people traveling on invitational travel orders, and new appointees. The law authorizes agency-specific exemptions as well. Travelers should check with their agencies to see if the mandatory use rule is in effect and to find out what, if any, exemptions apply at their agencies.

Defense Comptroller William J. Lynn ruled the following groups of employees will be exempt from the new provisions:

• ROTC and service members in basic training or initial skill training prior to reporting to their first permanent duty station.
• Military or DoD civilians denied travel cards or whose cards have been canceled or suspended for financial irresponsibility or other reasons.
• Those who have had exemptions approved by heads of DoD components for military and DoD civilians during war, a national emergency declared by the President or Congress, or mobilization, deployment or contingency operations.
• Military or DoD civilians traveling to or in a foreign country where the political, financial or communications infrastructure does not support the use of a travel card.
• Military or DoD civilians whose use of the travel card due to operational, security or other mission requirements, would pose a threat to national security, endanger the life or safety of themselves or others or would compromise a law enforcement activity.
• Direct and indirect hire foreign nationals.
• Individuals employed or appointed on a temporary or intermittent basis when the individual's supervisor or other appropriate officials determine the duration or other circumstances pertaining to the employment or appointment does not justify issuing a travel card.