RD Instruction 2051-J

Table of Contents

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PART 2051 -- HOURS AND PAY

Subpart J -- Compensatory Time Off for Travel

[TABLE OF CONTENTS]{.underline}

[Sec]{.underline}. [Page]{.underline}

2051.451 General. 1

2051.452 Coverage. 1

2051.453 Authority to Approve Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 2

2051.454 Policy and Responsibilities. 2

\(a\) Overall Policy. 2

\(b\) Supervisory Responsibilities. 2

\(c\) General Rule. 2

2051.455 Creditable Travel Time. 3

\(a\) Travel Status. 3

\(b\) Official Duty Station. 3

\(c\) Usual Waiting Time. 3

\(d\) Extended Waiting Time. 4

\(e\) Bona Fide Meal Periods. 4

\(f\) Commuting Time. 4

\(g\) Alternative Mode, Time, or Route of Travel. 5

\(h\) Multiple Time Zones. 5

\(i\) Multiple-Day Travel Assignments. 5

\(j\) Compensable Hours of Work. 6

2051.456 Request for Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 6

\(a\) Earning Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 6

\(b\) Request Format. 6

\(c\) Request Time Period. 7

\(d\) Managing Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 7

2051.457 Usage of Accrued Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 7

\(a\) Using Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 7

\(b\) Scheduling Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 7

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RD Instruction 2051-J

Table of Contents

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[Sec]{.underline}. [Page]{.underline}

2051.458 Forfeiture of Compensatory Time Off for Travel. 8

\(a\) After 26 Pay Periods. 8

\(b\) Transfer to Another Agency. 8

\(c\) Movement Within USDA. 8

\(d\) Movement to a Noncovered Position. 8

\(e\) Separation. 8

\(f\) Exceptions. 8

\(g\) Exigency of the Public Business. 9

2051.459 Pay Caps. 9

2051.460 Prohibition Against Payment. 9

Exhibit A - Request for Compensatory Time Off for Travel.

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RD Instruction 2051-J

PART 2051 -- HOURS AND PAY

Subpart J -- Compensatory Time Off for Travel

§ 2051.451 [General]{.underline}.

The Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004 (Section 203 of Public Law
108-411 dated October 30, 2004) established a new form of compensatory
time off for time spent by an employee in a travel status away from the
employee's official duty station when such time is not otherwise
compensable. This instruction supplements this law; Office of Personnel
Management (OPM) regulations, rules, and policies; and the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulations and policies. OPM's
regulations implementing the new form of compensatory time off for
travel were effective January 28, 2005.

This instruction describes Rural Development policy and procedures for
selected issues related to compensatory time off for travel. This
instruction is intended to be read and applied within the context of all
applicable laws and regulations. OPM's regulations for compensatory time
off for travel are found in Subpart N of Part 550 of Title 5 of the Code
of Federal Regulations (CFR). USDA's regulations are found in Subchapter
2 of Part 550 of the Department Personnel Manual. In addition, OPM
includes memoranda and other relevant explanatory material on
compensatory time off for travel on its pay administration website at
[www.opm.gov/oca/pay/index.asp](http://www.opm.gov/oca/pay/index.asp).

§ 2051.452 [Coverage]{.underline}.

Compensatory time off for travel covers employees as defined in\
5 U.S.C. 5541(2). Compensatory time off for travel applies to employees
who are exempt and nonexempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Almost all employees in Rural Development are covered; however, members
of the Senior Executive Service (SES) and employees in Federal Wage
System (FWS) positions are not eligible to earn compensatory time off
for travel.

DISTRIBUTION: WSAL Human Resources

> Hours and Pay

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RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.453 [Authority to Approve Compensatory Time Off for
Travel]{.underline}.

Compensatory time off for travel must be for officially authorized
travel, i.e., travel for work purposes that has been approved by an
authorized Rural Development official or otherwise authorized under
established Rural Development policies. Designated officials in Rural
Development are authorized to approve travel (RD Instruction 2036-A). If
travel has been officially authorized, there is no requirement for a
separate request in advance of the travel for compensatory time off.
Employees must submit requests to receive credit for compensatory time
off for travel AFTER official travel has been completed.

The Under Secretary, Rural Development, has the authority to approve
compensatory time off for travel. The Under Secretary redelegates this
authority to Agency Administrators and other National Office officials
through the level of Division Directors, as well as to State Directors.
National Office officials and State Directors may redelegate authority
to approve compensatory time off for travel to the lowest supervisory
level within their respective organizations. These additional
redelegations should be issued in writing. (This delegation of authority
mirrors the authority to order or approve overtime as described in RD
Instruction 2051-H at 2051.353.) Designated officials exercise the
authority to approve employee requests for compensatory time off after
travel is completed.

§ 2051.454 [Policy and Responsibilities]{.underline}.

\(a\) [Overall Policy]{.underline}. Whenever possible, an employee's
travel should be scheduled within regular hours. This policy applies to
both FLSA nonexempt and exempt employees.

\(b\) [Supervisory Responsibilities]{.underline}. Supervisors are
responsible to schedule travel for subordinate employees. When an
employee must travel, it is the supervisor who should select the mode of
transportation, e.g., automobile or airplane, and the general time and
route of travel. Supervisors must make these decisions within budgetary
limitations and in recognition of the overall policy to schedule travel
within an employee's regular work hours whenever possible.

\(c\) [General Rule]{.underline}. Supervisors MUST credit an employee
with compensatory time off for travel if:

\(1\) travel is authorized;

\(2\) travel is away from the official duty station;

\(3\) travel time is not otherwise compensable hours of work under other
legal authority;

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> RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.454(c) (Con.)

\(4\) specified exclusions are made from travel time (e.g., bona fide
meal periods, normal home-to-work or work-to-home commuting, and
extended waiting time, as discussed in 2051.455 (d) -- (f)) AND

\(5\) the employee follows Rural Development procedures for submission
of a written request within the specified timeframe.

§ 2051.455 [Creditable Travel Time]{.underline}.

An employee is entitled to earn, on an hour-for-hour basis, compensatory
time off for time in a travel status away from the employee's official
duty station when the travel time is not otherwise compensable hours of
work under other legal authority.

\(a\) [Travel Status]{.underline}. Travel status includes only the time
actually spent traveling between the official duty station and a
temporary duty station, or between two temporary duty stations, and the
usual waiting time that precedes or interrupts such travel, subject to
exclusions discussed in OPM's regulations(5 CFR 550.1404) and in
(d)--(f) of this section. Time spent at a temporary duty station between
arrival and departure is not time in a travel status. The time an
employee spends traveling between temporary lodging and the temporary
duty station each day does not qualify as time in a travel status. This
time substitutes for the time the employee would have spent in normal
home-to-work and work-to-home commuting at the official duty station.

\(b\) [Official Duty Station]{.underline}. Rural Development defines a
mileage radius of 50 miles to determine whether an employee's travel is
within or away from the limits of the employee's official duty station
(ODS). Travel within the ODS limits does not qualify for compensatory
time off for travel.

\(c\) [Usual Waiting Time]{.underline}. Usual waiting time that precedes
or interrupts travel is time in a travel status. Rural Development
credits predeparture waiting time based on standards established by the
applicable airline. Predeparture waiting time may vary depending on a
number of factors, such as the airline, the airport, the security level,
or the time of year. There is no one established amount of time that is
universally credited for usual predeparture waiting time. Rural
Development credits the actual time spent waiting for connecting flights
or as a result of flight delays for waiting time that interrupts travel.
This definition of usual waiting time that precedes or interrupts travel
is the same as the definition of waiting time included in RD Instruction
2051-H under 2051.357(g).

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RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.455 (Con.)

\(d\) [Extended Waiting Time]{.underline}. If an employee experiences an
unusually long wait prior to his or her initial departure or between
actual periods of travel during which the employee is free to rest,
sleep, or otherwise use the time for his or her own purposes, the
extended waiting time that is outside the employee's regular working
hours does not qualify as time in a travel status. This extended waiting
time is not usual. It most often occurs when severe weather conditions
or major mechanical difficulties result in flight cancellations and very
lengthy, even overnight, delays.

\(e\) [Bona Fide Meal Periods]{.underline}. Bona fide meal periods
during actual travel time are not creditable as time in a travel status.

RD Instruction 2051-F includes the requirement for a lunch period on
scheduled workdays. Rural Development does not have a mission area
policy that requires meal periods at other times, such as on nonworkdays
or during travel outside regular working hours; however, any bona fide
meal period an employee takes during actual travel time does not qualify
as time in a travel status.

\(f\) [Commuting Time]{.underline}. There are times when it is necessary
to deduct the amount of time an employee spends in normal commuting
between home and work when determining what time qualifies as time in a
travel status. For compensatory time off for travel, these deductions
must be made for travel on nonworkdays as well as workdays. This differs
from determining hours of work for overtime, when commuting time
deductions are made only on scheduled workdays.

\(1\) If an employee is required to travel directly between home and a
temporary duty station outside the limits of the ODS, the time the
employee would have spent in normal home-to-work and work-to-home
commuting must be deducted.

\(2\) If an employee is required to travel outside regular work hours
between home and a transportation terminal outside the limits of the
ODS, the normal commuting time also must be deducted.

\(3\) If an employee is required to travel outside regular work hours
between home and a transportation terminal within the limits of the ODS
(as part of travel away from the ODS), the time is considered equivalent
to normal commuting time and does not qualify as time in a travel
status.

\(4\) If an employee travels between a worksite and a transportation
terminal, the travel time outside regular work hours does qualify as
time in a travel status, and no deduction for commuting time is made.

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RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.455 (con.)

\(g\) [Alternative Mode, Time, or Route of Travel]{.underline}. If an
employee requests, and is permitted, to use an alternative mode of
transportation (e.g., an employee prefers to drive rather than fly), or
travel at a different time or by a different route than selected by the
supervisor, the employee will be credited with the lesser of:

\(1\) the actual travel time in a travel status; or

\(2\) the estimated travel time which would have been considered time in
a travel status if the employee would have followed the supervisor's
selected travel mode, time, and/or route.

\(h\) [Multiple Time Zones]{.underline}. When an employee's travel
involves two or more time zones, the time zone at the point of first
departure for the day is used to determine whether, or how much, travel
is credited as time in travel status. For example, if an employee begins
travel in Washington, D.C., and ends travel that day in St. Louis, all
times are converted to the Eastern time zone to determine if any of the
travel is time in a travel status.

When the employee returns a later day from St. Louis to Washington,
D.C., all times are converted to the Central time zone to determine if
any of the travel is time in a travel status.

\(i\) [Multiple-Day Travel Assignments]{.underline}. An employee who is
on a multiple-day travel assignment may choose, for personal reasons,
not to use temporary lodgings at the temporary duty station, but to
return home at night or on a weekend. Typically in such a case, only
travel from home to the temporary duty station on the first day and
travel from the temporary duty station to home on the last day that is
otherwise qualifying as time in a travel status is creditable (subject
to the deduction of normal commuting time). Travel to and from home on
other days is not creditable travel time unless an authorized agency
official, at his or her discretion, determines that credit should be
given. Such a determination must be based on the net savings to the
Government from reduced lodging costs, considering the value of lost
labor time attributable to compensatory time off. The dollar value of an
hour of compensatory time off for this purpose is equal to the
employee's hourly rate of basic pay, which includes locality pay.

The Under Secretary delegates authority to approve credit for
compensatory time off for certain travel on multiple-day travel
assignments, based on determination of net savings to the

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RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.455(i) (Con.)

Government, to senior management officials. These senior officials
include the Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development;
Administrators; Associate Administrators; Deputy Administrators;
Assistant Administrators; Director, Centralized Servicing Center; Deputy
Chief Financial Officer; State Directors; and designated Special
Approving Officials (SAO) in the National Office.

\(j\) [Compensable Hours of Work]{.underline}. An employee may not
receive double compensation for travel hours. If the travel time is
otherwise compensable, the employee may not receive compensatory time
off for travel. This includes travel time during regular work hours and
during hours that are compensable as overtime under Title 5 or FLSA. An
employee may not earn compensatory time off for travel during basic
(non-overtime) holiday hours because the employee is entitled to receive
his or her regular pay for those hours. Rural Development designates the
8 hours from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. as the basic holiday hours for
employees on flexible work schedules.

§ 2051.456 [Request for Compensatory Time Off for Travel]{.underline}.

\(a\) [Earning Compensatory Time Off for Travel]{.underline}. Approving
officials may authorize credit for compensatory time off for travel only
in increments of one-quarter of an hour (15 minutes). When travel time
results in other than the full one-quarter of an hour, odd minutes shall
be rounded up or rounded down to the nearest quarter of an hour. For
example,\
67 minutes is rounded down to 1 hour, and 68 minutes is rounded up to 1¼
hour. The National Finance Center (NFC) established a separate
transaction code/prefix to record credit for compensatory time off for
travel. Timekeepers should refer to the Time and Attendance Instructions
for detailed information on recording earned compensatory time off for
travel.

\(b\) [Request Format]{.underline}. To receive credit for compensatory
time off for travel, an employee must submit a written request and
provide sufficient documentation of time in a travel status to allow the
approving official to make a written determination.

Rural Development will not require a specific form or format for such a
request; however, Exhibit A, Request for Compensatory Time Off for
Travel, provides a sample format that may be used. The written request
and final determination should be filed with the employee's time and
attendance report for the pay period in which the compensatory time off
for travel is credited.

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> RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.456 (Con.)

> \(c\) [Request Time Period]{.underline}. An employee should file a
> written request for credit by the end of the pay period in which
> travel occurs, but no later than the end of the pay period following
> the travel. Exceptions for late filing, such as extended illness
> immediately after travel, may be approved on an individual basis by a
> senior management official.
>
> These senior officials include the Deputy Under Secretary for Rural
> Development; Administrators; Associate Administrators; Deputy
> Administrators; Assistant Administrators; Director, Centralized
>
> Servicing Center; Deputy Chief Financial Officer; State Directors; and
> designated Special Approving Officials (SAO) in the National Office.
>
> \(d\) [Managing Compensatory Time Off for Travel]{.underline}. If
> travel is authorized, meets the criteria for credit, and employees
> follow prescribed procedures for submission of written requests within
> the specified timeframe, supervisors must approve compensatory time
> off for travel. There is no flexibility to set any type of cap on the
> accumulation of compensatory time off for travel. Supervisors must
> manage travel to ensure they manage compensatory time off for travel.
> The goal within Rural Development is not to exceed more than 40 hours
> in an employee's balance of compensatory time off for travel.

§ 2051.457 [Usage of Accrued Compensatory Time Off for
Travel]{.underline}.

\(a\) [Using Compensatory Time Off for Travel]{.underline}. Approving
officials may approve requests to use accrued compensatory time off for
travel only in increments of one-quarter of an hour (15 minutes). NFC
established a separate transaction code/prefix to record usage of
accrued compensatory time off for travel. Timekeepers should refer to
the Time and Attendance (T&A) Instructions for detailed information on
recording charges against an employee's accrued balance of compensatory
time off for travel.

\(b\) [Scheduling Compensatory Time Off for Travel]{.underline}. An
employee must use OPM Form 71, Request for Leave or Approved Absence,
for all requests to use any amount of compensatory time off for travel.
Such requests should be recorded under "Other paid absence." The
"Remarks" section should indicate the request is for compensatory time
off for travel.

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RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.458 [Forfeiture of Unused Compensatory Time Off for
Travel]{.underline}.

\(a\) [After 26 Pay Periods]{.underline}. An employee must use accrued
compensatory time off for travel by the end of the 26^th^ pay period
after the pay period during which it was credited. For example, if an
employee is credited with compensatory time off for travel in pay period
6 of 2005, the employee has until the end of pay period 6 in 2006 to use
it. If an employee fails to use the compensatory time off within 26 pay
periods after it is credited, the employee must forfeit such
compensatory time off. NFC will automatically delete any balances of
compensatory time off for travel after 26 pay periods. (OPM's
regulations and guidance make a point to emphasize that it is the pay
period in which compensatory time off is credited, rather than when it
is earned, which starts the 26 pay periods before forfeiture. This
distinction is not significant under the NFC system, because
compensatory time off always should be credited to the pay period in
which it was earned. This is true even if the compensatory time off is
entered after the pay period in which it is earned because it will be
necessary to process a corrected T&A. A corrected T&A ensures the
compensatory time off is credited to the pay period in which it was
earned.)

\(b\) [Transfer to Another Agency]{.underline}. If an employee
voluntarily transfers to another Agency (i.e., outside USDA), any unused
compensatory time off is forfeited. Transfer also includes promotion or
change to lower grade.

\(c\) [Movement Within USDA]{.underline}. If an employee moves to
another USDA agency, any unused compensatory time off is retained.

\(d\) [Movement to a Noncovered Position]{.underline}. If an employee
moves to a Federal position not covered by OPM's regulations, any unused
compensatory time off is forfeited.

\(e\) [Separation]{.underline}. If an employee separates from Federal
service, any unused compensatory time off is forfeited.

\(f\) [Exceptions]{.underline}. There are provisions in OPM's
regulations that allow an extended period to use compensatory time off
before forfeiture. These provisions include situations where employees
separate or are placed in a leave without pay status to perform service
in the uniformed services, with restoration rights, or because of an
on-the-job injury. Specific criteria can be found in 5 CFR 550.1407.
These are the only situations when additional time beyond the 26 pay
periods may be approved for use of compensatory time off.

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> RD Instruction 2051-J

§ 2051.458 (Con.)

\(g\) [Exigency of the Public Business]{.underline}. An employee's use
of earned compensatory time off for travel does not constitute an
exigency of the public business. If the use of earned compensatory time
off that is about to expire results in the forfeiture of excess annual
leave, the forfeited annual leave cannot be restored.

§ 2051.459 [Pay Caps]{.underline}.

Accrued compensatory time off for travel is not considered in applying
maximum earnings limitations under the premium pay provisions (5 CFR
550.105 through 550.107) or the aggregate limitation on pay (5 CFR 530,
subpart B).

§ 2051.460 [Prohibition Against Payment]{.underline}.

An employee may not receive payment under any circumstances for any
unused compensatory time off for travel. This prohibition against
payment also applies to surviving beneficiaries in the event of an
employee's death.

Attachment: Exhibit A, Request for Compensatory Time Off for Travel

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