Board of Contract Appeals
                 General Services Administration
                      Washington, D.C. 20405


                         ________________

                          March 1, 2002
                         ________________


                         GSBCA 15750-TRAV


                In the Matter of TIARA A. STANLEY


     Tiara A. Stanley, Kalamazoo, MI, Claimant.

     Keith L. Yoder, District Manager, Social Security Administration, Kalamazoo, MI,
appearing for Social Security Administration.

DeGRAFF, Board Judge.

     Tiara A. Stanley, an employee of the Social Security Administration (SSA), attended
a training course at a temporary duty station from July 18 through October 19, 2000.  In
connection with her temporary duty, Ms. Stanley submitted vouchers to SSA for lodging
($5580), meals and incidental expenses ($3179), mileage ($406.59), and telephone calls
($26.73).  The vouchers totaled $9192.32, and SSA paid her that amount. 

     Ms. Stanley's government credit card charges during her time on temporary duty
totaled $7545.99.  For some reason unknown to Ms. Stanley, she was $808.45 short of the
funds she needed to pay the credit card company.  Ms. Stanley decided that she had been
overcharged by the hotel where she stayed while on temporary duty, and she convinced the
hotel to credit her account for $808.45. 

     SSA audited Ms. Stanley's vouchers, and discovered that the hotel had not
overcharged her.  She owed the hotel $5580 for her room charges, and the hotel charged her
credit card for $5703.79.  The $123.79 difference is accounted for in part by $102.72 of
telephone charges that Ms. Stanley incurred during her stay at the hotel, as shown on
itemized bills provided by the hotel.  SSA concluded that the remaining $21.07 ($123.79 -
$102.72) probably represented charges for telephone calls that Ms. Stanley made during a
ten day period for which the hotel did not have itemized bills, and Ms. Stanley did not debate
this point.  Thus, SSA concluded that the hotel's original charge was, in fact, correct.  

     SSA explained to Ms. Stanley that the amount she could claim on her vouchers for
lodging had to be reduced to the extent that the hotel's credit of $808.45 reduced the amount
she paid for her lodging.  SSA decided to treat all of Ms. Stanley's unreimbursed telephone
charges ($97.06) as part of the $808.45, which left $711.39 ($808.45 - $97.06) as the amount
of the credit that was attributable to lodging.  SSA told Ms. Stanley that she had been
reimbursed an excess of $711.39 for her temporary duty lodging expenses.  Ms. Stanley asks
us to review SSA's decision.

     SSA correctly determined that Ms. Stanley was reimbursed an excess of $711.39 for
her temporary duty lodging expenses.  According to the Federal Travel Regulation,
Ms. Stanley should have been reimbursed not more than her actual lodging cost.  41 CFR
301-11.100 (2000).  The hotel correctly charged Ms. Stanley a total of $5703.79.  This
included $5580 for lodging, $97.06 for telephone calls that were not reimbursable by SSA,
and $26.73 for telephone calls that were reimbursed by SSA.  Ms. Stanley submitted
vouchers for $5580 for lodging and $26.73 for telephone calls, and SSA paid these amounts
to her.  Ms. Stanley, however, did not pay the hotel's charges in full.  Instead, due to the
credit extended by the hotel, Ms. Stanley's hotel cost was $808.45 less than the total of the
lodging and telephone charges.  SSA decided to attribute as much of the $808.45 as possible
to unreimbursed telephone calls ($97.06) and the remaining $711.39 to lodging.  This meant
that Ms. Stanley paid the hotel $4868.61 for lodging, $97.06 for unreimbursed telephone
calls, and $26.73 for reimbursed telephone calls.  Because Ms. Stanley's actual lodging cost
($4868.61) was $711.39 less than the amount for which she vouchered and was reimbursed
($5580), she was reimbursed an excess amount for her temporary duty lodging expenses.




                                   __________________________________
                                   MARTHA H. DeGRAFF
                                   Board Judge