United States General Accounting Office

GAO

December 1997

GAO/AIMD-98-55R

GAO United States

General Accounting Office

Washington, D.C. 20548

Accounting and Information

Management Division

B-278631 

January 9, 1998

The Honorable Paul E. Kanjorski

House of Representatives

Subject: Independent Counsel: Travel by Kenneth W. Starr

Dear Mr. Kanjorski:

As requested by your office, this letter provides information on travel

reimbursements for independent counsel Kenneth W. Starr for the

6 months ended September 30, 1996. Specifically, our objectives were to

provide detailed information for each reimbursement and to determine

whether each reimbursement complied with federal travel regulations.1

We earlier reported that the total travel expenditures2 for Mr. Starr’s office

during the period were approximately $1.7 million.3

 Of that amount,

approximately $1.3 million was for travel by Federal Bureau of

Investigation (FBI) employees assigned to the investigation, and the

remaining $400,000 was for Mr. Starr’s employees and others, including

official travel by Mr. Starr totaling $6,342.

Mr. Starr’s office had agreements with the FBI to reimburse the FBI for the

travel costs of employees assigned to Mr. Starr’s investigation.

Reimbursements to the FBI were made out of the permanent, indefinite

appropriation available for independent counsel expenditures and, for the

6 months ended September 30, 1996, covered travel processed by the FBI

dating back to January 1995.

Travel

Reimbursements

Mr. Starr’s travel reimbursements of $6,342 for the 6 months ended

September 30, 1996, covered all, or parts of, 21 trips Mr. Starr took

1

The Federal Travel Regulation, 41 C.F.R. Chapters 301-304.

2

The term expenditures as used in this letter means cash disbursed.

3

Financial Audit: Independent Counsel Expenditures for the Six Months Ended September 30, 1996

(GAO/AIMD-97-64, March 31, 1997).

Page 1 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
B-278631 

between December 11, 1995, and July 2, 1996.4 All of the 21 trips were to

Little Rock, Arkansas, except for one trip to St. Paul, Minnesota, from

December 11 to December 13, 1995.

Table 1: Travel Reimbursements to Mr.

Starr During the 6 Months Ended

September 30, 1996

Trip Dates of travel Reimbursement

1 December 11-13, 1995 $736.17

2 December 21-24, 1995 $395.00

3 January 1-2, 1996 $214.50

4 January 9-11, 1996 $187.00

5 January 17-20, 1996 $318.00

6 January 24-25, 1996 $360.57

7 February 5-6, 1996 $569.67

8 March 24-25, 1996 $246.00

9 March 29-30, 1996 $163.50

10 April 2-4, 1996 $287.50

11 April 9-10, 1996 $286.00

12 April 15-18, 1996 $421.00

13 April 22-24, 1996 $292.50

14 April 30-May 3, 1996 $384.00

15 May 6-9, 1996 $373.50

16 May 13-16, 1996 $391.50

17 May 22-24, 1996 $411.00

18 June 4-6, 1996 $122.00

19 June 16-17, 1996 $ 61.00

20 June 20-21, 1996 $ 61.00

21 June 30-July 2, 1996 $ 61.00

Total $6,342.41

In conducting our work, we obtained all of Mr. Starr’s travel vouchers for

which a claim was paid during the 6-month period ended September 30,

1996. We reviewed these vouchers for mathematical accuracy, supporting

documentation, and appropriateness of charges for lodging, meals and

incidentals, transportation, and other related costs in accordance with

federal travel regulations. We found that reimbursements for meals and

4

Mr. Starr, who reported his expenditures on a cash basis, generally submitted separate travel

vouchers at different times for lodging and for transportation, meals and incidentals, and other related

costs for a specific trip. As a result, reimbursement to Mr. Starr for a specific trip was sometimes

spread over different reporting periods. For example, for Mr. Starr’s January 1-2, 1996, trip, lodging

reimbursement was made during the 6-month period ended March 31, 1996, while the related

transportation, meals and incidentals, and other related costs were reimbursed during the 6-month

period ended September 30, 1996.

Page 2 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
B-278631 

incidentals, transportation, or other related costs during this period were

proper.

We determined, however, that Mr. Starr was erroneously reimbursed for

some of his lodging costs. The erroneous reimbursements appear to have

been caused by an administrative error in applying federal travel

regulations to independent counsels whose primary office is away from

their residences and who lease an apartment. Those regulations generally

allow reimbursement for a leased apartment only to the extent that the

total cost for the entire period of the lease does not exceed what would

have been allowed had the employee obtained conventional lodging (e.g., a

hotel) on a daily basis for the days during the period of the lease when the

traveler was on official business.5

Mr. Starr was appointed independent counsel in August 1994, and began

leasing an apartment in October 1994. Mr. Starr leased an apartment in

Little Rock that had been vacated by an attorney on a previous

independent counsel investigation.6

 During the period from October 1994

through February 9, 1996, Little Rock was Mr. Starr’s primary office

location, and he was reimbursed for the monthly cost of the lease and

other related costs.7

 Our review of the 6-month period ended September

30, 1996, determined that during that period he was erroneously

reimbursed for some of the lease costs he had previously incurred.

Accordingly, we reviewed the period from October 1994 through

February 9, 1996, to determine if all of the monthly lease costs reimbursed

to Mr. Starr for the entire period were allowable.

We determined that during this period, Mr. Starr did not occupy the

apartment for the requisite number of nights in any month that would have

allowed all of his monthly lease costs to be fully reimbursed. As a result,

Mr. Starr was erroneously reimbursed $9,926, as shown in table 2. The

reimbursements were approved and certified by career administrative

officers detailed to the independent counsel office from another federal

agency. We found no indication of misrepresentation or that Mr. Starr or

his staff were aware that these reimbursements were not allowed under

the federal travel regulations.

5

41 C.F.R. § 301-7.14(a)(2)

6

Mr. Starr initially entered into a 7-month lease, followed by a 1-year lease.

7

Other related costs include lease related expenses such as utilities, housekeeping, and furniture

rental. According to Mr. Starr’s staff, Mr. Starr’s furniture rental was on a rent-to-own basis, and the

furniture is now being used at no additional cost in an apartment leased to the independent counsel

office.

Page 3 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
B-278631 

Table 2: Erroneous Reimbursements for October 1994 Through February 9, 1996

Month

Number of

nights lodging

Allowable daily

lodging

Allowable monthly

lodging

Monthly lodging

reimbursed

Erroneous

reimbursement

October 1994 7 $75.00a $525.00 $900.28 $375.28

November 3 75.00a 225.00 804.46 579.46

December 6 75.00a 450.00 743.38 293.38

January 1995 10 52.00 520.00 804.46 284.46

February 7 52.00 364.00 937.26 573.26

March 8 52.00 416.00 944.70 528.70

April 8 52.00 416.00 941.49 525.49

May 6 52.00 312.00 936.00 624.00

June 6 52.00 312.00 1,109.83 797.83

July 5 52.00 260.00 1,123.85 863.85

August 9 52.00 468.00 1,151.62 683.62

September 6 52.00 312.00 1,220.14 908.14

October 9 52.00 468.00 995.66 527.66

November 8 52.00 416.00 995.71 579.71

December 4 52.00 208.00 998.64 790.64

January 1996 7 52.00 364.00 1,045.30 681.30

February 1-9 1 52.00 52.00 361.17b 309.17

Total 110 $6,088.00 $16,013.95 $9,925.95

aThe $75 represents the actual subsistence expenses authorized during this period.

bLodging was reimbursed on a pro rata basis for the first 9 days of February 1996. This lodging

reimbursement was included in the reimbursement for the February 5-6, 1996 trip, as shown in

table 1.

Executive branch employees may seek waivers for erroneous payments

under certain circumstances. Prior to December 18, 1996, we had the

authority to waive erroneous payments to executive branch employees,

including independent counsels and their employees, if we determined

that collection would be against equity and good conscience and not in the

best interests of the United States.8

 We generally determined that criteria

for waivers were satisfied where there was no indication of fraud,

misrepresentation, fault, or lack of good faith on the part of the recipient

of the erroneous payment. In particular, we gave consideration to whether

the recipient knew or reasonably should have known of the error. In our

first report on independent counsels,9

 we identified certain erroneous

8

5 U.S.C. 5584 (1994) and regulations issued by our office (4 C.F.R. parts 91-92).

9

Financial Audit: Expenditures by Nine Independent Counsels (GAO/AFMD-93-1, October 9, 1992).

Page 4 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
B-278631 

payments to independent counsels that we believed were appropriate for

waiver consideration, and we later granted waivers for those payments.

The General Accounting Office Act of 1996 transferred our authority to

waive erroneous payments of executive branch employees to the Director

of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).10 The Director of OMB

has in turn delegated the waiver function “to the Executive Branch agency

that made the erroneous payment.”11

We performed our audit from April 1997 through December 1997 in

accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. We

requested comments on a draft of this letter from Mr. Starr. The Deputy

Independent Counsel and Designated Agency Ethics Official provided

written comments, which are included in the enclosure to this letter. The

Deputy Independent Counsel did not disagree with the results of our work.

He stated that Mr. Starr does not intend to seek a waiver and has decided

to repay the portion of the cost identified as an erroneous reimbursement.

We are sending a copy of this letter to other interested parties. Please

contact me at (202) 512-9489 if you or your office have any questions about

this letter.

Sincerely yours,

David L. Clark

Director, Audit Oversight and Liaison

Enclosure

10Section 103(d) of Public Law 104-316, October 19, 1996.

11Determination with Respect to Transfer of Functions Pursuant to Public Law 104-316, Attachment A,

Office of Management and Budget, December 17, 1996.

Page 5 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
Enclosure 

Comments From the Office of the

Independent Counsel

Page 6 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
Enclosure 

Comments From the Office of the

Independent Counsel

(911752) Page 7 GAO/AIMD-98-55R Independent Counsel Travel
Ordering Information

The first copy of each GAO report and testimony is free.

Additional copies are $2 each. Orders should be sent to the

following address, accompanied by a check or money order

made out to the Superintendent of Documents, when

necessary. VISA and MasterCard credit cards are accepted, also.

Orders for 100 or more copies to be mailed to a single address

are discounted 25 percent.

Orders by mail:

U.S. General Accounting Office

P.O. Box 37050

Washington, DC 20013

or visit:

Room 1100

700 4th St. NW (corner of 4th and G Sts. NW)

U.S. General Accounting Office

Washington, DC

Orders may also be placed by calling (202) 512-6000 

or by using fax number (202) 512-6061, or TDD (202) 512-2537.

Each day, GAO issues a list of newly available reports and

testimony. To receive facsimile copies of the daily list or any

list from the past 30 days, please call (202) 512-6000 using a

touchtone phone. A recorded menu will provide information on

how to obtain these lists.

For information on how to access GAO reports on the INTERNET,

send an e-mail message with "info" in the body to:

info@www.gao.gov

or visit GAO’s World Wide Web Home Page at:

http://www.gao.gov

PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
United States

General Accounting Office

Washington, D.C. 20548-0001

Official Business

Penalty for Private Use $300

Address Correction Requested

Bulk Rate

Postage & Fees Paid

GAO

Permit No. G100