3706 Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 9 / Wednesday, January 15, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 

(4) Provide the names, titles, and 

contact information of the Project 

Officer and an administrative point of 

contact. 

(d) The Project Officer may amend a 

charter in writing with the Director’s 

approval of the amended charter. 

(e) The Office of Environmental 

Quality must provide the Office of 

Administration in the Executive Office 

of the President with a copy of each 

charter and amendment that the 

Director approves. 

§ 1518.5 Finances and accounting. 

(a) The Project Officer for each 

environmental project or study contract 

receiving support from the Management 

Fund must prepare a budget estimate as 

part of the charter and update the 

budget estimate annually following the 

charter’s approval. The Office of 

Environmental Quality must provide 

copies of these budget estimates to the 

Office of Administration. 

(b) The Council on Environmental 

Quality may make a payment into the 

Management Fund by a letter of 

transmittal that specifies the particular 

environmental project or study contract 

it is funding. The Office of 

Environmental Quality will provide a 

copy of each such transmittal letter to 

the Office of Administration. 

(c) Agencies other than the Council on 

Environmental Quality may make 

advance payments to the Management 

Fund using the following procedure: 

(1) The Director must provide the 

agency with a letter that specifies the 

particular environmental project or 

study contract to which the Director 

will apply the payment. 

(2) The Director and the agency must 

enter an interagency agreement for the 

payment. The interagency agreement 

should indicate any statutory authority 

appropriate to the transaction, including 

42 U.S.C. 4375(a). 

(d) The Management Fund is a noyear appropriations account, which can 

accept funds with any period of 

availability or funds that remain 

available until expended (i.e., ‘‘oneyear,’’ ‘‘multiple-year,’’ or ‘‘no-year’’ 

funds). Appropriated funds that an 

agency pays into the Management Fund 

expire under the terms of the 

appropriation under which they 

originated. The Office of Environmental 

Quality must account separately for 

each payment of funds into the 

Management Fund and track when each 

such payment will expire. 

(e) In addition to or in lieu of an 

advance payment into the Management 

Fund, any agency, including the 

Council on Environmental Quality, may 

support an environmental project or 

study contract by providing technical 

expertise, physical resources, facilities, 

equipment, or other assets; performing 

support or administrative services; or 

assigning detailees or agency 

representatives. 

(f) The Office of Environmental 

Quality must maintain a separate 

subaccount within the Management 

Fund for each environmental project or 

study contract. 

(g) The Director or the Project Officer 

must approve all of the expenditures for 

a particular environmental project or 

study contract. The Management Fund 

may only accept payments in advance of 

expenditure; accordingly, the Director 

or the Project Officer may only approve 

expenditures for which the Management 

Fund has received adequate payments 

in advance. 

(h) The Director may approve the 

reallocation of funds from the 

Management Fund to another Federal 

account (or from one Management Fund 

subaccount to another) provided that: 

(1) The agency that originally made 

the payment of the funds in question to 

the Management Fund approves the 

reallocation in writing; 

(2) The reallocation would promote 

the statutory mission of the Office of 

Environmental Quality; and 

(3) The Director determines the 

reallocation is in the best interest of the 

Federal Government. 

(i) The Office of Environmental 

Quality must classify each financial 

transaction involving a Management 

Fund subaccount in sufficient detail to 

meet the Office of Environmental 

Quality’s management planning, fiscal 

control, and financial audit 

requirements. 

[FR Doc. 2025–00473 Filed 1–14–25; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3325–FA–P 

GENERAL SERVICES 

ADMINISTRATION 

41 CFR Part 302–16 

[FTR Case 2022–04 Docket No. GSA–FTR– 

2023–0017, Sequence No. 2] 

RIN 3090–AK65 

Federal Travel Regulation (FTR); 

Relocation Allowances— 

Miscellaneous Expenses Allowance 

AGENCY: Office of Government-wide 

Policy (OGP), General Services 

Administration (GSA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The United States (U.S.) 

General Services Administration (GSA) 

is issuing a final rule amending the 

Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) to 

remove the relocation miscellaneous 

expenses allowance (MEA) lump sum 

amounts from the FTR. These lump sum 

amounts will be published in FTR 

Bulletins on an intermittent basis, much 

like what is done for per diem and 

mileage rates. The relocation MEA 

actual expense (as opposed to lump 

sum) amounts are unchanged and will 

remain in the FTR. This final rule also 

updates the types of expenses that may 

or may not be reimbursed by relocation 

MEA when employees itemize under 

actual expense. Additionally, this final 

rule updates and clarifies other 

relocation MEA regulatory sections and 

rearranges them into a more sequential 

order. 

DATES: Effective January 15, 2025. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

clarification of content, contact Mr. 

Rodney (Rick) Miller, Program Analyst, 

Office of Government-wide Policy 

(OGP), at 202–501–3822 or 

travelpolicy@gsa.gov. For information 

pertaining to status or publication 

schedules, contact the Regulatory 

Secretariat Division at 202–501–4755 or 

GSARegSec@gsa.gov. Please cite FTR 

Case 2022–04. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

GSA published a proposed rule at 89 

FR 4268 on January 23, 2024, which 

proposed FTR changes to relocation 

MEA. This rule finalizes those proposed 

changes as summarized above, and as 

set forth in greater detail below. 

Pursuant to 5 United States Code 

(U.S.C.) 5738, the Administrator of 

General Services is authorized to 

prescribe regulations necessary to 

implement laws regarding Federal 

employees when assigned a temporary 

change of station (TCS) or when 

otherwise transferred in the interest of 

the Government. The overall 

implementing authority is the FTR, 

codified in title 41 of the Code of 

Federal Regulations, chapters 300 

through 304. 

GSA’s OGP continually reviews and 

adjusts policies and regulations under 

its purview to address Government 

relocation needs and to incorporate best 

practices, where appropriate, as a part of 

its ongoing mission to provide policies 

for travel by Federal civilian employees 

and others authorized to travel at 

Government expense. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 5724a(f) and 

5737(a)(6), an employee transferred in 

the interest of the Government from one 

official station to another, assigned to a 

TCS location, or who has completed a 

TCS assignment and returned to their 


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1 GSA used data from the GSA’s Business Travel 

and Relocation Dashboard for each agency to 

determine what was the average cost per MEA from 

FY18–FY22, and what the additional cost would be 

given the MEA increase of $650 to $750 for single 

employees and $1,300 to $1,500 for employees with 

families. GSA calculated the difference between the 

average MEA cost against $1,125 IF the average 

MEA cost was less than $1,125. This is because if 

the MEA cost is greater than the new MEA amount, 

then the employee would be more likely to do 

actual expense and there wouldn’t be an additional 

cost to the MEA increase because the employee 

would be more likely to do actual expense rather 

than the old MEA amount as well. As a result, only 

4 agencies had an average MEA cost lower than the 

average of the new MEAs. GSA multiplied the 

difference for those 4 agencies against the number 

of MEAs for those 4 agencies and summed it up to 

$312K. 

previous official station is authorized a 

relocation MEA. 

The purpose of the relocation MEA is 

to defray some of the costs incurred due 

to relocating. The allowance is related to 

expenses that are common to living 

quarters, such as fees for disconnecting 

and connecting appliances; cutting and 

fitting rugs, draperies, and curtains 

moved from one residence to another; 

utility fees or deposits that are not offset 

by eventual refunds; forfeiture of 

medical, dental, and other nontransferrable contracts; and the cost of 

changing automobile registration(s) and 

driver’s licenses. 

The FTR provides that a relocation 

MEA may be paid using one of two 

methods: lump sum or actual expense. 

Under the lump sum method, the 

agency pays a lump sum amount 

without requiring employee 

documentation of expenses. Under the 

current regulatory language, the lump 

sum amounts are ‘‘either $650 or the 

equivalent of one week’s basic gross 

pay, whichever is the lesser amount’’ for 

an employee without immediate family 

members relocating with them, and 

‘‘$1300 or the equivalent of two weeks’ 

basic gross pay, whichever is the lesser 

amount’’ for an employee with 

immediate family members relocating 

with them. 

Under the actual expense method, the 

agency may authorize the employee to 

claim actual costs depending on the 

type of expenses incurred, in an amount 

in excess of the prescribed lump sum 

amount. The employee justifies any 

actual expenses by itemizing with 

supporting documentation. 

Reimbursement is limited to one or two 

weeks’ basic gross pay depending on 

whether or not the employee has 

immediate family relocating with them, 

not to exceed the maximum rate payable 

for a position at GS–13, Step 10, of the 

General Schedule (base) (see 5 U.S.C. 

5332). 

This final rule amends the FTR by 

removing the relocation MEA lump sum 

amounts from the FTR and directing 

readers to an FTR bulletin with the 

relocation MEA lump sum amounts. 

GSA will publish the initial FTR 

bulletin with the relocation MEA lump 

sum amounts concurrent with the final 

rule’s effective date. Agencies are 

advised that the relocation MEA lump 

sum amounts are expected to increase 

since they were last updated in 2011. 

Moving forward, GSA will publish FTR 

bulletins to update the relocation MEA 

lump sum amounts, as needed, based on 

changes to the Consumer Price Index 

(CPI). The final rule also clarifies in the 

regulatory text that ‘‘basic gross pay’’, as 

referenced in FTR part 302–16, does not 

include ‘‘locality pay.’’ See 5 U.S.C. 

5302 and 5304. 

This final rule also updates and 

clarifies the relocation MEA sections in 

the FTR and rearranges them into a 

more sequential order, to include 

replacing the table at FTR § 302–16.2 

with an updated list of examples for 

which the relocation MEA may be 

authorized, and updating the list of 

examples for which the relocation MEA 

may not be authorized. It also removes 

the relocation MEA employee eligibility 

table at FTR § 302–16.3 and reformats it 

as an employee eligibility listing. 

II. Discussion of the Final Rule 

A. Summary of Significant Changes 

GSA has not made any significant 

changes to the regulatory language from 

the proposed to final rule. 

B. Analysis of Public Comments 

GSA received one comment to the 

proposed rule suggesting that the 

relocation MEA lump sum match the 

amounts listed in the Department of 

State Standardized Regulations (DSSR) 

and urged that the relocation MEA lump 

sum amounts remain in the FTR instead 

of being published in a bulletin due to 

intra-agency distribution concerns. In 

response, GSA notes that it will 

determine the lump sum amounts based 

on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). 

While GSA expects its relocation MEA 

lump sum amounts to be similar to the 

DSSR’s, the CPI fluctuates. Accordingly, 

the amounts to be determined by GSA 

in the present day may not exactly 

match the DSSR amounts since those 

were last updated in 2019. In response 

to the commenter’s distribution 

concerns, publication of the relocation 

MEA lump sum in an FTR Bulletin 

affords GSA the flexibility to update the 

relocation MEA lump sum as needed to 

more fairly compensate travelers in line 

with the CPI. If GSA were to continue 

publishing the amounts in the FTR, 

such numbers can only be updated via 

a regulatory amendment, by which time, 

it may not accurately reflect the current 

CPI. Also, a bulletin takes less time and 

administrative effort to publish than a 

rule. Finally, note 1 to § 302–16.6 

includes a direct link to GSA’s FTR 

Bulletins for ease of distribution, in 

addition to the fact that notices of FTR 

Bulletins are published in the Federal 

Register and include a link to the 

Bulletin. GSA’s OGP also emails all 

Federal agencies’ travel and relocation 

operations and policy program 

managers to inform them of all FTR 

rules and bulletins when they are 

published, and recommends that such 

information be shared with relevant 

offices within their agency. GSA’s OGP 

also briefs FTR changes to agency 

Senior Travel Official Council (STOC) 

members at regular intervals. Therefore, 

GSA will not change the final rule based 

on this comment. 

C. Expected Cost Impact to the Public 

This rule does not result in cost 

impacts to the public. However, the 

changes may result in a slight increase 

in cost to the Federal Government as the 

relocation MEA lump sum amounts are 

expected to increase. Specifically, GSA 

will publish an FTR bulletin containing 

the relocation MEA lump sum amounts 

for an employee relocating without 

immediate family members and for an 

employee relocating with immediate 

family members. As detailed in the 

proposed rule, GSA expects the average 

relocation MEA lump sum amount 

across Federal agencies to increase to 

$1,125, for an estimated total increase of 

$312,973 per year agencywide (for those 

agencies subject to the FTR).1

III. Executive Orders 12866, 13563, and 

14904 

Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 

(Regulatory Planning and Review) 

directs agencies to assess all costs and 

benefits of available regulatory 

alternatives and, if regulation is 

necessary, to select regulatory 

approaches that maximize net benefits 

(including potential economic, 

environmental, public health and safety 

effects, distributive impacts, and 

equity). E.O. 13563 (Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review) 

emphasizes the importance of 

quantifying both costs and benefits, of 

reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, 

and of promoting flexibility. E.O. 14094 

(Modernizing Regulatory Review) 

amends section 3(f) of E.O. 12866 and 

supplements and reaffirms the 

principles, structures, and definitions 

governing contemporary regulatory 

review established in E.O. 12866 and 

E.O. 13563. The Office of Management 


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3708 Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 9 / Wednesday, January 15, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 

and Budget’s Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) determined 

that the proposed rule was a significant 

regulatory action; however, after further 

discussion between GSA and OIRA, 

OIRA has determined that this final rule 

is not a significant regulatory action, 

and therefore, it is not subject to review 

under section 6(b) of E.O. 12866. 

IV. Congressional Review Act 

OIRA has determined that this rule is 

not a ‘‘major rule’’ under 5 U.S.C. 

804(2). Title II, Subtitle E of the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (codified at 5 

U.S.C. 801–808), also known as the 

Congressional Review Act or CRA, 

generally provides that before a rule 

may take effect, unless excepted, the 

agency promulgating the rule must 

submit a rule report, which includes a 

copy of the rule, to each House of the 

Congress and to the Comptroller General 

of the United States. This rule is 

excepted from CRA reporting 

requirements prescribed under 5 U.S.C. 

801 as it relates to agency management 

or personnel under 5 U.S.C. 804(3)(B). 

V. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

This final rule will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities 

within the meaning of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601, et seq. This 

final rule is also exempt from the 

Administrative Procedure Act pursuant 

to 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(2) because it applies 

to agency management or personnel. 

Therefore, an Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis was not performed. 

VI. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Paperwork Reduction Act does 

not apply because the changes to the 

FTR do not impose recordkeeping or 

information collection requirements, or 

the collection of information from 

offerors, contractors, or members of the 

public that require the approval of the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) under 44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq. 

List of Subjects in 41 CFR Part 302–16 

Government employees, Relocation, 

Travel and transportation expenses. 

Robin Carnahan, 

Administrator of General Services. 

For reasons set forth in the preamble, 

GSA revises 41 CFR part 302–16 to read 

as follows: 

PART 302–16—ALLOWANCE FOR 

MISCELLANEOUS EXPENSES 

Sec. 

302–16.0 In general. 

Subpart A—General Rules 

302–16.1 What is the purpose of the 

miscellaneous expenses allowance 

(MEA)? 

302–16.2 Who is and who is not eligible for 

a MEA? 

302–16.3 Must my agency authorize 

payment of a MEA? 

302–16.4 How will I receive the MEA? 

302–16.5 May I receive an advance of funds 

for MEA? 

302–16.6 What amount may my agency 

reimburse me for miscellaneous 

expenses? 

302–16.7 May I claim an amount in excess 

of that prescribed in this part? 

302–16.8 What are examples of types of 

costs covered by the MEA? 

302–16.9 What are examples of types of 

costs not covered by the MEA? 

302–16.10 What standard of care must I use 

in incurring miscellaneous expenses? 

Subpart B—Agency Responsibilities 

302–16.100 What governing policies must 

we establish for MEA? 

302–16.101 How should we administer the 

authorization and payment of 

miscellaneous expenses? 

302–16.102 Are there any restrictions to the 

types of costs we may cover? 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5738; 20 U.S.C. 905(a); 

E.O. 11609, as amended, 3 CFR, 1971–1975 

Comp., p. 586. 

§ 302–16.0 In general. 

(a) Use of pronouns ‘‘I’’, ‘‘you’’, and 

their variants throughout subpart A of 

this part refers to the employee, unless 

otherwise noted. 

(b) Use of pronouns ‘‘we’’, ‘‘you’’, and 

their variants throughout subpart B of 

this part refers to the agency. 

Subpart A—General Rules 

§ 302–16.1 What is the purpose of the 

miscellaneous expenses allowance (MEA)? 

The miscellaneous expenses 

allowance (MEA) is intended to help 

defray various costs incurred due to 

relocation, assignment to a temporary 

official station (TCS), and return to the 

previous official station upon 

completion of a TCS assignment. 

§ 302–16.2 Who is and who is not eligible 

for a MEA? 

(a) You are eligible for a MEA if: 

(1) Your agency authorized or 

approved a transfer or a TCS; 

(2) You discontinued and established 

a residence in connection with your 

transfer or TCS; 

(3) You meet the applicable eligibility 

conditions in part 302–1 of this chapter; 

and 

(4) You signed a required service 

agreement in part 302–2 of this chapter, 

if transferred. 

(b) You are not eligible for a MEA if 

you are: 

(1) A new appointee; 

(2) A Senior Executive Service (SES) 

employee authorized ‘‘last move home’’ 

benefits upon separation from 

Government service; 

(3) Assigned under the Government 

Employees Training Act (5 U.S.C. 4109); 

(4) Returning from an Outside the 

Continental United States (OCONUS) 

official station to place of actual 

residence for separation from 

Government service; or 

(5) Returning from an OCONUS 

official station to a new CONUS official 

station if relocation expenses have not 

been authorized to the new CONUS 

official station. 

§ 302–16.3 Must my agency authorize 

payment of a MEA? 

Yes, if you meet the applicable 

eligibility conditions in § 302–16.2, your 

agency must authorize payment of a 

MEA. 

§ 302–16.4 How will I receive the MEA? 

You will be reimbursed your MEA in 

accordance with your agency’s internal 

relocation policy. 

§ 302–16.5 May I receive an advance of 

funds for MEA? 

No, your agency may not authorize an 

advance of funds for MEA. MEA may be 

paid after you have transferred to the 

new official station, upon assignment to 

your TCS, or upon completion of your 

TCS and return to your previous official 

station, as applicable. 

§ 302–16.6 What amount may my agency 

reimburse me for miscellaneous expenses? 

The following amounts will be paid 

for miscellaneous expenses without 

support or documentation of expenses: 

(a) Either a lump sum amount set in 

a Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) 

bulletin or the equivalent of one week’s 

basic gross pay, whichever is the lesser 

amount, if you have no immediate 

family relocating with you; or 

(b) Either a lump sum amount set in 

an FTR bulletin or the equivalent of two 

weeks’ basic gross pay, whichever is the 

lesser amount, if you have immediate 

family relocating with you. 

Note 1 to § 302–16.6: GSA publishes the 

lump sum amounts in an FTR bulletin on an 

intermittent basis at https://gsa.gov/ 

ftrbulletins. 

§ 302–16.7 May I claim an amount in 

excess of that prescribed in this part? 

Yes, you may claim an amount in 

excess of that prescribed in § 302–16.6 

if authorized by your agency; and 

(a) Supported by acceptable 

statements of fact, paid bills or other 

acceptable evidence (documentation) 

justifying the amounts claimed; and 


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(b) The aggregate amount does not 

exceed your basic gross pay (at the time 

you reported for duty, at your new 

official station) for: 

(1) One week if you are relocating 

without immediate family; or 

(2) Two weeks if you are relocating 

with immediate family. 

(c) The amount authorized cannot 

exceed the maximum rate of grade GS– 

13, Step 10 General Schedule (base) 

salary (excluding locality pay) (see 5 

U.S.C. 5332) at the time you reported for 

duty at your new official station. 

§ 302–16.8 What are examples of types of 

costs covered by the MEA? 

Miscellaneous expenses are costs 

associated with relocating that are not 

covered by other relocation benefits 

detailed in this chapter. Expenses 

allowable include but are not limited to 

the following, and similar, items: 

(a) Fees for disconnecting and 

connecting utilities (such as gas, water, 

electricity), appliances, equipment 

(such as a security system or electric 

vehicle charging station), or conversion 

of appliances for operation on available 

utilities; 

(b) Fees for cutting and fitting rugs, 

draperies, and curtains when they are 

moved from one residence to another; 

(c) Deposits or fees for utilities not 

offset by eventual refunds; 

(d) Losses that cannot be recovered by 

transfer or refund and are incurred due 

to early termination of a contract (e.g., 

medical, dental, private institutional 

care for immediate family members with 

disabilities, nonrefundable education 

enrollment fee, real estate expenses 

connected with the cancellation of a 

contract when a new transfer prevented 

the employee from completing a 

purchase of a residence); 

(e) Automobile registration, driver’s 

license, and use taxes imposed when 

initially bringing privately-owned 

vehicles (POVs) into certain 

jurisdictions; 

(f) Reinstalling or removing 

automobile parts upon vehicle reentry 

into the United States or entry into a 

foreign country, when removal or 

installation of those automobile parts 

was required by host country law; 

(g) Post office box rental fee when 

rented to provide a constant mailing 

address between the time an employee 

departs the old residence and occupies 

a residence at the new official station; 

(h) Rental agent fees customarily 

charged for securing housing in foreign 

countries; 

(i) Reassembly, set up, and tuning of 

a piano moved for relocation; 

(j) Pet care (for cats and dogs only), 

child care, or adult care for dependent 

parents or other adult dependents 

incapable of self-care at home while the 

employee or spouse are away on a 

househunting trip, or are packing or 

unpacking; 

(k) Rental car fees while awaiting a 

delayed POV shipment to or from 

OCONUS if the transportation service 

provider (TSP) has not arranged for the 

employee’s use of a rental car at TSP 

expense. Reimbursement may be 

authorized starting after the shipping 

company designated delivery date, shall 

not exceed 10 days, and does not 

include the days after the POV is 

delivered or a new POV is purchased at 

location. The rental car for the employee 

and immediate family members must be 

the same or comparable size or model as 

the POV the employee shipped; 

(l) Transportation and quarantine of 

pets (cats and dogs only). Costs 

normally associated with the 

transportation, quarantine fees, and 

handling of dogs and cats. This includes 

pet-related costs due to air carrier rules 

or imposed by the law of the 

jurisdiction of the employee’s new 

residence as an integral part of the 

process of admissions and licensing; 

(m) Professional relicensing fees 

required by the new official station that 

are directly related to the employee’s 

occupation, such as fees required to take 

the bar exam or teaching certification; 

and professional relicensing fees or 

business costs (including exam, 

continuing education courses, business 

license, permit, and registration fees) 

that are directly related to the 

immediate family member’s occupation, 

when the immediate family member 

was licensed or certified in a profession, 

or owned a business, at the employee’s 

previous official station and is required 

to secure or maintain a new professional 

license or certification, or business 

license or permit, to engage in that 

profession in a new jurisdiction because 

of unique licensing or certification 

requirements and authorities; or 

(n) Specialized shipment of hazardous 

materials, such as lithium batteries, 

when Federal, state, local, and foreign 

country laws or carrier regulations 

prohibit commercial shipment of certain 

articles not included as part of 

household goods, which cannot be 

otherwise transported to the new official 

station because of shipping and 

transportation restrictions. 

§ 302–16.9 What are examples of types of 

costs not covered by the MEA? 

Examples of costs that are not 

reimbursable from the MEA are: 

(a) Losses in selling or buying real and 

personal property and costs related to 

such transactions; 

(b) Cost of additional insurance on 

household goods while in transit to the 

new official station or cost of loss or 

damage to such property; 

(c) Additional costs of moving 

household goods caused by exceeding 

the maximum weight limitation; 

(d) Costs of newly acquired items, 

such as the purchase or installation cost 

of new rugs or draperies; 

(e) Higher income, real estate, sales, or 

other taxes as the result of establishing 

residence in the new locality; 

(f) Fines imposed for traffic 

infractions while en route to the new 

official station locality; 

(g) Accident insurance premiums or 

liability costs incurred in connection 

with travel to the new official station 

locality, or any other liability imposed 

upon the employee for uninsured 

damages caused by accidents for which 

the employee or their immediate family 

is held responsible; 

(h) Losses as the result of sale or 

disposal of items of personal property 

(such as lithium batteries, gasoline, and 

natural gas) not considered convenient 

or practicable to move; 

(i) Damage or loss of clothing, luggage, 

or other personal effects while traveling 

to the new official station locality; 

(j) Subsistence, transportation, or 

mileage expenses in excess of the 

amounts reimbursed as per diem or 

other allowances under this subtitle; 

(k) Medical expenses due to illness or 

injuries while en route to the new 

official station or while living in 

temporary quarters at Government 

expense under the provisions of this 

chapter; 

(l) Costs incurred in conjunction with 

structural alterations (such as 

remodeling or modernizing of living 

quarters, garages or other buildings to 

accommodate privately-owned 

automobiles, appliances or equipment 

[e.g., a security system or electric 

vehicle charging station]); or replacing 

or repairing worn-out or defective 

appliances, or equipment shipped to the 

new location; 

(m) Costs incurred in connection with 

preparing a residence for sale or 

purchase (e.g., maintenance, repairs, 

cleaning); 

(n) Delivery charges or costs 

associated with newly-acquired items 

(such as appliances, security systems, 

locksmith service, or new vehicle) at the 

new official station for reasons of 

personal taste or preference and not 

required because of the relocation; 

(o) Costs unrelated to the quarantine, 

transportation, and handling of pets. 

Additional costs for lodging for a second 

room or boarding fees, micro-chipping, 

veterinary expenses (e.g., inoculations, 


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3710 Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 9 / Wednesday, January 15, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 

examinations, medical care and 

certification fees), routine care and 

grooming of pets, and purchases of 

crates and tags for the pets. Expenses for 

other animals (horses, fish, birds, 

reptiles, rodents, etc.) are not authorized 

because of their size, exotic nature, 

restrictions on shipping, host country 

restrictions, and special handling 

difficulties; or 

(p) Costs related to obtaining a visa, 

passport, immigration green card, birth 

certificate or other acceptable evidence 

of birth when required for official travel 

to foreign locations; charges for 

immunization, inoculations, other 

disease-preventative medical 

prophylaxis, including disease testing, 

that are required for official travel if not 

obtained through the agency. The 

expenses in this paragraph (p) may be 

reimbursable as part of the employee’s 

relocation en route travel miscellaneous 

expenses as specified in 41 CFR 301– 

12.1. 

§ 302–16.10 What standard of care must I 

use in incurring miscellaneous expenses? 

You must exercise the same care in 

incurring expenses that a prudent 

person would exercise if relocating at 

personal expense. 

Subpart B—Agency Responsibilities 

§ 302–16.100 What governing policies 

must we establish for MEA? 

For MEAs, you must establish policies 

and procedures governing: 

(a) Who will determine whether 

payment for an amount in excess of the 

lump sum MEA is appropriate; and 

(b) How you will pay a MEA in 

accordance with §§ 302–16.2 and 302– 

16.3. 

§ 302–16.101 How should we administer 

the authorization and payment of 

miscellaneous expenses? 

You should limit payment of 

miscellaneous expenses to only those 

expenses that are necessary. 

§ 302–16.102 Are there any restrictions to 

the types of costs we may cover? 

Yes, a MEA cannot be used to 

reimburse: 

(a) Costs or expenses incurred which 

exceed maximums provided by statute 

or in this subtitle; 

(b) Costs or expenses incurred but 

which are disallowed elsewhere in this 

subtitle; 

(c) Costs reimbursed under other 

provisions of law or regulations; 

(d) Costs or expenses incurred for 

reasons of personal taste or preference 

and not required because of the move; 

(e) Losses covered by insurance; 

(f) Fines or other penalties imposed 

upon the employee or members of their 

immediate family; 

(g) Judgments, court costs, and similar 

expenses growing out of civil actions; or 

(h) Any other expenses brought about 

by circumstances, factors, or actions in 

which the move to a new official station 

was not the proximate cause. 

[FR Doc. 2025–00497 Filed 1–14–25; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6820–14–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Part 1 

[DA 25–5; FR ID 272288] 

Annual Adjustment of Civil Monetary 

Penalties To Reflect Inflation 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Civil Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements 

Act of 2015 (Inflation Adjustment Act) 

requires the Federal Communications 

Commission to revise its forfeiture 

penalty rules to reflect annual 

adjustments for inflation in order to 

improve their effectiveness and 

maintain their deterrent effect. The 

Inflation Adjustment Act provides that 

the new penalty levels shall apply to 

penalties assessed after the effective 

date of the increase, including when the 

penalties whose associated violation 

predate the increase. 

DATES: 

Effective date: The rule is effective 

January 15, 2025. 

Applicability date: The civil monetary 

penalties are applicable beginning 

January 15, 2025. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Hunter Deeley, Acting Chief of Staff, 

Enforcement Bureau, at Hunter.Deeley@

fcc.gov or 202–418–2765. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Order, 

DA 25–5, adopted and released on 

January 3, 2025. The complete text of 

this document is available for download 

at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/ 

attachments/DA-25-5A1.pdf. To request 

this document in accessible formats for 

people with disabilities (e.g., Braille, 

large print, electronic files, audio 

format, etc.) or to request reasonable 

accommodations (e.g., accessible format 

documents, sign language interpreters, 

CART, etc.), send an email to fcc504@

fcc.gov or call the FCC’s Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 

418–0530 (voice). 

Synopsis 

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 

included, as section 701 thereto, the 

Inflation Adjustment Act, which 

amended the Federal Civil Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Pub. 

L. 101–410), to improve the 

effectiveness of civil monetary penalties 

and maintain their deterrent effect. 

Under the Inflation Adjustment Act, 

agencies are required to make annual 

inflationary adjustments by January 15 

each year, beginning in 2017. The 

adjustments are calculated pursuant to 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) guidance. OMB issued guidance 

on December 17, 2024, and this Order 

follows that guidance. The Commission 

therefore updates the civil monetary 

penalties for 2024, to reflect an annual 

inflation adjustment based on the 

percent change between each published 

October’s CPI–U; in this case, October 

2024 CPI–U (315.664)/October 2023 

CPI–U (307.671) = 1.02598. The 

Commission multiplies 1.02598 by the 

most recent penalty amount and then 

rounds the result to the nearest dollar. 

For 2025, the adjusted penalty or 

penalty range for each applicable 

penalty is calculated by multiplying the 

most recent penalty amount by the 2025 

annual adjustment (1.02598), then 

rounding the result to the nearest dollar. 

The adjustments in civil monetary 

penalties that we adopt in this Order 

apply only to such penalties assessed on 

and after January 15, 2025. 

The Order also re-codifies the text of 

a footnote to Table 1 of § 1.80(b)(11) that 

was inadvertently removed. The 

footnote text specifies that the base 

forfeiture amount for 

‘‘misrepresentation/lack of candor’’ is 

the statutory maximum. Because the 

prior removal of this language was 

inadvertent, we find good cause to make 

this re-codification of the footnote text 

effective immediately upon publication 

in the Federal Register, pursuant to 

section 553(d)(3) of the APA. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This document does not contain new 

or modified information collection 

requirements subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Public 

Law 104–13. It does not contain any 

new or modified information collection 

burden for small business concerns with 

fewer than 25 employees, pursuant to 

the Small Business Paperwork Relief 

Act of 2002, Public Law 107–198, see 44 

U.S.C. 3506(c)(4). 

Congressional Review Act 

The Commission has determined, and 

the Administrator of the Office of 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1