IIA
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 930
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
APRIL 17, 1997
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs
AN ACT
To require Federal employees to use Federal travel charge
cards for all payments of expenses of official Government
travel, to amend title 31, United States Code, to estab-
lish requirements for prepayment audits of Federal agen-
cy transportation expenses, to authorize reimbursement
of Federal agency employees for taxes incurred on travel
or transportation reimbursements, and to authorize test
programs for the payment of Federal employee travel ex-
penses and relocation expenses.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Travel and Transpor-
tation Reform Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. REQUIRING USE OF THE TRAVEL CHARGE CARD.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Under regulations issued by the
Administrator of General Services after consultation with
the Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator shall re-
quire that Federal employees use the travel charge card
established pursuant to the United States Travel and
Transportation Payment and Expense Control System, or
any Federal contractor-issued travel charge card, for all
payments of expenses of official Government travel. The
Administrator shall exempt any payment, person, type or
class of payments, or type or class of personnel from any
requirement established under the preceding sentence in
any case in which—
(1) it is in the best interest of the United
States to do so;
(2) payment through a travel charge card is im-
practical or imposes unreasonable burdens or costs
on Federal employees or Federal agencies; or
any Federal agency or a disbursing official of the
United States may, on behalf of the contractor, col-
lect by deduction from the amount of pay owed to
an employee of the agency any amount of funds the
employee owes to the contractor as a result of delin-
quencies not disputed by the employee on a travel
charge card issued for payment of expenses incurred
in connection with official Government travel. The
amount deducted from the pay owed to an employee
with respect to a pay period may not exceed 15 per-
cent of the disposable pay of the employee for that
pay period, except that a greater percentage may be
deducted upon the written consent of the employee.
(2) DUE
PROCESS
PROTECTIONS.—Collection
under this subsection shall be carried out in accord-
ance with procedures substantially equivalent to the
procedures required under section 3716(a) of title
31, United States Code.
(3) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this
subsection:
(A) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ has the
meaning that term has under section 101 of
title 31, United States Code.
(B) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’
means an individual employed in or under an
agency, including a member of any of the uni-
formed services. For purposes of this sub-
section, a member of one of the uniformed serv-
ices is an employee of that uniformed service.
(C) MEMBER; 
UNIFORMED
SERVICE.—
Each of the terms ‘‘member’’ and ‘‘uniformed
service’’ has the meaning that term has in sec-
tion 101 of title 37, United States Code.
(d) REGULATIONS.—Within 270 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of General
Services shall promulgate regulations implementing this
section, that—
(1) make the use of the travel charge card es-
tablished pursuant to the United States Travel and
Transportation System and Expense Control Sys-
tem, or any Federal contractor-issued travel charge
card, mandatory for all payments of expenses of offi-
cial Government travel pursuant to this section;
(2) specify the procedures for effecting under
subsection (c) a deduction from pay owed to an em-
ployee, and ensure that the due process protections
provided to employees under such procedures are no
less than the protections provided to employees pur-
suant to section 3716 of title 31, United States
Code;
(3) provide that any deduction under subsection
(c) from pay owed to an employee may occur only
after reimbursement of the employee for the ex-
penses of Government travel with respect to which
the deduction is made; and
(4) require agencies to promptly reimburse em-
ployees for expenses charged on a travel charge card
pursuant to this section, and by no later than 30
days after the submission of a claim for reimburse-
ment.
(e) REPORTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of Gen-
eral Services shall submit 2 reports to the Congress
on agency compliance with this section and regula-
tions that have been issued under this section.
(2) TIMING.—The first report under this sub-
section shall be submitted before the end of the 180-
day period beginning on the date of enactment of
this Act, and the second report shall be submitted
after that period and before the end of the 540-day
period beginning on that date of enactment.
(3) PREPARATION.—Each report shall be based
on a sampling survey of agencies that expended
more than $5,000,000 during the previous fiscal
year on travel and transportation payments, includ-
ing payments for employee relocation. The head of
an agency shall provide to the Administrator the
necessary information in a format prescribed by the
Administrator and approved by the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget.
SEC. 3. PREPAYMENT AUDITS OF TRANSPORTATION EX-
PENSES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Section 3322 of title 31, Unit-
ed States Code, is amended in subsection (c) by inserting
after ‘‘classifications’’ the following: ‘‘if the Administrator
of General Services has determined that verification by a
prepayment audit conducted pursuant to section 3726(a)
of this title for a particular mode or modes of transpor-
tation, or for an agency or subagency, will not adequately
protect the interests of the Government’’.
(2) Section 3528 of title 31, United States Code, is
amended—
(A) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘and’’ after
the semicolon at the end of paragraph (3), by strik-
ing the period at the end of subsection (a)(4)(C) and
inserting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new paragraph:
‘‘(5) verifying transportation rates, freight clas-
sifications, and other information provided on a Gov-
ernment bill of lading or transportation request, un-
less the Administrator of General Services has deter-
mined that verification by a prepayment audit con-
ducted pursuant to section 3726(a) of this title for
a particular mode or modes of transportation, or for
an agency or subagency, will not adequately protect
the interests of the Government.’’;
(B) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting after ‘‘de-
ductions’’ the following: ‘‘and the Administrator of
General Services has determined that verification by
a prepayment audit conducted pursuant to section
3726(a) of this title for a particular mode or modes
of transportation, or for an agency or subagency,
will not adequately protect the interests of the Gov-
ernment’’; and
(C) in subsection (c)(2), by inserting after
‘‘agreement’’ the following: ‘‘and the Administrator
of General Services has determined that verification
by a prepayment audit conducted pursuant to sec-
tion 3726(a) of this title for a particular mode or
modes of transportation, or for an agency or sub-
agency, will not adequately protect the interests of
the Government’’.
(3) Section 3726 of title 31, United States Code, is
amended—
(A) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(a)(1) Each agency that receives a bill from a car-
rier or freight forwarder for transporting an individual or
property for the United States Government shall verify its
correctness (to include transportation rates, freight classi-
fications, or proper combinations thereof), using prepay-
ment audit, prior to payment in accordance with the re-
quirements of this section and regulations prescribed by
the Administrator of General Services.
‘‘(2) The Administrator of General Services may ex-
empt bills, a particular mode or modes of transportation,
or an agency or subagency from a prepayment audit and
verification and in lieu thereof require a postpayment
audit, based on cost effectiveness, public interest, or other
factors the Administrator considers appropriate.
‘‘(3) Expenses for prepayment audits shall be funded
by the agency’s appropriations used for the transportation
services.
‘‘(4) The audit authority provided to agencies by this
section is subject to oversight by the Administrator.’’;
(B) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), (d),
(e), (f), and (g) in order as subsections (d), (e), (f),
(g), (h), and (i), respectively;
(C) by inserting after subsection (a) the follow-
ing new subsections:
‘‘(b) The Administrator may conduct pre- or
postpayment audits of transportation bills of any Federal
agency. The number and types of bills audited shall be
based on the Administrator’s judgment.
‘‘(c)(1) The Administrator shall adjudicate transpor-
tation claims which cannot be resolved by the agency pro-
curing the transportation services, or the carrier or
freight-forwarder presenting the bill.
‘‘(2) A claim under this section shall be allowed only
if it is received by the Administrator not later than 3 years
(excluding time of war) after the later of the following
dates:
‘‘(A) The date of accrual of the claim.
‘‘(B) The date payment for the transportation
is made.
‘‘(C) The date a refund for an overpayment for
the transportation is made.
‘‘(D) The date a deduction under subsection (d)
of this section is made.’’;
(D) in subsection (f), as so redesignated, by
striking ‘‘subsection (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection
(e)’’, and by adding at the end the following new
sentence: ‘‘This reporting requirement expires De-
cember 31, 1998.’’;
(E) in subsection (i)(1), as so redesignated, by
striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection
(c)’’; and
(F) by adding after subsection (i), as so redes-
ignated, the following new subsection:
‘‘(j) The Administrator of General Services may pro-
vide transportation audit and related technical assistance
services, on a reimbursable basis, to any other agency.
Such reimbursements may be credited to the appropriate
revolving fund or appropriation from which the expenses
were incurred.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall become effective 18 months after the
date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 4. REIMBURSEMENT FOR TAXES ON MONEY RECEIVED
FOR TRAVEL EXPENSES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 5, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after section 5706b the following
new section:
‘‘§ 5706c. Reimbursement for taxes incurred on
money received for travel expenses
‘‘(a) Under regulations prescribed pursuant to section
5707 of this title, the head of an agency or department,
or his or her designee, may use appropriations or other
funds available to the agency for administrative expenses,
for the reimbursement of Federal, State, and local income
taxes incurred by an employee of the agency or by an em-
ployee and such employee’s spouse (if filing jointly), for
any travel or transportation reimbursement made to an
employee for which reimbursement or an allowance is pro-
vided.
‘‘(b) Reimbursements under this section shall include
an amount equal to all income taxes for which the em-
ployee and spouse, as the case may be, would be liable
due to the reimbursement for the taxes referred to in sub-
section (a). In addition, reimbursements under this section
shall include penalties and interest, for the tax years 1993
and 1994 only, as a result of agencies failing to withhold
the appropriate amounts for tax liabilities of employees
affected by the change in the deductibility of travel ex-
penses made by Public Law 102–486.’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections
at the beginning of chapter 57 of title 5, United States
Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to
section 5706b the following new item:
‘‘5706c. Reimbursement for taxes incurred on money received for travel ex-
penses.’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall be effective
as of January 1, 1993.
SEC. 5. AUTHORITY FOR TEST PROGRAMS.
(a) TRAVEL EXPENSES TEST PROGRAMS.—Sub-
chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
‘‘§ 5710. Authority for travel expenses test programs
‘‘(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
subchapter, under a test program which the Administrator
of General Services determines to be in the interest of the
Government and approves, an agency may pay through the
proper disbursing official for a period not to exceed 24
months any necessary travel expenses in lieu of any pay-
ment otherwise authorized or required under this sub-
chapter. An agency shall include in any request to the Ad-
ministrator for approval of such a test program an analy-
sis of the expected costs and benefits and a set of criteria
for evaluating the effectiveness of the program.
‘‘(2) Any test program conducted under this section
shall be designed to enhance cost savings or other effi-
ciencies that accrue to the Government.
‘‘(3) Nothing in this section is intended to limit the
authority of any agency to conduct test programs.
‘‘(b) The Administrator shall transmit a copy of any
test program approved by the Administrator under this
section to the appropriate committees of the Congress at
least 30 days before the effective date of the program.
‘‘(c) An agency authorized to conduct a test program
under subsection (a) shall provide to the Administrator
and the appropriate committees of the Congress a report
on the results of the program no later than 3 months after
completion of the program.
‘‘(d) No more than 10 test programs under this sec-
tion may be conducted simultaneously.
‘‘(e) The authority to conduct test programs under
this section shall expire 7 years after the date of enact-
ment of the Travel and Transportation Reform Act of
1997.’’.
(b) RELOCATION EXPENSES TEST PROGRAMS.—Sub-
chapter II of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,
is further amended by adding at the end the following new
section:
‘‘§ 5739. Authority for relocation expenses test pro-
grams
‘‘(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
subchapter, under a test program which the Administrator
of General Services determines to be in the interest of the
Government and approves, an agency may pay through the
proper disbursing official for a period not to exceed 24
months any necessary relocation expenses in lieu of any
payment otherwise authorized or required under this sub-
chapter. An agency shall include in any request to the Ad-
ministrator for approval of such a test program an analy-
sis of the expected costs and benefits and a set of criteria
for evaluating the effectiveness of the program.
‘‘(2) Any test program conducted under this section
shall be designed to enhance cost savings or other effi-
ciencies that accrue to the Government.
‘‘(3) Nothing in this section is intended to limit the
authority of any agency to conduct test programs.
‘‘(b) The Administrator shall transmit a copy of any
test program approved by the Administrator under this
section to the appropriate committees of the Congress at
least 30 days before the effective date of the program.
‘‘(c) An agency authorized to conduct a test program
under subsection (a) shall provide to the Administrator
and the appropriate committees of the Congress a report
on the results of the program no later than 3 months after
completion of the program.
‘‘(d) No more than 10 test programs under this sec-
tion may be conducted simultaneously.
‘‘(e) The authority to conduct test programs under
this section shall expire 7 years after the date of enact-
ment of the Travel and Transportation Reform Act of
1997.’’.
(c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of sections
for chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, is further
amended by—
(1) inserting after the item relating to section
5709 the following new item:
‘‘5710. Authority for travel expenses test programs.’’;
and
(2) inserting after the item relating to section
5738 the following new item:
‘‘5739. Authority for relocation expenses test programs.’’.
SEC. 6. DEFINITION OF UNITED STATES.
Chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, is amend-
ed—
(1) in section 5721—
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’
following the semicolon at the end;
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking the pe-
riod at the end and inserting a semicolon; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
paragraphs:
‘‘(6) ‘United States’ means the several States,
the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, the territories and possessions of
the United States, and the areas and installations in
the Republic of Panama that are made available to
the United States pursuant to the Panama Canal
Treaty of 1977 and related agreements (as described
in section 3(a) of the Panama Canal Act of 1979);
and
‘‘(7) ‘Foreign Service of the United States’
means the Foreign Service as constituted under the
Foreign Service Act of 1980.’’;
(2) in section 5722—
(A) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘out-
side the United States’’ and inserting ‘‘outside
the continental United States’’; and
(B) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘United
States’’ each place it appears and inserting
‘‘Government’’;
(3) in section 5723(b), by striking ‘‘United
States’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Govern-
ment’’;
(4) in section 5724—
(A) in subsection (a)(3), by striking ‘‘, its
territories or possessions’’ and all that follows
through ‘‘1979’’; and
(B) in subsection (i), by striking ‘‘United
States’’ each place it appears in the last sen-
tence and inserting ‘‘Government’’;
(5) in section 5724a, by striking subsection (j);
(6) in section 5725(a), by striking ‘‘United
States’’ and inserting ‘‘Government’’;
(7) in section 5727(d), by striking ‘‘United
States’’ and inserting ‘‘continental United States’’;
(8) in section 5728(b), by striking ‘‘an em-
ployee of the United States’’ and inserting ‘‘an em-
ployee of the Government’’;
(9) in section 5729, by striking ‘‘or its terri-
tories or possessions’’ each place it appears;
(10) in section 5731(b), by striking ‘‘United
States’’ and inserting ‘‘Government’’; and
(11) in section 5732, by striking ‘‘United
States’’ and inserting ‘‘Government’’.
SEC. 7. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO THE FEDERAL EM-
PLOYEE TRAVEL REFORM ACT OF 1996.
Section 5724a of title 5, United States Code, is
amended—
(1) in subsections (a) and (d) (1) and (2), by
striking ‘‘An agency shall pay’’ each place it appears
and inserting ‘‘Under regulations prescribed under
section 5738, an agency shall pay’’;
(2) in subsections (b)(1), (c)(1), (d)(8), and (e),
by striking ‘‘An agency may pay’’ each place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘Under regulations prescribed
under section 5738, an agency may pay’’;
(3) by amending subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii) to
read as follows:
‘‘(ii) an amount for subsistence expenses,
that may not exceed a maximum amount deter-
mined by the Administrator of General Serv-
ices.’’;
(4) in subsection (c)(1)(B), by striking ‘‘an
amount for subsistence expenses’’ and inserting ‘‘an
amount for subsistence expenses, that may not ex-
ceed a maximum amount determined by the Admin-
istrator of General Services,’’;
(5) in subsection (d)(2)(A), by striking ‘‘for the
sale’’ and inserting ‘‘of the sale’’;
(6) in subsection (d)(2)(B), by striking ‘‘for the
purchase’’ and inserting ‘‘of the purchase’’;
(7) in subsection (d)(8), by striking ‘‘paragraph
(2) or (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1) or (2)’’;
(8) in subsection (f)(1), by striking ‘‘Subject to
paragraph (2),’’ and inserting ‘‘Under regulations
prescribed under section 5738 and subject to para-
graph (2),’’; and
(9) by striking subsection (i).
Passed the House of Representatives April 16, 1997.
Attest:
ROBIN H. CARLE, Clerk.