Board of Contract Appeals General Services Administration Washington, D.C. 20405 ____________________________ March 22, 2000 ____________________________ GSBCA 15136-RELO In the Matter of MICHAEL L. NOLL Michael L. Noll, Fredericksburg, VA, Claimant, T.R. Love, Deputy Director for Finance, Defense Finance and Accounting Service, Rock Island, IL, appearing for Department of Defense. HYATT, Board Judge. Claimant, Michael L. Noll, requests our review of a decision of the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) disallowing his claim for reimbursement of rental car expenses incurred in connection with his permanent change of station (PCS) from Heidelberg, Germany to Alexandria, Virginia. As discussed below, the agency's decision was correct; the expenses claimed are not allowable under applicable regulations. Mr. Noll relocated from Germany to his new duty station in Alexandria, Virginia in June 1999. Claimant's privately owned vehicle (POV) was shipped from Germany, but did not arrive in the United States until sometime after the arrival of claimant and his family. Mr. Noll's travel orders authorized up to sixty days of temporary quarters subsistence expenses (TQSE) and the use of a rental car for up to thirty days. He rented a car beginning June 19, 1999. From July 16 through July 23, 1999, he was authorized the use of a rental vehicle to perform temporary duty (TDY) travel. He returned the car on July 26. Claimant submitted a voucher in the amount of $1047.87 for the rental charges, plus the amount of $72.36 for gas purchased while he used the car under his PCS orders. DFAS approved payment of $280.62, covering the cost of renting the vehicle for TDY purposes, and disallowed the remainder of the claim, stating that reimbursement of local transportation costs during a PCS move is expressly proscribed under the Joint Travel Regulations (JTR). JTR C2102-I; C13215. Mr. Noll believes he should nonetheless be reimbursed because his travel orders authorized him to rent a car while awaiting the arrival of his POV; he received telephonic confirmation of this as well. He points out that some transportation pending the arrival of his POV was necessary, and the rental car was the least costly solution. Notwithstanding the travel orders, DFAS has correctly concluded that it cannot reimburse the expenses of local transportation. Both the JTR and the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR), 41 CFR 302-5.18 (1999), prohibit reimbursement of local transportation expenses, for commuting or for personal convenience, while a relocated employee is on TQSE. See, e.g., Jacqueline Williams, GSBCA 15026-RELO, 99-2 BCA 30,538; Joe D. Sellers, GSBCA 14738-RELO, 99-1 BCA 30,159 (1998); Andrew Parr, GSBCA 14058-RELO, 98-1 BCA 29,426. This comports with the general rule that while agencies may reimburse employees for transportation expenses if they perform official business travel, an employee's usual commute between work and home does not constitute official business travel. Carrie L. McWilliams, GSBCA 15028-RELO, 99-2 BCA 30,497. It is well-settled that erroneous travel orders, reflecting mistaken assumptions on the part of authorizing officials, cannot obligate the Government to expend monies contrary to regulation. Charles M. Ferguson, GSBCA 14568-TRAV, 99-1 BCA 30,299; James E. Black, GSBCA 14548-RELO, 98-2 BCA 29,876; William Archilla, GSBCA 13878-RELO, 97-1 BCA 28,799. As the Board stated in Sellers, "although the transferred employee was authorized to rent a vehicle for use until his own automobile was shipped from outside the continental United States, he may not be reimbursed for the expenses he incurred because the authorization was contrary to law." 99-1 BCA at 149,272. _____________________________ CATHERINE B. HYATT Board Judge