Use of the Travel Managment Center for Lodging Reservations U.S. Coast Guard no topic Update

30 APR 18
BT
UNCLAS //N04600//
ALCGPSC 067/18

SUBJ: REQUIRED USE OF THE TRAVEL MANAGEMENT CENTER (TMC) FOR LODGING

A. ALCGPSC 120/16 B. ALCGPSC 056/17 C. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Financial Management Policy Manual
D. 41 Code of Federal Regulations, Chapter 301-11.11
E. Joint Travel Regulations (JTR), 010201-C and 020303
F. Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) Program Policies and Procedures, COMDTINST M4600.18 (series)
G.Code of Federal Regulations, Chapter 301-50.7

1. This message updates and replaces Refs A and B. Per Refs C through E, travelers must make all reservations for Coast Guard funded travel, including commercial lodging, through the contracted TMC (ADTRAV). Booking lodging reservations directly with hotels, or by using commercial websites such as Expedia.com, Hotels.com, AIRBNB, etc., violates these requirements. DHS requires all reservations made outside of the TMC to be authorized per travel order endorsement. DHS considers lodging reservations made outside of the TMC as misuse of the Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) unless an authorized exception is documented on the travel orders.
2. Examples of authorized exceptions that an Approving Official may use on travel orders include:

   a. Use of government lodging.

   b. Cases where the TMC is unable to find lodging reservations for the traveler. In these cases, when ADTRAV completes a reservation for other services (travel, rental car, etc.), the inability to accommodate lodging will be noted via the rezconfirm document. If it is a lodging only reservation, the traveler must specifically request an e-mail from ADTRAV to document unavailability of lodging reservations.

   c. Cases where the traveler is not a travel card holder and the reservation does not include common carrier transportation being charged to the Centrally Billed Account.

   d. When use of the GTCC is prohibited by Ref F, such as TDY over 21 days where interim travel claims will not be submitted.

   e. Per Ref D and E when lodging is arranged at a lower cost than available through the TMC, such as lodging in conjunction with conferences, mass training evolutions, unit movements, directed establishments due to security/safety concerns (per Foreign Clearance Guide or direction by a U.S. Embassy, COCOM/JTF Commander or Secretarial Process), or when arranging lodging on a weekly or monthly basis for long-term TDY. Long Term TDY is considered 30 or more days. In these cases provided the lodging rate is at or below the per diem rate, no documentation is required from the TMC to support the exemption on the travel orders.

   f. Group Lodging. In accordance with Refs E and G, a Coast Guard employee or military member who is coordinating a large group event (such as a training course, exercise, or conference with 10 or more attendees) is authorized to negotiate directly with one or more lodging facilities to set aside a specific number of rooms for attendees, and require attendees to book lodging directly with the lodging facility. However, the conference planner should not enter into a contract with any lodging facility that guarantees the Coast Guard will pay for a specific number of rooms, unless the conference planner is a contracting officer who is authorized to do so. The recommended best practice for negotiating with a lodging facility is as follows:
   
   (1) The conference planner should negotiate an agreement with the lodging facility to hold a specified number of rooms at a specified rate at or below the local lodging per diem rate until a designated date;
   
   (2) After the designated date, the lodging facility will be free to release any rooms that have not been reserved by individual attendees;
   
   (3) Individual attendees should be directed to reserve their individual room with the lodging facility under the group reservation before the designated date. Any reservations made at another lodging facility or after the designated date shall be made through the Travel Management Center which currently is ADTRAV.

3. Travelers should review the required use of TMC lodging Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) at the link below or contact their local ADMIN support for travel questions http://www.dcms.uscg.mil/portals/10/CG-1/PSC/bops/GovTrvl/Required-Use-of-TMC-Lodging-FAQs.docx
4. All other questions should be directed as follows:

   a. Cardholders shall direct GTCC questions to their unit GTCC Travel Manager. Members can determine their supporting Travel Managers at http://www.dcms.uscg.mil/GOVTrvl/Contacts/.

   b. GTCC Travel Managers: Direct questions to Ms. Carlene Curry at 703-258-5996 or Evelyn.C.Curry@uscg.mil or Mr. Matt Ruckert at 703-201-3080 or Matthew.T.Ruckert@uscg.mil.

5. Released: CAPT G. T. Prestidge, Commander, Personnel Service Center. The Service Center for Our Most Important Resource – Our People.
6. Internet release is authorized.

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This is an update from the U. S. Coast Guard Pay & Personnel Center  in Topeka, KS. We use this distribution list to keep our customers informed about USCG Travel policy and the TPAX travel claim system. If you are no longer interested in receiving updates from PPC, please follow the link (at the end of this message) in the SUBSCRIBER SERVICES section to unsubscribe. Address any comments, concerns, or questions to richard.a.etheridge@uscg.mil. Also, please contact me by email if you have an announcement you would like to share with our customers

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