ALCGPSC 087/21 - GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CHARGE CARD (GTCC) PROGRAM: FINANCIAL AND TRAVEL SYSTEM TRANSITION GUIDANCE

R 092113Z SEP 21

ALCGPSC 087/21
SUBJ: GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CHARGE CARD (GTCC) PROGRAM:
FINANCIAL AND TRAVEL SYSTEM TRANSITION GUIDANCE
A. Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) Program Policies and
Procedures, COMDTINST M4600.18 (series)
B. Military Assignments and Authorized Absences, COMDTINST
M1000.8A
C. Joint Travel Regulations (JTR)
D. ALCOAST 194/21 FINANCIAL SYSTEM MODERNIZATION SOLUTION
(FSMS) IMPLEMENTATION
E. ALCOAST 237/21 FINANCIAL SYSTEM MODERNIZATION SOLUTION
(FSMS) IMPLEMENTATION UPDATE ONE
F. Personnel & Pay Procedures Manual, PPCINST M1000.0 (SERIES)
1. This message announces immediate temporary expanded use of the
Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) to support travel
requirements until completion of the new financial system cutover
period as indicated in references (D) and (E). These policy waivers
offer a reliable means of financial support in the absence of standard
travel advances being processed or travel claim payments being timely
processed, particularly for Permanent Change of Station, Long-Term
TAD, and Disaster Evacuation Orders.
2. Centrally Billed Account (CBA): A temporary waiver for GTCC
cardholders to use the CBA is immediately authorized. The restrictions
on GTCC cardholders from using the CBA for common carrier
transportation expenses (i.e. airfare, train tickets, etc.) contained in
reference (A) are temporarily suspended. Until the financial system
cutover is completed, GTCC holders may use the CBA for these
expenses to reduce impact on their GTCC credit limits and overall
balance. Travelers and Approving Officials (AOs) shall include the
following statement in the remarks section of travel orders: Use of
the Centrally Billed Account (CBA) is authorized.
3. GTCC Payments: All accounts in good standing (i.e. no past due
balance stemming from unpaid July statement balances for which
payments were due on 22 Aug 2021) will be entered into a mission
critical status, which means no payment will be required on new
August balances or future balances until after the cutover period. This
status will keep accounts in an active status and prevent adverse
impacts resulting from debt while travel claims are not being
processed. Travelers shall retain receipts and be prepared to
immediately submit vouchers when the new systems are available.
New GTCC cardholders will immediately be placed into mission critical
status.
4. Credit Limits: Travelers who require credit limit adjustments as a
result of the inability to process travel claim reimbursements during
the cutover should contact their local Travel Manager. Travel Manager
authorization to establish credit limits is temporarily increased from
$9999 up to $19,999. Any requests above $20,000 will be forwarded
to the GTCC program managers for DHS approval.
5. Disaster Evacuation: Use of Members GTCC is authorized for
Member and Dependent Meal and Incidental Expenses (M&IE) as flat-
rate per diem for the number of allowable evacuation days limited by
the evacuation order and actual days evacuated. GTCC Card holders
may withdraw up to $415 per week in cash at ATMs against their GTCC
account to cover member and family M&IE Expenses while evacuated
under evacuation orders.
6. Permanent Change of Station (PCS) and Long-Term Temporary Duty
(TDY): Effective Immediately, a temporary waiver to use GTCC for PCS
and long-term TDY is authorized. The restrictions contained in
reference (A) for PCS greater than 15 days and TDY greater than 21
days are temporarily suspended. Policy regarding authorized
purchases remain in effect IAW with references (A) and (C). The GTCC
is only for official travel to cover authorized expenditures, however, a
temporary policy waiver is granted to cover authorized dependent
expenses during PCS.
a. Proper use of the GTCC for PCS consists of the following:
(1) Temporary Lodging Expense (TLE) at the old or new permanent
duty station (PDS); charges related to this expense include lodging and
meals while in temporary lodging. See Chapter 5, reference (C) for
additional TLE information.
(2) Fuel for Privately Owned Vehicles (POV), but only if POV is the
authorized mode of transportation for the PCS travel. This is not a
directly reimbursed item; it is paid in the form of a Monetary
Allowance in Lieu of Transportation (MALT). MALT is a flat-rate per
mile and per vehicle entitlement based on the distance between the
old and new PDS, as determined by the Defense Table of Official
Distances (DTOD).
(3) Lodging and meals enroute; these items are not reimbursed
directly, the member and dependents are entitled to a flat-rate per
diem for the number of allowable travel days based on the mode of
transportation, not to exceed the actual travel days used as outlined in
Chapter 5, reference (C).
(4) Airfare/Train/Bus for the member and concurrently traveling
dependents and only if it is the authorized mode of transportation for
the PCS travel. Personal travel arrangements made for leave in
conjunction with official (LICWO) travel cannot be purchased with the
GTCC. See Chapter 3, reference (C) for further details regarding LICWO
travel.
(5) Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) is paid for using the
Centrally Billed Account (CBA) and purchased through the Travel
Management Center (TMC) service provider.
(6) Tolls and miscellaneous fees may be charged to the GTCC.
b. Misuse. Non-travel related expenditures will still be considered
misuse. GTCC may not be used for local travel, team gear, permissive
orders, retirement/separation, personally procured moves, during
leave, to/from leave site, leave in conjunction with official (LICWO)
travel, or for cash withdrawals exceeding reimbursable amounts.
Commanders/Supervisors will ensure travel cards are used only for
official travel related expenses. Examples of misuse include, but are
not limited to: (a) expenses related to personal, family or household
purposes except for authorized PCS expenses, (b) cash withdrawals
from an ATM used during non-travel periods or not related to official
government travel requirements are "not authorized." This includes
but is not limited to any withdrawal of a credit balance remaining on
the card, (c) intentional failure to pay undisputed charges in a timely
manner, and (d) ATM cash withdrawals taken more than three days
prior to official government travel. Cardholders who misuse their
travel card may be subject to administrative or disciplinary action, as
appropriate.
c. Check-out: Immediately upon receipt of orders, if not already a
cardholder, the member must apply for a GTCC. Travel Managers
should assist cardholders in the application process and determine if
expediting a card is necessary to meet travel requirements. Travel
Managers will adjust credit limits 10 days prior to the approved detach
date to reflect the estimated cost of the PCS travel entitlements,
allowing GTCC to be used for temporary lodging. It is important the
traveler understands what PCS reimbursable entitlements are rated
and their estimated dollar amounts. Upon completion and certification
of the outbound interview, the traveler will be provided an
endorsement to the PCS orders which contains the estimated dollar
amount of the travel entitlements. The traveler will use this
information to ensure charges placed on the GTCC do not exceed the
amount that will be reimbursed upon PCS travel voucher settlement.
Upon check-out, Travel Managers must counsel cardholders
concerning proper use of the GTCC and who they should contact if
issues arise. Any cardholder who requires assistance during the PCS
travel period should contact their Travel Manager for their former
command; if already reported to the new PDS, contact the Travel
Manager of the new PDS. Members can determine who their
supporting Travel Managers are under the contacts Portal page
located at:
https://cg.portal.uscg.mil/units/psc/psc-
bops/GTCC%20Library/Forms/AllItems.aspx.
If the cardholder is unable to reach the Travel Manager, Citi Customer
Service should be contacted by calling the number on the back of the
GTCC.
d. Check-in: Cardholders must submit their PCS travel vouchers in a
timely manner upon check-in at the new PDS, as outlined in Section H
of reference (F). When the travel voucher is completed, ensure the
split-disbursement amount in block 1 of the DD Form 1351-2 reflects
all undisputed charges placed on or pending in the GTCC. If temporary
lodging is still required at the time of completion of the travel voucher,
the cardholder must include an estimate of the TLE charges in the
split-disbursement amount. Other than payment for temporary
lodging, no further charges will be placed on the GTCC after
completion of the travel voucher. Cardholders must ensure they
update their GTCC contact information immediately following the
establishment of their address at the new PDS. If the cardholder does
not have a Citimanager account, the Travel Manager should make the
necessary changes or assist the cardholder to create a user profile in
Citimanager: home.cards.citidirect.com/CommercialCard/ux.
Cardholders must proactively review GTCC statements to ensure
payment are made in full from the split-disbursement. Any remaining
balance due after the posting of the split-disbursement must be paid
immediately by the cardholder. Payment can be made via Citimanager
at Citi Commercial Cards (citidirect.com), using the Citi mobile
application, or by calling the number on the back of the card. If the
split-disbursement exceeds the amount due, cardholders may obtain
the amount of the credit balance via the same methods described
above. The cardholder is solely responsible for ensuring the card
balance is paid in full once claim processing becomes available again.
e. Commands are reminded that particular attention is required for
those newly reporting cardholders who typically would not have been
issued a travel card from the departing unit. As soon as they have
completed their travel claims, ensure the travel card limits are
reduced to the minimum limits.
7. GTCC Nonavailability/Eligibility. If a GTCC Account cannot be
established for a member then the Centrally Billed Account (CBA)
should be used to the maximum extent possible and the member may
use a personal credit or debit card for related commercial lodging and
M&IE costs. The Travel Management Center, currently ADTRAV,
should still be used for official travel reservations, including disaster
evacuation reservations.
8. Applicability. This policy does not apply to accession, separation, or
retirement travel, nor does it affect the payment of advance pay or
advance Basic Allowance for Housing to pay for rental
deposits. Additionally, this policy does not apply to PCS travel for
civilian personnel, Selected Reserve members, or Individual Ready
Reserve members as these populations do not use the same order
writing and outbound interview processes.
9. GTCC Travel Managers may direct questions to Mr. Michael
Duchossois at 703-254-7175 or Michael.A.Duchossois@uscg.mil or to
Ms. Evelyn Carlene Curry at 703-258-5996 or
Evelyn.C.Curry@uscg.mil
10. Released by: RDML S. N. Gilreath, Commander, Personnel Service
Center The Service Center for Our Most Important Resource Our
People.
11. Internet release is authorized.