34 Tex. Admin. Code § 5.22 - State of Texas Travel Guidance
(a)
General travel information will be maintained on the comptroller's website. The
information will include procedures, as provided in this rule, Government Code,
Chapter 660, and the General Appropriations Act; examples; guidelines that will
help support the travel expense reimbursement process for state agencies.
Procedures, amounts, timing, limits, required documentation, permissible
payees, distinctions among different types of state employees, or any other
details concerning travel expense payments or reimbursements by a state agency
are governed by Government Code, Chapter 660, the General Appropriations Act,
and the rules adopted by the comptroller under Government Code, Chapter
660.
(b) Eligible expenses. A
travel expense must be incurred before it is eligible for reimbursement.
(1) For lodging and transportation expenses,
proof of payment must be documented to validate that the expenses were actually
incurred.
(2) A state employee who
receives free transportation or lodging in exchange for points or other
non-monetary credits has not incurred an expense for reimbursement
purposes.
(3) A state agency may
not reimburse a state employee for any costs or expenses in excess of those
incurred for official travel that result from a state employee's personal
preference or convenience.
(4) A
state agency may not reimburse a state employee for a travel expense incurred
by or on behalf of another state employee, unless:
(A) the reimbursement is authorized by law;
or
(B) the travel expense is
incurred while the paying state employee and other state employee(s) are
traveling on official state business; the circumstances surrounding payment of
the travel expense necessitate the reimbursement of the paying state employee;
and the reimbursement of the paying state employee is approved by the state
agency.
(c)
Erroneous processing and erroneous vouchers.
(1) A state agency or a state employee may
not seek reimbursement of a travel expense that the agency or employee knows or
reasonably should know is not reimbursable.
(2) The comptroller's omission of a
particular travel expense reimbursement as erroneous during a post-payment
audit does not prevent the comptroller from designating a similar reimbursement
as erroneous in a subsequent audit.
(d) Meal and lodging expenses.
(1) A state employee may be reimbursed for
meal and/or lodging expenses that are incurred on a day that the employee
conducts state business. The reimbursement is limited to the rates set forth in
the General Appropriations Act. The reimbursement limit applies without a
carry-over from one day to another.
(2) Meal and lodging expenses incurred at a
duty point the night before state business begins are reimbursable.
(3) Meal and lodging expenses incurred more
than one night before state business begins are not reimbursable unless
traveling to the duty point reasonably requires more than one day or the
expenses are incurred to qualify for a discount airfare.
(e) Apartment or house rental expenses.
(1) An apartment or house rental expense may
be reimbursed if:
(A) the purpose of the
rental is the conservation of state funds; and
(B) the agency reasonably anticipates that
the employee will be using the apartment or house while conducting state
business throughout the term of the lease.
(2) Application fees and other mandatory
costs associated with applying for rental of the apartment or house are
reimbursable.
(f) Other
reimbursable expenses.
(1) In accordance with
Government Code, §
660.141, a state
employee may be reimbursed for travel expenses incurred while staying extra
days at a duty point to qualify for a discount airfare. Such expenses may be
reimbursed only if:
(A) the amount of the
reimbursement plus the amount of the discount is less than the average coach
airfare or the contracted airfare; and
(B) the employing agency determines that the
employee's absence for the extra days is not detrimental to the
agency.
(2) Incidental
expenses.
(A) Pursuant to Government Code,
§
660.002, a state
employee or legislator is entitled to be reimbursed for incidental expenses
when they are incurred for a state business reason.
(B) Examples of reimbursable incidental
expenses include, but are not limited to: mandatory charges or mandatory
service charges; telephone calls; toll charges; parking charges; repair charges
for a state-owned vehicle; postage; passport or visa charges required for
foreign travel; and currency exchange fees.
(C) Tips or gratuities and excess baggage
charges for personal belongings are not reimbursable expenses.
(3) Expenses of transportation by
rented or public conveyance.
(A) Pursuant to
Government Code, §
660.092, a state
agency may pay or reimburse the expense of transporting a state employee by
rented or public conveyance if the transportation is provided by a commercial
transportation company as defined by Government Code, §
660.002(6).
(B) To be considered a commercial
transportation company as defined by Government Code, §
660.002(6),
an entity must be covered by insurance that covers any accident or loss that
occurs while transporting people or goods for pay, as required by
law.
(C) A commercial
transportation company as defined by Government Code, §
660.002(6),
includes a transportation network driver.
(g) Mileage.
(1) Amount of mileage reimbursement.
(A) The mileage reimbursement rate is
established by the legislature in the General Appropriations Act.
(B) With the exception of tolls and parking
expenses, the mileage reimbursement rate is inclusive of all expenses
associated with the operation of the employee's personal vehicle.
(2) Determination of reimbursable
mileage.
(A) The number of miles traveled by
an employee for state business may be determined by point-to-point
itemization.
(B) Point-to-point
mileage may be documented by an employee's vehicle odometer reading or by the
readily available electronic mapping service selected under subparagraph (C) of
this paragraph by the employee's agency, institution of higher education, or
other entity required to comply with Government Code, Chapter 660.
(C) Each agency, institution of higher
education, or other entity required to comply with Government Code, Chapter
660, must select no more than one readily available electronic mapping service
for use by its employees and must adopt the service by internal
policy.
(h)
Travel advance accounts.
(1) A state agency
may establish an account for advancing funds to a state employee for the
employee's projected travel expenses.
(2) A state agency that declines to establish
a travel advance account may not make travel advances.
(3) A travel advance account may not be used
for any purpose other than to make travel advances.
(4) A state agency may not issue a travel
advance to:
(A) a prospective state
employee;
(B) an employee of
another state agency unless the employee will be providing services to the
agency issuing the travel advance; or
(C) a person who is not a state employee,
including a commercial transportation company, a commercial lodging
establishment, a credit card issuer, and a travel agency.
(5) The comptroller may not reimburse the
travel advance account of a state agency for a travel advance to a state
employee who at the time of the advance had been properly reported to the
comptroller as being indebted to the state.
(6) Under and over advances.
(A) If a state employee received a travel
advance that is less than the reimbursable expenses incurred, the employing
state agency may reimburse the employee for the difference.
(B) If an employee received a travel advance
that is greater than the reimbursable expenses incurred, then the employee
shall promptly reimburse the account for the difference.
(7) A travel advance account may not be
reimbursed for a travel expense that would not have been reimbursed if the
account had not been used.
(i) Voucher and documentation requirements.
(1) The comptroller requires supporting
information and/or documentation to be included on a voucher prior to
submission for payment.
(2)
Supporting documentation must be sufficient to detail the expenses claimed.
Supporting documentation requirements apply to a travel expense that is paid
directly and to a travel expense reimbursement made by an agency. The
information or documentation required changes periodically; however, it
generally includes the following: documentation of employee's headquarters,
required itemizations, purpose of trip, and required receipts.
(j) Audits conducted by the
comptroller.
(1) Under Government Code,
§
660.028, the
comptroller is required to periodically audit travel vouchers submitted for
payment either before or after the comptroller issues a warrant or initiates an
electronic funds transfer in response to the voucher. These audits and
examinations assist the comptroller's office in determining whether:
(A) the expenses were reasonable and
necessary;
(B) the purpose of
travel clearly involved state business and was consistent with the agency's
legal authority;
(C) the travel
conducted and expenses incurred complied with the Travel Regulations Act,
comptroller rules, travel provisions of the General Appropriations Act, the
comptroller's Statewide Procurement Division contract requirements, and
policies and procedures adopted by the comptroller's office; and
(D) the number of individuals traveling for
the same or a similar purpose was necessary to perform state
business.
(2) The
comptroller may question the fiscal responsibility of a payment even if it is
technically legal.
Notes
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