DOI Travel Newsletter - October 2001
DOI Travel Newsletter
Volume 1 Issue 4
October 2001
SEPTEMBER 11 AFTERMATH NEWS
Assistant Secretarys Memorandum on Travel Policy
A memorandum to all Department of the Interior employees dated September 14, 2001, from P. Lynn Scarlett, Assistant Secretary - Policy, Management and Budget provided official travel guidance to all Interior employees following the attacks of September 11.
Assistant Secretary Scarlett advised that Interior employees should resume normal business travel required to meet the mission of the Department. Employees should continue to use the Government Travel Charge Card for travel expenses whenever possible. You may access Assistant Secretary Scarletts memorandum on the Office of Financial Managements Travel Web site at http://www.doi.gov/pfm/travel.html.
Cancellation Fees and Refunds
Most airlines announced that they would provide a refund, with no penalty, to travelers who were scheduled to travel in the September 11-25 time frame. Please contact your local Omega World Travel
(OWT) office if you have questions relating to billings or refunds on flights that were scheduled for this time frame. Please remember that you must return all unused paper tickets in order to receive a refund (whereas unused electronic tickets are automatically submitted for refund.)
New Airport Security Measures
The September 11 incidents have had a wide-reaching effect on how airlines and airports conduct business. The following are some of the procedures and security measure that DOI travelers can expect:
Dont Leave Home Without It: Travelers on official U.S. government travel must have valid, government-issued identification with them at all times. Airlines are accepting both paper and electronic tickets, but if you are traveling on e-tickets you must bring your final itinerary with you.
When to Arrive at the Airport: Do not arrive
at the airport until you have confirmed your flight information. Plan to arrive at least two hours before departure for domestic flights, and at least three hours before departure for international flights. Since the traffic and waiting times vary substantially among airports, its a very good idea to ask your OWT travel agent for advice on recommended arrival times at the airports you will be traveling from.
What to Expect Upon Arrival: Airports have discontinued curbside check-in so you will have to go directly to the airline ticket counter to obtain a boarding pass and to
check
baggage. In most
instances, you will need a boarding pass before you are allowed to pass through
the security checkpoint.
Luggage:
You may be subjected to a hand-search of your
belongings; you may also be searched with hand-held metal detectors.
Items in luggage that may have passed through screening prior to
September 11 may not make it through now. For example, knives of any kind are no
longer allowable. This
includes knives in luggage or knives carried in pockets such as pocket knives.
Avoid over-packing so that carry-on and
checked luggage may open and close easily.
Make sure that all luggage, whether checked or carry-on, have identification tags.
Most of all - use the common sense rule: consider whether anything you
are carrying may look suspicious.
Parking:
Parking lots close to terminals may be blocked-off or closed so allow enough
time to park at remote lots and get a shuttle back to the terminal.
OTHER DOI TRAVEL NEWS
New
City-Pair Contracts for 2002
The
General Services Administration (GSA) has negotiated a program that features
airfares that are lower than the already discounted federal rates for a limited
number of seats in some markets.
The new city-pair contracts for 2002 have capacity controlled fares for
337 city-pairs and are available for certain regular long-haul services and on
commuter airlines where reservations are on a first come first served basis.
The new fares will be available on a limited number of seats so travelers
would be wise to book early.
Travelers may still purchase tickets using standard government rates that
do not require advance purchase.
All government contract fares have no minimum or maximum stay
requirements, travel time limits, charges for cancellations, or blackout
periods.
Per
Diem Rates for Fiscal Year 2002
GSA
has published the per diem rates for FY 2002.
A complete file of the rates is available from the Federal
Register or you can check on individual rates
for either FY 2002, FY 2001, or FY 2002 by selecting the appropriate year from
the Office of Financial Management web-site: 347
DM FTR Implementing Instructions.
Insurance
Coverage
The
Bank of America (BOA) Smart Pay Program Charge Card provides up to $200,000 in
travel accident insurance for individual travelers who purchase commercial
transportation tickets and other travel related expenses with their government
charge card. The
program also provides travel accident insurance designed to reimburse
cardholders for luggage that is lost and not
recovered. To obtain
a claim form and initiate the claims process, contact the BOA Claims Department
at 1-800-735-1408.
Use of the Government Travel Charge Card
Employees are reminded that the Government Travel Charge Card is issued to individual employees for their travel requirements. Under no circumstance is it appropriate to charge another employees travel expenses to your individual travel charge card. Any questions concerning this matter should be referred to your bureau travel coordinator.
Will Government Travelers Be Able to Keep Frequent Flyer Miles?
The House Government Reform Committee has approved a bill that would allow federal government employees to keep the frequent flyer miles they accumulate while on official travel. The bill (HR 2456) was approved by the House on July 30, 2001, and must next be approved by the Senate. Under HR 2456, federal workers could keep their miles as long as the frequent flyer programs used were obtained under the same terms as provided to the general public and cost the government no extra money.
Other frequent traveler benefit programs, such as hotel point programs and car rental point programs, would also be covered under the bill. The legislation would be retroactive, allowing those federal employees already signed up to keep and use miles earned prior to the bills enactment. The Bush administration added language in its proposed fiscal year 2002 defense authorization bill that repeals restrictions on the personal use of frequent flyer miles for both military and civilian employees.
Most
airlines have procedures for tracking miles previously flown using e-tickets (up
to a maximum of six months) which can be
credited to your account over the telephone.
Although this is not true for paper tickets, mileage credits for
previously flown segments can be credited with proof of travel.
Each carrier has specific guidelines regarding their award programs and
the following telephone numbers are provided for
your assistance:
United
Mileage Plus
1-800-421-4655
Delta
Sky Miles
1-800-323-2323
American
Advantage
1-800-882-8880
US Airways Dividend
Miles
1-336-661-8390
Alaska
Mileage Plan
1-800-654-5669
Continental One Pass
1-713-952-1630
Southwest
Rapid Rewards
1-800-445-9267
Northwest World
Perks
1-800-447-3757
Increase
in Travel Transaction Fees- Effective October
1, 2001
The
$7.95 transaction fee charged by Omega World Travel has been in place since May,
2000.
In
mid-August, 2001, the airline industry announced that airline commissions on
domestic travel would remain at 5%, but would be capped at $10 for a one-way
ticket, and $20 for a round trip ticket. (The previous commission caps had been
$25 and $50 respectively.)
Airline
commissions represent a major revenue source for travel providers, and both the
GSA Master Travel Management Center Contract and the Department’s Task Order with
Omega World Travel require that transaction fee adjustments be made when airline
commissions change.
Approximately
35% of the Department’s
domestic air travel involves ticket prices in excess of $400 (the point at which
the new commission caps have an adverse financial impact on travel service
providers), and hence a transaction fee increase was necessary. The new
transaction fee, effective October 1, 2001, is $9.80.
OWT Airline Ticket Data (December 2000 to August 2001)
|
Tickets |
|
Dollar Value |
|
Month |
Issued |
|
(in millions) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dec |
7,328 |
|
|
$2.82 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jan |
13,788 |
|
|
5.20 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Feb |
15,066 |
|
|
5.80 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mar |
18,204 |
|
|
7.03 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Apr |
16,164 |
|
|
6.30 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
May |
15,628 |
|
|
6.25 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
June |
14,407 |
|
|
4.70 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
July |
14,177 |
|
|
5.55 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Aug |
16,847 |
|
|
6.63 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
131,609 |
|
$ |
50.28 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|