News Releases
GSA Announces Fiscal Year 2008 Per Diem RatesAugust 6, 2007 GSA # 10387 WASHINGTON – The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) today announced that the federal government’s Fiscal Year 2008 standard per diem allowance, which reimburses employees for expenses incurred on authorized official travel within the Continental United States (CONUS), will increase from $99 to $109 a day. The $10 increase is due to the standard CONUS lodging rate change from $60 to $70. The current standard lodging rate of $60 was established in 2005. “The federal government spends approximately $4 billion in travel each year, and it is important for GSA to establish per diem rates that ensure taxpayer money is spent prudently in this area,” said Kevin Messner, Acting Associate Administrator for the Office of Governmentwide Policy. “These new rates are the result of GSA's ongoing efforts to improve the per diem program, and ensure that the federal traveler’s requirements are met.” Under federal statute implemented through the Federal Travel Regulation, GSA sets per diem reimbursement allowances for more than 8,000 destinations within CONUS. Additionally, GSA established new per diem rates for 393 destinations where local market conditions warrant higher allowances than the standard CONUS per diem. GSA used the average daily rate, a widely accepted lodging industry performance measure, to determine all of Fiscal Year 2008 lodging rates throughout CONUS, including the new standard lodging per diem. The meal and incidental expense portion of per diem was not re-evaluated this year and remains the same from Fiscal Year 2007, ranging from $39 to $64 per day depending on the travel destination. The new per diem rates become effective on October 1, 2007. For more information on the Fiscal Year 2008 per diem rates and how GSA establishes them, visit gsa.gov/perdiem. ### Founded in 1949, GSA serves as a centralized procurement and property management agency for the federal government. GSA manages more than one-fourth of the government’s total procurement dollars and influences the management of $500 billion in federal assets, including 8,600 government-owned or leased buildings and 205,000 vehicles. GSA helps preserve our past and define our future, as a steward of more than 425 historic properties, and as manager of USA.gov, the official portal to federal government information and services. GSA’s mission to provide superior workplaces, expert technology solutions, acquisition services, purchasing and eGov travel solutions and management policies, at best value, allows federal agencies to focus on their core missions. Did You Know? Federal government per diem rates are set annually, and become effective the first day of each new Fiscal Year. Index of News Releases
Last Reviewed 8/6/2007
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