R 092113Z SEP 21 FM COMCOGARD PSC WASHINGTON DC TO ALCGPSC BT UNCLAS 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. BT #0001 NNNN