Per Diem Overview and Options 1

Background Per Diem is the maximum allowance for federal employees on travel—includes lodging + meals & incidentals 3 Federal agencies determine per diem rates GSA: CONUS -- Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5702(a)(1)(A) DoD: Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories and possessions State: foreign locations GSA determines Per Diem rates Standard CONUS -- Every 3 years, last changed in FY2011 (currently $77) Non-Standard Areas (NSAs) -- Reviewed annually Meals and Incidentals -- last changed in FY2010 2

Per Diem Methodology Hotel Properties’ Revenue in Designated Area # of Rooms Rented Average Daily Rate (includes 5% federal discount) 3 Methodology includes: 3,000 counties across the contiguous 48, applies to 52,000 hotels Standard rate applies to 2,600 areas, 5,500 hotels sampled Non-standard rate applies to about 400 areas, 12,000 hotels sampled Properties must adhere to fire and life safety requirements established by FEMA according to law Fall within mid-price range - excludes luxury and economy tier hotels Includes prior 12-month period, April through March Business travel week data only - Mon-Thurs Reflects actuals, including rates paid through corporate discounts Results: FY standard lodging rate: $77 Approximately 2,600 counties adhere to the standard rate, with about 400 receiving an NSA designation The current methodology was developed in 2003 by the Government-wide Per Diem Advisory Board [a Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) body] and first implemented in 2005 Number of Rooms Rented Average Daily Rate (ADR) Room Revenue Number of Rooms Sold ADR = Per Diem = ADR – 5%

Standard vs. Non-Standard (NSA) When Standard – Reviewed every 3 years (last reviewed FY2011) NSA – Reviewed annually (last reviewed FY2012) Where Standard – Covers approximately 2,600 less frequently Federal travel areas NSA – Covers approximately 400 of most frequently Federal traveled areas What Standard – The rate currently is $77 for Lodging and $46 for M&IE NSA – Rate varies by location and by season. M&IE ranges from $46 to $71 4

Smith Travel Research Chain Scale Ratings and “Midscale” in Per Diem Calculation RatingExamples of HotelsIn ADR? LuxuryFairmont, Four Seasons, Grand Hyatt, Trump International Excluded Upper Upscale Embassy Suites, Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, Westin Included UpscaleCourtyard, Crown Plaza, Doubletree, Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites, Hyatt Place Included Upper Midscale Best Western Plus, Clarion, Comfort Inn, Comfort Inn Suites, Hampton Inn, Hampton Inn Suites Included MidscaleAmerica’s Best Suites, Country Inn & suites, La Quinta Inn, La Quinta Inn & Suites Included EconomyAmerica’s Best Inn, Econo Lodge, Extended Stay America, Motel 6 Excluded 5

6

7

8 US ADR Data January April 2012

9 U.S. ADR Data FY 2010 DataFY 2011 DataFY 2012 DataFY 2013 Data Includes all tiers, Smith Travel Research data

10 Office of Government-wide Policy Historical Per Diem Rates of Top 25 Cities April Per Diem Rates LocationFY 2009FY2010FY2011FY2012FY2013 Washington, DC$209$226$211$224 Los Angeles, CA$128$135$123$125 San Diego, CA$147 $131$133 Las Vegas, NV$126$118$93$99 San Antonio, TX$117 $106 Atlanta, GA$141$140$132$133 Denver, CO$149$158$141$149 Chicago, IL$157$158$166$171 Albuquerque, NM$80$81 St. Louis, MO$111$110$109$104 Dallas, TX$115$117$107$113 Arlington, TX$149$151$138$139 Seattle, WA$158$159$139$137 Manhattan, NY$285$318$212$241 Oklahoma City, OK$83$84$82$81 Fort Walton Beach, FL$135$133$126$121 Tampa, FL$104$101$108$112$93 Phoenix, AZ$160$140$126$128 Orlando, FL$109$108$104$111 Kansas City, MO and KS$107 $99 San Francisco, CA$164$166$150$155 New Orleans, LA$140$133$131$135 Burlington, MA$119$121$108$111 Boston, MA$203$231$190$201 Houston, TX$110$118$109

Executive Orders and Directives 11 Executive Order Promoting Efficient Spending Executive Order Delivering an Efficient, Effective, and Accountable Government OMB M Promoting Efficient Spending to Support Agency Operations

Actual Expenses Agencies always should consider less expensive alternatives -- including the use of teleconferencing, video conferencing, webinars -- in lieu of authorizing actual expenses for travel Actual expenses may not exceed 300% of per diem for the area Actual expenses may be authorized when: Costs that have escalated because of special events (Examples: sporting events, natural disasters, or manmade disasters) Commuting costs to and from a nearby location consumes most or all of the savings that would have been achieved from obtaining less expensive lodging 12

Reduced Per Diem Agencies must: Include the reduced per diem on the traveler’s authorization in advance of travel Agencies should: Evaluate extended stay facilities. (Many options available across the country at rates lower than the maximum per diem rates) Evaluate reducing M&IE, when it can be determined that a lower M&IE can be obtained for the area Consider Temporary Change of Station (TCS) in lieu of Long-Term TDY (Inform employees of taxability after 1 year) 13

Per Diem Reviews For GSA to conduct a "special" review of a NSA during the fiscal year, a Federal Agency Travel Manager or equivalent must contact GSA and state that the present per diem rate is inadequate. The request should contain the following: The geographical area, especially the ZIP code The property names and addresses that do not honor the Federal lodging per diem rate The number of times actual expenses were used and/or federal travelers had to use another lodging facility For consideration of a mid-year adjustment, requests must be postmarked by December 31 14

For Additional Information -- Web