[Hallb] Travel Manual Updates

[Patricia Cheeseboro]

Good Afternoon,

The travel manual has been updated with new travel policies recently. Please feel free to reach out to your travel coordinator with any questions.


Good afternoon,

The following updates have been made to the JSA Travel Manual and are effective July 17, 2024.

Section 1.2 Medical Accommodations for Travel

A traveler's medical requirements may affect or restrict the ability to travel for Jefferson Lab. Additional travel costs will be authorized for travelers when they are necessary to accommodate travelers with a physical or psychological need that is substantiated, in writing, by Jefferson Lab's medical officer or traveler's Doctor.

Section 1.5 Foreign Travel

Foreign travel is any travel outside the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands and the territories and possessions of the U.S., excluding the Trust Territories of the Pacific Islands. No personal days allowed while on foreign travel.

Section 2.1 Domestic Travel by Air

Air travel must be conducted using coach-class service, unless other than coach-class service has been specifically authorized by Travel Services. The traveler must select the lowest changeable and non-refundable airfare offered.

Ideally, all reservations for Jefferson Lab official business travel should be booked through JSA designated travel agency or online booking tool, Concur. Use of the designated travel agency will provide you with:
* Direct billing of airline tickets to the lab
* Calculating allowable/reimbursable airfares
* Fly America Act/Open Skies agreement guidance and compliance.

In some cases, it may be necessary for a traveler to purchase airfare outside of the designated travel agency for domestic flights only. This is allowable; however, travelers must adhere to the following:
* Obtain lowest available airfare (coach class)
* Purchase must be made after Travel Authorization is fully approved
* You are expected to travel by the most efficient and economical mode of transportation, on the most direct route consistent with the business purpose of the trip
* Traveler will pay upfront for the flight and will be reimbursed after the trip has occurred

Third Party Booking Sites (Airfare):
Because commercially offered travel "booking"" typically do not always itemize expenses (Type of seat, up charges, baggage, etc..), no business-related travel should be booked through such vendors unless you have confirmed that each aspect of the Airfare ticket will be separately itemized and appropriate documentation provided for reimbursement. In the event travel plans are changed or canceled, third-party vendors are not required to issue a refund to you (May issue you a credit), and you may not be reimbursed for the cost until credit is used for a future business travel. Please make travel arrangements when possible with the Lab's designated travel agency, to prevent any non-reimbursable costs that could occur. Travelers will be responsible for making any needed cancellations and/or changes to ticket if needed since outside of labs travel booking system.

Section 3.1 Expense Reports

Expense reports filed later than 60 days
from the end of travel by Jefferson Lab employee's will be treated as taxable income as per IRS Regulation PART I, 26 CFR 1.62-2(g)(2)(i).

Section 3.3 Lodging Expenses

Prohibitions regarding travel lodging include the following:
* Lodging that is bundled as part of a package deal that contains other services such as airfare, rental cars or conferences are prohibited and will not be reimbursed.
*Lodging booked through third-party sites (i.e. booking.com and similar) are prohibited and will not be reimbursed.
* Airbnb and other similar services are prohibited and will not be reimbursed.
* To ensure allowability of lodging costs, effort must be made to stay within published rates for the business or lodging location. Travelers must consult the Travel Services website for information on where to find current rates.
* Lodging will be reimbursed at the standard single room rate. Any lodging that exceeds per diem rates must be identified on the TA via the Actual Lodging Form (Form 402-6) and attached to the TA.
* Itemized receipts for all lodging expenses (foreign or domestic) are required. Without original receipts, the traveler will not receive reimbursement for lodging expenses.

Please take the time to familiarize yourself with these updates and please make sure to share with your travelers. The updated Travel Policy can be found at https://www.jlab.org/finance/travel.


Kind Regards,

Patricia Cheeseboro
Physics Division Administrator
Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility
Jefferson Science Associates, LLC
pcheese at jlab.org<mailto:pcheese at jlab.org>
(757) 269-5345

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