Miscellaneous expenses may be reimbursed if they directly relate to official business while the individual is in travel status.
The full guidelines for miscellaneous expense reimbursement are outlined in Procedure 6-715 - Other/Miscellaneous Expenses. Please review this document for full details, and contact the Accounts Payable Manager for clarification.
Expenses not specifically addressed may be reimbursed depending on their reasonableness. Explanations for miscellaneous expenses must be included in the Comments section of the Expense Report. Receipts should be provided whenever available.
Some examples of reimbursable miscellaneous expenses include:
Parking and Tolls are reimbursable when paid for by the traveler in the course of conducting official State business. If the claim exceeds $75, a receipt is required. In all cases, the name of the facility (bridge, tunnel or turnpike) as well as the names and reasons for inclusion of a charge for passengers, where applicable, must be included in the Comments section when preparing an Expense Report.
Business Telephone Calls, Telegrams, Internet Access, Hotel Business Center Charges, and Facsimiles made for official business purposes and paid for by the traveler may be claimed on the Expense Report. A full explanation must be stated in the Comments section on the Expense Report with supporting documentation attached to the Expense Report.
Gratuities (tips) are not reimbursable since they are included in the M&IE per diem, except for taxi or shuttle services. A maximum tip of 15% of the taxi cab or shuttle fare is reimbursable as a transportation cost that is separate from the M&IE per diem.
In this rare case, an itemized cell phone statement must be included with the reimbursement voucher. Since cell phones are considered "listed property" by the IRS, greater substantiation rules apply. Please read the Miscellaneous Expenses Policy for more information.
Failure to properly substantiate the expenses according to these rules may result in your reimbursement being denied or your reimbursement being processed as additional taxable income. In the event that free minutes are used for business calls, reimbursement is not permitted. Base monthly access charges will NOT be reimbursed.
Private or Chartered Plane Travel is permitted when authorized in advance by the Governor and justified by a written cost/benefit analysis. The cost/benefit analysis must include a comparison of the total costs of the trip by both means, commercial versus private/chartered, including all associated costs (e.g. hangar rental) for which reimbursement will be requested. The analysis must be completed in advance and sent to Accounts Payable. AP will forward forms to DOA for approval. A copy of this analysis and the written approval from the Governor must be attached to the Expense Report. Allow sufficient time for the approval process.
Expense Reports containing private or chartered plane travel expenses that are submitted without the required written approval from the Governor will be disallowed.
Combining Business Travel and Vacation Leave
- Reimbursable transportation and accommodation expenses will correspond with a roundtrip to the designated area of official business.
- Reimbursement will be appropriate only for the time during which official business is conducted.
- If the traveler leaves the designated area after business is conducted, there will be no reimbursement from that moment on, except for those expenses relating to the second half of the round trip.
- If the employee would normally be expected to remain in the area of official business overnight and return the following morning, hotel expenses for that night and prorated expenses for a return travel day are reimbursable.
- The State will not be responsible for any expenses related to accident or injury while the employee is not on official business
Specific Travel Guidelines
