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Travel Policy
Tr av el Pol icy an d Gu id el in es for Cit y of Mu sk eg on
Employees
As of 9/30/97
Authorized Travel
ducting City businetra ss, employees aretiereq uired to
In the normal courseofofworcon elated meetings, posinies.ng opp ortuni s,
travel for purposes ences,k-r or other businessdinpur As part of the ann ual
professional conferdep art men ts req ues t fun g for tra vel pur pos es for the coming
budget pro ces s, e full aut hor ity to app rov e tra vel for their
r. Dep art men t hea ds hav
yea
employees (withobud ut additional authorization) within limits of the department's
approved travel get.
Travel that is sign ificantly beyond the parameter's of theer dep artment's travel g
sho uld be app rov ed by the Cit y Man age r tog eth wit h a cor res pondin
budget if required,
budget adjustment
Travel Costs
y rec ogn ize s tha t its emp loy ees are res pon sib le adu lts who take the
The Cit when traveling
es while on Citynotbusestineablssishas rigi
same care in incine urring travel exply,ensthis pol icy doe s d cos t limits
on personal bus ss. Acc ord ing d, the fol low ing gen eral
for lod gin g, mea ls, or oth er tra vel cos ts. Ins tea
guidelines are offereurd cos while recognizingsethaguit del special circumstances may dictate
that employees inc ts beyond the ines:
costs should genonerasin lly range betweeand n $55.00 - $10loca 0.00 per
Lodging - Lodginong loc ati on (ba sed gle occ upa ncy inc lud ing l
ing
night depend City is not exempt from). Employees are relied upon to use
taxes which the nt in selecting safe and economical accommodations.
their good judgme
o imp ort ant fac tor s to re me mb er wh en mak ing hot el res erv ations: 1) you
Tw vernment" rates tha t are typically dee ply
should always ask for speciaesl "go and, 2) you should identify the travel as official
r rat te sales tax and inquire as to any specific
m regulafro
discounteined ssfroexe mpt m sta
City bus e.
documentation requirements the hotel may hav
es not included
Costs for in-room movies, exercise rooms, or other hotel servic
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Travel Policy
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in the basic room rate are not reimburs
able by the City.
Meals.- Meal costs should generall
y not exceed $30.00 per person for
each full
day of travel (including gratuities). For
partial day travel, use the following
guidelines:
Breakfast} $6.00 | Travel Before 8:00
AM
Lunch Travel Before 12:00
$8.00 Noon
Dinner [$16.00] Travel Before 6:00
PM
Transportation - Vehicle travel may
be by either City vehicle or the empl
private vehicle. If a private vehicle
oyee's
is used, reimbursement will be base
d on the
number of miles traveled times the
allowable IRS business mileage rate
in effect
as of the preceding January 1.
Air travel is generally used for destinatio
ns more than 200 miles away.
Employees are encouraged to take adva
ntage of discounted airfares and shou
utilize the Muskegon County Airport
ld fos
whenever possible.
,
Employees may elect to use private vehic
les for travel to destinations more
than 200 miles away and will be reim
bursed based on the current IRS mile
age
rate or equivalent round trip coac
h airfare for that destination, whic
hever is less,
However, no reimbursement will be mad
e for added lodging or meal costs
incurred because of the extra travel time.
Employees who elect to use their own
vehicle should be aware that under the
laws of the State of Michigan, every vehic
le owner is required purchase
insurance which is the primary coverage
for that vehicle. While using a private
vehicle for City travel, any automobile liabil
ity insurance coverage in force for
the City is excess coverage only for the emplo
yee/vehicle owner.
Other Costs - Other incidental costs (such
as parking, ground transport, phone
calls), should generally not exceed an aver
age of $15.00 per day.
Traveling With Spouse - There is no
objection to employees inviting their
spouse to travel along on City busin
ess. However, none of the spouse's
travel
expenses will be paid for by the City
and care should be taken to maintain
separate records of the employee
's reimbursable travel costs.
;
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olicy.htm
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Travel Policy Page 3 of 4
Paying for Travel Costs
Methods available for employees to pay travel costs include the following:
City Credit Card - Employees who have been issued a City of Muskegon credit
card should use it to pay their travel costs. Additionally, in each department a
credit card holder is designated to use their card to pay for other employees'
travel costs that can be readily handled in advance (e.g. airline tickets,
conference registration, hotel, etc.).
Personal Credit Card - Employees who have not been issued a City credit
card may find it convenient to pay travel costs on their own personal credit card
and receive cash reimbursement from the City. Employees choosing this option
will receive additional reimbursement of $5.00 from the City when
reimbursement is for $100.00 or more to compensate for the temporary use of
their money. As long as expenses are reported within three (3) days of return
from travel, the City will guarantee reimbursement prior to the employee's
credit card statement due date. (Note: This option is not available to employees
holding City credit cards).
Petty Cash Advance - Employees may receive a petty cash travel advance of
up to $100.00 from the City Treasurer's Office for travel purposes. Cash
advances for more than $100.00 are discouraged and will only be made upon
written authorization of the employee's department head and the city manager.
Reporting Requirements for Travel Expense Reimbursement
Travel expense reporting has been simplified to the extent possible. The
following guidelines apply to travel expense reporting:
¢ Travel expenses are to be reported on the Travel Expense Reporting Form
included with this pamphlet as soon as possible upon returning from travel.
¢ Only expenses for which cash reimbursement is sought by the employee need
to be reported. Expenses paid in advance or expenses paid by City credit card
should not be included on the Travel Expense Reporting Form.
e Expenses must always be supported by receipts or other documentation.
e If total expenses to be reimbursed are $100.00 or less, you may obtain
immediate reimbursement from the City Treasurer's Office.
¢ If total expenses to be reimbursed are more than $100.00, they will be
reimbursed as a separately itemized, non-taxable category on the employee's
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regular bi-weekly paycheck. Accordingly, travel expense report forms must
be
submitted to the City Treasurer's Office no later than 5:00PM on the Friday prior
to payday for reimbursement on that paycheck.
Local Business Expenses
in addition to travel expenses, it is sometimes appropriate for City employees
to
incur costs on behalf of boards or committees or in the course of entertaining
visiting guests. Department heads have full authority to approve such costs
(within budgetary limits) and the same general guidelines as outlined above for
employee travel expenses shouid be followed.
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