United States Department of Agriculture
Research, Education and Economics
ARS * CSREES * ERS * NASS
Bulletin
| Title: | American Express Travel Management Center Delivery Fees |
| Number: | 99-308 |
| Date: | 8/26/99 |
| Originating Office: | Travel and Relocation Services Branch, Financial Management Division, AFM/ARS |
| Distribution: | All REE Offices in the Washington Metropolitan Area Only. |
| Expires: | 8/26/2000 |
| This Bulletin announces fees for those REE offices using American Express Travel Management Center in Rosslyn, Virginia, for common carrier and other related travel services. |
This Bulletin applies to travelers serviced by the Rosslyn, Virginia, American Express
office for common carrier tickets (airline, train and bus) only.
On July 31, 1998, the Financial Management Division, published REE Bulletin 98-304,
Introduction of Electronic Ticketing (E-Ticketing). Travelers were encouraged to use
E-tickets as an alternative to conventional paper airline tickets. Those persons
continuing to request conventional paper airline tickets may wish to reconsider the use of
the E-ticketing alternative based on the following information.
At a Departmental Travel Management Center (TMC) meeting on August 25, 1999, it was
announced that the contract with American Express' TMC in Rosslyn, Virginia, will be
extended from August 27, 1999, to January 31, 2000. As part of this contract extension
agreement, the General Services Administration (GSA) will permit American Express to
charge fees for the continued use of conventional paper airline tickets effective August
27, 1999. The fee charged will be based on the cost of delivering the paper tickets or
processing Government Transportation Requests (GTR's).
In summary, a fee will be charged by American Express for ticket delivery, when
E-ticketing is available and paper tickets are requested in lieu of E-ticketing.
American Express will not charge local courier delivery fees for paper tickets when
E-ticketing is not available from the airline carrier.
Exact billing arrangements have not yet been established by American Express. However, they have informed the Department that charges will not be assessed directly to individual tickets or travelers accounts. Charges will be reported and billed monthly by American Express, most probably through a central agency designated travel office. Additional information on billing will be provided when known.
The following charges will be assessed by American Express for delivery of paper
tickets or processing of GTR's:
Paper Tickets:
| - Registered U. S. Mail - Overnight Delivery - Local Courier Delivery |
$ 8.75/ per delivery $ 5.00/ per delivery $12.00/ per delivery |
Government Transportation Request (GTR's) $ 2.50/ per ticket
Travelers are encouraged to maximize use of E-ticketing in light of these additional fees. For your information, E-ticketing has proven to be both very convenient and reliable for government travelers. Travelers have reported excellent success with both the airline industry and American Express since the introduction of E-ticketing last summer.
If you have questions, please feel free to contact Linda E. Mahoney on
301-504-1307.
/s/
S. M. HELMRICH
Director
Financial Management Division, AFM-ARS