BNUMBER:  B-270431
DATE:  June 10, 1996
TITLE:  Barbara Cox

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Matter of:Barbara Cox

File:     B-270431

Date:June 10, 1996

DIGEST

Where member's spouse submits a travel claim, which is settled and 
paid, and then submits a supplemental claim which is fraudulent, the 
prior claim which was settled is not subject to the "tainted day" 
rule, and the second claim should be denied.

DECISION

The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), Columbus Center, 
has requested our decision regarding the proper action to be taken 
following the submission of a fraudulent claim for travel expenses by 
Barbara Cox, the spouse of a Navy member.

Mrs. Cox's husband is stationed at the Naval Station, Rota, Spain.  On 
March 30, 1994, travel orders were issued for Mrs. Cox to travel to 
Landstuhl, Germany, for outpatient medical treatment.  She was paid a 
travel advance of $2,560 and departed Spain on April 18, 1994, and 
returned on May 25, 1994.

On August 15, 1994, she submitted her travel claim listing various 
amounts for some meals during the period.  The total for meals was 
$553.37.  Following review, her claim was approved in the amount of 
$1,099.76, leaving an outstanding balance from her travel advance of 
$1,460.24, to be collected.  She was accordingly notified that she 
owed that amount.  Subsequently, Mrs. Cox submitted a second 
supplemental claim in which she listed $12 for every breakfast and 
lunch during the period and $20 for every dinner, totaling $44 per 
day, the maximum allowable.  Upon receipt of the second claim, the 
Office of Command Investigations (OCI) was alerted to the possibility 
of a fraudulent claim.  Following an investigation, OCI found the 
second claim to be fraudulent and DFAS agreed with such a finding.

The matter was submitted to our Office because the disbursing officer 
questioned whether the submission of the second claim tainted the 
entire claim so that the travel advance of $2,560 should be recouped 
or, since the first claim had been approved, only $1,460.24 need be 
recouped.

Under the "tainted day" rule, a fraudulent claim for reimbursement for 
any part of a single day's subsistence expenses taints with fraud the 
entire day's subsistence expenses.  59 Comp. Gen. 99 (1979).  Here, 
the claimant has submitted two separate claims for each day of the 
period in question.  As stated above, the amount of the first claim 
was accepted and credited against the outstanding balance from the 
claimant's travel advance, and the agency asked her to pay the 
balance.  In effect, the agency has paid the first claim to the 
claimant.  There is no suggestion of fraud involved with this claim.  
It is only the second or supplemental claim that is fraudulent.  In 
these circumstances, each of these claims should be regarded as a 
separate claim, and the tainted day rule may only be applied to the 
second claim.  See 59 Comp. Gen. at 100-101, supra.

Accordingly, only the amount of $1,460.24, should be recouped.

/s/Seymour Efros
for Robert P. Murphy
General Counsel