The National Park Service: Actions Needed to Improve Travel Cost Management (02/13/2003, GAO-03-354}

-------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
REPORTNUM:   GAO-03-354
    TITLE:   The National Park Service: Actions Needed to Improve Travel Cost Management
     DATE:   02/13/2003



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entitled 'The National Park Service: Actions Needed to Improve Travel 
Cost Management' which was released on February 13, 2003.



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Report to the Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies, Committee 

on Appropriations, House of Representatives:



February 2003:



National Park Service:



Actions Needed to Improve Travel Cost Management:



GAO-03-354:



GAO Highlights:



Highlights of GAO-03-354, a report to the Subcommittee on Interior and 

Related Agencies, Committee on Appropriations, House of Representatives



Why GAO Did This Study:



Unable to obtain information on the National Park Serviceï¿½s (Park

Service) travel costs to ensure that the agency is spending

appropriated funds effectively and efficiently, the Subcommittee

asked GAO to assess the availability of travel cost

information and provide certain travel cost information, such as the

cost of foreign travel and for attending conferences, for the Park

Service for each of the past 4 fiscal years.



What GAO Found:



The Park Service reported that it incurred from $39 million to $50 

million, in inflation-adjusted dollars annually, on travel costs 

during the past 4 fiscal years, but it does not know its actual costs  

for foreign travel or the travel costs related to attending conferences

because its does not routinely record this required information.



The Federal Travel Regulation requires that agency travel accounting 

systems capture certain data, including travel type, such as foreign 

or domestic travel, and purpose, such as training or conference 

attendance. In addition, the Park Service requires that all vouchers 

for foreign travel be processed at its Accounting Operations Center, 

but this policy is not consistently followed. The current procedures  

for processing travel vouchers and recording travel costs make it 

difficult for the Park Service to report reliable travel data that

are consistent with the Federal Travel Regulation. Officials at the 

Park Service told us that they are implementing a new travel management 

system that will track travel type and purpose. The system is expected 

to be operating throughout the agency by approximately September 2003.



Reliable, detailed travel information that is consistent with the 

Federal Travel Regulation is critical so that the Park Service and the 

Congress can perform their respective roles and responsibilities with 

regard to efficient travel cost management.



What GAO Recommends:



GAO recommends that the National Park Service implement the

following procedures:



*Establish procedures for capturing travel data, including travel type

and purpose as required by the Federal Travel Regulation.



*Enforce existing policy that requires all foreign travel vouchers to 

be processed electronically by the Accounting Operations Center.



*Address federal travel system requirements when designing and 

implementing the travel system scheduled for completion later this 

year as well as any future travel systems.



DOI officials concurred with our recommendations and noted steps

underway to manage travel costs.



www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-03-354.

To view the full report, including the scope and methodology, click on 

the link above. For more information, contact McCoy Williams on 

(202) 512-6906 or [email protected].



[End of section]



Letter:



Results in Brief:



Background:



Objectives, Scope, and Methodology:



The Park Service Cannot Determine Its Foreign Travel Costs or Its 

Travel Costs for Attending Conferences:



Total Reported Travel Costs Have Increased Annually:



Alternative Data Indicate That Foreign Travel Has Increased Annually:



Foreign Travel Authorization Procedures Include Multiple Levels of 

Approval:



Conclusions:



Recommendations for Executive Action:



Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:



Appendixes:



Appendix I: National Park Serviceï¿½s Authorized Foreign Trips and 

Estimated Travel Costs:



Appendix II: Comments from the Department of the Interior:



Appendix III: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgements:



Tables:



Table 1: Total Travel Costs by Region, Fiscal Years 1999-2002		



Table 2: Estimated Foreign Travel Costs, for Each Region, the 

Washington, D.C., Office, and Parks Aggregated, Fiscal Years 1999-2002:



Figure:



Figure 1: Park Service Reported Total Travel Costs, Fiscal Years 1999-

2002, Actual and Adjusted for Inflation to 2001 Dollars:



Abbreviations:



AOC: Accounting Operations Center:



DOI: Department of the Interior:



GSA: General Services Administration:



JFMIP: Joint Financial Management Improvement Program:



OIA: Office of International Affairs:



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Letter:



February 13, 2003:



The Honorable Charles H. Taylor

Chairman 

The Honorable Norman D. Dicks

Ranking Minority Member

Subcommittee on Interior and 

 	Related Agencies

Committee on Appropriations

House of Representatives:



Unable to obtain information on the National Park Serviceï¿½s (Park 

Service) travel costs, the Subcommittee asked in its June 3, 2002, 

letter and subsequent discussions that we review several issues 

pertaining to the Park Serviceï¿½s travel costs. As principal steward 

over 385 areas covering 84 million acres of land, the Park Service 

receives approximately 25 percent of the Department of the Interiorï¿½s 

(DOI) annual appropriations. In fiscal year 2001, the net cost of Park 

Service operations was over $2 billion, and included travel and 

transportation costs of almost $47 million.



To assess the availability of the Park Serviceï¿½s travel expense 

information, the Subcommittee asked us to determine (1) whether the 

Park Service could provide its travel cost by type (such as foreign or 

domestic) and purpose (such as conference attendance or training) for 

fiscal years 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002, and if not, what factors 

contribute to the Park Serviceï¿½s inability to provide the information, 

(2) the annual total travel costs for those years, and (3) how many 

foreign trips were authorized for those 4 fiscal years and at what 

estimated cost. Further, we were to describe the Park Serviceï¿½s 

authorization process for foreign travel.



Results in Brief:



The Park Service does not know its actual costs for foreign travel or 

the travel costs related to attending conferences because it does not 

routinely record this required information. Information generated from 

the Park Serviceï¿½s travel accounting system is not consistent with the 

Federal Travel Regulation,[Footnote 1] which requires agencies to track 

the type (such as foreign or domestic) and purpose (such as conference 

attendance) of official government travel.[Footnote 2] In addition, 

while the Park Service requires all vouchers for foreign travel to be 

processed at its Accounting Operations Center (AOC), this policy is not 

consistently followed. Although enforcement of this policy would not 

automatically yield summary information on foreign travel costs under 

the existing travel accounting system, it could facilitate the 

enhancements necessary for tracking and monitoring Park Service foreign 

travel costs. The current procedures for processing travel vouchers and 

recording travel expenditures include a combination of both centralized 

and decentralized methods. One result of this is that the Park Service 

records certain foreign travel costs as domestic travel costs. 

Therefore, it is difficult for the Park Service to report reliable 

travel data that are consistent with the Federal Travel Regulation.



Reliable detailed travel information that is consistent with the 

Federal Travel Regulation is critical so that the Park Service, the 

Congress, and the General Services Administration (GSA)[Footnote 3] can 

perform their respective roles and responsibilities with regards to 

efficient travel cost management. The Park Service is in the process of 

implementing a new travel management system that is designed to 

generate travel information in accordance with the Federal Travel 

Regulation and will eventually be able to provide reliable detailed 

travel information on foreign travel costs and costs for attending 

conferences. This system is expected to be operational throughout the 

Park Service by approximately September 2003.



After adjusting for inflation, total reported Park Service travel costs 

for the past 3 years have increased by an average of about 9 percent 

annually from approximately $39 million in fiscal year 1999, to 

approximately $50 million in fiscal year 2002. The Park Service was 

able to provide overall travel costs broken down by its seven regions, 

the Washington, D.C., office, and its other reporting units for fiscal 

years 1999 through 2002. Travel costs for the Washington, D.C., office 

rose by approximately 60 percent, increasing from $5.6 million to over 

$9 million. Combined travel costs for the seven regional offices 

increased approximately 26 percent, from almost $31 million to almost 

$39 million. The three remaining units, which include the service 

centers and the Job Corps Program, decreased slightly, going from 

almost $2.5 million to almost $2.4 million.



Given the Park Serviceï¿½s failure to record and thus inability to 

confidently report foreign trips and the related costs, the Park 

Serviceï¿½s Office of International Affairs (OIA) provided us estimated 

trip and cost data. Based on the authorization documents that it 

receives approximately 6 weeks prior to travel dates, OIA estimated a 

steadily increasing number of trips from 355 in 1999 to 470 in 2002. It 

acknowledged that some foreign trips may not have actually occurred, 

and that cost data could be suspect for this reason as well as because 

trips may have been extended or shortened since approval. The Park 

Serviceï¿½s foreign travel approval process largely entails various 

levels of supervisor and agency approval and ends with the Department 

of State and appropriate U.S. embassy concurrences.



This report makes recommendations for the Park Service to (1) establish 

procedures for capturing travel data, including travel type and purpose 

as required by the Federal Travel Regulation, (2) enforce the existing 

Park Service foreign travel policy that requires all foreign travel 

vouchers to be processed electronically by AOC, and (3) address Joint 

Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP)[Footnote 4] Travel 

System Requirements when designing and implementing the travel system 

scheduled for completion later this year as well as any future travel 

systems.



In written comments on a draft of this report, DOI concurred with our 

conclusions and recommendations and described actions underway to 

address our recommendations as well as efforts being taken to reduce 

travel costs for the current fiscal year. While agreeing with our 

recommendations, DOI stated that it took exception to certain 

statements in our report. We address DOIï¿½s concerns by referring to the 

relevant points made in our report and reaffirming our position in the 

ï¿½Agency Comments and Our Evaluationï¿½ section.



Background:



The National Park System of the United States comprises 385 areas 

covering around 84 million acres in 49 states, the District of 

Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan, and the Virgin 

Islands. Besides running the National Park System, the Park Service 

fills many other roles to augment the conservation and the preservation 

of natural resources.



In its mission, the Park Service recognizes its responsibility for 

managing a great variety of national and international programs 

designed to help extend the benefits of natural and cultural resources 

conservation and outdoor recreation throughout the nation and the 

world. Implementation of its domestic and global missions and 

leadership roles presents opportunities for recurrent travel.



OIA provides the overall framework for the Park Serviceï¿½s international 

programs and coordinates its participation in international activities 

in fulfillment of global obligations and domestic legislative 

requirements. OIA also has responsibility to ensure that Park Service 

employees comply with the Federal Travel Regulation and DOI foreign 

travel regulations as well as Park Service regulations when traveling 

outside the United States on official government business. AOC, the 

Park Serviceï¿½s consolidated administrative accounting and payment 

office, produces the Park Serviceï¿½s travel policies based on the 

Federal Travel Regulation and DOI travel regulations. DOI has adopted 

the Federal Travel Regulation and its supplements and amendments as its 

basic travel and transportation policy for all its bureaus and offices, 

including the Park Service.



Objectives, Scope, and Methodology:



We were asked to determine (1) whether the Park Service could provide 

its travel cost by type (such as foreign or domestic) and purpose (such 

as conference attendance or training) for fiscal years 1999, 2000, 

2001, and 2002, and if not, what factors contribute to the Park 

Serviceï¿½s inability to provide the information, (2) the annual total 

travel costs for those years, and (3) how many foreign trips were 

authorized for those 4 fiscal years and at what estimated cost. We were 

also asked to describe the authorization procedures required for 

foreign travel.



In order to fulfill the first objective, we asked the Park Service to 

provide travel cost data from its travel accounting system for fiscal 

years 1999 through 2002. We requested the data for each of the Park 

Serviceï¿½s established regions. We identified the requirements for 

tracking and recording detailed travel data by reviewing the Federal 

Travel Regulation; JFMIPï¿½s Travel System Requirements; and DOIï¿½s and 

the Park Serviceï¿½s travel regulations, policies, and procedures. We 

identified the causes leading to the Park Serviceï¿½s inability to 

provide reliable detailed travel information that is consistent with 

the Federal Travel Regulation by interviewing Park Service officials 

and staff members, as well as certain DOI staff members. We visited the 

Park Service AOC and observed as travel vouchers were processed through 

the travel accounting system to gain an understanding of how travel 

cost data are processed and to ascertain the capabilities of the 

system. In addition, we interviewed an official at GSA responsible for 

gathering detailed travel information from certain agencies biennially 

and reviewed the travel information for fiscal year 2000 submitted to 

GSA by the Park Service to confirm the assertions that the Park Service 

used estimated, not actual, data in fulfilling the reporting 

requirement to GSA.



For objective two, we used the data given to us by the Park Service and 

adjusted for inflation. We reviewed the Park Serviceï¿½s financial 

statement audit for fiscal years 2000 and 2001 to determine if any 

identified material internal control weaknesses or reportable 

conditions could affect the reliability of the Park Serviceï¿½s travel 

data. We compared the total reported travel costs with the Park 

Serviceï¿½s reported outlays in each of the fiscal years and interviewed 

Park Service officials about the accuracy of the data. We compiled 

subtotals for the regional offices, as well as for the service centers 

and the Job Corps Program combined, and reconciled those subtotals with 

travel cost totals by fiscal year. We adjusted all dollar values for 

general inflation, using the Gross Domestic Product price index for all 

items with fiscal year 2001 as the base year.



Because the Park Service could not provide the actual cost of foreign 

travel, in order to fulfill the third objective, we asked the Park 

Serviceï¿½s OIA to provide the number of authorized foreign trips, and 

the cost estimates for related travel, which were both based on 

preauthorized amounts submitted to OIA on Foreign Travel Certification 

Forms (DI-1175). With certain limitations as discussed in the report, 

these data would be the best available to provide some indication of 

the level of foreign travel. We adjusted all dollar values for general 

inflation, using the Gross Domestic Product price index for all items 

with fiscal year 2001 as the base year.



To describe the Park Serviceï¿½s foreign travel authorization process, we 

obtained and reviewed applicable policy and procedures and other 

guidance on the foreign travel authorization process. This included the 

Federal Travel Regulation, the Park Service International Travel 

Policies and Procedures, and the Park Service Temporary Duty Travel 

Policies. Further, we discussed the applicable policies, procedures, 

and practices with appropriate Park Service officials, including 

headquarters officials in the Park Service OIA, AOC, and the offices of 

Parks Facility Management and Cultural Resource Stewardship and 

Partnerships.



We did not review all aspects of the Park Serviceï¿½s internal controls 

or its travel accounting system. Also, we did not independently verify 

or test the reliability of the data we obtained and used in our 

analysis.



Our work was performed at Park Service offices in Washington, D.C., and 

at AOC in Herndon, Virginia, from July 2002 through January 2003 in 

accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.



We requested written comments from the Department of the Interior on a 

draft of this report. We received comments from the Assistant Secretary 

for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, which we have incorporated into the 

report as appropriate. These comments are discussed in the ï¿½Agency 

Comments and Our Evaluationï¿½ section of this report and are reprinted 

in appendix II.



The Park Service Cannot Determine Its Foreign Travel Costs or Its 

Travel Costs for Attending Conferences:



The Park Service does not know its actual costs for foreign travel or 

the travel costs related to attending conferences. This is because its 

systems and processes do not consistently or routinely record this 

information, although they are required to do so.



The Federal Travel Regulation requires that agencies capture certain 

data elements for processing federal travel expenditures. These data 

elements include type of travel, such as foreign or domestic, and 

travel purpose,[Footnote 5] such as site visit, training attendance, or 

conference attendance. DOI and Park Service travel regulations 

similarly require tracking travel type and purpose. In addition, the 

Park Serviceï¿½s foreign travel policies and procedures specify that 

foreign travel be kept to the absolute minimum necessary for achieving 

its mission and objectives.



The Park Serviceï¿½s current system of processing travel vouchers and 

recording travel expenditures includes a combination of both 

centralized and decentralized functions. Airfare and other 

transportation costs, such as rental cars, are centrally billed to the 

Park Service AOC, and recorded in the aggregate as domestic travel, 

even though some of the transportation charges on a given invoice may 

be for foreign travel. A travel voucher claiming reimbursement for 

costs for transportation, lodging, meals, and other incidentals can be 

processed at the travelerï¿½s local park office and paid with a third-

party draft,[Footnote 6] or the voucher can be sent to AOC, where it is 

forwarded electronically to Treasury for reimbursement to the 

employee.[Footnote 7]



Park Service officials told us that its current travel accounting 

system is limited in the amount of travel-related information it can 

preserve when processing certain valid payment methods, including 

third-party drafts. While travel type and purpose information may or 

may not be captured and retained at all park offices, AOC officials 

told us that they do not receive this travel information from the local 

offices or regions in enough detail to satisfy the Federal Travel 

Regulation requirement. For those travel vouchers processed at AOC, we 

noted that the current system has the capacity to record the travel 

type and purpose, but those data fields were not consistently being 

completed in processing individual vouchers.



Although the Park Serviceï¿½s foreign travel policies and procedures 

require that all foreign travel vouchers be sent to AOC for payment, 

AOC officials told us that some Park Service field offices may be 

paying foreign travel vouchers locally rather than submitting them to 

AOC. There is some risk of this occurring because we found no 

procedures in place to ensure that all foreign travel vouchers are sent 

to AOC for payment. Enforcement of this policy would not automatically 

yield summary information on foreign travel costs under the existing 

travel accounting system in view of the weaknesses discussed above; 

however, it could facilitate the enhancements necessary for tracking 

and monitoring Park Service foreign travel costs.



The Park Service is presently implementing a new end-to-end travel 

management system that its officials represented as fully compliant 

with the Federal Travel Regulation. When implemented, the new system 

will be able to provide travel information such as the number of 

foreign trips and conference attendance. However, this system is not 

expected to be operational throughout the Park Service until 

approximately September 2003.



The Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996 requires, 

among other things, that agencies implement and maintain financial 

management systems that substantially comply with federal financial 

management systems requirements. These apply to existing systems in 

operation and new systems planned or under development. These system 

requirements are detailed in the Financial Management Systems 

Requirements series issued by JFMIP and in Office of Management and 

Budget Circular A-127, Financial Management Systems. JFMIP requirement 

documents identify (1) a framework for financial management systems, 

(2) core financial management systems requirements, and (3) 16 other 

financial and mixed systems supporting agency operations, of which the 

travel system is one. In 1999, JFMIP issued its Travel System 

Requirements, which defines mandatory and value-added functional 

requirements for system administration and major elements of the travel 

process. Mandatory requirements describe what the system must do and 

outline the minimum acceptable functionality necessary to establish a 

system. The capability to capture required standard data elements 

contained in the Federal Travel Regulation is considered a mandatory 

requirement.



In the absence of reliable detailed travel expense information such as 

travel type and purpose, the Park Service and the Congress have limited 

information available to determine whether funds appropriated for 

travel are being used effectively. In addition, GSA is limited in its 

efforts to collect information on the use of federal travel dollars for 

the purpose of developing cost-effective management practices 

governmentwide. For example, as required by 5 U.S.C. 5707(c), GSA 

directs each federal agency with more than $5 million in travel costs 

in a fiscal year to submit a biennial report detailing such information 

as total travel costs, costs of foreign and domestic travel, and costs 

of travel by varying purpose. While the Park Service has submitted this 

type of information to GSA in the past, many of the responses were 

based on estimates because the Park Service system does not capture all 

the required data elements. Therefore, the accuracy and reliability of 

the data it submits to GSA are questionable.



Total Reported Travel Costs Have Increased Annually:



After adjusting for inflation, total reported travel costs at the Park 

Service in the past 3 years have increased by almost 29 percent, from 

approximately $39 million in fiscal year 1999 to approximately $50 

million in fiscal year 2002. Total reported travel costs for fiscal 

years 2000 and 2001 were $45 million and $47 million, respectively. 

Figure 1 further illustrates the increased travel costs reported by the 

Park Service, which rose by 12 percent from fiscal year 1999 to fiscal 

year 2000, 4 percent from fiscal year 2000 to fiscal year 2001, and 7 

percent from fiscal year 2001 to fiscal year 2002, or an average of 9 

percent annually over the 3-year interval.



Figure 1: Park Service Reported Total Travel Costs, Fiscal Years 1999-

2002, Actual and Adjusted for Inflation to 2001 Dollars:



[See PDF for image]



Note: This figure represents GAOï¿½s analysis of data provided by the 

Park Service.



[End of figure]



Table 1 depicts the total reported travel costs for fiscal years 1999 

through 2002, for the Park Serviceï¿½s seven geographical regions, the 

Washington, D.C., office, and three remaining reporting units. As 

indicated in the table, travel costs for the Washington, D.C., office 

have increased by approximately 60 percent, increasing from $5.6 

million in fiscal year 1999 to over $9 million in fiscal year 2002. 

Reported travel costs for the seven regional offices combined increased 

by approximately 26 percent, from almost $31 million in fiscal year 

1999 to almost $39 million in fiscal year 2002. The three remaining 

units, which include the service centers and the Job Corps Program, 

showed a slight decrease in reported travel costs, going from almost 

$2.5 million in fiscal year 1999 to almost $2.4 million in fiscal year 

2002.



Table 1: Total Travel Costs by Region, Fiscal Years 1999-2002:



[See PDF for image]



Source: GAO.



Note: Dollars are adjusted to 2001 dollars. This figure represents 

GAOï¿½s analysis of data provided by the Park Service.



[End of table]



In commenting on a draft of this report, DOI stated that the sharp 

increase in travel costs for the Washington, D.C., office from fiscal 

years 2001 to 2002 is primarily attributable to enhanced security 

measures in the wake of the events of September 11, 2001. During the 

course of our review or in its comments on our report, DOI did not 

provide any further information supporting its position. Without 

systems and processes in place that can track and record all pertinent 

travel related data, it is difficult for the agency to readily justify 

and document unusual variances and trends in Park Service employee 

official travel.



Alternative Data Indicate That Foreign Travel Has Increased Annually:



Given the Park Serviceï¿½s failure to record and thus inability to 

confidently report actual foreign trips and the related costs, the Park 

Serviceï¿½s OIA provided us estimated trip and cost data, based on 

authorization documents supplemented by a database it uses to track the 

whereabouts, health, and safety of Park Service employees traveling 

outside of the continental United States. OIA receives travel 

authorization documents, including estimated costs for foreign travel, 

approximately 6 weeks prior to a Park Service employee initiating such 

travel.



The OIA information indicates that the number of trips authorized for 

foreign travel increased by approximately 32 percent, rising steadily 

from 355 trips in fiscal year 1999 to 470 trips in fiscal year 2002. 

Total pretravel estimated costs for these trips increased from $488,830 

in fiscal year 1999 to $652,236 in fiscal year 2002 (adjusted for 

inflation), indicating that foreign travel costs may have increased by 

about a third during this 3-year interval. There were 379 authorized 

trips for fiscal year 2000 at an estimated cost of $639,345, and 442 

authorized trips in fiscal year 2001, at an estimated cost of $641,395. 

OIA does not verify that the authorized travel actually took place, 

track actual costs in the event of a trip being extended or shortened 

since approval, or determine whether reimbursements were received where 

costs are shared by a host country or organization. Appendix I provides 

further details on the estimated foreign travel information compiled by 

OIA and the information is arranged by regional office, with one total 

for all remaining park offices.



Foreign Travel Authorization Procedures Include Multiple Levels of 

Approval:



OIA evaluates opportunities and coordinates responses involving the 

Park Service in international programs, projects, and activities. In 

addition, OIA is designated to ensure implementation of federal, DOI, 

and Park Service foreign travel procedures and regulations. Consistent 

with DOI policy, OIA policy states that the number of travelers and the 

number and length of trips to foreign countries are to be held to the 

absolute minimum necessary for conducting essential business and 

accomplishing established Park Service objectives.



When a need to travel internationally is identified, either to attend a 

conference or meeting or to provide technical assistance, the employee 

must first obtain approval from his or her immediate supervisor by 

submitting a foreign travel certification form[Footnote 8] and a 

justification memorandum. The supervisor is to review the documentation 

for consistency with Park Service program priorities and strategic 

planning goals, cost-effective accomplishment of Park Service mission, 

and fiscally responsible scheduling of the travel. The supervisor is to 

then determine if the costs can be met, and consider the impact of the 

employeeï¿½s time away from work.



Upon supervisor approval, the required authorization forms are 

submitted to the employeeï¿½s regional director[Footnote 9] for approval, 

and then to OIA about 6 weeks prior to the proposed travel. OIA 

forwards the documents to the Park Serviceï¿½s Deputy Director, DOIï¿½s 

Assistant Director for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, and DOIï¿½s Office of 

International Affairs. Once all the agency approvals are received, OIA 

requests approval from the Department of State and the appropriate U.S. 

embassy. Travel may begin after all approvals are received.



Conclusions:



The Park Service lacks systems and procedures needed to capture and 

report travel cost in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulation. 

Specifically, it does not identify travel type, which would indicate 

travel to foreign countries versus domestic travel, nor does it 

identify travel purpose, which would indicate travel related to site 

visit, or conference attendance, for example. System inadequacies and a 

lack of adherence to policies and procedures contributed to the 

unavailability of reliable, detailed travel data consistent with 

Federal Travel Regulation requirements. The Park Service is in the 

process of implementing a new travel accounting system that is designed 

to track all required data elements under the Federal Travel 

Regulation. However, this system is not expected to be fully 

operational until approximately September 2003.



The Park Serviceï¿½s reported total travel costs have increased over the 

past 3 fiscal years. In addition, alternative data on foreign travel 

indicate that the number of authorized trips and the related costs for 

the same period have risen. Without reliable detailed historical travel 

information, such as foreign versus domestic travel cost, or travel 

costs by various purposes, the Park Service is limited in its ability 

to manage travel and transportation costs and the Congress has limited 

information available to determine whether funds appropriated for 

official travel are being used effectively.



Recommendations for Executive Action:



We recommend that the Secretary of the Interior require the Director of 

the National Park Service to take the following actions:



* Establish procedures for capturing travel data, including travel type 

and purpose, as required by the Federal Travel Regulation.



* Enforce existing Park Service foreign travel policy requiring all 

foreign travel vouchers to be processed electronically by AOC to enable 

a complete and proper recording of foreign travel costs.



* Address JFMIP Travel System Requirements when designing and 

implementing the travel system scheduled for completion later this year 

as well as any future travel systems.



Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:



In its written comments, DOI concurred with our recommendations and 

described actions underway to address our recommendations. DOI also 

described efforts being taken to reduce travel costs for the current 

fiscal year. The comments are reprinted in appendix II.



While agreeing with our recommendations, DOI stated that it took 

exception to certain statements in this report. First, DOI stated that 

our report implies foreign travel costs are partly to blame for the 

high travel costs reported, when in fact foreign travel comprises a 

small part of the Park Serviceï¿½s total travel costs. Our report does 

not make any observations on the significance of foreign travel costs 

in relation to total travel costs. Further, the report states that the 

Park Service does not know its actual foreign travel costs for the 

periods we reviewed and therefore, it would not have been possible for 

us to make any such observations.



Second, DOI stated that the number of estimated foreign trips in our 

report was misleading. It stated that approximately 50 percent of the 

total number of foreign trips shown in our report was actually across-

the-border travel to either Mexico or Canada, and thereby exempt from 

the required Foreign Travel Certification Form (DI-1175). Our report 

provides the total number of estimated foreign trips during the period 

under review based on the Park Serviceï¿½s reported information. In 

addition, DOIï¿½s comment regarding exemption from filing form DI-1175 

for across-the-border travel is not accurate. The Park Serviceï¿½s 

International Travel Policies and Procedures explicitly require that a 

DI-1175 be filed for travel to both Mexico and Canada. For these 

reasons, our report does not differentiate between trips to our 

bordering countries from trips to any others. Further, the estimated 

numbers of foreign trips in our report were obtained by reviewing 

approved forms DI-1175.



DOI commented that the Park Service was able to provide supporting 

documentation related to foreign travel. However, as discussed in the 

report, the Park Service could not provide its actual foreign travel 

costs for the periods under review. The estimated trip and cost data 

provided by OIA from the forms DI-1175 cannot be referred to as 

supporting documentation for actual foreign travel costs incurred 

because of the caveats identified in this report.



Finally, regarding travel purpose, such as training or conference 

attendance, DOI noted that the report did not state that the Park 

Service already captures the purpose for foreign travel. Our report 

points out that the travel accounting system has the capacity to record 

travel type and purpose, but notes that those data fields were not 

consistently being completed in processing individual vouchers, which 

resulted in the Park Service being unable to provide us with the 

requested data. Thus, this data is captured for some travel, but it is 

not consistently recorded in the Park Serviceï¿½s travel accounting 

system in a manner that would facilitate routine and comprehensive 

reporting of such data.



We are sending copies of this report to the Honorable Gale A. Norton, 

Secretary, Department of the Interior; Schuyler Lesher, Director, 

Office of Financial Management, Department of the Interior; appropriate 

congressional committees; and other interested parties. This report 

will also be available at no charge on GAOï¿½s home page at http://

www.gao.gov. If you or your staffs have any questions regarding this 

report, please contact me at (202) 512-6906. An additional key contact 

and contributors to this report are listed in appendix III.



Signed by:



McCoy Williams

Director

Financial Management and Assurance:



[End of section]



Appendixes:



Appendix I: National Park Serviceï¿½s Authorized Foreign Trips and 

Estimated Travel Costs:



The following are estimated foreign travel costs, adjusted for 

inflation, by fiscal year for the seven National Park Service (Park 

Service) regions, the Washington, D.C., office, and all parks in total.



Table 2: Estimated Foreign Travel Costs, for Each Region, the 

Washington, D.C., Office, and Parks Aggregated, Fiscal Years 1999-2002:



[See PDF for image]



Source: GAO.



Note: This table represents GAOï¿½s analysis of data provided by the Park 

Serviceï¿½s Office of International Affairs.



[End of table]



As of September 30, 2002, there were about 27 foreign trips already 

authorized for fiscal year 2003, at an estimated cost of $43,334, 

adjusted to reflect 2001 dollars.



[End of section]



Appendix II: Comments from the Department of the Interior:



United States Department of the Interior:



OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY Washington, D.C. 20240:



JAN 24 2003:



Mr. Barry T. Hill:



Director, Natural Resources and Environment U.S. General Accounting 

Office:



441 G Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20548:



Dear Mr. Hill:



Thank you for providing the Department of the Interior the opportunity 

to review and comment on the draft U.S. General Accounting Office 

report entitled, ï¿½The National Park Service, Actions Needed to Improve 

Travel Cost Management (GAO-03-354).ï¿½:



Specific comments are listed in the enclosure. If you have any further 

questions, please contact Sharon Cleary, Chief, NPS Office of 

International Affairs, at 202-354-1805, or John Madigan, Acting 

Manager, NPS Accounting Operations Center, at 703-487-9135.



Sincerely,



Craig Manson:



Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks:



Signed by Craig Manson:



Enclosure:



Enclosure:



U.S. General Accounting Office Draft Report THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 

Actions Needed to Improve Travel Cost Management GAO-03-354:



The National Park Service has completed a review of the subject report 

dated January 2003. The Service takes exception with some of the 

findings as stated in the study. First, the opening paragraphs imply 

that foreign travel costs are partly to blame for these high figures, 

when in fact foreign travel is but a small part of the picture.	The 

accuracy of the number of foreign travel trips is misleading. The 

Serviceï¿½s Office of International Affairs estimates that approximately 

fifty percent of the total number of foreign travel trips as reported 

in the study were actually across-the-border travel to either Mexico or 

Canada. Cross-border trips are strictly for local matters, not 

considered foreign travel by the Department of the Interior, and are 

exempt from the required Foreign Travel Certification Form (DI-1175). 

Second, even though the Serviceï¿½s accounting and payment system was 

unable to generate the requested totals to support foreign travel, the 

Service was able to provide supporting documentation related to foreign 

travel. Third, the report does not state that NPS already captures 

travel data such as training or conference attendance for foreign 

travel.



The report also provided information about the costs incurred for 

travel by the NPS for fiscal years 1999-2002 based on reports supplied 

by the Service. GAO highlighted the fact that travel costs rose by 60 

percent in the Washington Office and 26 percent in the regional offices 

and field areas during that period. The evaluators did not ask for or 

provide an explanation as to the reasons for the large increase.



Travel costs throughout the Service, and in particular the Washington 

Office, spiked significantly during fiscal year 2002 due to new 

requirements associated with post 9/11 security needs. Numerous law 

enforcement rangers were detailed to Washington to provide security for 

the Department of the Interior (DOD building immediately after the 

incident. Personnel were also provided to the DOI security task force 

during fiscal year 2002 to bolster the Departmentï¿½s capability to 

manage security matters. These personnel were in travel status during 

their assignment in Washington D.C. and the travel costs were charged 

to Washington Office accounts.



Throughout the Service, law enforcement personnel were detailed to 

various sites to enhance security at the areas believed to be most 

vulnerable to attack including the Statue of Liberty National Monument, 

Independence National Historical Park, and Boston National Historical 

Park. Dozens of law enforcement personnel were also sent to sites such 

as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in St. Louis, Mount 

Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota and the National Mall in 

Washington D.C. to provide added security over the Fourth of July 

celebration.



There are other programmatic reasons for travel costs to have risen 

during this period including the expansion of the training program in 

accordance with budgetary increases provided by Congress. Costs for the 

training program are captured in the Washington Office and are high in 

travel related expenses.



The Service does concur with the recommendations resulting from the 

study and has already implemented a change in foreign travel payment 

procedures that mandates all foreign travel payments must be processed 

by the Accounting Operations Center. As stated in the study, the 

Service plans to complete the implementation of an automated web-based 

travel system later this fiscal year, which will improve the travel 

data capturing process; including travel type and purpose.



Efforts have already been made to reduce travel costs for the current 

fiscal year compared to prior year levels. In a memorandum to the 

Directorate dated October 25, 2002, the Director mandated a 17.5 

percent across the board reduction in travel obligations. This cutback 

is reflective of the reduction we are anticipating when the 2003 

appropriation act in enacted. Furthermore, all regional 

superintendentï¿½s conferences were cancelled for calendar year 2003 and 

specific instructions were provided for the critical review of 

conference travel.



[End of section]



Appendix III: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments:



GAO Contact:



Mary Mohiyuddin, (202) 512-3087:



Acknowledgments:



In addition to the contact named above, Lisa Crye, Douglas A. Delacruz, 

Bonnie McEwan, and Jordan Tiger made key contributions to this report.



(190067):



FOOTNOTES



[1] Title 41 C.F.R. 300-304. The Federal Travel Regulation is issued by 

the General Services Administration, in part, to provide guidance to 

agencies on the authorization of travel reimbursement for certain 

federal government civilian employees when traveling on official 

government business. 



[2] 41 C.F.R. 301-71.2 and appendix C to Chapter 301 identify required 

data elements.



[3] GSAï¿½s Office of Governmentwide Policy is responsible for the 

Federal Travel Regulation, which provides travel policy for federal 

government agencies and their travelers.



[4] JFMIP is a joint cooperative undertaking of the Office of 

Management and Budget, the General Accounting Office, the Department of 

the Treasury, and the Office of Personnel Management, working in 

cooperation with each other and with operating agencies to improve 

financial management practices throughout the government. JFMIP issued 

Financial Management Systems Requirements that describe the 

requirements of the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 

1996. See Joint Financial Management Improvement Program, Travel System 

Requirements, JFMIP-SR-99-9 (Washington, D.C.: July 1999).



[5] The travel purpose identifiers described in Appendix C of Chapter 

301 of the Federal Travel Regulation are site visit, information 

meeting, training attendance, speech or presentation, conference 

attendance, relocation, and entitlement travel.



[6] A third-party draft payment system is an alternative payment system 

approved by the Department of the Treasury for imprest-fund-type 

transactions. A draft agent issues the draft after receiving the proper 

documentation and appropriate accounting information. The draft is 

drawn on a third-party draft contractorï¿½s account, and is issued to a 

vendor or employee for payment of goods and services, including travel-

related costs.



[7] A third-party draft may only be used provided that the voucher is 

for $2,500 or less.



[8] Form DI-1175, a DOI document.



[9] Approval by an associate director is required for Washington, D.C., 

office employees.



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