1.32.14. Gainsharing Travel Savings Program

(1) Purpose: This IRM provides policies and procedures for IRS employees who save the government money each fiscal year on common carrier transportation and lodging while on official city-to-city travel and who apply for a gainsharing award.

(2) Audience: All business units

(3) Policy Owner: CFO, Financial Management

(4) Program Owner: CFO, Financial Management, Corporate Accounting, Travel Management office, develops and maintains this IRM.

(5) Primary Stakeholders: The primary stakeholders are IRS employees who perform city-to-city travel, including domestic and foreign travel, in the interest of the government. Additional stakeholders include the business units, first-level managers, second-level managers, HCO and CFO.

(6) Program Goals: To ensure that IRS employees exercise integrity while participating in the gainsharing program and comply with the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) and IRS policy when applying for a gainsharing award.

(1) An employee may claim savings that are realized from staying in less expensive lodging, to include staying with family and/or friends resulting in zero lodging cost, and/or using frequent traveler benefits to purchase common carrier tickets or lodging for official travel. All city-to-city travel outside of the commuting area with lodging expenses, foreign and domestic, are covered under this program. Relocation travel expenses are not eligible for this program.

(2) IRS BU employees are eligible to participate in the gainsharing program when they qualify to receive an award of at least $100, before taxes. For example, a BU employee who saves a combined total of $200 in lodging and airline tickets during the fiscal year is eligible to share 50% of the savings with the IRS. Total Savings = $200 x 50% = $100. The minimum cumulative award that can be paid for a fiscal year is $100 for a BU employee.

(3) IRS NBU employees are eligible to participate in the gainsharing program when they qualify to receive an award of at least $200 before taxes. For example, an NBU employee who saves a combined total of $400 in lodging and airline tickets during the fiscal year is eligible to share 50% of the savings with the IRS. Total Savings = $400 x 50% = $200. The minimum cumulative award that can be paid for a fiscal year is $200 for a NBU employee.

(4) The maximum cumulative award that can be paid without higher level approval for a fiscal year is $10,000. A gainsharing award in the amount of $10,001 to $25,000 must be approved by the IRS Chief Operating Officer.

(5) Federal, state and local income taxes, and FICA tax will be withheld from the award. The award amount will be included in the employee’s Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement.

(6) An employee accumulates travel savings over a fiscal year period and documents the savings by utilizing Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings.

(7) An employee must submit Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, with supporting documentation, to the individual’s manager no later than December 31 for the immediately preceding fiscal year. No submissions for a gainsharing award will be accepted from employees after the deadline.

1. The first-level manager reviews Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, with supporting documentation, submitted by the employee and approves or denies the request.

2. If approved, the second-level manager reviews Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, and forwards this, with the supporting documentation, to the business unit contact no later than January 31 for the immediately preceding fiscal year.

3. The business unit contact reviews Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, and submits the required forms and documentation to Travel Review no later than March 31 for the immediately preceding fiscal year.

4. Travel Review reviews Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, submitted by the business unit contact and approves or denies the request, and forwards to the business unit contact within 60 days of receipt of all required forms and documentation.

(8) Claims for fiscal year gainsharing awards must be paid by September 30 of the subsequent year.

(9) An employee can only submit one request for a gainsharing award for a fiscal year.

(10) A gainsharing award may be withheld if deemed necessary to protect IRS’s integrity.

(11) Federal employees should always stay in a fire-safe facility. Some non-conventional lodging facilities may not meet the fire-safe requirements and should not be used. For an employee to use non-conventional lodging, an exception must be approved in advance by the Associate CFO for Corporate Accounting and the approval must be uploaded into the Electronic Travel System (ETS). Non-conventional lodging such as leased or rented houses, apartments, condominiums or home-sharing rentals (i.e., Air Bed and Breakfast (Airbnb), Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO) and HomeAway) not approved by the Associate CFO for Corporate Accounting prior to travel is not eligible for gainsharing.

(12) For NBU employees, only the first 30 calendar days of extended TDY travel will count as eligible for savings in the program. For NBU employees, extended TDY of more than 30 calendar days where a reduced per diem amount is required is not eligible for gainsharing. For NBU employees, staying with family, friends or associates is not eligible after 30 days when an employee is on extended TDY travel.

(13) A centralized repository for all gainsharing records to include Forms 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, and other supporting documentation must be established and maintained. Following the GRS, gainsharing award records may be destroyed when 2 years old or 2 years after award is approved or disapproved, whichever is later, but longer retention is authorized if needed for business use such as a litigation hold, agency freezes and potential/impending audits. The GRS 2.2 schedule can be found at: http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/grs/.

(14) Copies of approved travel authorizations and supporting documentation for manual vouchers must be maintained for six years in compliance with General Records Schedule (GRS) 1.1, item 010 Financial Transaction Records Related to Procuring Goods and Services, Paying Bills, Collecting Debts, and Accounting, for records retention authorized disposition, but longer retention is authorized if needed for business use such as a litigation hold, agency freezes and potential/impending audits. The GRS 1.1 schedule can be found at: http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/grs/.

(1) An employee must take into consideration whether any additional transportation or miscellaneous costs will be incurred when seeking lodging savings for gainsharing eligibility.

(2) An employee who incurs additional transportation expenses must deduct those expenses from the lodging savings. Examples of excess transportation costs include, but are not limited to:

1. Renting a vehicle for personal convenience at a TDY site to travel to and from a place of free or reduced lodging.

2. Driving a privately-owned vehicle more miles than would normally be traveled to or from the TDY site to obtain free or reduced lodging.

3. Incurring excess taxi, Transportation Network Company (TNC) such as Uber/Lyft, or mileage expenses or other public transportation fares that would not normally be incurred to obtain free or reduced lodging.

(3) Examples include:

1. An employee could stay at a hotel near the TDY location and incur no transportation expenses between the hotel and the TDY location. Instead, the employee chooses to stay farther away, at a less expensive hotel and, as a result, incurs extra transportation costs each way. The extra costs may include, but are not limited to, rental car fees, mileage, parking or the cost of public transportation that would not have been incurred if the employee stayed at a hotel near the TDY location. The excess costs of the transportation must be deducted from the amount of the lodging savings.

2. An employee’s TDY location is New Carrollton, Maryland, for four nights. The lodging per diem rate per night is $256, totaling $1,024 for four nights. If the employee stays at a hotel in New Carrollton, the employee will incur no transportation expenses between the hotel and the New Carrollton office building. Instead, the employee chooses to stay farther away in Greenbelt, Maryland, with relatives, and, as a result, incurs daily extra transportation costs of $24 for Uber rides, totaling $72 for the week. The total lodging savings for the trip is $952. The excess $72 of transportation costs must be deducted from the amount of the lodging savings. The employee would be entitled to $476. Total Savings equals $1,024 - $72 = $952 x 50% = $476.

3. An employee’s TDY location is Dallas, Texas, for four nights. The lodging per diem rate per night is $154, totaling $616 for four nights. If the employee stays at a hotel in Dallas, the employee would incur minimal transportation expenses between the hotel and the Dallas office building of $4 daily, totaling $12 for the week. Instead, the employee chooses to fly into DFW instead of DAL, the airport closest to the TDY, to stay with friends, and, as a result, incurs extra transportation costs of $50 daily for Uber rides, totaling $150 for the week. The total lodging savings for the trip is $478. The excess transportation $150 - $12 allowance for 3 days to/from hotel/TDY = $138, and must be deducted from the amount of the lodging savings. The employee would be entitled to $239. Total Savings equals $616 - $138 = $478 x 50% = $239.

(1) The following activities are examples of travel ineligible for the Gainsharing Travel Savings Program:

1. Relocation travel.

2. Travel to an alternate location for personal reasons instead of staying at the TDY location.

3. Lodging savings incurred due to an authorized or voluntary return to the employee’s residence or Post of Duty (POD).

4. Travel paid by another government agency.

5. Travel paid with personal credit card or funds, even if the employee has an approved exemption from the use of the travel card, except as provided in IRM 1.32.14.2.2(5), Lodging Savings.

6. Choosing an airport that has a lower city-pair contract rate or government rate does not qualify for travel savings. The only air travel savings that qualify are from using frequent traveler benefits to purchase a coach class ticket.

7. Departing a TDY early, arriving at a TDY late and/or choosing to forego an authorized rest period in order to save a night of lodging does not constitute lodging savings.

8. Airport parking savings are not eligible for gainsharing.

9. Using an alternate mode of transportation instead of the authorized mode of transportation to the TDY.

10. Lodging that was prepaid, contracted or prearranged (e.g., block of rooms), except if the savings resulted from shared accommodations with another IRS employee.

11. Government FedRooms lodging, unless the accommodations are shared with another IRS employee on travel.

12. Military base housing or military lodging, which are federally funded.

13. Lodging costs incurred on annual leave or personal time used in conjunction with official travel.

14. Domestic lodging that does not meet the requirements of the Hotel and Motel Fire Safety Act of 1990. A list of lodging facilities that meet the requirements can be found at: Hotel and Motel Fire Safety.

15. Non-conventional lodging such as leased or rented houses, apartments, condominiums or home-sharing rentals (i.e., Airbnb, VRBO and HomeAway) not approved by the Associate CFO for Corporate Accounting prior to travel is not eligible for gainsharing.

16. Lodging expenses for staying at your personally owned or co-owned property (e.g., vacation home, secondary home, rental units, timeshare, etc.), recreational vehicle or campers at the TDY location.

17. While performing mission critical travel in the best interest of the government, if it becomes necessary to incur lodging at multiple locations for the same travel dates, travel savings incurred at either TDY location is not eligible for gainsharing.

18. When traveling on an overnight or late-night flight, lodging savings incurred during the flight is ineligible for gainsharing.

19. Conventional lodging reservations not booked in ETS or with the TMC.

(1) The employee:

1. Accumulates eligible travel savings incurred during a fiscal year and records the savings on one Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings.

2. Completes Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist.

3. Signs and dates the forms supporting the qualifying savings.

4. Submits the completed forms with reporting instructions, if applicable, travel vouchers and receipts to the first-level manager.

(2) The first-level manager:

1. Reviews the reporting instructions, if applicable, vouchers, receipts, recorded savings on Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist.

2. Signs and dates the Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, as the recommending official.

3. Submits the completed forms with reporting instructions, if applicable, travel vouchers and receipts to the second-level manager.

(3) The second-level manager:

1. Reviews the reporting instructions, if applicable, vouchers, receipts, recorded savings on Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist.

2. Approves by signing and dating Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, as the approving official.

3. Forwards the completed forms with reporting instructions, if applicable, travel vouchers and receipts to the business unit contact.

(4) Business unit contact:

1. Reviews the reporting instructions and the FedRooms Data File, if applicable, vouchers and receipts, recorded savings on Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist.

2. Forwards Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist, to Travel Review at CFO.FM.Travel.Gainsharing@irs.gov.

(5) Travel Review:

1. Reviews and audits the vouchers, receipts, reporting instructions and the FedRooms Data File, if applicable, recorded savings on Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings and Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist.

2. If approved, signs and dates the Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings, as the Travel Management reviewing official. If disapproved, return the package and provide the reason to the business unit contact and employee.

3. Forwards the documentation to the business unit contact.

(6) Business unit contact:

1. Requests misconduct and tax compliance screening from HCO for approved claims.

(7) HCO:

1. Completes misconduct and tax compliance screening.

2. Forwards result to the business unit point of contact.

(8) The business unit inputs the Personnel Action Request (PAR) into HR Connect. The employee's business unit retains the following original or copies:

1. Form 13631-A, IRS Travel Savings

2. Form 15245, IRS Gainsharing Travel Savings Program Checklist

3. Reporting instructions, if applicable, travel vouchers and supporting documentation

4. Form 9127, Recommendation for Recognition

5. HR Connect PAR action

6. Manual authorizations and vouchers, if applicable

(1) The IRS withholds appropriate federal, state, and local income taxes, FICA tax and other applicable deductions from the award amount.

(2) The employee receives a Standard Form 50, Notification of Personnel Action, indicating the award amount.

(3) The award amount will be included in the employee’s Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement.