December 23, 2009
CBCA 1517-RELO
In the Matter of MATTHEW L. MASTERSON
Matthew
L. Masterson, Republic, MO, Claimant.
Lisa
D. Ferguson, Program Manager, Household Goods, Department of Veterans Affairs,
Washington, DC, appearing for Department of Veterans Affairs.
KULLBERG,
Board Judge.
Claimant, Dr. Matthew L. Masterson, seeks review of
the decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that denied
reimbursement for the shipment of his medical books to his new duty
station. Dr. Masterson=s supervisor at his new duty station authorized his
request for the shipment of his medical books as professional books, papers,
and equipment (PBP&E) after the delivery of his household goods (HHG),
which weighed in excess of 18,000 pounds, but the VA=s Chief of Transportation and Relocation Services
denied his request. For the reasons
stated below, the claim is denied.
Background
Dr. Masterson was appointed by the VA to the position
of staff psychiatrist at the Gene Taylor Community Based Outpatient Clinic, Mt.
Vernon, Missouri. The VA authorized the
shipment of Dr. Masterson=s HHG from his home in Fairbanks, Alaska, to his new
home in Republic, Missouri. On
June 3, 2008, Dr. Masterson received guidance from Relocation Management
Worldwide (RMW) regarding his impending move.
On July 8, 2008, Dr. Masterson was advised that the estimated
weight of his HHG shipment was 22,000 pounds.
On that same day, Dr. Masterson requested information from RMW
regarding the procedures for shipping PBP&E, and he was instructed to
provide RMW with a list of those items to be shipped as PBP&E.
The packing of Dr. Masterson=s HHG took place during July 24-28 and 29-30,
2008. On July 27, 2008, Dr. Masterson
sent RMW an electronic mail message with his list of approximately 361 books
related to the practice of medicine. The
books weighed 1220 pounds. A weight
ticket dated August 28, 2008, showed that the weight of
Dr. Masterson=s HHG was 23,990 pounds.
After the delivery of his HHG to his new home, a bill
of collection was issued for the costs related to his move that were not
reimbursed. Dr. Masterson learned that
the weight of his medical books had not been deducted from the weight of his
HHG. On December 17, 2008, Dr. Masterson=s supervisor authorized the shipment of his books as
PBP&E. But, on December 23,
2008, the VA=s Chief of Transportation and Relocation Services
determined that Dr. Masterson was not entitled to reimbursement for the
shipment of his medical books because the submission of his list of medical
books to be shipped as PBP&E was untimely, and his supervisor=s approval was also untimely since approval was not
made before shipment. Dr. Masterson
subsequently submitted to this Board his estimated claim of $2500 for the
shipment of his medical books as PBP&E.
In his claim letter, Dr. Masterson indicated that his debt for the move
exceeded $10,000.
Discussion
The issue in this case is whether the VA properly exercised
its discretion in denying reimbursement for the shipment of Dr. Masterson=s medical books as PBP&E. Under 5 U.S.C. ' 5724(a)(2) (2006), a relocating employee will receive
reimbursement for the storage and shipment of up to 18,000 pounds of his or her
HHG. The Federal Travel Regulation
(FTR), which is applicable to Dr. Masterson, sets the same weight limit for the
shipment of an employee=s HHG.
41 CFR 302-7.200 (2008) (FTR 302‑7.200). AAs . . .
frequently noted, these rules leave no room for compromiseBif the shipment exceeds 18,000 pounds, the
employee must pay for the cost associated with the additional weight.@ James R.
Wyatt, Jr., GSBCA 16038-RELO, 04-1 BCA &
32,573, at 161,186 (citing George W. Currie, GSBCA 15199-RELO, 00-1 BCA & 30,814; Robert K. Boggs, GSBCA 14948‑RELO,
99-2 BCA & 30,491).
The FTR sets the following requirements for an agency=s approval of the shipment of a transferring employee=s PBP&E:
What guidelines must we follow
when authorizing transportation of PBP&E as an administrative expense?
You have the sole discretion to
authorize transportation of PBP&E provided that:
(a) An itemized inventory of PBP&E is provided for review by
the authorizing official at the new official station;
(b) The authorizing official has certified that the PBP&E are
necessary for performance of the employee=s duties
at the new duty station, and if these items were not transported, the same or
similar items would have to be obtained at Government expense for the employee=s use at the new official station; and
(c) You have acquired evidence that transporting the PBP&E
would cause the employee=s HHG to exceed 18,000 pound maximum weight
allowances.
FTR
302-7.303. It is the responsibility of
the transferring employee to provide an itemized list of PBP&E to the
authorizing official at the new duty station.
Ingrid Rodenberg, GSBCA 13729-RELO, 97-2 BCA & 29,027, at 144,575.
Additionally, it has been established that approval for the shipment of
an employee=s books and papers as PBP&E should be made before
the shipment of his or her HHG, but the employee=s agency
can make such a determination after the employee=s
move. Michael L. Rivera,
GSBCA 16350-RELO, 04‑1 BCA &
32,615, at 161,407. Such a
determination, however, is within the discretion of the agency, and it is
critical that Aan appropriate agency official certify that the
PBP&E are necessary for the performance of the employee=s duties at the new official station and that these or
similar items would have to be obtained at Government expenses if they were not
transported to that location.@ Id. at
161,406-07.
Dr. Masterson contends that he followed the directions
given by RMW, and his supervisor approved the shipment of his medical books as
PBP&E. Approval of the shipment of
his medical books, however, was still subject to the discretion of the VA. Absent from the record is any evidence that
Dr. Masterson=s supervisor ever certified, as required under
FTR 302-7.303(b), that the listed medical books were necessary to the
performance of his duties. Also, such a
certification by his supervisor required a finding that the VA would have
needed to acquire a similar collection of books for Dr. Masterson if his
medical books were not shipped. The VA
has asserted that it has medical books and other resources available for its
medical professionals to perform their work, and Dr. Masterson has not refuted
that claim. Under these circumstances,
the Board finds that VA properly exercised its discretion not to reimburse
Dr. Masterson for the shipment of his medical books.
