7195-11

Third Party Payment of Travel and Business Expenses

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AUTHORITY

The Department of Transportation (DOT) has established the following policy to ensure compliance with the Governor’s Executive Order and consistency with applicable Georgia laws.

EXECUTIVE ORDER - THIRD PARTY PAYMENTS

Persons Subject to Executive Order

Within the Department the following persons are subject to the requirements of the Executive Order: employees and the heads of all State agencies.

“Agency” is defined as any Executive Branch department, board, bureau, agency, commission, council, authority, corporation, entity, or instrumentality of any kind and others as may be designated by the Governor, to the extent that such designation does not conflict with Georgia law.

"Employee" shall mean any employee of any agency as defined herein.

"Gifts" means anything of value exceeding Twenty Five and No/100 Dollars ($25.00) including, but not limited to, food, lodging, transportation, personal services, gratuities, subscriptions, memberships, trips, loans, extensions of credit, forgiveness of debts, or advances of money.

"Third Party" means an individual, partnership, committee, association, corporation, labor organization, or any other organization or group of individuals.

Ethics Officer

Each agency shall designate an Ethics Officer. The Ethics Officer shall take appropriate measures to ensure that the agency’s employees become familiar with applicable ethics laws and policies, including the policies set forth in the Governor’s Code of Ethics Executive Order.

Reporting Requirements

Actual and reasonable expenses for food, beverages, travel, lodging, and registration paid by a third party in excess of $25.00 to permit an employee’s participation in a meeting related to official or professional duties require that a report be filed no later than thirty (30) days after such expenses are paid. The report must contain:

• A description and the monetary value of each expense,
• The name and address of the person paying such expense, and
• The purpose, date, and location of the meeting.

• If the expenses are for an individual employee, an Individual Travel and Business Expense Paid by a Third Party, DOT 1032, must be completed. If travel authorization would normally be required, a Travel Authorization form, DOT 1523, must be approved regardless of who will be paying for the expenses.
• If the expenses are for a group of employees, a Group Travel and Business Expense Paid by a Third Party, DOT 1033, must be completed. If lodging expenses will be paid by a third party, the expenses must be reported on a DOT 1032 with an approved Travel Authorization form, DOT 1523, if applicable.

The Ethics Officer is responsible for determining if the payments reported on DOT 1032s or Dot 1033s:

• Impede and/or appear to impede the employee’s ability to make objective, fair and impartial decisions, or
• Undermine the public trust.

If the Ethics Officer believes the payments are in conflict with the Governor’s Code of Ethics, he/she should report the instance to the Commissioner, who will make the decision on whether further action will be taken.

The Third Party Payment of Travel and Business Expense Procedures provides instructions for completing the reporting requirements of these third party payments and may be read in the Manual of Administrative Procedures.

RELATED INFORMATION

Document History:

• added to TOPPS: 09/23/03
• definitions of Employee, Gifts and Third Party added
  "...in excess of $25.00..." and last sentence added to Reporting Requirements section: 06/27/07

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