Gas Saving Tips For Feds

[burrocrat]

Re: Gas Saving Tips For Everyone

I'm not sure of the circumstance, but a federal employee can not use a GOV/GSA lease for travel to and from work. This is because you are not supposed to have the vehicle at the hose. But, as I learned when I the Officer in Charge of LORAN Station Searchlight, you could find ways around this law.

The Station was 55 miles from housing one way. Talk about an expensive commute. But we took the GOV's. The vehicles were are the Bureau of Land Management in Boulder CIty. We would drive to the BLM in POV's, about a 3 minute commute. Then drive the GOV's to the Station and Back to the BLM. THis was considered a Coast Guard mission as the entire station used the vehicles daily, there was a memorandum of agreement to keep the vehicles at a federal installation, and no one person kept the keys every day. The 2 duty personnel held the keys and the keys rotated weekly.

If your situation is similar and the unit can pay for the mileage for operational reasons, then this may be a good option. PM me for details.

- Emo

it can be worked around in civilian agencies too. trigger seems to be if it results in savings to the gov. example, a person lives midway between duty stations, wastes time to drive to homebase office then take a GOV back down the same road you just came in on to get to todays location. why not just park the GOV at home on your way back and head out again in the morning? results in 1/2 mileage and 1/2 on the clock driving. i forget the form number and takes high level supervisor approval but it can be done.

 

[PessOptimist]

Re: Gas Saving Tips For Everyone

it can be worked around in civilian agencies too. trigger seems to be if it results in savings to the gov. example, a person lives midway between duty stations, wastes time to drive to homebase office then take a GOV back down the same road you just came in on to get to todays location. why not just park the GOV at home on your way back and head out again in the morning? results in 1/2 mileage and 1/2 on the clock driving. i forget the form number and takes high level supervisor approval but it can be done.

Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope.

Common sense is not allowed where GSA vehicles are concened.

Burro, send along that form number. Better yet, a copy of the signed and approved one.

I can't even begin to count the number of times I have driven to work, got in the GSA vehicle and retraced my route to the work site. Or been a couple miles from home at quitting time and told to drive the GSA thing back to work on OT instead of taking it home. What would the neighbors think?

They know you are going to pile the entire family in that 3/4 ton utility body truck and go to railroad pass or somewhere if you are allowed to take it home. You Boulder City people are something else.

PO

 

[burrocrat]

Re: Gas Saving Tips For Everyone

Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope.

Common sense is not allowed where GSA vehicles are concened.

Burro, send along that form number. Better yet, a copy of the signed and approved one.

I can't even begin to count the number of times I have driven to work, got in the GSA vehicle and retraced my route to the work site. Or been a couple miles from home at quitting time and told to drive the GSA thing back to work on OT instead of taking it home. What would the neighbors think?

They know you are going to pile the entire family in that 3/4 ton utility body truck and go to railroad pass or somewhere if you are allowed to take it home. You Boulder City people are something else.

PO

no paperwork forthcoming,

wasn't my detail but saw it done, not going to delve into personell files that are not my business to share.

i'll go with common sense everytime, it still happens some places in .gov

 

[PessOptimist]

Yeah, unfair and unreasonable of me to ask. Common sense is not policy and if it rears it's ugly head it must be stopped.

I still wonder why Boulder City details always end up staying in Lost Wages instead of the perfectly adequate El Rancho Motel.

I really need to get with the program.

 

[burrocrat]

Yeah, unfair and unreasonable of me to ask. Common sense is not policy and if it rears it's ugly head it must be stopped.

I still wonder why Boulder City details always end up staying in Lost Wages instead of the perfectly adequate El Rancho Motel.

I really need to get with the program.

example two, employee on a flexible training task, lots of folks and distance to cover, some take more some take less to get to the point where it's done. my general rule of thumb is if less than 60 mile 1 hr drive on good roads then i go home at EOD, labor and fuel less than partial per diem and hotel and more per diem the next day. over an hour and it's more productive to stay, more hours in a day that way, make the best use of other's time too. i prefer holiday inn, but will often take the $45 option too, mom and pop or motel 6, i've seen worse. get the job done, the benefits of freedom of task outweigh nickle and diming the .gov buffet. and i sleep better that way, no matter where i'm at.

was total flex my choice on the hours & comp time until the budget throttled, now no common sense, can't work or drive past certain hours no matter the economics, even at great cost.

i guess we're both right, can be done, but often isn't.