If you submited a 108 with a receipt that was dated after the close of the mission was it accepted or rejected? I am curious about the situation across all the wings. Personal experiences only please, not opinions. Thanks.
Accepted, but there's going to be a delta of separation from the mission that's reasonable, and it can't be very long.
Most missions I've been involved in, the FASC (and/or Wing FM) allows for "next day" fill-ups. Much beyond that and you need a good explanation and the mileage needs to line up pretty well.
(As an example, I normally take the train to work, so its not out of the question that I could do a mission and then not use the truck for a week or more. Most people, however, use their vehicles every day, and CAP knows that.)
The key, in my experience, has been clear, timely paperwork filled out properly, with anything "unusual" detailed so that no questions need be raised, and follow-up. Even if its a lot of money or something out of the ordinary, if the boxes are checked properly, and the substantiation is clear and attached, you should have little problem.
Anything that generates a "question" or requires a follow-up contact before it can be paid risks the reimbursement being lost or denied. This isn't a "CAP problem", per se, this is a reality of working with any bureaucracy.
Remember that there is a grace period between the "close out of the mission" and when all the paper work needs to be in (including fuel receipts). It is 15 days IIRC from the close out to when all the receipts need to be in.
Quote from: lordmonar on October 28, 2009, 09:16:00 AM
Remember that there is a grace period between the "close out of the mission" and when all the paper work needs to be in (including fule recpeipts). It is 15 days IIRC from the close out to when all the receipts need to be in.
You have to be make sure you know your wing's policy - mine is next day with little leeway - but that also means we get out checks pretty fast.
Last time I looked into it the wing had about 45 days to submit to the USAF for reimbursement, but that doesn't mean the individual member can wait until day 44.99 to submit things. All the info has to be consolidated into other forms, etc.
Also, some wings may reimburse immediately if they have the funds available.
As an IC, I'm looking for your reciepts by close of business the next day. I will allow a little wiggle room, but I generally try to close the mission package out within a week of the mission.
I figure if you can't be bothered to email/fax/mail me a receipt within a week, you probably aren't real worried about reimbursment, and I don't intend to hold up everyone else's waiting for you.
You do need to look at your wing's policy but I can tell you that during a compliance inspection you may be asked about this and if your answer is that you don't refuel ASAP after returning to home station you may be looked upon unfavorably. The reason being is that USAF pays for fuel during a mission. Once back at home station the AC or Van may be used for corporate travel and the longer you wait to refuel the vehicle the better chance the USAF will think you are stealing from them. Fraud, waste and abuse will probably not be charged but will likely be mentioned. In our wing the AC are always refueled at the conclusion of every flight and the vehicles enter a USAF mission full of fuel and are refilled ASAP after the return to home station. That is the best practice.
When I do my 108s, I fill in the miles, compute my MPG for the tank, and claim the cost for those miles at that MPG figure. I rarely, if ever, claim the full amount on the gas receipt.
I don't usually have time to gas before departing on a mission, and sometimes I get back too late to hit the local station, which closes at midnite. And, given my typical mileage figure, I don't usually go out just to fill my gas tank, so I might not gas up for a couple of days afterward. Have never had any problems getting reimbursed.
^ If you're getting your checks ok, then more power to you, but you're really describing the situation most Wings don't want to deal with, and would likely cause issues with an audit if it was checked.
As far as I know, the reimbursements are supposed to be actual expense against real receipts that add up to the requested amount, not estimates based on MPG.
Well, I can pretty well guarantee that what I claim as an expense is never as much as I actually spent. I have never had a 108 questioned because the receipt is more than what I claimed.
I just looked in the reg (CAPR 173-3), and didn't see any precise guidance on filling out a 108, nor were the instructions on the back of the 108 super specific, either.