Some Details to Be Worked Out

Congressional officials said that the change in frequent traveler policy would be retroactive, meaning that employees who have built up such credits in the past would be allowed to convert them to their personal use. However, details of such a transfer will have to be decided through rule making or an administrative decision, possibly by the General Services Administration, which controls travel policy in general. Also, keeping frequent traveler benefits accrued through official travel could have tax implications; the IRS has indicated that such benefits could be taxable as a benefit. Precisely how that would work and what value would be assigned to such benefits also are yet to be seen.