Commercial Air Transportation

A state employee is entitled to be reimbursed for the actual cost of commercial air transportation incurred to conduct state business, per Texas Government Code, Section 660.091. The reimbursement may not exceed the cost of the lowest available airfare between the employee’s designated headquarters and the employee's duty point, per Texas Government Code, Section 660.093.

Required Payment Method

The mandatory payment method for all airline fares is the state-issued travel credit card, per 34 Texas Administrative Code, Section 20.413.

Receipt Requirements

For a state employee to be reimbursed for a commercial air transportation expense, the employee must provide proof that the expense was incurred. A complete passenger receipt issued by a commercial airline company or an itinerary issued by the company or a travel agency serves this purpose.

The receipt or itinerary must include:

• The name of the employee and airline.
• The ticket number.
• The class of transportation.
• The travel dates.
• The amount of the airfare.
• The origin and destination of each flight.
  — and —
• Proof of payment.

A passenger receipt or itinerary that has been altered by any person other than the entity issuing the receipt or itinerary is unacceptable. A receipt or itinerary that additional information has been added to is considered unaltered if the information does not conflict with the original information on the receipt.

If the receipt and itinerary are both unavailable, the supporting documentation must include a copy of the receipt or itinerary, the canceled check or credit card slip used to pay the transportation expense, or the credit card billing the transportation charges appear on. If any of these alternative methods are used as supporting documentation, the above information required from the receipt or itinerary must still be included in the documentation.