Travel

E-Travel News

September 2019 - Volume 11, Issue 5

In This Issue

• CTM Fee Consolidation
• State of Alaska Per Diem Rates Update
• REAL ID Reminder
• Code Share Flights
• Prepare your Travelers for a Successful Trip

CTM Fee Consolidation

Effective Monday, September 30, 2019, CTM service fees will no longer be charged individually to a One Card! CTM Agent fees will still be charged per transaction and will be referenced on the FINAL itinerary. Department of Administration will pay CTM directly and bill the departments for their transactions.

E-Travel Fees Effective September 30, 2019 to June 30, 2020

• Online booking with no agent assistance $2.50
• Online booking with partial assistance (i.e. Exchanges or Rural requests) $10.00
• Full agent assistance booking (online tool not used) $18.00
• Refunds
  • No agent assistance $5.00
  • With agent assistance $10.00
• Voids
  • No agent assistance No Charge
  • With agent assistance $10.00

NOTE: All fees will incur an additional $2.00 cost recovery to the Department of Administration.

State of Alaska Per Diem Rates Update

There have been some slight revisions to the State of Alaska Per Diem Rate Table published on the DOF website.

• Effective contract rates have been updated for some Bargaining Units.
• Clarification for LTC per diem under the new agreement.
• AAM tables for Rates effective July 1, 2018 to Sept 30, 2018 have been removed. Only the current rate tables are published.

REAL ID Reminder

A friendly reminder! Starting October 1, 2020, ALL Alaskan residents will be required to present a REAL ID compliant license/ID, or another acceptable form of identification (such as a valid passport) when traveling by commercial air.  The standard State license/ID will no longer be accepted, and ticketed travelers will be denied airport entry by TSA.

Travel arrangers are encouraged to start checking with travelers to make sure they are aware of the coming change.  This is especially true when booking client travel.  Early and ongoing communication will help ensure all Alaskans are prepared for this change on October 1, 2020.

THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

• The REAL ID application requires a visit to a local DMV.
• The cost is $20 more than the standard ID, but the REAL ID is valid for eight years vs five years for the standard ID. 
• The biggest challenge in getting a REAL ID is gathering all the proper and acceptable documents to prove identity and residency. However, following the Alaska DMV’s handy interactive checklist will ensure you are prepared before you go to register.
• Due to REAL ID, DMV offices are busier than normal. Remember before you head off to register, you can check the DMV webcams in several locations throughout the state.
• DMV’s Business Partners can assist you with most of your DMV business.  Check here to find a location and their services near you.

Code Share Flights

The term “code share” is commonly used in the airline industry. It is a business agreement that allows two carriers to strengthen or expand their market presence without affecting their operational cost.

A carrier can publish and market a flight under its own carrier designator, but it is operated by another carrier. This provides travelers with a greater number of destinations and itinerary options.

Due to the restrictive nature of the code share flights we do not recommend them for basic travel within the state of Alaska (for example, between Anchorage and Kodiak).  However, for out of state travel fares are typically cheaper when booked as a code share. 

CTM monitors some code share activity and in the case of basic travel they will adjust reservations if the fare is within $35 one way or $70 round trip.  This is an authorized change because it is a cost savings to the state and potential unused credit value will be less restrictive.  The travel itinerary will have the same departure and arrival times, but the itinerary will reflect the actual operating carrier and flight number, not the marketed carrier.

If a FINAL itinerary has been rebooked on the wrong flight by CTM then it should be reported immediately through the Issue Resolution process.

Prepare your Travelers for a Successful Trip

A new reference document Prepare your Travelers for a Successful Trip [PDF] has been added to the list of References and Resources located on the Travel webpages on the Division of Finance's website. This document includes some helpful reminders for Travel Desks and Travelers and hopefully will serve as a handy reference.