Reconciliation of travel advances and travel liquidations

Abstract

This thesis was an investigation of the causes that prevented the matching of the accounting line associated with an advance travel payment with the accounting line associated with the liquidation payment or collection for shore activities serviced by the Fleet Accounting and Disbursing Center Pacific, San Diego, CA. Utilizing a random sample of 179 standard document numbers from fiscal year 1989, the researcher concluded that the two major causes preventing the matching of an advance to the liquidation were document type code errors and execution code errors. Both types of errors are attributable to input error. The researcher identified manual inputs, multiple activity processing and inadequate management reports as the three major barriers affecting the travel reconciliation process. Recommendations designed to prevent input errors and to improve the travel accounting process were provided.