In connection with the 2016  presidential campaign, the Secret Service provided protection for 12  individuals—4 presidential candidates, 2 vice presidential candidates, and  6 of the candidates’ family members. Secret Service’s 2016 Presidential Campaign Travel Expenses Totaled Approximately $58 Million, Including $17.1 Million in Reimbursements to the Campaign Committees

The Secret Service’s travel expenses for the 12 individuals protected  during the 2016 presidential campaign totaled approximately $58 million,  according to our analysis of Secret Service data. In the case of  campaign travel, Secret Service special agents often fly with protected  individuals on aircraft chartered by the campaign committees. The Secret  Service reimburses the campaign committees for the number of seats  occupied by special agents on board each charter flight. Secret Service Did Not Always Follow its Travel Policies, Resulting in Overpayments of at Least an Estimated $3.9 Million

		Secret Service Generally Followed its Policies and Applicable Regulations for Lodging Payments during the 2016 Presidential Campaign for the Trips Reviewed

We reviewed special agents’ lodging expenses while accompanying  individuals protected during the 2016 presidential campaign on 40  randomly selected overnight trips. Under this policy, the Secret Service is to pay  the lower of two applicable fares when reimbursing the campaign  committees for special agents’ travel on chartered aircraft flights. Instead, the Secret Service solely paid the pro rata  fare to the campaign committees. Despite being aware of the error for eight months before the end of the  2016 presidential campaign that the pro rata fare should be compared to  the lowest available first-class airfare, the Office of the Chief Counsel did  not ensure the agency reverted to its long standing policy. As  a result of solely reimbursing the pro rata fare instead of reimbursing the  lower of the pro rata fare versus the lowest commercially available first- class airfare, we estimate based on our sample of 650 flight segments  that the Secret Service overpaid the 4 campaign committees at least $3.9  million for special agents’ seats on chartered aircraft. Federal agencies are generally required to try to collect on debts— including overpayments—they determine are owed to them. A federal  debt or claim is any amount of funds that has been determined by an  appropriate official of the federal government to be owed to the United  States. Until the Secret Service determines  the amounts owed and how it will proceed with seeking repayment from  the various  campaign committees, these funds will not be recovered by  the federal government. Consistent with the federal debt collection authorities as provided in 31  U.S.C. chapter 37, the Director should complete the process of  calculating the amounts of its overpayments to the campaign committees  for special agents’ seats on chartered aircraft during the 2016 presidential  campaign, and determine how it should proceed with respect to collecting  on identified debts. To determine how much the Secret Service incurred in travel-related  expenses, we obtained expense data from the Secret Service for each of  the individuals protected for the 2016 presidential campaign. To determine the extent to which the Secret Service’s payments and  reimbursements for travel-related protection expenses were made in  accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and policies, we analyzed  the Secret Service’s lodging payments and charter aircraft  reimbursements. With regard to whether the Secret Service reimbursed the four campaign  committees the correct amounts for special agent travel on campaign  chartered aircraft, we compared the Secret Service’s payments to the  committees to our estimate of what the Secret Service would have paid  had its own charter aircraft reimbursement policy been followed.
Why GAO Did This Study

The Secret Service incurs millions of dollars in travel expenses to provide security during the fast-paced operational tempo of a presidential campaign. In connection with the 2016 presidential campaign, the Secret Service provided protection for four presidential candidates, two vice presidential candidates, and six of the candidates' family members.
GAO was asked to review the Secret Service's travel-related expenses for the 2016 presidential campaign. This report examines (1) how much the Secret Service incurred in travel-related expenses, and (2) the extent to which travel-related payments and reimbursements were made in accordance with laws, regulations, and policies. GAO analyzed Secret Service data to determine the travel expenses incurred by the agency for the 2016 presidential campaign. GAO also randomly selected 40 overnight trips to assess the Secret Service's compliance with provisions of its lodging policies and the Federal Travel Regulation. GAO analyzed the Secret Service's payments to campaign committees to determine whether committees were reimbursed the correct amounts for charter flights.

What GAO Found

The U.S. Secret Service's (Secret Service) travel expenses during the 2016 presidential campaign totaled approximately $58 million. Of the $58 million, $17.1 million was for reimbursements to the four campaign committees for chartered aircraft flights. In the case of campaign travel, Secret Service special agents often fly with protected individuals on aircraft chartered by the campaign committees. The Secret Service reimburses the campaign committees for the number of seats occupied by special agents on board each charter flight.
For the 40 overnight trips GAO reviewed, the Secret Service generally followed its policies and regulations for lodging payments. However, GAO found that the agency overpaid the campaign committees at least an estimated $3.9 million when reimbursing them for special agents' seats on charter flights. Since at least 1977, the Secret Service's policy has been to pay the lower of two fares when reimbursing campaign committees for special agents' travel on chartered aircraft flights. Specifically, the Secret Service is to pay the lower of the following two fares: the lowest commercially available first-class airfare, or the pro rata fare—the cost of the agent's seat on the charter flight calculated by taking the total cost of the charter divided by the number of passengers on board. However, during the 2016 presidential campaign, Secret Service officials misinterpreted a Federal Election Commission regulation, and as a result, did not conduct the comparison. Instead, the Secret Service solely paid the pro rata fare to the campaign committees. Eight months before the end of the 2016 presidential campaign, Secret Service officials determined the interpretation was erroneous, but did not ensure the agency reverted to its long standing policy. During these 8 months, 66 percent of all campaign-related flights with special agents on board were taken.
Federal agencies are generally required to collect on debts that have been determined by an appropriate official of the federal government to be owed to the United States. Debts include overpayments. Pursuing debt collection, however, will require the Secret Service to calculate the specific amount it overpaid to the campaign committees and determine how to proceed with seeking repayment from the various committees, as appropriate.

What GAO Recommends

GAO is making five recommendations, including that the Secret Service should (1) calculate its overpayments to the campaign committees for special agents' seats on chartered aircraft flights, and (2) determine how it should proceed with respect to collecting on identified debts. The Department of Homeland Security concurred with the recommendations and identified actions underway to address them.