Board of Contract Appeals
                 General Services Administration
                      Washington, D.C. 20405


                      ______________________

                          April 4, 1997
                     _______________________


                         GSBCA 13800-RELO


                 In the Matter of ERNEST D. ELLIS


     Ernest D. Ellis, Des Moines, IA, Claimant.

     John H. Eschenbrenner, Deputy Director of Financial Services, Defense Finance and
Accounting Service, Columbus Center, Columbus, OH, appearing for Department of
Defense.

PARKER, Board Judge.

     Today, the Board convened a telephone conference with the parties.  Mr. Ellis, the
claimant, represented himself; Ms. Loper and Ms. Hughes represented the Defense Finance
and Accounting Service (DFAS).

     After clarifying that Mr. Ellis is seeking to be reimbursed for his move from
Columbus, Ohio to West Des Moines, Iowa under the "commuted rate" method, the Board
asked the DFAS representatives why they had not settled the claim after receiving the Board's
recent decisions in several similar cases.  In those cases, the Board held that where an agency
authorizes an employee to be reimbursed under the "commuted rate" method of shipping
household goods, it may not then pay the employee under the "actual expense rate" method
based upon a cost comparison performed after the move has occurred.  Jeffrey P. Herman,
GSBCA 13832-RELO (Dec. 6, 1996).  This is exactly what happened to Mr. Ellis.

     The DFAS representatives agreed that Mr. Ellis should be paid based upon the Board's
previous decisions, and requested that the Board issue a memorandum for DFAS's files
memorializing both the conference and  DFAS's agreement to pay Mr. Ellis.  This
memorandum was prepared for that purpose, and to explain why the Board is now removing
the case from our docket.




                                   _____________________
                                   ROBERT W. PARKER
                                   Board Judge