OMB rolls back restrictions on travel, conference spending

Spending rules issued in the wake of the General Service Administration’s 2010 Las Vegas conference scandal capping how much federal agencies could spend on employee travel and meetings have been quietly softened in the years since the infamous gathering.

The Office of Management and Budget Wednesday said it would “entertain” requests from agencies to increase their travel expenses if officials could demonstrate new justifications that have arisen since the tighter rules went into effect in 2012.