The National Mediation Board (NMB) is informing all railroad neutrals that all of the funding allocated for Section 3 activities has been obligated for this fiscal year. As a result, the Board will not authorize any travel expenses or compensation days for arbitrators to write or hear cases during the months of August and September. This past fiscal year the NMB has experienced a large number of arbitrators requesting days.

All arbitrators are reminded that you can neither travel to hear any cases nor submit any work on any cases if the board or NRAB case is one in which the NMB will compensate the arbitrator. The Anti-Deficiency Act precludes arbitrators from hearing any cases even if no travel is involved. The Act also precludes you from hearing cases for free.

I appreciate the efforts this past year from arbitrators who promptly returned unused days allowing the NMB to quickly recycle those days. This memorandum does not apply to party pay boards or cases.