Rewrite travel reimbursement policy document
The old policy contained numerous divergences from how we actually handle travel reimbursements today, and didn't address various semi-common situations that have come up over time.
Rewrite it to resolve those issues. Here are the notable changes compared to the prior text:
- Explicitly state that reimbursement requests made without pre-authorization will be automatically denied.
- Explicitly state that if you are unable to attend the event due to personal negligence, no reimbursement will be made.
- State that being a KDE e.V. employee, contractor, or director going to work-relevant events is an adequate justification.
- Explicitly state what kind of travel and lodging expenses we can reimburse (i.e. cheap hostel/hotel, public transit).
- Mention a list of circumstances under which a taxi trip can be considered for reimbursement.
- State that food will be covered for employees and contractors attending work-relevant events.
- State that for contractors, food and lodging expenses will be reimbursed at the per diem rates set by the Bundesfinanzministerium.
- Mention the procedure for amending a request to include new unplanned yet reimbursable expenses incurred during the event.
- Require that the blog post talking about your trip not be written by AI or use AI art.
- Explicitly state that the blog post requirement is waived for employees and contractors — but always recommended anyway.
- Clarify that it's okay to make up the cost of something that ended up more expensive than expected from the pool of unneeded money approved for something that ended up less expensive than expected.
If approved, please wait for me to merge it, as I'd like to write some messaging for employees/contractors and the wider community to coincide with public availability.
Edited by Nate Graham