THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MARCH 2024 69 Keeping It Clean AFSA NEWS After nearly two decades, we are pleased to inform our members that the State Department recently made changes to 14 FAM 563.2(4), allowing all Foreign Service employees traveling on temporary duty (TDY) within the United States for more than four consecutive nights to claim laundry, dry cleaning, and pressing costs as part of their incidental expenses. In 2003 the department removed laundry and dry-cleaning benefits for FS employees in U.S. domestic TDYs, and we’ve been working to reinstate the benefits ever since. This policy change will enable Diplomatic Security special agents involved in protective details and other assignments, as well as all those on TDY to New York City for the United Nations General Assembly and other U.S. domestic locations, to be reimbursed for the cost of keeping clean. Contact us at member@ afsa.org if you have any questions about the policy. We regret to inform you, however, that we cannot tell you how that tiny washer/dryer combo in your temporary lodging works. For that, we recommend asking your new neighbors. n AFSA Welcomes LM Intern AFSA welcomes intern Shivane Anand to our Labor Management team. Shivane is a senior at George Washington University, where he is majoring in international affairs, with a concentration in conflict resolution, and minoring in both international business and Spanish. Shivane grew up just down the road in Tyson’s Corner, Va. He plans to pursue a career in the Foreign Service because, he says “I’ve fallen in love with the endless possibilities we can create in a democratic and diplomatic world.” Shivane has played golf with his dad since he was 4 years old, and he is currently the captain of the GW club golf team. He also enjoys cooking, working out, reading, and traveling. n Shivane Anand
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