The General Services Administration on Sept. 22 will amend U.S. federal travel regulations to clarify required online booking tool deployment

, according to a final rule communicated this week in the Federal Register. According to the filing, government agencies "must prepare to implement ETS [the eGov Travel Service] as expeditiously as possible ... with full deployment required no later than Sept. 30, 2006. Your agency should work with the Office of Management and Budget to allocate budget and personnel resources to support ETS migration and data exchange." The regulations also more clearly define when government travelers can use airfares other than those negotiated with airlines and encourage agencies to consider cheaper, more restrictive fares when applicable.