Per diem allowance is a specific amount of money that an organization gives an individual, typically an employee, per day to cover living expenses when traveling on the employers business. The per diem payment can cover part or all of the expenses incurred, such as accommodation, meals, and incidental expenses. The purpose of the per diem payment is to alleviate the burden on taxpayers whose business or employment travel creates duplicated expenses. The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) establishes the per diem reimbursement rates that federal agencies use to reimburse their employees for subsistence expenses incurred while on official travel within the continental U.S. (CONUS), which includes the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia. The per diem program has several standards that it follows in its systematic structured per diem methodology. The first level is having a "standard rate" that applies to approximately 85 percent of counties in the continental United States. Companies and employees can benefit from per diem allowances, as they can help companies budget more easily and in advance of future expenses, reduce or eliminate the need for employees to keep and manage receipts, reduce other kinds of paperwork to a minimum for both companies and employees, and streamline the tax-deduction process for businesses.