Palin to pay for family's travel expenses
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, last year’s Republican vice presidential candidate, will reimburse the state nearly $7,000 for costs associated with nine trips taken by her children, her attorney said.
Mrs Palin must reimburse the state within 120 days, according to a settlement agreement filed by a special investigator hired by the Alaska Personnel Board to investigate an ethics complaint filed against her.
The exact amount will be determined by the Alaska Department of Administration, said Mrs Palin’s attorney, Thomas Van Flein. He estimated the amount would be 6,800 US dollars.
There is no state law prohibiting the governor’s family from travelling with her and the personnel board found no wrongdoing on the part of the governor.
But the investigator, Timothy Petumenos, interpreted the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act to require that the state only pay if the first family serves an important state interest.
Mr Petumenos said “some of the travel raised by the Complaint does not meet this standard,” according to the agreement.
Mr Van Flein said 72 travel authorisations were studied, with nine found to be of questionable state interest.
Those include airfare and one meal for her daughter Bristol Palin, who accompanied the governor to New York for Newsweek’s Third Annual Women and Leadership Conference in October 2007.
Other trips include Bristol attending Beauty and the Beast at the Valley Performing Arts Centre, airfare for daughters Piper and Bristol to travel to Juneau from Anchorage for the State of the State address and airfare for Piper to attend the start of the Iron Dog snowmachine race and the Alaska Outdoor Council Banquet.
In a statement, Mrs Palin said she was gratified that no fault was ascribed to her. She said she agreed to support a clarification of the rules to avoid similar disputes in the future.
“Although I am not required to do so, I will set a new standard on travel now by assuming the burden of these particular expenses,” Mrs Palin said.
The former Republican vice presidential candidate called the complaint “an obvious political weapon” filed just before the election.
