Borough assembly tightens reins on travel budget

PALMER -- If travel by the Mat-Su Borough Assembly is to take place on the borough's dime, assembly members must now approve of any money spent if it's not coming from money already set aside for travel.

Assembly members have two travel accounts set up in the borough budget. One handles in-borough travel expenses, such as mileage for to-and-from meeting costs and expenses. The other covers out-of-borough travel expenses, which can range from covering mileage to and from meetings in Anchorage, to lobbying trips to Juneau or lobbying trips to Washington, D.C., and other out-of-borough trips. In the 2003 budget, $7,500 was set aside for mileage reimbursement and assembly travel within the borough, while $25,000 was set aside for out-of-borough travel.

The ordinance that was before the assembly last Tuesday came at the request of Assembly member Talis Colberg, who said he was surprised to learn funds from other areas of the borough's budget were being used for assembly travel.

"What prompted me was the trip [by three assembly members last winter] to D.C.," Colberg said. "That was the first time I learned the assembly could actually travel on funds other than the assembly travel budget."

Funds from the borough's budget for the port were used, in part, to finance that trip. If funds could be pulled from other sources to finance assembly travel, Colberg said, why bother to create the budget?

On Jan. 9 this year, Borough Manager John Duffy got word the borough could lose its funding for a ferry traveling across the Knik Arm to Anchorage after Sen. Ted Stevens changed his mind about his support of the ferry project. Duffy called a few assembly members to see who could travel and booked flights for himself and Port Director Marc Van Dongen, along with borough assembly member Jody Simpson and then-assembly member Sara Jansen to Washington, D.C. Duffy and the other assembly members met with members of the Alaska delegation and discussed the ferry project, with the intent of securing the $11 million previously set aside for the ferry terminal.

Simpson said she supported the intent of Colberg's motion, but would like to see a provision made for last-minute trips such as the D.C. trip in January.

Assembly member Mary Kvalheim amended the motion to allow assembly members approval for other funds if three assembly members gave written approval. That motion failed by a 4-3 vote after some assembly members said they were uncomfortable putting that power in the hands of only three assembly members. Instead, Colberg suggested an emergency meeting be called if last-minute travel needs arise. An emergency meeting of the assembly can be called with only 24 hours notice. Assembly member Bruce Bush said he believed the emergency-meeting stipulation would make sure everyone on the assembly knew about travel issues, also an issue related to the January D.C. trip, which some assembly members did not find out about until the next assembly meeting.

"When those people went to Washington, we weren't informed of it," Bush said. "This is a way to keep track of who's going where."