We don’t begrudge Gov. Bill Ritter the use of a state plane for official business. He’s the governor, after all, and Colorado is a big state.
And despite what critics are saying, flying what averages out to be less than twice a month is hardly an abuse of a government perk.
Similarly, we don’t think it’s a huge problem with the governor taking his daughter and her friend along to a conference in Jackson Hole, as The Denver Post reported Wednesday.
If it was a habit, it’d be one thing. But one trip is nothing to get excited about. To be clear, the cost of the plane is billed hourly, and not on a per-passenger basis.
There are, however, boundaries that the governor ought to observe in making a state plane available to non-government officials.
For example, Ritter campaign advisor David Kenney shouldn’t be flying aboard a state plane with the governor on a swing through Colorado.
Sen. Michael Bennet, who Ritter had just appointed to fill the Senate vacancy, accompanied the governor and Kenney.
For the record, Kenney reimbursed the state for his travel, paying $1,070 for his share of the airfare on the trip. But Kenney’s job is to shape campaigns, and he shouldn’t be along for official government business.
It raises legitimate questions about whether the trip had more to do with politics than policy.
In these difficult financial times, it’s important to scrutinize expenses and make do with less whenever feasible.
We don’t think the governor’s use of state planes has been much over the line, but it deserves continued scrutiny.
