The state Ethics Board said while Gov. Scott McCallum should have reimbursed the state sooner for taking his family to Rhode Island for a governor’s conference in a state-owned plane, the board will not take action against the him.
In a letter written by chair James R. Morgan, the board said a preliminary review of McCallum’s trip to the conference in 2001 determined no further action was necessary.
McCallum reimbursed the state last March, seven months after the trip. Any late fees for the delayed payment would be left up to the Administration Department.
“Although you should have made the reimbursement sooner, that is not enough to warrant further action by the Ethics Board at this time,” Morgan wrote.
The governor’s use of state airplanes has been under scrutiny by the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. The party filed an open-records request earlier this week for a copy of the check McCallum wrote to cover the flight.
Also this week, two Democratic lawmakers announced plans for a bill that would forbid a governor from using the state’s fleet for campaigning, even if the state was reimbursed.
McCallum said he repaid the state $3,420 for the flight, which included the governor’s wife, his three children and his son’s girlfriend.
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin has continued to press McCallum, and yesterday requested the Department of Administration release any records of reimbursement made by McCallum for the use of a state aircraft in connection with a July 1, 2001 flight to Colorado Springs, Colorado.
State Democrats say they have information from the Department of Administration showing the governor flew to Colorado for only an hour, then returned to Wisconsin. The governor reportedly had a staff member with him.
“It looks like an expensive, taxpayer-paid taxi service, unless there is a better explanation. If this plane was used for personal reasons, there should be a check from Governor McCallum reimbursing the taxpayers of Wisconsin,” said Lesley Sillaman, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.
