News-Record.com

Friday's No. 2 editorial.

It’s official: Mary Easley’s European trips charged taxpayers for “unallowable” and “unreasonable” expenses.

The public knew that from media reports months ago, but an investigation by the state auditor confirms it.

First-class travels by North Carolina’s first lady and state employees to France in 2007 and Russia and Estonia this year yielded bills for luxury hotels, fancy dinners, alcoholic drinks, a linen jacket charged as a meal and a costly chauffeured SUV. The most notable item was a caviar cocktail for $332.

The junkets were arranged by the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. Easley supports state arts programs, but her official duties overseas were minimal. Her presence, however, seemed to have extended the itinerary and upgraded the travel arrangements to top-of-the-line.
The trouble, as the auditor pointed out, is state policy. Government employees aren’t permitted to charge the state for luxury meals and accommodations. That applies to the first lady, too. It’s strictly prohibited to put alcoholic beverages on the expense account and, of course, to misrepresent a personal clothing purchase as a meal. That was done by the first lady’s former executive assistant, the auditor said.

A spokesman for Gov. Mike Easley said the first lady was asked to go on the trip by Department of Cultural Resources leaders and simply did what they asked — as if she were force-fed caviar on a silver spoon.

Staci Meyer, the department’s chief deputy secretary, said the “unallowed” expenses have been repaid and, after “thoughtful consideration,” the expenditures deemed unreasonable will be, too. Thoughtful consideration for taxpayers would have avoided these expenditures in the first place.

What Mrs. Easley says isn’t known. She didn’t make herself available for an interview by the state auditor.

If she was out of the country, let’s hope the taxpayers don’t get the bill.