I found this on the City website under Staff Responses: http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=16236
By: Diane Benjamin
Update to this story: https://blnnews.com/2018/03/23/bloomington-more-one-voice/
I FOIA’d the receipts to see why the cost was different for Black, Renner, and Rasmussen.
Black drove himself to Chicago and flew from there to DC.
Rasmussen left on a flight at 6:26 in the morning with the EDC group.
Tari’s is more expensive because he took a later flight at 10:10.
See the trip schedule HERE
Your tax dollars ($1600 for each) were used to furnish alcohol:
Tari’s ticket says he flew Economy with preferred seating:
Renner flew Business/First class, there are NO RT flights that expensive to DC in Coach/Economy from ORD OR BMI. He’s special you know…OR he took Margo with him. Flat out – there are NO other explanations.
The ticket say economy
I added the ticket to the story
These idiots REALLY need to learn how to buy airline tickets – these are the dumbest people I have ever seen. They waste money so bad it defies belief which shows that they REALLY don’t care at ALL how much of other people’s money they spend OR they are really just that stupid. It’s one or the other. Also, why can’t Tarry be driven to Chicago or take the Peoria shuttle? That in itself would save a bunch of money. Flying from BMI is just a waste of money unless it is to maybe Orlando or some other place they have cheap flights to and there aren’t too many of those. I’m so sick of these people.
Tari is a liberals democrat, spend, spend, and then spend some more. $1100 to D.C. heck, you can fly transcontinental to Europe for that! Something is fishy here, as a ticket should NOT be that much. UNLESS, he happened to wait until the VERY LAST minute, in which case WHY didn’t he buy his ticket sooner IF he knew he was going?
That’s another possibility – but they do know weeks in advance so it is no excuse.
I think this bothers me so much because I search and search for the most economical airfare, even if I don’t REALLY have to in order to save money – if someone else was paying for it I would do exactly the same. I bet Tarry is the kind who also orders the most expensive thing on the menu and top shelf call drinks if someone else is footing the bill –
This waste of public money infuriates me.
Renner used to buy lunch for himself and his buddies several times per week at the most expensive restaurants in town until his P-Card was taken away. Yes, he doesn’t care how he spends public funds because he thinks he’s worth it.
Oh you KNOW he thinks he’s worth it.
The next EDC director needs to end this madness. Video conference, brown bag lunch, period.
Too much common sense!
EDC needs to be disbanded.
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Painful, so painful. $1,160 for a ticket to DC? NOBODY (other than Renner) pays that for a ticket to DC.
I know it has been stated before, but why are the taxpayers being stuck for thousands of dollars for these people to travel to DC, when our representatives all have local offices that we are already paying to rent and staff?
Did Black submit a reimbursement request for his mileage? If so that’s yet another $150 or so.
I haven’t seen it yet if he did.
Diana Hauman’s ticket is yet to be reported as well.
Rumor has it Renner waited to the last minute to order his ticket. This trip would be his fifth and he can’t make reservations in a timely fashion?
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They’re just not good at managing much of anything. This council and mayor are failures. They suck at just about everything they do.
That applies to all government. Their power must be limited because they will never be fiscally responsible when they can just raise more taxes instead.
Ya know if a person is say an executor of a trust fund, that person has a fiduciary responsibility. If that person spends money even innocently, to maintain monies, even such as make a bad investment, the beneficiaries can call this person into question in court and have that person removed, even if no criminal intent is there. Does getting elected mayor give a person free reign to just pen away other people’s money in this manner? Is Diane’s website the only eye being kept here?
Well it sure wouldn’t be the Pravdagraph or WJBC keeping an eye on their horrible waste