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Georgia senate spent $100,000 on 'taxpayer-funded vacation,' report says

Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan and Senate President Pro Tem Butch Miller were due to leave office a month later.

ATLANTA — A new report said that Georgia lawmakers violated senate rules when they spent close to $100,000 on a December trip to Europe.  

Five lawmakers joined former Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan on the trip – described in the report as having the appearance of a "taxpayer-funded vacation."  

The taxpayer-funded trip to Europe raised eyebrows because of its cost and its timing – just days before two of the state officials on the itinerary were due to leave state government. 

Former Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan led the economic development trip, along with former Senate President Pro Tem Butch Miller. Both men were due to leave office a month later. The trip was well documented by a senate staffer who also left state government just days later. 

A report issued by current Lt. Governor Burt Jones and current Senate President Pro Tem John Kennedy – said, “it is clear to us that their presence on the Study Committee’s European trip, did not clearly serve to advance any known educational, legislative or economic development purpose,” adding that it “has the appearance of nothing more than a taxpayer-funded vacation.”

Democratic Senator Emanuel Jones made the trip too – along with Democrats Sen. Sheikh Rahman, Sen. Sonya Halpern and Republican Sen. Clint Dixon.  

Jones said the economic development agenda of the trip was legit. "Anytime you have the lieutenant governor, the second highest ranking official of this great state planning the trip – those of us invited, we just assumed everything had been done, every T crossed and every I dotted," Jones said.

The report said the seven-day long visit to England and Germany took seven days and cost $90,194.64 for the six lawmakers, plus an estimated $9800 for a two-person security detail.  

The report recommends a new senate rule that would “prohibit outgoing Senators and an outgoing Lt. Governor from using taxpayer resources for out-of-state travel in their final six months of office or in any period after which they have lost a primary or general election.”

Jones believes the porposed senate rule is a good addition in light of the recent trip.

"Transparency is important," Jones said. "And I’m glad that’s one of the recommendations that came out of this trip."

The current senate leaders said starting next month, all out of state travel expenses by senators and the Lt. Governor will be itemized and posted on a state website.

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