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<br />a/State news
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<br />.Star Tribune/Monday/July 19/1993
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<br />Gove'rnment
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<br />l THE MONDAY BRIEFING /1
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<br />Just plane unenforceable.
<br />Law requiring
<br />public officials
<br />to report flier
<br />miles criticized
<br />
<br />By David Chanen
<br />StafTWriter
<br />
<br />How can a law hailed as a model of good
<br />government be considered a failure after
<br />only three weeks on the books? ,
<br />
<br />Maybe when it's futile to implement.
<br />
<br />Nobody is arguing the Minnesota
<br />Legislature's logic behind a .new law
<br />requiring elected officials or public
<br />employees to report bonus or "frequent-
<br />flier" miles accrued through travel paid
<br />for by public funds.
<br />
<br />In fact, it was hoped that employees of
<br />larger cities such as Minneapolis could
<br />pool mileage and obtain free tickets for
<br />future business travel. But administrators
<br />throughout the state soon found out that
<br />airlines wilJ only credit miles to
<br />individuals, making enforcement of the
<br />law a logistical nightmare.
<br />
<br />. "The law would make sense if there was
<br />. really a way the city could benefit, but
<br />nobody does except the airlines," said
<br />Minneapolis City Clerk Mary Keefe.
<br />
<br />Besides the mayor, Keefe said two or
<br />three city employees travel enough to
<br />earn a free ticket. Miles collected by
<br />others will never be used, which she
<br />believes takes away a small perk that
<br />wasn't a big problem in the first place.
<br />
<br />"Travel is well monitored, partially due
<br />to budget constraints," she said. "The
<br />issue of people abusing frequent-flier
<br />miles is a phony one."
<br />
<br />Legislators intended the law to be a
<br />safcguard against possible misuse of miles
<br />earned at the public's expense. It was
<br />
<br />passed in 1992 after legislators said they
<br />heard stories (possibly anecdotal) of
<br />people turning miles accumulated from
<br />public business into personal trips.
<br />
<br />"Until now, there was no law requiring
<br />the reporting of miles, so you just hoped
<br />people were crediting their departments,"
<br />Deputy State Auditor Jim Gelbmann
<br />said."But I'm sure they all weren't." .
<br />
<br />Legislators did find some problems with
<br />the law, which is why they gave governing
<br />bodies a year to figure out how to enforce
<br />it, with the d~adline set on July 1, 1993.
<br />But with no easy solutions available,
<br />some, such as the Winona County Board,
<br />simply voted to ignore the state mandate.
<br />
<br />"We're sick and tired of it," said board
<br />Chairman Lester Ladewig. "What good is
<br />the policy for a county our size? Maybe it
<br />would help Hennepin or Ramsey County,
<br />but.. ."
<br />
<br />As a protest of principle, the board voted
<br />3.-2 against implementing the law. He said
<br />county officials rarely travcl by air and it
<br />would just create unnecessary
<br />bookkeeping.
<br />
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<br />
<br />"We got a lecture from our county
<br />attorney, who said we have to do it. And '
<br />we probably will, eventually," he said.
<br />
<br />Joel Jamnik, legislative counsel for the
<br />League of Minnesota Cities, said public
<br />agencies have a policy on record but.
<br />won't have specific details on what to do
<br />with flier miles. "Several cities have told
<br />me they've complied, but for those who
<br />are having problems, I don't have the
<br />answers for them," he said. "I think the
<br />.Legislature should probably repeal the
<br />law, but I don't know if it wilJ become a
<br />big enough issue."
<br />
<br />State Senate Secretary Pat Flahaven said,
<br />he erroneously believed Minnesota would
<br />benefit a great deal from the new law. L.
<br />Last month, the Senate Rules Committee
<br />spent a long time hashing it over and had
<br />trouble coming up with an
<br />implementation plan. The' House and
<br />Senate do have a preliminary policy.
<br />
<br />"I've never heard anything about abuse,"
<br />he said. "Travel restrictions wouldn't
<br />allow one person to pile up miles at the
<br />. Senate's expense."
<br />
<br />. While researching the law, Flahaven
<br />.found several potential administrative
<br />headaches. For example, what if a flight
<br />included business and pleasure? How
<br />would the miles be separated?
<br />
<br />, He also came across a. study by American
<br />Express which found that only 6 percent
<br />, of private companies require employees
<br />to report miles. This may be due to the
<br />low cost benefits companies would gain
<br />through free tickets, as well as the good
<br />wilJ they establish with their employees
<br />by giving them a perk..
<br />
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