Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 7 - Jim Howard

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: As a brief reminder, the results below are broken down into different categories and time frames. The three main time frames are:

• July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017
• January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018
• July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

The major categories are Expenses, Reimbursements, and Repayments. Within the Expenses and Reimbursement categories, the data is further broken down into Transportation, Food, Lodging, Registration Fees, and Unknown. Transportation is further broken down into Gas, Tolls, Taxis, Parking, Mileage, and Airlines.

Additionally, there are special notes for data related to Virginia Association of Counties (VACo), National Association of Counties (NACo), and Anomalies. Anomalies are data points that raise questions about their veracity, missing receipts, or calculation errors.

July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017

Expenses
$402.81 in hotel charges from the Omni in Hot Springs, VA for the VACo conference. $30.00 Registration Fee for an appreciation breakfast with the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce and $250.00 for the 2017 VACo Annual Conference. Three more Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce events with Registration Fees totaling $120.00

Reimbursements
$265.79 for Mileage to three meetings, one of which was the VACo conference.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
There is a listing for "Expenses for 2017 Annual VACo Conference" with an amount of $840.04. There were no attached receipts. It's not clear if this was related to the hotel stay at the Omni or not. Additionally, the final bill from the Omni was for $1,611.24 but only $402.81 was charged to the County. We assume this is because the deposit of $402.81 was paid prior to the July 1, 2017 time frame we set for our data request. As for the other half of the total bill, $805.62, it appears Howard shared a room with another adult. We assume the County accounted for the other half of the bill by charging the amount to Howard's wife. We base this on the bill stating it was for "2 Adults" and "1 King Bed."

January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018

Jim Howard ended his term on December 31, 2017. Therefore, he is not going to show in the second six-month block of our three major time frames from January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018.

July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

Jim Howard ended his term on December 31, 2017. Therefore, he is not going to show in the third six-month block of our three major time frames from July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018.

18 Month Grand Total

Expenses totaled $1,642.85.
Reimbursements totaled $265.79.

Supervisor's Response

In an effort to hear directly from the Supervisors on the topic of travel, we asked them a few questions. Jim Howard did not respond to our email.

Continue reading:

• Part 1 - Introduction
• Part 2 - Cathy Binder
• Part 3 - Ruby Brabo
• Part 4 - Cedell Brooks
• Part 5 - Jeff Bueche
• Part 6 - Richard Granger
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion

Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 6 - Richard Granger

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: As a brief reminder, the results below are broken down into different categories and time frames. The three main time frames are:

• July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017
• January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018
• July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

The major categories are Expenses, Reimbursements, and Repayments. Within the Expenses and Reimbursement categories, the data is further broken down into Transportation, Food, Lodging, Registration Fees, and Unknown. Transportation is further broken down into Gas, Tolls, Taxis, Parking, Mileage, and Airlines.

Additionally, there are special notes for data related to Virginia Association of Counties (VACo), National Association of Counties (NACo), and Anomalies. Anomalies are data points that raise questions about their veracity, missing receipts, or calculation errors.

July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017

Expenses
$250.00 Registration Fee for the 2017 VACo Annual Conference. Although fellow Supervisor John Jenkins registered for the event, Richard Granger went instead and took advantage of the cheaper hotel at the Warm Springs Inn at a cost of $260.68.

Reimbursements
None.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
None.

January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018

Richard Granger had no travel expenses, reimbursements, or repayments during this six month period.

July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

Expenses
$225.00 Registration Fee for the 2018 VACo Annual Conference. The hotel fee for this conference was $305.73.

Reimbursements
None.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
The total bill for the stay at the Omni in Hot Springs, VA was $1,222.92. As we've seen in other hotel bills, it appears the charge of $305.73 was a deposit.

18 Month Grand Total

Expenses totaled $1,041.41.

Supervisor's Response 

In an effort to hear directly from the Supervisors on the topic travel, we asked them a few questions. Below is their unedited response.

* When it comes to the discussion and implementation of travel costs for the Board of Supervisors, how would you best explain it to a community member?

During the development of the budget for the county each fiscal year the BOS will discuss expected travel expenses.  Each board member submits a list of expected travel expenses and then the board as a whole will vote on what to approve.

As board members travel on county business they will submit receipts to be reimbursed for travel that was approved.  If there is an unexpected conference or activity that was not approved during the budget cycle a board member can request additional funds be made available to support.  If the board votes to approve then the requesting board member will be reimbursed for that travel expenditure.  If at any time a board member exceeds there travel allotment without majority consent from the board then reimbursement is not provided.

 * How much of your job requires travel?

The county has representation on a number of boards and commissions in the region.  Some of these boards and commissions are supported by board members.  The board comes to a consensus on which members will support which boards and commissions.  While I travel regionally to attend the meetings I assume you are inquiring about required travel that would be applicable for reimbursement.  Strictly speaking I would say that our job does not "require" any travel in that sense.  With that said I do feel that there are times where it is in the best interest of the county to have supervisors travel to attend meetings.  In particular I feel attending Virginia Association of County (VACO) meetings is important because VACO represent, promote and protect the interests of counties.

 * What are the benefits of using county resources for travel to outside organizations?

The main benefit is that when board members travel to outside organizations the interests of King George County are represented.  This ensures that the counties voice is heard.

 * Would you say the new plan for travel reimbursements is a good working plan or should it be tweaked a bit more to allow for county growth and development or other reasons?

I believe that the plan the BOS put in place is a good working plan.  As the county grows and evolves future boards can always revisit the policy and update as needed.

 * If any, what do you feel you have brought back to the county through your travels?

I attend VACO meetings and in particular serve on the Education Steering Committee.  When I attend these meetings I represent the county and work to help craft the stance that VACO provides to the state legislature to meet our counties needs from an educational perspective.

 * Do you have any comment on the concerns raised about the overall quantity of travel?

No Comment.  But I encourage all citizens to reach out to board members with any comments or concerns that they may have.

 * Do you feel you travel too much, too little, or just enough?

I recognize that travel reimbursement comes from the tax payers.  I take that very seriously and en-devour to limit my travel to those activities that I believe will really be of value to the county.  Personally I believe I travel just enough.

Continue reading:

• Part 1 - Introduction
• Part 2 - Cathy Binder
• Part 3 - Ruby Brabo
• Part 4 - Cedell Brooks
• Part 5 - Jeff Bueche
• Part 7 - Jim Howard
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion

Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 5 - Jeff Bueche

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: As a brief reminder, the results below are broken down into different categories and time frames. The three main time frames are:

• July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017
• January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018
• July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

The major categories are Expenses, Reimbursements, and Repayments. Within the Expenses and Reimbursement categories, the data is further broken down into Transportation, Food, Lodging, Registration Fees, and Unknown. Transportation is further broken down into Gas, Tolls, Taxis, Parking, Mileage, and Airlines.

Additionally, there are special notes for data related to Virginia Association of Counties (VACo), National Association of Counties (NACo), and Anomalies. Anomalies are data points that raise questions about their veracity, missing receipts, or calculation errors.

July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017

Jeff Bueche was elected in November 2017 and didn't take office until January 1, 2018. Therefore, he is not going to show in the first six-month block of our three major time frames from July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2018.

January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018

Expenses
$295.00 Registration Fee for the 2018 VACo County Supervisors' Forum. There was also a $515.00 Registration Fee for a NACo conference. This NACo conference also had an associated hotel bill of $1,245.59 from the Kimpton Carlyle Hotel in Dupont Circle in Washington DC. Meals for this conference were billed at $32.80. Another hotel bill for a different conference cost $233.51. The Omni in Hot Springs, VA charged $406.56.

Reimbursements
Parking fees of $159.30 were reimbursed for the NACo conference in DC.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
The total Omni bill was $1,626.24. While it appears to be common practice to charge a deposit of one quarter the total bill, the anomaly on this bill is that it was for two adults. Bueche would later repay the County $400.00 for the "spouse charge" of this VACo conference hotel bill. This repayment is not listed here or in the next six month period as it wasn't made until late February 2019. It is also $6.56 short of the actual amount owed.

July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

Expenses
$225.00 Registration Fee for the 2018 VACo Annual Conference. The County paid $304.73 for the hotel for this conference. $73.24 was paid for a meal at the conference in Hot Springs, VA. $613.46 was paid for a VACo conference. $295.00 was paid for a VACo course called "2019 Virginia County Board Chairpersons' Institute."

Reimbursements
None.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
Although the County paid $304.73 for the VACo conference hotel, there are no accompanying receipts. The County paid $613.46 for a "VACo Conference" but a note says they are "waiting for receipt." The cover sheet for the Chairpersons' Institute shows "C. Binder" but the receipt with it shows Jeff Bueche was the one registered.

18 Month Grand Total

Expenses totaled $4,240.89.
Reimbursements totaled $159.30.

Supervisor's Response 

In an effort to hear directly from the Supervisors on the topic of travel, we asked them a few questions. Below is their unedited response.

* When it comes to the discussion and implementation of travel costs for the Board of Supervisors, how would you best explain it to a community member?

The Policy was born of Citizens reaching out to there Supervisors and on social media, raising questions of why the travel, how much does this cost, is there any oversight, etc. We looked at these concerns and realized the Supervisors did not have a policy.

After multiple drafts and one on one conversations with each of my colleagues on the Board, the Board of Supervisors unanimously adopted a formal Travel Policy Amendment to provide full transparency and accountability to the Citizens of King George. See Below:

10. Board of Supervisors

a) Official travel subject to County funding by any member of the Board of Supervisors must be submitted via a spend plan to be approved by a majority of the Board of Supervisors prior to the adoption of the operational budget. Each Supervisor will provide their spend plan to the Board for consideration, to include location, duration, purpose, benefit to the County and an estimated cost for each expected travel occurrence. The spend plans will be discussed for adoption or denial during a budget work session or regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors. This process is to provide full transparency to the public on Supervisor travels for engagement with our local, regional, and national partners.

b) A Supervisor travel budget spending cap must be adopted by the BoS for each fiscal year. Should the cap be exhausted, any future travel subject to County funds must be previously approved by a majority of the Board of Supervisors during a regular meeting of the Board. Justification of said travel shall be provided to the Board in a public forum for full transparency to the public. In the event travel is not pre-approved by the Board of Supervisors, said travel, if conducted, is not subject to reimbursement.

* How much of your job requires travel?

There is actually no requirement per say, however each Supervisor has "collateral" duties and serves on committees throughout the region which do have direct and indirect implications on King George County.

* What are the benefits of using county resources for travel to outside organizations?

Since the approval of our Travel Policy Amendment, I've been asked how can I justify to the taxpayer Section c) " The Board of Supervisors will also appoint an elected official to serve as a liaison to the Virginia Association of Counties (VACO) and the National Association of Counties (NACO). This position will require additional travel outside the region and additional costs incurred......"

It simply boils down to there are things NACO and VACO lobby for that I support and things I firmly stand against. They have positions that can benefit King George and positions that could possibly be detrimental to King George. I rather have a seat at the table and have a voice in support or opposition rather than just a wait, see and react stance. We can't be isolationists, especially in a Dillon Rule State.

* Would you say the new plan for travel reimbursements is a good working plan or should it be tweaked a bit more to allow for county growth and development or other reasons?

I think this plan is sufficient and transparent, but with all policies, we don't know what the future holds and can be amended. With that said, any amendment would take place in an open meeting of the BoS and fully transparent to the citizens.

* If any, what do you feel you have brought back to the county through your travels?

I can give bullets on information I brought back, but I can also speak to what I've contributed to discussions in my travels. Lessons learned from other localities are very useful. These types of things are discussed at NACO and VACO Conferences, Also, this is where we learn of alternate funding sources available to us... ie Grants, etc. It's these travels where we learned of a FEMA Grant which is what's serving as the primary funding source for the Fairview Beach Shoreline Restoration Project. It's travels and meetings that recently brought Grant possibilities for decommissioning project of the Service Authority to the attention of Ms. Brabo who just briefed the KGSA. There are many examples of things brought back to the County, but to summarize It's about building contacts and gaining resources, we are making regional connections. With all that said, there are many things placed upon us from other Govt entities, State and Federal. I personally have met with our State elected Officials in Richmond to discuss pending legislation and the unintended consequences to KG County and some that would greatly benefit the County. Just this past month, I traveled to Tappahannock to meet with Secretary Jennings and elected officials from the region to discuss the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and the implementation of the Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP).

Below is the post report I made, which I feel conveys why I feel we must be engaged , which does take travel. From 10 April:
Good meeting this afternoon with the Tappahannock Region Local Government Rountable hosted by the Local Government Advisory Committee (LGAC) whose purpose is to advise the Chesapeake Executive Council, on how to effectively implement projects and engage the support of local governments to achieve the goals of the Bay Agreement.

As our representatives for all things related to the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and the implementation of the Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP), I was vocal about my concerns of unintended consequences to King George County. I voiced my belief that there is a very fine line between appropriate and responsible regulation and over regulation. I am of the mindset that this WIP is straddling the line. I have concerns with the cost of implementation that will fall to us locally, the impact on all future economic development, impact to our agriculture community (farms) and the overall requirements to reach the "goals".

There was a time when the Chesapeake Bay needed intervention. I acknowledge the situation was dire. It was and is a major economic driver , HOWEVER, after years of Regulatory oversight and implementations, grasses in the bay are at a level not seen in decades and the blue crab is back thriving in its waters. This observation I shared was confirmed by Secretary Jennings. The initial Phases worked. Its then that I offered up that it is an appropriate time to take pause as current regulations have shown significant improvements to the Bay. I do not believe Phase III is necessary at this point and has many consequences to rural localities. In truth, I was in the minority with my opinion, BUT, everyone seemed to share the same concerns on cost to localities. More and more, financial burdens are being shifted from the Fed, the State and Regulatory Agencies such as the EPA with no oversight.

This was one of 10 such roundtables conducted throughout the State. I believe they are listening and have gained some insight to local concerns and am hopeful they will give proper consideration

* Do you have any comment on the concerns raised about the overall quantity of travel?

Some travel may or may have not been justifiable in the past, that's for each independently elected Supervisor to justify to their constituents. However, under the new policy, ALL travel with an associated cost to the County is pre-approved in the budget process by individual trip and with an estimated cost provided.

* Do you feel you travel too much, too little, or just enough?

Just enough. For transparency, my travel budget for next year is set not to exceed $2,750.
 

Continue reading:

• Part 1 - Introduction
• Part 2 - Cathy Binder
• Part 3 - Ruby Brabo
• Part 4 - Cedell Brooks
• Part 6 - Richard Granger
• Part 7 - Jim Howard
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion

Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 4 - Cedell Brooks

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: As a brief reminder, the results below are broken down into different categories and time frames. The three main time frames are:

• July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017
• January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018
• July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

The major categories are Expenses, Reimbursements, and Repayments. Within the Expenses and Reimbursement categories, the data is further broken down into Transportation, Food, Lodging, Registration Fees, and Unknown. Transportation is further broken down into Gas, Tolls, Taxis, Parking, Mileage, and Airlines.

Additionally, there are special notes for data related to Virginia Association of Counties (VACo), National Association of Counties (NACo), and Anomalies. Anomalies are data points that raise questions about their veracity, missing receipts, or calculation errors.

July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017

Expenses
$250.00 Registration Fee for the 2017 VACo Annual Conference. $63.10 for gas to drive to and from the VACo conference and $402.81 for the hotel room at the VACo conference.

Reimbursements
None.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
The total hotel bill at the Omni in Hot Springs, VA was $805.62 but the amount billed was half of that, $402.81. However, the bill did note a "Deposit Transfer" so it's likely that there was a deposit payment made prior to July 1, 2017 and the remaining balance was what was seen in our collection of data.

January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018

Cedell Brooks ended his term on December 31, 2017. Therefore, he is not going to show in the second six-month block of our three major time frames from January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018.

July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

Cedell Brooks ended his term on December 31, 2017. Therefore, he is not going to show in the third six-month block of our three major time frames from July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018.

18 Month Grand Total

Expenses totaled $715.91.

Supervisor's Response

In an effort to hear directly from the Supervisors on the topic of travel, we asked them a few questions. Cedell Brooks did not respond to our email.

Continue reading:

• Part 1 - Introduction
• Part 2 - Cathy Binder
• Part 3 - Ruby Brabo
• Part 5 - Jeff Bueche
• Part 6 - Richard Granger
• Part 7 - Jim Howard
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion

Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 3 - Ruby Brabo

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: As a brief reminder, the results below are broken down into different categories and time frames. The three main time frames are:

• July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017
• January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018
• July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

The major categories are Expenses, Reimbursements, and Repayments. Within the Expenses and Reimbursement categories, the data is further broken down into Transportation, Food, Lodging, Registration Fees, and Unknown. Transportation is further broken down into Gas, Tolls, Taxis, Parking, Mileage, and Airlines.

Additionally, there are special notes for data related to Virginia Association of Counties (VACo), National Association of Counties (NACo), and Anomalies. Anomalies are data points that raise questions about their veracity, missing receipts, or calculation errors.

One additional note about Ruby Brabo's travel. Due to the complexity and sheer volume of travel that was done, the article below will not be as detailed as it could be. In trying to strike a balance between educating the public on the basics and sharing over 500 sheets of documents, we have tried to find an acceptable middle ground. While it would be unfair to Ms. Brabo to not share the same level of detail we have for her peers, it would also be unfair to the public to require them to wade through pages of information to get to the data they need.

July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017

Expenses
Registration Fees totaled $867.37. These included the Governor's Summit on Rural Prosperity, the 2017 VACo Annual Conference, and a Base Building Outlook meeting in Quantico. Hotel bills were $2,207.71. These included hotels in Coloumbus, Ohio, Decatur, Texas, and Frankfurt, Kentucky. Food expenses were $134.55. Parking fees totaled $311.00. Unknown expenses were $50.42 paid at the Berry Hill Resort in South Boston, Virginia. The receipt does not describe what the expense was for.

Reimbursements
Toll expenses were reimbursed for $24.70. Taxi fees were $79.66. Parking costs were $13.00. Mileage reimbursement was $725.57. Airline fees were reimbursed for $1,025.16, including $412.10 for airfare to the "KACO Conference" in Kentucky and $247.46 for the NACo Fall Board Meeting in Texas. Meals were 32.60.

Repayments
A total of $13.00 was repaid to the County. This repayment was for Parking that was reimbursed for a Leadership Forum Planning Meeting.

Anomalies
One Columbus, Ohio hotel stay in July 2017 during a NACo conference shows two adults on the bill. The stay at the Omni Resort did not include a charge of $290.22, which would have followed suit with the other bills that had a similar percentage of the final bill paid earlier as a deposit. There is also a missing receipt and bill for a charge of $41.14 to the same Omni Resort.

January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018

Expenses
Registration Fees totaled $180.00 and included the Virginia Municipal League and the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce. Hotel fees were $2,318.41 and included stays at hotels in Richmond, Virginia, Washington, D. C., and Sun Valley, Idaho. Meals totaled $121.20. Parking Expenses were $245.00. Taxi costs were $42.17. Unknown Expenses were $21.66.

Reimbursements
Tolls were reimbursed for $24.70. Parking was $22.00. Mileage reimbursement was $375.72. Airline fees were reimbursed for $883.40 for the trip to Sun Valley, Idaho. Meals totaled $10.63.

Repayments
While Ms. Brabo did not have any repayments during this time period, NACo did make two payments to her for a total of $823.43. The first payment, in the amount of $287.00, covered one night's stay at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D. C. The second payment, in the amount of $536.43, covered airfare, mileage, meals, and other fees for her trip to West Palm Beach, Florida.

Anomalies
Within the second NACo Repayment, NACo calculated mileage reimbursement incorrectly and owes another $0.32. Neither NACo Repayment had an accompanying deposit sheet for being deposited with the County. It does appear the second reimbursement was for expenses paid directly by Brabo. There was also a "Luggage Hold" reimbursement for $3.00 that had no accompanying receipt. The Unknown Expenses of $21.66 were labeled as "Parking Fees" on the County's Control Sheet but the receipt from the Washington Hilton showed the total amount was split between "Shops" ($3.16) and "Food and Beverage" ($18.50). The "Shop" line item was further described as "LE CAFE."

July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

Expenses
Registration Fees totaled $635.00 and included events by the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce and VACo. Hotel expenses were $2,889.83 and included stays at the Omni Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia, the Gaylord Resort in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Providence Marriott in Providence, Rhode Island. Parking cost $274.00, largely from airport parking lots. Taxi expenses totaled $16.56.

Reimbursements
Toll fees were reimbursed for $82.70. Parking totaled $35.00. Mileage reimbursement was $935.22. Airline costs were reimbursed for $339.31 for a NACo meeting in San Diego, California. Meals were $30.39.

Repayments
Ruby Brabo made two payments to the County for a total of $66.99. The first payment was for $56.99 to reimburse the County for a payment made to the Phoenix Park Hotel. The second payment for $10.00 was to cover a charge at the Omni Homestead Resort. NACo made two payments for a total of $722.16. The first NACo Repayment was for parking, tolls, and mileage for a total of $126.84. The second NACo Repayment was for Brabo's early arrival at the hotel in San Diego, California. This second Repayment for $595.32 was deposited by the County.

Anomalies
The stay at the Omni Resort in Hot Springs was for two adults for four nights in one King bed. The County was charged $406.56, only a quarter of the total bill of $1,626.24. This falls in line with a payment being made as a deposit. One three day trip through Delaware, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Maryland resulted in a Reimbursement of $585.49. However, not all of the documentation was fully provided for as the listing was so long it said "OVER" at the bottom. The reverse side was not included in our FOIA request and thus Toll expenses for a total of $31.85 were not shown. However, all of the receipts were in the FOIA packet. There is a payment to the George Washington Hotel for $22.87 that is unaccounted for and not documented. It only appears on the credit card bill. The first NACo Repayment had a math error and Brabo is owed $5.56.

18 Month Grand Total

Expenses totaled $10,314.88.
Reimbursements totaled $4,642.76.
Repayments totaled $79.99.
NACo Repayments totaled $1,545.59 with only $595.32 going to the County.

Supervisor's Response

In an effort to hear directly from the Supervisors on the topic of travel, we asked them a few questions. Ruby Brabo did not respond to our email.

Continue reading:

• Part 1 - Introduction
• Part 2 - Cathy Binder
• Part 4 - Cedell Brooks
• Part 5 - Jeff Bueche
• Part 6 - Richard Granger
• Part 7 - Jim Howard
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion

Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 2 - Cathy Binder

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: As a brief reminder, the results below are broken down into different categories and time frames. The three main time frames are:

• July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017
• January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018
• July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

The major categories are Expenses, Reimbursements, and Repayments. Within the Expenses and Reimbursement categories, the data is further broken down into Transportation, Food, Lodging, Registration Fees, and Unknown. Transportation is further broken down into Gas, Tolls, Taxis, Parking, Mileage, and Airlines.

Additionally, there are special notes for data related to Virginia Association of Counties (VACo), National Association of Counties (NACo), and Anomalies. Anomalies are data points that raise questions about their veracity, missing receipts, or calculation errors.

July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017

Cathy Binder was elected in November 2017 and didn't take office until January 1, 2018. Therefore, she is not going to show in the first six-month block of our three major time frames from July 1, 2017 to December 31, 2018.

January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018

Expenses
$295.00 for the 2018 VACo County Supervisor's Forum Registration Fee.

Reimbursements
None.

Repayments
None.

Anomalies
During her VACo Supervisor's Forum, Binder had a hotel bill from the Omni in Richmond, VA for $157.49 that was shown as being reported to the County but then crossed out. There is a receipt attached but it appears the County never paid for the stay or Binder never stayed in the room. The receipt for parking however shows that she stayed overnight.

July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018

Expenses
$917.19 for Lodging for a VACo conference and $265.00 for two VACo conference Registration Fees.

Reimbursements
$41.68 for Gas, $6.00 for Tolls, and $39.00 for Parking. The Gas reimbursement was related to a VACo conference.

Repayments

None.

Anomalies
None.

18 Month Grand Total

Expenses totaled $1,477.19.
Reimbursements totaled $86.68.

Supervisor's Response

In an effort to hear directly from the Supervisors on the topic of travel, we asked them a few questions. Cathy Binder did not respond to our email.

Continue reading:

• Part 1 - Introduction
• Part 3 - Ruby Brabo
• Part 4 - Cedell Brooks
• Part 5 - Jeff Bueche
• Part 6 - Richard Granger
• Part 7 - Jim Howard
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion

Board of Supervisor Travel - Part 1 - Introduction

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: One of our core principles at Project94 is that "All published pieces, except for opinion pieces, must strive for multiple perspectives, work to be unbiased, and contain the common goal of community cohesion." Sometimes our efforts to build that sense of community runs afoul of our mission to increase citizen awareness and knowledge. While we do not want to skew the reader's opinions before all of the information is published, we feel that a word of caution is necessary up front. We also encourage readers to read ALL of the articles in this series before coming to a conclusion.

On February 16, 2019, Project94 submitted a Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) request asking for information on the travel expenses incurred by the Board of Supervisors. Specifically, we asked for travel expenses as well as reimbursements from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018. That’s one fiscal year for King George County. Unlike other community members, we did not focus on just one Supervisor but instead focused on all of those in office during that time frame. That meant the following seven individuals were included in our request:

1. Cathy Binder
2. Ruby Brabo
3. Cedell Brooks, Jr.
4. Jeffrey "Jeff" Bueche
5. Richard Granger
6. James "Jim" Howard
7. John Jenkins, Jr.

The purpose of the request was not to pick on any particular person in office, past or present. It was simply an effort to put to rest the questions being asked by citizens and an effort to hopefully build some unity among those in the community by getting all of the information out in the open. It also serves as an effort to educate voters on the spending habits and trends of their elected representatives.

For clarity, the full text of our request was:

“I am requesting an opportunity to obtain copies of public records that show: - expenses paid for travel - revenue or reimbursement received for travel expenses During the following date range: - July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018 For the following people: - Cathy Binder - Ruby Brabo - Cedell Brooks, Jr. - Jeffrey "Jeff" Bueche - Richard Granger - James "Jim" Howard - John Jenkins, Jr. If there are any fees for searching or copying these records, please inform me if the cost will exceed $20. However, I would also like to request a waiver of all fees in that the disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest and will contribute significantly to the public’s understanding of travel expenses incurred by local elected officials and what expenses were reimbursed by other organizations or entities. As a member of the news media, this request is related to news gathering purposes and is not being sought for commercial purposes.”

Shortly after reviewing the data, we determined that there were more questions than answers in the information at hand. Our biggest issue was the lack of information regarding reimbursements. As it was worded in the request, we realized the County assumed we meant reimbursement payments made from the County to the Supervisors. In fact, we were asking for reimbursement payments from the Supervisors to the County. After several clarifying discussions with the County, we realized our original request was understood, there were just not as many reimbursements as we expected.

We also realized that because travel had become such a hot topic lately, we needed to include a larger time frame. So on March 11, 2019, nearly a month after the first request, we submitted a second FOIA request. Our request was similar to the one above but with a new date range of July 1, 2018 to March 1, 2019.

With the information from two different FOIA requests with the County in our hands, we began to crunch the numbers and review the data. As we began our review of the data, we were sent additional information from various community members from their own FOIA requests. While these additional FOIA documents came unsolicited, and were shared off the record, the information they contained matched the data we already had on hand.

So what did we find? Well, we found a lot. But before we share our final analysis, we encourage you to read all of the articles on all of the Supervisors. Each article will be linked below and at the bottom of each individual article in the series. Meanwhile, here's a glimpse of what we totaled up.

Expenses - These are the expenses the Supervisors recorded. These amounts were paid for directly by the County, typically through a County issued credit card.

Reimbursements - These are the expenses the Supervisors incurred personally and then asked for the County to reimburse them. In other words, the County paid the Supervisors these amounts.

Repayments - These are the amounts that were repaid to the County by the Supervisors and the National Association of Counties (NACo). For various reasons, the Supervisors paid the County back. These repayments were originally recorded as either Expenses or Reimbursements.

Continue reading:

• Part 2 - Cathy Binder
• Part 3 - Ruby Brabo
• Part 4 - Cedell Brooks
• Part 5 - Jeff Bueche
• Part 6 - Richard Granger
• Part 7 - Jim Howard
• Part 8 - John Jenkins
• Part 9 - Conclusion