State-Run University Spent $96,000 on First-Class Airline Tickets
Deena Winter /
LINCOLN, Neb. — The University of Nebraska has been dinged by the state auditor for allowing employees to spend nearly $96,000 on 20 first-class flights around the world, book $300-a-night oceanfront resort rooms for a week and get reimbursed for alcohol while traveling, in violation of state law.
While digging through travel records, auditors found 20 first-class airline tickets costing nearly $96,000 charged by the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The state accounting manual requires reimbursement for flights be limited to coach fare, if it’s available. No reasons were given for the upgrades, according to State Auditor Mike Foley’s letter to the university.
Jack Gould, issues chairman for Common Cause Nebraska, said university employees need to remember they’re spending taxpayer dollars and tuition of “students working two, three jobs.”
“Those people are working hard out there, they’re not living first-class,” Gould said.
Among the first-class UNMC trips:
- Two $3,325 flights to Frankfurt, Germany, in August 2013.
- A $5,870 flight to Turkey and then Oman in November 2013.
- A $4,341 flight to Switzerland, then San Francisco, then Hawaii, then Los Angeles, New Jersey and Milan, Italy, in July.
- An $8,355 flight to Frankfurt, Germany, and on to Nigeria in January.
- A $4,951 flight to Poland and Germany in January.
- A $7,103 flight to Germany in February-March.
- A $6,017 flight from Switzerland to San Francisco, Hawaii, back to Los Angeles and Switzerland in July.
- A $6,517 flight to Germany in April.
- A $5,676 flight to Morocco and Paris in May.
- A $8,566 flight to Paris, Tanzania and the Netherlands in June.
- A $4,953 flight to the Netherlands and India in June.
- A $6,984 flight to Paris, Morocco, Tanzania, the Netherlands in June.
- A $7,929 flight to Germany and India in September.
- A $6,267 flight to Germany and India in September.
University spokeswoman Melissa Lee said the cases cited by the auditor represent a small share of total travel.
“It’s among our highest priorities to be responsible stewards of our resources,” Lee said via email. “We’re confident in the policies we have in place for reporting travel.”