Arizona House speaker repays state $12K for travel errors
House Speaker David Gowan has reimbursed the state more than $12,000 for travel expenses taxpayers shouldn't have paid for.
Gowan's check for $10,411 cleared state accounts a month ago, according to records from the Arizona Department of Administration. An additional $1,655 payment reimbursed Gowan's legislative per diem of $60 a day.
The money pays back Gowan's double-dip into taxpayer funds, something his office says was inadvertent. The Arizona Capitol Times uncovered the issue last month while examining travel expenses for members of the House of Representatives.
Gowan's office clarified that the money came from his personal accounts, not campaign funds.
The legislator, R-Sierra Vista, represents a geographically large district in southeastern Arizona and is running for Congress in the sprawling 1st District. However, none of his travel using state-fleet vehicles was for political purposes, according to a review his office conducted of his 2015 journeys.
The speaker released his calendar and travel records to the public as proof he was properly using taxpayer money. The greatest share of his repayment — $9,683 — was for mileage checks he received for using his personal vehicle, when in fact he was using one of the state's, a mistake made by Gowan's assistant, spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said. The figure also includes reimbursement for several instances where Gowan's staff overestimated the mileage involved.
As a lawmaker, Gowan is entitled to reimbursement for mileage to and from his district, as well as for legislative-related travel.
The per-diem reimbursement was the result of an abundance of caution, Grisham said, after staff scrubbed Gowan's 2015 calendar and found it didn't fully account for days on which he received the $60 payment. They suspect he might have overpaid the state but erred on the side of caution.
Another $727 payment covered the costs of keeping a fleet vehicle longer than was needed for the intended travel, Gowan's office said.
It is against state policy to use state vehicles for personal use, a rule Tony Bouie, who resigned as head of the Arizona State Lottery in January, was found violating.
Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com and follow her on Twitter @maryjpitzl.
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