Florida's elder affairs chief has racked up nearly $70,000 in travel bills in less than three years, much of it by driving his car between the capital and Orlando, where Douglas Beach owns a home and where his wife lives.
But his colleagues around the state say the cost is worth it: They praise Beach for being accessible and well informed.
Beach, secretary of the Department of Elder Affairs, has been reimbursed $69,000 since 2007, including $32,000 for nearly 72,000 work-related miles driven in his Ford Explorer. That's the equivalent of circumnavigating the globe nearly three times.
"One of my requirements in federal law as well as in state statute is to be the chief advocate for seniors in the state of Florida," Beach said. "And I don't think you can do that behind a desk in Orlando or Tallahassee."
Beach, who earns $120,000 a year, ran Orlando's aging agency before taking the state job. He oversees a budget of about $700 million and said his travel helps him connect with 11 regional area agencies on aging that contract with the state to provide meals, in-home care, transportation and other services to Florida seniors
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Florida's Elder Affairs Chief Racks Up $69,000 in Travel Expenses
4 comments:
There have been story after story of courts having their budget cut and being barely able to operate.
Here looks like one reason why.
He shouldn't be paid to drive to work. If he worked at McDonalds, he sure wouldn't get paid for the drive.
No difference here.
Moderation is the key here. Moderate travel expenses are expected.
$69,000 sounds like much more than moderate.
If the Florida Chief in charge of Elder Affairs is overchanging, no wonder all lawyers under him think they can charge the ward's estate astronomical rates. Of course these guys are going to sing his praises since they are dipping into the vast pot of gold too!
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