State senators Lisa Boscola and Robert Mensch made the top 10 among the state Senate members. Vote in the NEWS POLL.
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For Pennsylvania state Rep. Joe Brennan led the Lehigh Valley delegation in collecting per diem reimbursements for the 2011-12 session.
Jailed former state Rep. Joe Brennan collected nearly $44,000 for work-related expenses for food and lodging during the two-year legislative session that ended in December — the seventh-most of all Pennsylvania lawmakers, according to a newspaper’s review.
In all, Pennsylvania legislators collected $3.9 million for work-related expenses for food and lodging in addition to their annual base salaries, which are $83,802 this year, a report by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review found.
Brennan, a Democrat from Fountain Hill who resigned from the Legislature after his arrest last August on charges of drunken driving and simple assault, collected $43,898 for per diem food and lodging costs in 2011-12, data show.
Brennan, 47, reported to Lehigh County Prison on Jan. 7 to begin serving a 90-day to 23-month sentence issued by Lehigh County Judge Maria Dantos.
Two state senators who represent the Lehigh Valley made the list of the top 10 senators collecting per diems — Sen. Lisa Boscola, a Democrat who collected $22,258, No. 5 in the Senate; and Sen. Bob Mensch, a Republican who collected $22,202, at No. 6, according to the Tribune-Review.
Neither Boscola nor Mensch immediately returned messages seeking comment today.
Tops in Senate
Tops in the Senate was Sen. Timothy J. Solobay, a Democrat from Washington County who collected $32,827 in 2011-12, according to the Tribune-Review.
Lawmakers are not required to show receipts for the per diem expenses, which cover travel, lodging and meal expenses while on government business.
Rep. Dom Costa, a Democrat from Allegheny County, racked up the most in per diem expenses of all 203 representatives in the House and the 50 senators — $55,495.
Costa says he was entitled to the reimbursements.
“I am not apologizing for per diems,” he told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review in a story published Sunday. “I am not making excuses. It’s not a perk. It’s part of the job.”
Costa said he serves on active committees and he attended dozens of hearings in Philadelphia, where costs are higher than in western Pennsylvania or Harrisburg.
Rates for travel in various cities are set by the federal government and the allowances for daily expenses may be adjusted seasonally. Rates last year for trips to Harrisburg were about $160 a day. For overnight travel to Philadelphia, they were $242 a day.
Per diem regulations
Lawmakers who live more than 50 miles from Harrisburg can claim full per diem expenses for food and lodging on any day the Legislature is in session or they're on legislative business. Lawmakers are eligible for per diems so long as they're recorded on the House master roll or in Harrisburg on non-session days for business, such as committee hearings.
Information about individual legislators’ expenses is difficult to obtain unless they voluntarily make it available. Getting a list requires filing right-to-know requests with the House and Senate.
Last month, Gov. Tom Corbett and legislators unveiled a new website called PennWATCH that was developed under a law designed to promote transparency in state government, but it does not include legislative expenses.
“With PennWATCH being touted as a gateway to accountability, all legislative expenses and expenditures should be listed, including per diems, perks, pensions and travel,” said Eric Epstein, of the government-reform group Rock the Capital.
Legislators have the option of being reimbursed for specific expenses.
Sen. Randy Vulakovich said he turns in a receipt for his hotel costs of about $70 a night and does not seek reimbursement for his meals.
The Allegheny County Republican said he has no problem with colleagues collecting per diems since the federal government sets the rate and the payments are capped.
“I just think there should be a receipt,” Vulakovich said.