Government
Gov. Rick Scott: Leaving on His Own Jet Plane
Using his Raytheon Hawker 400, this governor pays for all his air travel
Around the State
A Raytheon Beechcraft Hawker 400 XP, similar to the jet owned by Gov. Rick Scott | Credit: Hawker Beechcraft
In fact, Scott personally picks up the tab for all official and personal flights on his Raytheon Hawker 400 jet.
"Governor Scott does not bill Florida or get any reimbursement for his private [jet] flights. It's his plane and he pays the bills," says Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the governor. "Any time his plane flies, he pays for it -- whatever the reason for the travel."
Such clear-blue-sky transparency is a far cry from the controversial itineraries of his predecessor and previous Cabinet members.
In 2009, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink and Attorney General Bill McCollum took flak for their frequent use of state planes.
Sink took hundreds of flights on state aircraft at taxpayer expense. McCollum logged fewer trips but, like Sink, often dispatched state planes to pick him up near his home. Both Sink and McCollum -- each of whom ran for governor -- faced ethics complaints over their trips.
Gov. Charlie Crist tended to avoid the state planes, instead relying on private-jet owners to ferry him around.
The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported in 2009 that Crist hopped on businessmen's planes more than 100 times during his first two years in office. All were Republican Party fund-raisers, who either gifted the flights or were reimbursed by the state party.
Crist said he paid for his private flights, but declined to say how much.
Gov. Jeb Bush got the jet set revved up in 2003 when the state bought a $5.3 million Cessna Citation jet for his use.
Citing the $3.5 million-a-year cost to maintain the state's two planes, Scott sold the Cessna and a King Air 350 turboprop last month.
State Senate Ways and Means Chairman J.D. Alexander had previously called for the sale of at least one of the planes, noting the propensity for top politicians to mix business and pleasure in the air.
But when Scott actually sold both aircraft for $3.66 million, the Lake Wales Republican accused the governor of overstepping his authority. Scott responded that the sale was within his scope of responsibility, and he advised his colleagues to find alternate means of transportation.
Scott's Hawker 400 is a seven-passenger, twin-engine jet that can hit speeds of 539 mph. Selling for $7 million-plus, the plane's manufacturer, Raytheon Beechcraft, calls it "the world's best light-jet value."
In addition to maintaining, fueling and staffing his jet (which requires a two-pilot crew), the governor pays to park it.
"Just as he’s taking a salary of just 1 cent, he pays for all expenses related to the operation of the aircraft out of his own pocket, even though it’s for state business," said Brian Burgess, communications director for the governor's office. "He pays the tie-down fees, too."
Even the old Department of Management Services sign has been removed from the parking spot "because that's no longer being funded by the state," Burgess added.
After shuttling Scott to Washington, D.C., last week for meetings with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and others, the governor's jet was back in service Tuesday, heading to the Midwest.
Starting in Chicago, Scott is scheduled to make a two-day, four-city swing as part of a "Share a Little Sunshine Tour" to promote Florida tourism.
The jet will carry Scott, two staffers from VisitFlorida, up to three staffers from Scott's office and an FDLE agent -- again, all on the governor's dime, Burgess said.
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Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
Comments (19)
A pathilogical liar will tell you anything if you will listen.
The Koch brothers are destroying this country.
So when our citizens elect our next governor, who might not be a billionaire, we'll end up having to spend even more money so that he has the ability to use a private plane for state business, just like Gov. Scott does. Or does Mr. Scott think that all governors should be billionaires that can afford to donate their airplanes fuel and upkeep to the taxpayers?
Thank you Rick Scott!
Don't you have more lawsuits to file against each other? Perhaps a deposition or two? Where exactly does the funding for these lawsuits come from? Wealthy backers I presume.
BTW, why is it that whenever an American voices their opinion and it doesn't agree with the talking points of Limbaugh, Hannity or Beck we are immediately labeled by someone claiming to representing the 'Tea Party' as "whinny socialists" ???
To better understand us Tea Partiers, you need to understand where we come from. You see, the Tea Party was materialized by a defunct group of Libertarians who realized that their political movement was not going anywhere fast. So in an effort to revitalize their efforts to destroy (not minimize) government they were approached by several different millionaires to systematically privatize everything in the public sector. Google the Koch brothers and you'll see who funds, mobilizes and scripts all of the Tea Party rallies. The Koch brothers, just like several other corporate fat cats, see government as an intrusion governments require corporations to the following: paying corporate taxes, requiring companies to offer sustainable employee benefits, and hold corporations accountable. So now that we Tea Party candidates (aka Libertarians in Republicans clothing) have been elected to office, we can hack and slash public programs such as state pensions, education, and other vital state programs that may improve our quality in life. It is in our best interest to kill any form of eduction because an largely educated population would learn about our real agenda and would vote us out of office. So suppressing education is the best way to guide the blinded sheep. Oh, and to answer you question about Limbaugh, Hannity, or Beck and the loosely use of the term "socialist", well that one is easy. Did I forget to mention our most effective weapon in herding people to the polls? It's Fear. Yes, we loosely use words like "Terrorist" "WMD" and now "Socialist". Anything we can do to spook people into voting for us. Once we are in we pretty much do whatever we want and disregard the masses, that's even if the masses blindly voted us in to power...that's the Tea Party's way. Ordinarily I wouldn't expose the secret ingredients to our secret sauce but since I'm now in office I guess you knowing how we operate doesn't really matter. Hope this helps.
Your assertion that the Koch Brothers are behind the Tea Party is laughable, who funds the progressive left liberals? George Seros. What is that I hear? Crickets?
Beck has been right about so many things, I have lost count. Yes, there are terrorists in this world who want to see the US fail, and the current administration cannot bring themselves to say 'war on terrorism'. The Obama administration has surrounded themselves with self-proclaimed Communists and socialists who of course we are going to call them on it.
Thank you Governor Scott, and much to the whining left who lost in historic numbers, the people of the State of FL who elected you, thank you.
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