The Stakeholder
Tedisco Bills Taxpayers over 21k for Travel Expenses, Despite Living 20 Minutes from State Capital
DCCC Press:
Now that Albany politician Jim Tedisco has formally launched his congressional campaign in New York's 20th Congressional District, Tedisco owes voters an explanation as to why he billed them $21,343 in oil and gas receipts for his taxpayer funded vehicle, despite just a 20-minute car ride away to the state capitol from his Schenectady home in the 21st Congressional District.
"Albany politician Jim Tedisco talks tough about cutting government spending, but that hasn't stopped him from billing taxpayers over $21,000 in oil and gas receipts for his taxpayer funded vehicle, despite his 20-minute car ride to the state capital," said Jennifer Crider, Communications Director for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "During these tough economic times, the very last thing Upstate New York's middle class families need is a sneaky Albany politician like Jim Tedisco sticking them with a $21,000 bill so he can keep living high on the hog. Tedisco needs to stop this hypocrisy and immediately come clean by reimbursing taxpayers $21,000."
Background
- Tedisco
Received Taxpayer Funded Vehicle
In 2001, Tedisco began using a taxpayer funded vehicle and charged gas and oil receipts to the state. [New York State Assembly, Expenditure Reports, 1996-2008]
- Tedisco
Spent Over $21,000 on Gas for State Vehicle
From September 2000 through March 2008, Tedisco charged $21,343.76 in state vehicle oil and gas receipts. [New York State Assembly, Expenditure Reports, 1996-2008]- Hundreds
of Dollars Charged on Same Day in 2001
The oil and gas receipts in 2001 are notable for two occasions where substantial amounts were charged on the same day. - On June 29, 2001, a total of $413.80 was charged for oil and gas in three separate charges.
- On December 11, 2001, a total of $628.46 was charged in five separate charges. [New York State Assembly, Expenditure Reports, 1996-2008]
- Hundreds
of Dollars Charged on Same Day in 2001
- Yet, Tedisco's ride from his home in Schenectady to Albany is 17 miles [Google Maps]
- Tedisco's
Aide is One of Three in All of the New York Assembly to Receive a State
Car
Only three Assembly staff members received state cars in 2007. Among those was Howard Becker, "a longtime aide" to Tedisco. [Times-Union, 3/19/07]
Keep ‘em honest!!!
Where is the list of Democrats. I see no articles about certain tax cheats, except in the blog comments.
Or, more importantly.. where are the articles about the “Stimulus” package? Do you all lock-step agree with every portion of it? Hard to believe.
My favorite part of the post: “Tedisco needs to stop this hypocrisy and immediately come clean by reimbursing taxpayers $21,000.”
Yeah, and the rest of Obama’s (the messiah’s) cabinet selections can come forth and pay all of their back taxes too… Dachle’s alone was 500% that of Tedisco
Hypocrisy indeed.
Whoever came up with this should be commended for their sense of humor. It is a joke, right?
($21 343.76 / 8 years) / 52 weeks = $51.31 per week
So, that would be an average of $10.26 per 5 days. Since the accusation is relying on the Google Map of his commute, let’s assume a round-trip of 33 miles.
I’d say .31 cents a mile is a pretty good deal. Especially since the per diem for using his own vehicle would have been higher.
Can somebody check my numbers?
You hypocrites. Maybe before you attacked Rush, you had some of your own ilk reading your “blogs” and you could put out crap like this.
However, you’ve awakened the sleeping giant now—the conservatives respond more on your own site than the morons you are hoping will read it.
How about exposing this taxpayer ripoff:
from today’s TheHill.com
“The House Democratic Caucus spent more than $500,000 in taxpayer money over the past five years for its annual retreats at resorts in Pennsylvania and Virginia.”
Tedisco is very small potatoes compared to you crooks!
TourPro, you are exactly right on the numbers! Sad the DCCC resorts to this kind of thing—evidently they assume everyone that reads this is stupid. Of course the Democrat Party has assumed that for years about everyone (that’s why we need their “help” in order to succeed).
But this is really beyond the pale.
DCCC get your head out of your rear.
TourPro!!!!!! You ROCK. Just doing the numbers proved this for the farce that it is!
Maybe it was an ‘honest mistake’ that he forgot to pay taxes. But that’s only a valid excuse for one party, it seems. I am not a fan of Reps or Dems but I have heard Mr. Taddisco speak. He supports term limits, he doesn’t support lobbyists, and he also wants to see more ‘citizen legislators’ (direct quote) not a permanent ruling class. I charge you to find one Dem who is saying the same thing.
$21,000 over eight years, I think that is pretty good use of taxpayer money. What about the addition $98,000/year the congress gets for “office expenses”?
From reading the article, Tedisco produced receipts of the expenditures. Therefore I must assume that the State Controller Office reviewed them an deemed the receipts valid or he would not have been paid.
Again, another non-event.
TourPro, shame on you for spoiling this perfectly legitimate Democrat attempt to reach out to the Kool-Aiders. I had hoped that you would let a little time pass before exercising the ancient and mystical craft of grammar school arithmetic, and give Liberals a fair chance to respond. You are nothing but an unfair Republican Smarty-Alec.
HOW WAS CAMP DAVID this weekend Mr. President? Tough 3 weeks on the job, huh? Too bad all of the laid-off families in America couldn’t afford to go on vacation with you.
How can you scold traveling expenses and also CEO’s for being overpaid and then overpay yourself with a vacation on the taxpayers dime within the same week? That’s right, you’re just words and speeches; you don’t actually live by what you say. Try living by example for once and live on a reasonable budget like the rest of us poor folk.
3 weeks as President and he already took both the Marine One helicopter and the president’s jet as part of a trip to a Democratic retreat in Williamsburg, Va. “Thank you for giving me a reason to use Air Force One,” he told the lawmakers. “It’s pretty nice.”
Enjoy your secluded, highly guarded estate in Maryland’s Catoctin Mountains. Don’t worry about the cost; the taxpayers are covering your vacation during this time of “crises”!
Whoever came up with this should be commended for their sense of humor. It is a joke, right?
($21 343.76 / 8 years) / 52 weeks = $51.31 per week
So, that would be an average of $10.26 per 5 days. Since the accusation is relying on the Google Map of his commute, let’s assume a round-trip of 33 miles.
I’d say .31 cents a mile is a pretty good deal. Especially since the per diem for using his own vehicle would have been higher.
Can somebody check my numbers?
Yeah.
Say his car gets 20 miles per gallon, 33 miles means he burns 1.65 gallons per day. If gas is $2/gal, that means $3.30 per day. $3.30 times 5 days is $16.50 per week.
Now if he insists on a gas guzzling 15 mpg SUV, his daily gas cost is $4.40, or $22 per week.
Back-calculating from $50 per week, is $10/day, or, at $2/gal, 5 gallons. Thirty three miles divided by 5 gallons yields 6.6 miles per gallon, which is more typical of an 18-wheeler tractor trailer than a state car.
And come on, $300 and $600 charges for gas in one day? It’s impossible to drive far enough in one day to burn $300 of gas:
At $4/gallon. $300 would buy 75 gallons. At 20 mpg, 75 gallons would get you 1,500 miles. You figure the rest out.
I’d say .31 cents a mile is a pretty good deal. Especially since the per diem for using his own vehicle would have been higher.
Can somebody check my numbers?
Well, if we are going to check numbers, we would have to note that the State Assembly is only in session from January to June.
Of course, we taxpayers get to pay for all of their trips year round. I’m sure Tedesco isn’t doing anything the rest of the State Assembly are doing (screwing the taxpayers).
The comments are Hilarious!
TourPro is aware, as all New Yorkers are, that the Assembly meets 52 weeks a year!
NOT!
Hey TourPro, do a little research and come up with the number of weeks per year the Assembly, uh, assembles. That is if you are not too busy doing a premature victory dance.