HARRISBURG – Sen. Jarrett Coleman (R-16) exposed serious financial and operational concerns about the commonwealth’s executive aircraft operations at a public hearing of the Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee in June.
Continuing an investigation that began during Senate budget hearings earlier this year with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and State Police (PSP), Coleman convened the hearing after receiving incomplete and vague responses to multiple written inquiries over the last several months.
Both PennDOT and PSP provide flights for the governor, lieutenant governor, cabinet secretaries and other top officials and employees.
Key revelations from the hearing include:
- $26,000 of PSP’s budget was used to pay a charter aircraft service invoice. The PSP was instructed to pay this charter aircraft invoice from their budget through a settlement agreement process for three flights in January 2025 when an undisclosed party from the governor’s administration booked it and sent them the bill. Per the invoice, the charter flew to locations at which the governor was holding press events the same days. This charter service did not go through the normal procurement process which would have required a solicitation of bids and a contract, and hence it was paid through a settlement agreement negotiated through the governor’s Office of General Counsel. The PSP representative was unaware of the passengers on the charter flights but said a list would be obtained and submitted to the committee, but no such list has been provided by PSP despite a follow up reminder.
- Misrepresented executive aircraft operating costs. PennDOT stated they have spent about $1.7 million annually on operating costs for their executive aircraft during the past two years but have billed agencies less than $425,000 each year for use of the aircraft because there is “no point in us having state aircraft if agencies can’t afford to use it.” But that means the actual cost to taxpayers of PennDOT’s aircraft operations is four times the agency charges that have been widely reported in the media, and the cost-effectiveness of state-provided air travel can’t be fairly evaluated against other transportation options. Oddly, when pressed on this large disparity at the end of the hearing, the PennDOT representative would not confirm the cost of their operations and responded, “we’ll get back to you.” PennDOT has still provided no explanation despite a follow up reminder.
- Failure by PennDOT to update monthly online flight logs. PennDOT admitted they failed to update their online flight logs monthly as required by statute, even after intense scrutiny at the February budget hearings, until Coleman inquired with them last month for details, blaming it on technical issue for which they will send further clarification to the committee. PennDOT has provided no explanation despite a follow up reminder.
- PennDOT’s compliance with PA Auditor General recommendation still unknown. Despite being asked the question in writing a month ago, PennDOT was still unsure whether they had complied with a 2007 State Auditor General Performance Audit recommendation that PennDOT request a determination from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regarding the compliance of its aircraft operations with federal regulations. PennDOT has provided no clarification despite a follow up reminder.
- PennDOT doesn’t require random drug tests for its pilots. Unlike the PSP policy and FAA regulations covering charter and commercial operators, PennDOT does not require its pilots be randomly drug tested. Sen. Chris Dush (R-25), committee vice chair, commented that he finds it “disturbing” that the administration had not insisted upon this provision when negotiating the union contract.
Coleman said, “While I appreciate that PennDOT and PSP sent representatives to my hearing, I was disappointed in many of their responses and inability to answer some critical questions and am even more astonished by their failure to provide promised details. We seem to have a gubernatorial administration right now that feels entitled to on-demand, state-provided air travel while refusing to offer full transparency and intentionally deceiving taxpayers about the true cost. Even California, a state more than three times bigger than Pennsylvania in both size and population, doesn’t offer a state plane to its governor.”
“My questions need to be answered, and we must thoroughly evaluate our state’s current aircraft operations. At a time when the legislature has been asked by this administration to appropriate $4 billion more than our expected revenues, we have to look at every activity of state government and decide if we really need to continue doing it this way. They may run, and they may even fly, but they can’t hide from me.”
CONTACT: Leo Knepper, 717-787-1349