New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell is refusing to reimburse the city for nearly $30,000 in travel expenses, including on first-class or business-class flights.
City travel policy requires New Orleans municipal workers select the cheapest options or compensate the city for the difference, but Cantrell has suggested that the pricey travel expenditures were necessary for her safety.
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“All expenses incurred doing business on behalf of the city of New Orleans will not be reimbursed to the city of New Orleans,” she said, according to WWL. “One thing is clear: I do my job, and I will continue to do it with distinction and integrity every step of the way. That’s what I have to say on that.”
Cantrell has racked up $29,000 in costs for traveling in first class or business class in lieu of coach since January 2021, including a nearly $18,000 trip to France over the summer, the Times-Picayune and the New Orleans Advocate reported.
It is unclear whether the city’s travel policy requiring reimbursement for higher-end travel expenses applies to the mayor, her Chief Administrative Officer Gilbert Montano told the outlet. Cantrell has previously underscored concerns for her safety while defending her travel bills.
“My travel accommodations are a matter of safety, not of luxury. As all women know, our health and safety are often disregarded and we are left to navigate alone. As the mother of a young child whom I live for, I am going to protect myself by any reasonable means,” she stressed to the outlet in August.
“Anyone who wants to question how I protect myself just doesn’t understand the world black women walk in,” she added.
Cantrell has weathered mounting criticism for her travel costs.
“You compare the fact that $30,000 is just the difference in cost from a coach seat versus a first class, and the starting salary of our New Orleans Police Department is $40,000,” Mama Bear Group founder Laura Rodrigue told Fox News on Monday. “You have to take that into consideration when we are the murder capital of the country right now.”
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New Orleans has faced 145 homicides from the start of the year through June 30, the City Journal reported. For comparison, the city endured 218 murders in 2021. Last week, Cantrell unveiled a plan aimed to bolster the recruitment and retainment of police officers.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the mayor’s office for comment.
