Gov. Martin O’Malley is on a weeklong trip to Europe, following up his appearance at a D-Day ceremony in France with stops in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Estonia and Sweden.
The governor’s trip will cost the state about $8,000, according to O’Malley spokesman Shaun Adamec, for airfare, meals, lodging and transportation.
Part of that figure will cover O’Malley’s visit to Sweden on Wednesday, where he plans to meet with business and government representatives and to take a tour of an “eco-friendly city.”
Government affairs lobbyist Craig Holman, who works for the watchdog group Public Citizen, said overseas travel by elected officials can be “fairly rewarding” for the state, but added that the onus will be on O’Malley to show that his use of public funds to travel benefits the state’s bottom line.
“For his sake, it better produce some positive results,” Holman said.
State officials said the benefits reaped by having a strong relationship with Swedish businesses will more than pay for the governor’s quick visit.
“This isn’t a party trip,” said Dave Tillman, spokesman for the Department of Business and Economic Development.
Tillman said O’Malley’s publicly funded trip to Israel last year helped keep a pharmaceutical company, which has 77 workers in Rockville, in Maryland. The trip also helped land Maryland offices for a drug company and security company, Tillman said.
He said O’Malley will meet with Sweden’s deputy prime minister and a representative from Volvo and “they will discuss a $48 million partnership that will bring jobs and significant investment to Volvo’s Hagerstown facility,” which employs 200 engineers.
Tillman said Sweden was a leader in environmental and biotechnology, and the governor would discuss potential partnerships in those fields.
Biotechnology is a major economic driver along the Interstate 270 corridor in Montgomery County.
“It’s a natural trip,” Tillman said.
O’Malley’s trip also includes time in Normandy, France, where he was scheduled to commemorate Maryland soldiers’ contribution to the D-Day invasion during World War II. He also is scheduled to visit Bosnia-Herzegovina and Estonia to meet with officials as part of a federal program that pairs National Guard units with new or emerging democracies.
Trips abroad by Maryland’s elected officials are nothing new.
Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson faced criticism for spending $30,000 of county money on a two-week trip to Senegal and Cameroon last year.
And Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett was scolded by some council members for taking a trip to Asia last year.
As for O’Malley, Maryland Republican Party Executive Director Justin Ready said the governor’s business development efforts should be more focused at home.
“He can do a lot for Maryland business by reducing the tax burden,” Ready said.
