State Police to probe city credit card use for mayoral trip to Japan

Posted on August 17, 2017

 

Bloomington-Normal Sister Cities
Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner (left) said it’s a “absolute, total lie” that the city improperly booked his girlfriend’s trip to Japan with a government credit card. Renner said his girlfriend reimbursed the city to accompany him on the official visit. (WJBC file photo)

 

By Howard Packowitz

Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner says allegations of improper use of a city credit card to buy an airline ticket to Japan are frivolous and a lie, but he pledges to cooperate with an Illinois State Police investigation of the matter.

Renner said he’s been informed police will investigate a complaint of improprieties from a frequent critic of the mayor.

Renner said his girlfriend Margot Ehrlich reimbursed the city for the $1,800 airfare so she could accompany him for the official once-in-a-decade visit to Bloomington-Normal’s Japanese sister city.

The mayor said the city staffer, who used the credit card to purchase the ticket, also did nothing wrong.

“None of our staff acted inappropriately. This is just somebody making stuff up,” said the mayor.

Renner said police have yet to contact him. He said it would have been legal even if city taxpayers had paid for Ehrlich’s trip because the Sister Cities had listed her as part of the Twin-Cities official delegation.

McLean County State’s Attorney Jason Chambers declined comment on the matter, but he said it’s not unusual for his office not to be notified of a police investigation until it’s completed.

Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected]

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