The Chronicle‘s Matt Stiles got Mayor White to comment on the slow-news-week revelation by KTRK-13 earlier this week that elected officials enjoy parking perks at the Houston Airport system:
Mayor Bill White defended the free-parking program at the city’s airports Thursday, saying local elected officials who get the perk are “critical for the success and development of the aviation system.”
But he acknowledged “fair questions” about the necessity and appropriateness of the program, and said local elected representatives eligible for the perk should comply with the city’s guidelines restricting its use to official travel.
“They ought to be aware that all of us are scrutinized by the public,” said White, who is eligible to park for free but hasn’t. “The public is always skeptical of any perks or special privileges for elected officials.”
We do not always agree with Mayor White, so let it be duly noted that his comments on this matter seem eminently sensible.
It does not seem unreasonable for a taxpayer-supported entity like the airport to extend parking privileges to taxpayer-supported elected officials (rather than making them pay and later turn in an expense report for reimbursement, like most private-sector employees would do when traveling on business), which is why some of the media coverage this week seemed a little overblown.
Then again, elected officials shouldn’t abuse the perk, so maybe a little media attention during a slow news week isn’t entirely a bad thing.
