At tomorrow’s meeting of the Wichita City Council, council members have this item on their agenda:
“Approval of travel expenses for Council Member Janet Miller and Kelly Harper, Wichita Area Sister Cities President, to attend the International Cities Conference in Paris, France and the Sister Cities Loire Festival in Orleans, France, September 21-27.”
The city council office didn’t have a specific amount that the council is being asked to approve, and it’s possible that the city might not pay for Harper’s expenses.
Still, travel to France for nearly a week, even for one person, is expensive.
Whatever the amount is, it is a small amount when considered next to the magnitude of the city’s entire budget.
But when people are losing their jobs and the city is cutting its budget, expenses like this are highly symbolic.