A Metro audit found 10 instances of employees improperly collecting frequent flyer benefits from agency-sponsored travel, a violation of Oregon ethics rules, Auditor Suzanne Flynn said Thursday.
In a report presented at Thursday's Metro Council meeting, Flynn said there was no evidence employees actually used the benefits for personal travel. She said Metro documents on travel policy didn't include information on Oregon's ethics laws.
"Policies and procedures weren't adequate enough to guide employees and practices weren't consistent," she said.
Flynn said the audit was aimed at program performance, not the practices of specific employees. In all, Metro employees bought 229 airplane tickets in fiscal year 2009-10, worth an average of $394 each. The Oregon Convention Center accounted for more than a quarter of those tickets.
Last month, Metro staff put out a memo spelling out the restriction on collecting frequent flyer benefits from agency travel. But the bigger ethics question revolves around more subtle benefits, such as points earned from using a personal credit card – one that accrues rewards points – for work-related expenses.
Here's where this comes into play: Metro-issued purchasing cards can't be used to buy alcohol. So if a Metro official is at a work-related meal where a glass of wine is served, they'll frequently use their personal credit card and request a reimbursement for the food portion of the meal.
"Good luck getting a personal credit card that does not have a rewards program," said Councilor Kathryn Harrington. "We're trying to follow the policy but thank you to the financial industry it's pretty near impossible."
Councilor Barbara Roberts joked that strictly following the letter of the law could be a great way to alienate restaurateurs.
"Not only are we dividing the bills individually, but each bill will be divided separately for the wine and food," she said. "At that point we will never be served."
Finance director Margo Norton suggested that complying with the letter of the ethics law may simply not be practical.
"If we were to take this to the absolute letter… we would be doing an incredible amount of cash advances and that's not going to be cost beneficial in the end," she said.