Nonprofit picks up governor's travel bill

Whether journeying to China, Japan or last week's destinations -- Austria, England and France -- Schwarzenegger typically flies on top-of-the-line private jets like the plush Gulfstream models and has booked hotel suites that can run thousands of dollars a night.

Nonprofit watchdogs say using charitable write-offs to pay for sumptuous travel is an abuse of tax codes.

"Wow, that's a problem," said Daniel Borochoff, president of the American Institute of Philanthropy. "Why should our tax dollars subsidize his lavish lifestyle?"

Making matters worse, Borochoff and others say, is that the nonprofit that finances Schwarzenegger's globe-trotting, the California State Protocol Foundation, could be a vehicle for interests that hope to curry favor with the governor.

By giving to the foundation, donors avoid having their identities made public, because charities are not governed by the disclosure rules that apply to campaign contributions. And they can donate unlimited amounts to the nonprofit, which is not subject to contribution ceilings the way campaign accounts are.

Representatives for Schwarzenegger and the foundation say there is nothing inappropriate about his arrangement with the group, which is closely associated with the California Chamber of Commerce.

The foundation declined to release details of its expenditures, despite expectations in the nonprofit world that charities be as transparent as possible.

"Good nonprofits are open books," said Trent Stamp, president of Charity Navigator, an online rating service. "Good nonprofits relish the opportunity to be accountable."

Schwarzenegger has tapped at least one other charity for some of his travel. The Simon Wiesenthal Center, celebrated for its Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles and far-flung Nazi-hunting efforts, paid more than $51,000 to help send the governor to Israel in 2004, a year when the charity ran a deficit, records show.

The trip carried a steep tab because of the private jet, said people familiar with Schwarzenegger's travel.

A Wiesenthal spokesman said that the center had invited the governor to Israel for a museum groundbreaking and that the $51,000 paid for part of the jet costs.

The governor could easily pick up outsized travel bills himself, and a spokesman said Schwarzenegger does pay for his private jet when he flies domestically on state business.

But trips abroad are something else.

"That jet for those international jaunts is extremely expensive," said one person with knowledge of the governor's itineraries, who requested anonymity so as not to alienate him. "China was probably well north of $100,000."

Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said specific breakdowns for the governor's jet expenses were not immediately available. But costs for flying on a Gulfstream or similar aircraft often are many times greater than the price of a first-class ticket on a commercial airline.

On that basis alone, well-run charities generally bar or strictly limit private flying, the watchdogs say.

Allan Zaremberg, the Chamber of Commerce president and a foundation board member, said the protocol group pays whatever bills the governor's office submits. "How they allocate that money is up to them," he said.

He declined to release any financial information about the charity beyond the summary data on its tax returns, which it must disclose by law.