The Eagle editorial board recently questioned the need for three lame-duck Wichita City Council members to join their colleagues at a March national conference in Washington, D.C. Now, thanks to an open-records request filed by KWCH, Channel 12, taxpayers know that their bill for the three members’ travel was $7,918, out of a total cost of $20,967 for all eight Wichita attendees. In its similar report, KAKE, Channel 10, showed one $596 restaurant tab including $214 for five sirloin steaks. The three members whose terms are up next week have defended their travel, variously saying that the networking and exchange of ideas would benefit the city and that such travel was part of the job. On KAKE, Mayor Carl Brewer said of the outgoing council members: “They are the elected officials until the day the citizens tell them their time is up and they are replaced by someone else.”
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