Why exactly does the state pay for judges to lease luxury cars?
No, it's not busting the state budget, but it's pretty hard to reconcile this story with current fiscal conditions:
Cadillacs, Lexuses, a Mercedes Benz and high-end SUVs — including one a Supreme Court justice leases from his brother — are among taxpayer-paid cars Pennsylvania's appellate court judges lease to ferry themselves across the state.
That's from the Tribune-Review, which goes on to point out that "judges of the Supreme, Superior or Commonwealth courts can lease cars for up to $600 a month." They also get gas reimbursements. And this is all on top of some of the highest salaries for judges in the nation.
Seems to us it would be perfectly reasonable, if judges need to drive across the state for work, to either grant them access to vehicles from the state fleet, or reimburse them for the mileage.
It feels like just a couple of weeks ago we were discussing the "elected class" in this state...
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