Baltimore City Approves Over $1.8 Million in Employee Travel This Year
Baltimore city employees have undertaken a significant amount of travel this year, with the Board of Estimates approving over $1.8 million in requests. The total allocated for employee travel in 2025 amounts to $1,825,950.25, covering more than 800 individual travel requests. The Board of Estimates, a five-member body including Mayor Brandon Scott and two of his appointees, reviewed and sanctioned these expenditures.
It's important to note that this figure represents approved requests and may not perfectly align with the city's exact spending for the year. Some requests were for travel that occurred in previous years (2024 or earlier), while others authorized trips scheduled for 2026. Additionally, some travel costs were partially or fully covered by external organizations or the employees themselves, meaning the city's direct financial outlay might be less than the approved total.
Typical travel requests encompass transportation, lodging, conference or event registration fees, and a per diem allowance for daily living expenses, which varies based on destination and time of year. The approved total does not include any additional reimbursement requests filed by employees after their trips for expenses exceeding their initial per diem.
An extensive review of nearly $2 million in travel requests across 33 city agencies has revealed several key trends and insights into how city resources are being allocated for professional development and official duties.
Top Destinations for City Employee Travel
The most frequent destinations for Baltimore city employees undertaking official travel this year included:
- Ocean City, Maryland: This coastal town was a primary destination, largely due to the Maryland Association of Counties’ annual summer conference.
- Washington, D.C.: The nation's capital attracted numerous employees for a variety of conferences and training sessions.
- New Orleans: A popular choice for city staff, with a notable number of trips approved for this vibrant city.
- Chicago: Another significant hub for business and professional development, drawing a considerable volume of travel requests.
The vast majority of approved travel requests were for trips valued at under $5,000. While some specialized police and fire department trainings did exceed $10,000, these particular high-cost trainings were not funded by the city.
Agencies with Highest Travel Expenditures
The Baltimore Police Department, the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office, and the Baltimore City Fire Department led the pack in terms of employee travel spending this year.
A notable observation from the data is that nearly 40% of all travel requests were approved either during the travel period or after the trip had already concluded. This practice was most pronounced within the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office.
Detailed Breakdown of Travel Patterns
Domestic Travel Highlights:
Out of the 852 requests identified as individual travel itineraries, a substantial portion, 190, were for travel to either Ocean City, Maryland, or Washington, D.C.
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Ocean City: 119 trips were approved for travel to Ocean City. A significant number of these were linked to the Maryland Association of Counties' annual summer conference, held from August 13th to 16th. This event drew many city leaders, including City Council President Zeke Cohen and key members of Mayor Scott's staff. In total, 61 travel requests related to this conference amounted to $135,317.38, representing approximately 7.4% of the year's total travel budget.
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Washington, D.C.: Travel to the nation's capital encompassed a wide array of conferences and training opportunities for employees across various departments. Often, groups of employees from the same department traveled together. For instance, the Baltimore City Transportation Department allocated $14,854.18 to send Director Veronica McBeth and 11 other employees to the National Association of City Transportation Officials' conference in D.C. for four days in May. The Baltimore City Council also spent $7,050.54 to send three employees, including Councilwoman Phylicia Porter, to the Congressional Black Caucus’ Legislative Conference for five days in September. Marvin James, former chief of staff to Mayor Scott, also attended this conference for four days at a cost of $1,806.17.
Further Domestic Destinations:
Rounding out the top ten most popular travel destinations were:
- New Orleans (44 trips)
- Chicago (30 trips)
- Philadelphia (28 trips)
- Virginia Beach (28 trips)
- Boston (26 trips)
- Denver (24 trips)
- San Diego (24 trips)
- Las Vegas (20 trips)
The approved expenses for Las Vegas included $3,117.95 for Mayor Scott's attendance at the International Council of Shopping Centers’ annual four-day conference. This marked the mayor's only trip with a direct cost to the city that was approved by the Board of Estimates this year.
International Travel:
Baltimore city employees also ventured internationally for official business.
- Three officials from the Baltimore Planning Department spent $11,893.87 over nine days in March to participate in a Morgan State University architecture study abroad program that spanned Belgium and the Netherlands.
- In February and March, two employees from the Baltimore Police Department traveled to Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, for a three-day homicide investigation, with associated costs totaling $2,358.27.
- Other international destinations included Toronto and Montreal in Canada, as well as Geneva, Switzerland.
The Most Costly Travel Requests
Of the 852 total travel requests, an overwhelming majority (all but 24) were valued at less than $5,000. Furthermore, all but nine requests were valued at under $10,000. These nine most expensive requests collectively totaled $108,315.76. These were all for extended police and fire department training programs held in Boston or Norfolk, Virginia.
Specifically, police department employees Derek Canton, Olufunso Onamade, Melissa Krafchik, Shardal Rose, Albert DellaRocco, and Gary Edmondson each had approved requests of at least $12,000 to attend separate three-week training sessions with the Senior Management Institute for Police in Boston. Similarly, fire department employees John Lindbeck, Robert Fields, and John Liberto each had approved requests of at least $11,000 for nearly month-long training programs in Norfolk.
An additional request for $9,764.15 covered Patrick Hunter's six-week participation in an extensive hazmat training course in Huntsville, Alabama. The next most expensive approved request, amounting to $6,583.01, was for Victoria Davis, deputy chief people officer at the Baltimore City Health Department, to attend a five-day summer conference in San Diego.
Agency-Specific Travel Spending
Among the 33 city agencies for which the Board of Estimates approved travel requests, five agencies accounted for the largest portions of the travel budget, each exceeding $100,000:
- Police Department: $302,237
- State's Attorney's Office: $215,900
- Fire Department: $185,809
- Mayor's Office: $170,934
- City Council: $123,235
These five agencies also submitted the highest volume of travel requests, collectively accounting for 450 out of the 852 total requests. The Police Department, Mayor's Office, and State's Attorney's Office were also the top three agencies in terms of the total distance traveled by their employees, contributing approximately 42% of the nearly 1.37 million miles covered, calculated as a straight-line distance from Baltimore.
Ivan Bates, the State's Attorney, emphasized the importance of these travel initiatives, stating, "Our agency’s travel reflects a deep commitment to investing in comprehensive training for our prosecutors, support staff, victim/witness coordinators, and other crucial members of the agency. These training initiatives have profoundly enhanced our attorneys’ preparation, empowering them to present their cases with greater confidence and effectiveness before juries in Baltimore City, ultimately leading to improved outcomes."
Several individual city employees had a significant number of travel requests approved. Among them were State's Attorney Ivan Bates (14 requests), former Mayor's Chief of Staff Marvin James (8 requests), and Robert Holley, executive director of the city’s Fire & Police Employees Retirement System.
The Challenge of Late Travel Approvals
A notable aspect of the travel request process is the frequency of late approvals. The Board of Estimates approved 332 of the 852 requests either during the employee's travel or after their return. While many of these were explicitly marked as "retroactive" on the agenda, others were not.
City Comptroller Bill Henry, as a member of the Board of Estimates, frequently abstains from voting on travel requests due to concerns about the majority control held by Mayor Scott and his appointees. A representative for Henry explained the complexities of the retroactive approval system, expressing a desire to streamline the entire process.
The spokesperson clarified that a travel request is considered retroactive if it is submitted during or after the travel has occurred. While some agencies use a specific "retroactive" marker within the city's system, there isn't a mandatory policy requiring it. The ideal scenario, as emphasized, is for travel requests to be submitted prior to travel. Reimbursements for additional expenses can be processed after travel, provided they adhere to the Department of Finance's guidelines.
The State's Attorney's Office was the most significant contributor to these late approvals, with 89 out of its 118 travel requests for the year being approved retroactively or after the fact.
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