Lauderdale County taxpayers spent more than $15,500 to send 11 people to Washington D.C. for a February trip to visit three congressional representatives.

The Lauderdale County group included four county supervisors, the county administrator, two board attorneys, a representative from Yates Construction, two representatives of LPK Architects and the CEO and president of East Mississippi Business Development Corporation.

Supervisors take this trip regularly, with different members attending each year. In 2017, four supervisors, County Administrator Chris Lafferty, and board attorney Rick Barry made the trip. In 2013, three supervisors, the previous county administrator, Joe McCraney, and Barry went, indicating a practice that spans supervisor terms.

This year’s trip cost county taxpayers at least $15,522.10, according to public records obtained through a Freedom of Information request by The Meridian Star. 

A news release from Wicker’s office said the meeting covered economic development, East Mississippi colleges and a proposal to relocate a refueling simulator from Oklahoma to Lauderdale County as well as the biggest issues facing supervisors: repairing or replacing the aging Lauderdale County Courthouse.

Purchasing the federal courthouse on 9th Street is a key part of the county’s plan for renovating the run-down and cramped county courthouse.

LPK Architects and Yates Construction both have key roles in renovating the aged building, but relocating and splitting county business between the county courthouse and federal courthouse are in the plans for supervisors. Plans for the courthouse cost upward of $38 million. 

The Washington trip began on Feb. 5 and the supervisors met with Wicker on Feb. 6. Wicker was the only meeting on Feb. 6, but supervisors had meetings with two other representatives, possibly with Sen. Thad Cochran and U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper, on Monday, Feb. 5.

‘The game has changed’

Nearly five months later, there are mixed feelings about the trip, with supervisors visibly frustrated by the lack of response from the U.S. Postal Service about selling the federal courthouse, one of the main goals of the trip. 

Jonathan Wells, in his first term as a supervisor, said he wanted to go for the experience, adding that communicating with representatives face-to-face allowed for greater understanding than a telephone call.

“I think it’s harder for them to say ‘no’ face-to-face. They make a connection with you that they don’t if you call,” Wells, who represents District 1, said.

Wells said other counties make their own trips, and using a sports analogy, said, “if you’re the coach and you know your competition is practicing more, you know you need to step up your game.”

But with Cochran’s retirement and Harper’s decision to not seek re-election, who Wells said supervisors visited on the trip, Wells said “the game has changed.”

Wells said the trips are worth it for the advice from congressional leaders alone, especially when navigating drawn-out issues such as the possible sale of the federal courthouse or issues with other federal agencies. 

“Being new, I’m learning how to do it,” Wells said, who also visited D.C. last year. 

In hindsight, Wells said he wonders if the group packed enough into the trip, considering that Cochran and Harper will be replaced in the fall. 

“I would like to go again, but it depends on the topic,” Wells said. “We’re pushing so hard to get something done on (the courthouse)… but other people may need to go next time.”

District 3 Supervisor Josh Todd and District 4 Supervisor Joe Norwood did not respond to calls for comment about the trip on Friday.  Wells confirmed that Todd received the call in another Friday phone call asking for clarification from The Star about a voicemail left on Todd’s phone.

‘You have to try to get something for your constituents’ 

Wayman Newell, the representative for District 2, said he felt that the trip allowed supervisors to solicit congressional representatives for leverage in local issues, such as the courthouse, to save taxpayer money. 

“As president of the board, I thought I should go,” Newell said, adding that in his 12 years of trips he’d only gone four, maybe five times. “I believe that you need to go up there but the question is how many do you need to go.”

Newell said the worth of the trip couldn’t be determined until afterwards and depending on the results of the trip.  

“You go and you ask and nothing gets done, that’s a wasteful trip in my opinion,” Newell said. “But you have to try to get something for the constituents.”

Newell said he felt the only two who needed to go on the trip would be the president and vice president of the board, but if a specific issue affected a district, others might feel differently. 

“To me, looking back on (the February trip), it’s been months and we’re still trying to get something resolved… was it worth it or not? Only time will tell,” Newell said. “If nothing happens by January, it’s a wasted trip. But you have to try.”

Because one of the core issues of the trip was the courthouse, supervisors were accompanied by several others with interest in the project.

“If I hadn’t been president, I don’t think I would have gone,” Newell said. “This is the first time that I can think of that everybody went up there, but hopefully it won’t be that way again.”

‘I know this method works’

Other counties don’t make the annual D.C. trip, opting instead to reach out to local representatives of congressional offices.

Jeff Mayo, the county administrator for Neshoba County, said that Neshoba’s board of supervisors would go up to Washington D.C. to visit legislators combined with a trip for a conference by the National Association of Counties, but didn’t go every year.

“I think in some circumstances it can be crucial, especially with economic development,” Mayo said.

Mayo gave the example of ongoing efforts to widen Highway 19 from a two-lane highway to a four-lane highway, legislative pushes for infrastructure funding could be key to getting that funding, he said.

Steve Seale, who has served as Newton County administrator for more than a decade, said he could only recall board members traveling out of state once at taxpayers expense to attend a NACO conference in New Orleans.

Sometimes, as a board or individually, county officials go out of state to classes that are paid for with scholarships, or take economic development trips funded by the Mid Mississippi Development or the company they are trying to attract, he said.

“They have discussed going to Washington, D.C., but opted to use the U.S. Senators’ and Representative’s local aides who have offices in Meridian and/or Jackson,” Seale said in an email.

“Those same aides make regular trips to the counties to talk with officials,” Seale added. “I know that this method works because of the assistance we received on some of the Biewer (Lumber) paperwork/applications/ grants.”

According to Seale, statutes require any out of state travel, as well as any travel by the board, to be approved by a unanimous board vote before the trip. He said the board has to consider the purpose, cost and benefit of the trip before approving it. 

According to Wicker’s office, Wicker regularly hosts meetings with county, city and state officials in Washington D.C., a spokesperson said via email.

Other Wicker meetings announced via press releases include Ivanka Trump, daughter of President Donald Trump, and Mississippi Levee Boards.

Wicker’s spokesperson said not all meetings are announced via press releases, but groups range in size from as few as two visitors to as many as 68.

The day before meeting with Lauderdale County officials, Wicker met with the Biloxi Chief of Police. That meeting, which covered regional information sharing systems, according to a press release, included Biloxi Police Chief John Miller and Assistant Chief of Police Michael Wills.

The spokesperson didn’t expand more upon meetings with Wicker. 

‘We’ll just have to see’

District 5 Supervisor Kyle Rutledge, the only Lauderdale County supervisor who didn’t go on the trip, shared Newell’s opinion on travel, saying he didn’t feel the need to go on this trip, but had gone in the past when was president.

“It depends on what we have going on,” Rutledge said. “I think it’s good to have a relationship and meet with the staff members, because they’re the ones you’d be dealing with most of the time.”

One of the key issues on this trip was bringing a simulator back to Key Field from Oklahoma.

“We have the building already. They just need to move it back here and plug it in,” Rutledge said.

Rutledge said the stress of previous trips, with a crammed three-day schedule accompanied by red-eye flights, discouraged him from going unless necessary.

“I think it’s beneficial but I don’t really like going; I don’t really like Washington D.C.,” Rutledge said.

Like Wells, Rutledge wonders about how the turnover in congressional representatives would change the importance of the trip, especially since Cochran has retired and Harper won’t be there in the fall.  

“We’ve built relationships with those (representatives) and we’re going to have new people in both of those seats,” Rutledge said. “And with Wicker in an election, there’s no guarantee… We’ll just have to see who’s there after all the chips fall.” 

News Editor Bill Graham contributed to this report.