(Alaska Airlines)

In 2013, the state paid nearly a million dollars for lawmakers to fly across Alaska, across the country, and in some cases, around the world. APRNs Alexandra Gutierrez reports that legislative travel costs went up nearly 50 percent last year.

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Over the past year, Kurt Olson has traveled out of state 10 times in his capacity as a legislator. Hes gone to Boston, Denver, DC, Kansas City, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, Atlanta, and Nashville. Hes also had to bust out his passport twice once for an Arctic policy meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland and once for an energy meeting in Banff, a Canadian resort town.

At that point in time, it was the coldest place in the world. Not just North America. It was 40 or 42 below for three days, says Olson. So, I dont think anyone would accuse me of having gone on a junket on that one.

All told, the Kenai Republican racked up a $40,000 travel bill, making him the second most-traveled person in the Legislature. Usually, hes closer to the middle of the pack.

I was not expecting to be as high as I was, but if I couldnt justify them, we wouldnt be having this conversation, Olson laughs.

When Olson and I sit down to talk about travel, hes got all his documentation out and annotated. Kansas City was for the annual Council on State Governments conference. Nashville was for the National Conference of Insurance Legislators, which is relevant to Olson because he chairs the House Labor and Commerce Committee.

Two of the other meetings were generally workers compensation. At least two were related to Obamacare, which I am involved in. And none of the meetings were offered in Alaska, says Olson.

Olson says he can point to four bills hes working on that are the direct result of his travel. One has to do with opioid use by injured workers; another, their medical bills.

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Legislators Rack Up Million-Dollar Travel Bill