U.S. budget deal gives county shot at Trump security reimbursement
Palm Beach County taxpayers stand to get reimbursed by the federal government for helping protect President Donald Trump when he visits Mar-a-Lago under a bipartisan congressional budget deal reached Sunday night.
The 1,665-page bill includes $61 million for local law enforcement expenses to protect Trump, who has residences in Palm Beach, New York City and Bedminster, N.J., which he is expected to begin visiting this weekend. The money is included in a $1 trillion agreement congressional negotiators reached to finance the federal government through Sept. 30. The full House and Senate are expected to vote on it this week.
Trump's two stays at Mar-a-Lago as president-elect and seven visits since taking office have cost Palm Beach County taxpayers nearly $4 million — primarily for sheriff's deputies who assist the Secret Service when the president is in town. Sheriff Ric Bradshaw talked to Trump personally about the issue in February.
If approved by Congress and signed by the president, local governments could submit expenses to the federal government for reimbursement.
"There should be enough money," said U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-West Palm Beach, whose district includes Mar-a-Lago. Frankel called a news conference in March to plead for federal help with the local costs.
Frankel said New York has already racked up about $30 million in local costs for protecting Trump Tower while Trump was there as president-elect and while first lady Melania Trump has lived there during her husband's presidency. The first lady is expected to move to the White House this summer.
The new bill before Congress includes $20 million for "extraordinary law enforcement and related costs … that a State or local agency can document as being over and above normal law enforcement operations" from Nov. 9 through the inauguration on Jan. 20. Earlier legislation included $7 million for pre-inauguration reimbursements.
A second section includes $41 million for expenses since Trump took office on Jan. 20. The reimbursements are "extraordinary law enforcement personnel costs for protection activities directly and demonstrably associated with any residence of the President that is designated or identified to be secured by the United States Secret Service."
Members of Palm Beach County's congressional delegation praised the agreement.
"Relief is finally on the way for local law enforcement agencies that have provided protection for the President," Frankel said.
"Since I was elected, I've been working to secure money to ensure that Palm Beach County taxpayers are not left footing the bill for President Trump's security costs," said Rep. Brian Mast, R-Palm City. "With this bipartisan agreement, we were able to secure tens of millions of dollars to reimburse Palm Beach County, in addition to increasing funding for medical research, strengthening border security, boosting funding for our Armed Forces and more."
Rep. Ted Deutch called the reimbursement money "a huge victory for Palm Beach County taxpayers, who should never have been on the hook for President Trump's weekend getaways."
But in the future, Deutch said, federal taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for Trump's visits, either.
"(I)f the President is going to continue to use Mar-a-Lago or any of his other resorts as weekend vacation spots throughout the year, then President Trump should pay the costs himself," Deutch said. "The American taxpayers shouldn't have to pay tens of millions of dollars for Trump to golf on the weekends at his branded properties. The President still needs to address the remaining issues that come from using his private golf club as a weekend White House, including the obvious conflicts of interest and serious national security concerns."
Palm Beach County Mayor Paulette Burdick said she is "pleased that the federal government has included a line item in the budget to reimburse Palm Beach County for our costs to provide security for our president. We fully want to do it, acknowledge our responsibility. The money in the budget is certainly in the right direction."
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