Gov. Maura Healey, Mayor Michelle Wu plan to use public dollars to pay for Italy trip
Gov. Maura Healey and Mayor Michelle Wu plan to use public dollars to cover a trip to Italy next week that will include a private audience with Pope Francis, though the total cost of the trip will not be known until its conclusion, according to spokespeople for both officials.
Healey and Wu were invited by the pope to provide a keynote address at the opening session of a climate-focused conference hosted by the Vatican. The governor has pitched the trip as a way to strengthen the state’s economic and diplomatic ties to Italy, which is Massachusetts’ tenth largest trading partner, according to Healey’s office.
Healey spokesperson Karissa Hand said Healey plans to pay for the trip with money from the Massachusetts Tourism Trust Fund, a multi-million dollar account used to promote tourism in the state and help regional tourism councils. It is in-part funded by the tax on gross gaming revenues generated by local casinos, according to state law.
The fund is administered by the Massachusetts Marketing Partnership, which was created in 2010 to coordinate marketing efforts on behalf of the state. The partnership has 11 board members and includes the Office of Travel and Tourism and the Office of International Trade, according to the state.
“The (Massachusetts Marketing Partnership) is the central entity for marketing initiatives on behalf of the commonwealth, including efforts to advance travel and tourism, international trade and economic development. We will not have the cost until the conclusion of the trip,” Hand said in a statement to the Herald.
Healey is traveling to Rome, Italy with her climate chief, Melissa Hoffer, and three aides — a director of operations, the director of scheduling and senior executive assistant to the governor, and Hand, according to the statement from her office.
Healey’s trade trip to Ireland last year cost roughly $83,000, which was largely covered by state funds and some private dollars.
A spokesperson for Wu, Ricardo Patrón, said the City of Boston plans to cover the mayor’s flights to and from Italy and her hotel stays.
“She’s going in her official capacity as mayor. It’s a work trip for her so we are using public dollars,” Patrón told the Herald Wednesday afternoon.
Wu plans to travel with Oliver Sellers-Garcia, the city’s Green New Deal director, and a communications staff member.
A detailed itinerary for Wu was expected to be released Thursday, Patrón said.
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A schedule sent out earlier this week by Healey showed the pair meeting with Pope Francis on Thursday at 10:40 a.m. Rome time, or about 4:40 a.m. in Boston.
Healey said she is “excited” to pitch Massachusetts’ climate and economic standing on the “global stage” and to make a case for businesses to grow in the Bay State.
“Massachusetts deeply values our close relationship with Italy and the Vatican City State, and we see this trip as an excellent opportunity to strengthen ties and strategize on future opportunities for collaboration,” Healey said in a statement earlier this week.
At the outset of the trip, Healey and Hoffer plan to attend a business roundtable followed by a meeting with Ambassador to the Holy See Joe Donnelly. Healey offers her keynote address Wednesday, when she will also participate in two panel discussions.
After meeting with Pope Francis Thursday, Healey, UMass Boston Chancellor Marcelo Suárez-Orozco, and researcher Ram Ramanathan will discuss “the sub-regional summits that took place during the course of the summit.”
“The session will end with proposals from all mayors and governors on next steps,” Healey’s schedule said.