{
  "id": 13087837,
  "title": "Ken Paxton’s Security for Travel Cost Taxpayers Millions. Just 1 in 6 of His Trips Had a Stated Business Purpose.",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/09/ken-paxtons-security-for-travel-cost-taxpayers-millions-just-1-in-6",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-09T10:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ProPublica",
    "slug": "propublica",
    "url": "https://www.propublica.org/article/ken-paxton-travel-security-costs"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has incurred significant taxpayer costs for his frequent out-of-state trips, many of which lacked a stated business purpose, according to an investigation by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune. In the summer of 2023, while suspended from official duties following an impeachment for alleged abuse of office, Paxton made at least 17 trips, including to resort destinations like Park City, Utah, and Vail, Colorado. He also visited Texas locations related to his family's blind trust and a Utah community where he owned condominiums. State police accompanied him on each trip, costing taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars.\n\nCompared to his predecessor, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, Paxton has taken far more out-of-state trips with state-funded security. While Abbott's security costs amounted to $203,000 over his last three years in office, Paxton's security has cost $3.3 million since he assumed office in 2015. Only one in six of Paxton's trips had a listed business purpose, according to the investigation, which analyzed every publicly available document the attorney general's office could provide. The records detailing the purpose of Paxton's visits to 36 states and 19 countries are not available, making it difficult to assess the extent of his official business travel.\n\nCritics argue that Paxton's extensive use of taxpayer-funded security has become an ethical and moral problem, potentially amounting to a taxpayer-funded subsidy. The Texas law allows the Department of Public Safety to provide security for key state leaders, but does not require officials to use it. Paxton has dismissed accusations that he used the perks of office for personal gain and has not answered questions regarding his increased wealth. He also declined to provide additional information regarding the trips without a recorded business purpose, prompting ProPublica and The Texas Tribune to seek answers through the state's Public Information Act.",
  "summary": "The post Ken Paxton’s Security for Travel Cost Taxpayers Millions. Just 1 in 6 of His Trips Had a Stated Business Purpose. appeared first on ProPublica .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}