(WWJ) -- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s re-election campaign -- not a non-profit corporation she controls -- will be paying a Michigan chemical company that arranged for her flight to Florida to see her ailing father in its private jet in March.
Whitmer campaign attorney Christopher Trebilcock says PVS Chemicals of Detroit will be paid more than $27,000 for the flight that stirred up controversy.
Whitmer’s campaign will also pay more than $22,000 for a private plane Whitmer used to travel to President Joe Biden’s inauguration in January. That plane was operated by Solomon Plumbing Company of Michigan.
The new information came to light Thursday in a letter from Trebilcock to state Rep. Steve Johnson, R-Wayland, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, who had sent a letter to the governor with a list of questions about the trip, according to a story from the Detroit Free Press.
The letter also revealed that Whitmer flew to Florida with her Michigan State Police security detail. She flew back to Michigan with her security detail as well as her two daughters, who had already been in Florida visiting their grandfather.
An aide to Whitmer reached out to PVS to ask whether the company had a plane that could fly the governor to Florida and arrangements were made soon after, according to the letter.
Neither Solomon Plumbing or PVS Chemicals has the proper type of FAA license that allows their private aircrafts to operate charter flights, Trebilcock disclosed in the letter.
PVS Chemicals released a statement from the company's president, David Nicholson late Thursday afternoon, saying the governor had contacted the company about use of the plane, and it was "out of concern for the Governor's security, as she had received threats on her life."
The statement reads in full:
"On March 8, 2021, an aide to the Governor contacted our company, as a part owner of aircraft, for the use of a plane. We were told this was out of concern for the Governor's security, as she had received threats on her life. PVS' Co-Chairman, James B. Nicholson, solely granted that request.
Our highest priority when interacting with any government official, or representative of government is to follow the highest standards dictated by both ethics and the law. Over the past few weeks, we took the position that questions about this flight would be best addressed by the Governor's office. We still believe the outstanding questions are the purview of the Governor's office. As questions have arisen concerning compliance with FAA rules, we are answering all questions directed to us by the FAA.
In the future, PVS will follow a newly-created policy to deny all requests to fly candidates or government officials."
-- David Nicholson, President
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