Two members of Allentown City Council are calling on the mayor to voluntarily release a comprehensive report of all of his travel expenses since assuming office in 2022.
Members Cynthia Mota and Candida Affa issued a memo to Mayor Matt Tuerk on Monday, asking for the report along with a breakdown of each expense incurred while traveling, receipts, any accompanying travels, internal travel-related policies and other information related to city-sponsored travel.
The memo followed a discussion on the same topic at a City Council meeting last week. Four out of seven council members sponsored a resolution which would have called on Controller Jeff Glazier, the city’s independent financial watchdog, to “conduct a detailed audit of all travel-related expenses submitted by the Mayor since he took office.”
Tuerk has been absent for the last three City Council meetings; city managing director Frank Kane has attended in his place. According to his social media posts, he travelled to Madrid, Spain, and Riverside, California, last month. Several council members said they have fielded complaints from residents about the mayor’s posts on social media documenting his travel.
Council opted to refer their resolution to a committee for further discussion. But in their Monday memo, Affa and Mota said they are revoking their support for the resolution because its referral to a future committee meeting “has only created additional confusion and delayed access to basic public information.”
Instead, they are calling on the mayor to release the report within 14 days.
Without offering specifics, Mota said that she has faced “resistance” from members of the administration when asking for the public release of all travel-related information by the mayor’s office.
“We have been requesting this for a long time and it’s sad we have to come to this, because we get bits and pieces here and there; give us the entire picture,” Mota said in a phone interview.
The mayor’s office has allocated $22,000 for training and professional development and $400 for mileage expenses in 2026, according to budget documents.
Tuerk has never exceeded the amount budgeted for travel in any of the years he has been in office, according to managing director Frank Kane.
Kane said Monday that he would prepare a report before next week’s City Council meeting on the mayor’s travel, related expenses and the benefits it has brought to the city. He denied that any city leaders are resistant to releasing the information.
“People have a right to ask questions but this is already — these are budgeted items that have already been approved,” Kane said. “We are happy to do a presentation.”
City Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. May 20 in council chambers.
Reporter Lindsay Weber can be reached at Liweber@mcall.com.