Marathon Pundit: More Gov. Blago problems: Flights to Springfield may be taxable

When Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D-IL) applied for his current job, that is, when he allowed his name to appear on the ballot, he knew that capital of Illinois was located in Springfield.

But after winning that election in 2002, "Blago" decided to break 150 years of precedent by choosing not to live in the governor's mansion. Instead, he and his family chose to continue living on Chicago's Northwest Side.

Blago regularly flies from Chicago downstate on days when he's actually working, which isn't a lot, based on reports.

But the IRS might be interested in Blago's expensive commutes, if they are commutes.

From AP:

On Memorial Day, Gov. Rod Blagojevich huddled with legislative leaders in his Capitol office in what turned out to be another futile attempt to negotiate a state budget deal.

Then Blagojevich did what millions of people do after work: He went home. The difference is that the governor flew 150 miles to Chicago on a state plane, then used it to return to Springfield the next day.

That trip and dozens of other flights over the past five years could create tax headaches for Blagojevich and wind up costing Illinois taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars, according to an Associated Press analysis and interviews with tax experts.

The problem? The Internal Revenue Service might consider Blagojevich's flights to be personal trips and a taxable fringe benefit.

The AP analysis covers nearly 1,000 flights on state aircraft by Blagojevich, his family and guests. It found personal travel that could be considered extra income to the governor of at least $225,000, based on the cost of hiring private planes in Illinois.