Hacker News Reader

Comment by someonehere | Hacker News Reader

Honest question. If I was some sort of authority figure with the state’s building inspection. I have a need to travel to Florida to inspect that building collapse because I’m an expert in that field. Does this mean I need to pay out of pocket to do work?

How does it work if I have legit business there?

View on HN

Odds are you pay out of pocket then get reimbursed. Your boss can't use state funds to buy your ticket "because policy" but they can refund you for "miscellaneous travel expenses incurred on the job". This sort of thing is a well practiced workflow in most bureaucracies.

There are a number of exceptions, including "For the protection of public health, welfare, or safety, as determined by the affected agency, department, board, authority, or commission, or by the affected legislative office".

https://oag.ca.gov/ab1887

It also says that you can't be required by your job to travel to those states. So if they declare it an exception, they'll pay for it. If they don't declare it an exception, you can't be required to go. Under no circumstances could you be forced to pay for it yourself.

Why should California pay for you to inspect a building in Florida? If the federal government or Florida wants to hire you as a consultant then they can pay.

States help each other all the time during rescue efforts and send experts who can help the local authorities.

I believe Mexico sent rescue experts to FL given their expertise in rescuing from collapsed buildings.

Like sending firefighters

There are exceptions allowed for various things: https://oag.ca.gov/ab1887/faqs

Reply on news.ycombinator.com