Airport board caps travel costs after official's $185,000 reimbursement

Ontario City Council member Alan Wapner received $184,997 from the Ontario International Airport Authority for 72 trips between March 2021 and June 2026. The payments, detailed in records released under the California Public Records Act, averaged approximately $2,569 per trip. These figures prompted the board to adopt stricter rules for member travel.

The new bylaws, approved on Sept. 24, cap monthly stipends at $1,000. Members are now limited to one domestic conference annually and one international conference every other year. Each trip requires advance approval from the board. The rules also prohibit the authority from paying for a member's spouse to travel.

Wapner held a seat on the authority board until recently. Across five public agencies where he served, he logged 132 trips over the same five-year period. The agencies collectively spent $283,630 on his travel. The airport authority paid the largest share, accounting for $184,997 of the total. The other four boards paid a combined $98,632.

The airport authority's spending was 64 times higher than the total travel reimbursements for the other four board members combined. Board president Ron Loveridge received $2,865 for travel during the 2021 to 2026 period. The other three members did not request travel reimbursement. Wapner's trips included destinations such as Hong Kong, Rio de Janeiro, Istanbul, and Madrid. He also made repeated visits to Hawaii.

A January 2023 trip to Maui cost the authority $8,939.40 for 17 days. This amount included a $7,000 rental for a three-bedroom house in Lahaina. Wapner's wife joined him on several occasions. An April 2026 trip to Rio de Janeiro cost $14,325. A September 2025 trip to Hong Kong cost $12,701, with airfare alone reaching $7,437.

Wapner defended the spending in an email. He stated that the travel was necessary to be effective in his position. He added that none of the trips were junkets. He claimed the trips provided access to airline executives, concession operators, and federal officials who influence airport growth. Loveridge said the spending met the authority's rules at the time. He noted that commissioners were unaware of the trips because Wapner did not report back to the full board.

Loveridge emphasized that the funds came from airport revenue rather than tax dollars. Wapner also earned about $250,000 in meeting stipends from the authority over the past decade. This amount is nearly double the stipend paid to Supervisor Curt Hagman. The FBI searched Wapner's Ontario home on July 28. Agents also searched the homes or offices of Hagman, attorney Frank Lizarraga, and others tied to businessman James Su. Subpoenas were sent to the airport and city hall.

As of Oct. 22, no charges have been filed against those searched. The City Council removed Wapner from all committee appointments, including the airport board. He has dropped a planned mayoral run and is seeking another term on the council, where he has served since 1994. On Oct. 19, the board voted to create an internal auditing program that includes a full-time auditor.

Wapner said the board was scapegoating him. He argued that travel was a budget line item that members could have questioned. Catherine Lhamon, of UC Berkeley's Edley Center on Law and Democracy, called for clear rules and public scrutiny. She described personal profit from public service as the definition of corruption.