An analysis of congressional records by Medill News Service in partnership with American Public Media's Marketplace program and American RadioWorks found that private groups sent members on more than 4,800 trips from Jan.1, 2000, through May 2004, at a total cost of $14.4 million.

House and Senate rules allow trips paid for by private groups, but require members to disclose where they went, who paid, and how much it cost.

Rep. Jim Greenwood, R-8, retiring this year to work for a biotech trade organization, reported 28 trips, the most of any Pennsylvania lawmaker. Rep. Phil English, R-3, had the highest total cost for privately sponsored travel -- $129,231 for 21 trips. Greenwood's trips cost $121,890.

Republican Sens. Arlen Specter took one trip and Rick Santorum took six trips for a total between them of more than $12,000, mostly for speeches. Santorum's office said he does not travel overseas often because he does not like to leave his young family, while Specter sends staffers or prefers government-sponsored trips.

Specter, who reported his one privately funded trip on his annual financial disclosure statement rather than the travel disclosure forms more commonly used, sent staffers to four Pennsylvania cities and to Cuba and Belgium. Spokesman Charles Robbins said the international trips were geared to staff rather than to Specter, and that trips are only taken for "legitimate and compelling reasons."

Greenwood traveled to California and Florida for speeches, and to Cancun and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and London for conferences. English, the five-term congressman from Erie, took trips to Cyprus, Las Vegas, Jackson Hole, Wyo., and Barcelona. He serves on the Ways and Means Committee.

While House rules state that international trips may not exceed seven days, excluding travel time, English took a 10-day trip to Germany on Feb. 14, 2004, and another 10-day trip to Hungary and Belgium beginning April 10, 2004.

His campaign manager, Brad Moore, said English paid for the excess days, although that was not disclosed on the forms. Moore said English's travel stems from his seat on the Trade subcommittee of the Joint Economic Committee, and added that he is certain English did not violate any ethics rules because the committee did not take action against him.

"The congressman is literally as clean as it gets," Moore said. "He works just as hard on these trips as he does at home. Heck, it's part of his job."

Rep. Curt Weldon, R-7, took the third-most trips among Pennsylvania lawmakers, with 16 jaunts worth more than $26,000. Weldon, vice chairman of the Armed Services Committee, let defense contractor Northrop Grumman pick up the $865 tab for a one-day, 180-mile trip from Washington to Newport News, Va., in 2002.

Like many other members, Weldon's travel disclosures left blank three locations and two trip sponsors. No ethics committee action was taken against him, and his office did not return numerous calls for comment.

Greenwood, the state's most frequent flyer, says his trips all were legitimate, including a five-day visit in 2001 to Grand Cayman Island, where he spent $1,650 on food and drink. He now says his father accompanied him, though that was not disclosed on the form.

"I have not hesitated to travel in my 12 years in Congress, and I am a far more educated person for it," Greenwood said. He said many lawmakers' ignorance about world affairs has contributed to foreign policy mistakes.

While other Pennsylvanians, like Rep. Todd Platts, R-19, who took only one trip, say they shun trips underwritten by private organizations to avoid even the appearance of being unduly influenced by special interests, Greenwood said he accepts trips from groups he already supports, like the Alaska Rainforest Campaign.

He said that his August 2000 fact-finding trip to Alaska's Tongass National Forest enhanced the quality of speeches he delivered about the need to balance environmental and business concerns.

"There is no substitute for being there and walking that land and talking to local people about issues," Greenwood said.

Greenwood is the president of Global Legislators for a Balanced Environment, or GLOBE International, which paid for his trips to Paris, Kenya and Amsterdam. It says its mission is to bring world legislators together to discuss environmental issues.

Greenwood's disclosure form is more detailed than those of many other lawmakers. On a $3,000 GLOBE trip to Nairobi, Kenya, he separately disclosed $7.84 for cold medicine.

Greenwood said he has also been very involved with the Aspen Institute, an international relations think-tank that spent more money on congressional travel than any other group in the last four years-more than $2.5 million.

When asked why Aspen chose to educate him on policy issues in Cancun, Puerto Vallarta and Grand Cayman Island, he said Aspen believes that lawmakers often are distracted in Washington and are attracted by the opportunity to conduct business in warmer climes.

"People are more inclined to go to a nice place than to go to Detroit," Greenwood said.

"Of course it helps. It's human nature."

Rep. Pat Toomey, R-15, went on six trips worth almost $9,700, including a three-day, $5,900 trip in 2003 to Key Biscayne, Fla., paid for by NASDAQ.

His chief of staff, Mark Dion, said Toomey took few trips because he spends every weekend with his family in Allentown. Lawmakers are usually on Capitol Hill on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays when the House is in session.

Rep. Joe Hoeffel, D-13, took six privately backed trips since 2000 at a cost to sponsors of $14,200, three for bipartisan congressional retreats in Aventura, Fla., with his wife, Francesca.

"As far as I understand if the trip has some educational value then it's okay," said Steve Weiss of the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which has looked at past travel records. "I think the public is still largely unaware of the fact that special interests can pay for members to travel."

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