Hannity travel tab near $50,000
But ticket sales and donations defray most of the expense
Though the conservative talk show host waived his $100,000 speaking fee to speak at Utah Valley State College Monday night, his travel expenses rival the total cost of bringing "Fahrenheit 9/11" director Michael Moore to the Orem campus Oct. 20, documents obtained by the Deseret Morning News reveal.
According to a travel invoice sent to the state school from Premiere Speakers Bureau, UVSC was billed $35,000 for private Hawker jet service, which shuttled Hannity from New York to Utah and on to Arizona, where he'll broadcast his show during tonight's presidential debate there. His return flight is also being covered by the college.
The total cost of the three-legged trip is actually around $50,000, but GOP gubernatorial candidate Jon Huntsman Jr. donated $10,000 and another Utah corporation offered $5,000 to help offset the expenses, UVSC spokesman Derek Hall confirmed.
Once tickets sales are factored in — an estimated $35,000 was generated from general admission ticket sales, Hall said — the UVSC student government actually made $150 on the event.
However, the college also forked out $9,000 for heightened security at the sold-out event, bringing the final price tag to roughly $8,900.
"I think (Hannity's) agent requested a letter from us stating that the travel costs were not coming from student fees," Hall said. "It's something he's made a big deal about on his radio show. He's repeatedly said, 'I don't want any student fees going towards my travel.' "
Compared to Moore's travel expenses — $10,500 for an entourage of 11 — Hannity's costs look excessive.
But Hannity told the Deseret Morning News that the sheer distance covered by his travels, not additional posh requests, upped the price.
"Private planes are expensive. The fuel is expensive," Hannity said. "I have two jobs so I do charter planes sometimes on my own, and I know what they cost. But (UVSC officials) said they wanted me to come and they wanted to pay my travel. And I wanted to be there to meet the students."
Hall confirmed the student government agreed to pay Hannity's travel costs, even after Huntsman's offer to send his private plane to fetch Hannity didn't fit the talk show host's schedule.
But rumors that Hannity canceled a Washington University appearance, where he also planned to counter an upcoming Moore speech, because he wasn't pleased with several private jets offered by a donor did make UVSC officials nervous, Hall said. Hannity has said safety concerns prompted that cancelation.
"We did not have a speaking contract with Hannity, so we were just very careful on how all of the negotiations went," Hall said.
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