SC Ethics Commission Sets New Flight Cost Rules

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley must shell out more campaign dollars for private airplane travel, the State Ethics Commission said Wednesday.

The commission ruled that state elected officials must use a specific formula when calculating the value of plane rides campaign donors give them, The State newspaper reported.

The rule applies to all state elected officials, but Haley takes more private flights than any other official, according to The State.

Under the new formula, officials must value a flight as the average hourly cost to operate the aircraft, multiplied by the number of hours of the flight.

Haley’s office has been valuing flights as the equivalent of a first-class ticket on a commercial flight. A spokesman for the Republican governor said she complies with all ethics rulings.