New Orleans Mayor Agrees to Reimburse City for $30,000 Spent on 1st-Class Flights

Mayor LaToya Cantrell speaks onstage at the Evening Concert Series during the 2021 ESSENCE Festival Of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at University of New Orleans in New Orleans, Louisiana, on June 26, 2021. Paras Griffin/Getty Images

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell has changed her stance and agreed to reimburse the city for nearly $30,000 that she spent on first-class flights.

Cantrell, a Democrat, had refused to repay the city, saying that her luxury flights on trips to France and Switzerland were for legitimate city business. She initially claimed that the flight upgrades were necessary to protect herself from COVID-19 and that she had some travel safety concerns as a black woman.