Imagine getting paid to travel the world while doing your job. That’s essentially what’s happening in Sacramento, and it’s raising serious questions about who really has lawmakers’ ears.

Special interest groups dropped at least $1.2 million last year sending California state legislators on all-expenses-paid trips to places like Maui, Spain, Norway, and Australia. We’re talking Pebble Beach golf tournaments, five-star resort stays, and spa treatments , all sponsored by nonprofits and corporations with serious business before the state Legislature.

Here’s where it gets murky: about $1.1 million of that came from nonprofits that don’t have to publicly disclose who’s actually funding them. These organizations are only required to reveal their donors if spending hits certain thresholds that are so high they’re rarely triggered. That lack of transparency is a huge red flag for ethics advocates.

Assembly member Blanca Pacheco took home the most travel perks last year at over $45,000. Her trips included a $16,800 study tour to Spain and a $5,700 policy conference in Maui. Her office says these experiences informed two bills she introduced this year, but critics argue lawmakers don’t need five-star resorts to learn about policy.

It’s not just trips either. On top of travel, lawmakers reported receiving an additional $330,000 in gifts , we’re talking Warriors games in luxury boxes, Michelin-starred restaurant dinners, Disneyland tickets, and free massages valued between $124 and $450 each. At least eight lawmakers got free rounds at Pebble Beach, where a single round costs $675.

The defense from lawmakers is consistent: they say these trips don’t influence their votes and that they “answer to their constituents, not the highest bidder”. But ethics experts aren’t buying it. Sean McMorris from California Common Cause points out that “we can be certain that these free trips and meals and gifts would not be happening if the people giving them did not need or want something in return”.

When you think about it, average Californians don’t get access to lawmakers in luxury settings. They can’t schmooze over expensive meals or take state officials on international tours. This creates a system where wealthy interests get private access that regular people can only dream of.

The good news? There’s actually a bill working through the Legislature right now that could increase transparency. Assembly Bill 1788 would eliminate some of the disclosure loopholes and force nonprofits to report more detailed information about who’s funding these lavish trips. As Assembly member Tasha Boerner, the bill’s author, said: “If you have nothing to hide, there’s no problem disclosing more”.

Until that passes, Sacramento’s lawmakers will keep accepting luxury vacations while special interests quietly gain access ordinary people could never afford.