Solobay Defends Decision to Go to Super Bowl

State Sen. Tim Solobay said Tuesday that yes, he bought a $900 Super Bowl ticket from the Steelers through Consol Energy, and that yes, he traveled to Dallas on the Southpointe company's private jet.

But he wants people to know: He will also be paying for the associated travel and hotel costs as soon as they are calculated. And at the end of the year, they will be included on his ethics report.

Solobay, D-Canonsburg, said Tuesday that those costs have yet to be divided among the more than dozen people who took the trip with the oil and gas company.

The senator added that the situation is identical to one in 2009 - when he bought a Super Bowl ticket through Consol and traveled to Tampa on the company jet. All associated costs, he said, were disclosed on his year-end ethics report.

The information comes in the wake of reports from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and other news organizations that state Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati -- a Republican from Jefferson County -- announced through various social media sites that he would reimburse the company in full for the trip, which included airfare, hotel and Super Bowl tickets.