PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — General Treasurer James Diossa has spent more than two months out of state since taking office last year, traveling widely on various political and personal trips, a Target 12 analysis of travel records has found.

Diossa’s extensive itinerary over the last year and a half — with destinations ranging from New York and Washington to Malibu, Beverly Hills and the Dominican Republic — was among several findings after Target 12 requested travel data for all four Rhode Island general officers who rank below the governor.

Gov. Dan McKee’s office routinely sends notices to advise the press corps and the public about his travel plans, in addition to distributing a daily schedule of his public events. None of the other four general officers — Diossa, Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos, Attorney General Peter Neronha and Secretary of State Gregg Amore — release a daily schedule.

Travel records provided by the four Democrats’ offices show Diossa was away from Rhode Island more than his three counterparts since their current terms began in January 2023. He has taken 25 trips that put him out of state for 71 days — or a combined total of just over 10 weeks. (Target 12 excluded visits the officers made to nearby Massachusetts and Connecticut from the analysis.)

Diossa’s most frequent destination has been New York City, which he’s visited nine times since taking office. The trips included two political fundraisers, two meetings on state business, and attendance at various conferences and summits where his campaign picked up the tab, according to his office.

The treasurer has been to Washington seven times so far, including for three White House receptions — in April, July and December of last year — as well as a campaign fundraiser. He also visited Chicago three times, each time paid for by his campaign, his office said.

Diossa has visited California twice, spending four days at the National Institute of Public Finance Conference in Malibu last July and four days at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills earlier this month.

“Most of Treasurer Diossa’s out-of-state travel has been to attend investor conferences, financial summits, and Treasurers’ Association meetings relating directly to his work as State Treasurer and his fiduciary responsibility to all Rhode Islanders,” Diossa spokesperson Michelle Moreno-Silva told Target 12.

The records show Diossa has vacationed out of the country three times during his term. He twice went to Colombia, where his parents were born, spending a week there last summer and two weeks there last month. He also took a five-day vacation to the Dominican Republic in the first half of December.

“Treasurer Diossa has a young family and took two weeks of vacation in 2023 and two weeks in 2024,” Moreno-Silva said. “While traveling, Treasurer Diossa works remotely, remaining in constant contact with the Treasury team using the technology tools available to anyone today.”

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Neronha ranked second on the travel list, but the details of his time out of state told a different story. The attorney general has taken only nine trips but spent a total of 53 days out of state, with the vast majority of that time spent on family vacations to Italy, Greece and England as well as Texas and Missouri, where his sons live.

Other than that, Neronha reported just two trips related to his day job, spending four days in Washington last December and a week in Seattle this past February, all related to meetings of the Democratic Attorneys General Association or the National Association of Attorneys General.

Brian Hodge, a spokesperson for Neronha, added that “there may be trips that the attorney general is unable to disclose because they pertain to ongoing investigations or litigation.”

Matos ranked third on the travel list, taking 20 trips since January 2023 that put her out-of-state for 46 days. The lieutenant governor’s travel records listed a mix of official and political reasons, including visits to Miami and Washington for her unsuccessful congressional campaign last year but also meetings of national associations.

Her longest trip was a visit last December to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where she spent five days at meetings of the National Lieutenant Governors Association and the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association. The latter group also drew her to Sacramento, California, for three days in March.

The bulk of Matos’s travel was to either Washington or New York. And her spokesperson, David Folcarelli, argued that many of the trips benefitted Rhode Islanders.

“The lieutenant governor’s active involvement with national organizations has a direct positive economic and political impact on the state and bolsters her office’s work,” Folcarelli said in a statement. As one example, he noted that the NLGA — where she is a board member — has agreed to host its 2025 spring meeting in Providence next year.

Amore ranked last, taking 17 trips that put him out of state for 44 days. Nearly one-third of those days were spent on personal trips to New York City, where his daughter has been attending college. His most frequent destination other than that was Washington, where he spent 20 days at conferences, meetings and political events.

Amore also spent three days in Williamsburg, Virginia, in March for a conference about the nation’s upcoming semiquincentennial in 2026.

Ted Nesi ( tnesi@wpri.com ) is a Target 12 investigative reporter and 12 News politics/business editor. He co-hosts Newsmakers and writes Nesi’s Notes on Saturdays. Connect with him on Twitter , Threads and Facebook .

Tim White ( twhite@wpri.com ) is Target 12 managing editor and chief investigative reporter and host of Newsmakers for 12 News. Connect with him on Twitter and Facebook .

Eli Sherman ( esherman@wpri.com ) is a Target 12 investigative reporter for 12 News. Connect with him on Twitter and on Facebook .

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