Palin's Goodbye Cost Alaska $40K —at Least

Early estimates put the cost of Sarah Palin's midterm resignation as Alaska governor at a minimum of $40,000, not including a special legislative session partly linked to her departure. The preliminary figures obtained by the AP show it cost the state almost $14,100 for the July 26 swearing-in ceremony of new Gov. Sean Parnell and roughly $3,328 to move the Palins out of the governor’s mansion in Juneau.

Palin's spokeswoman, Meghan Stapleton, says suggesting the resignation cost the state is "incredibly misleading." She says the resignation ceremony was added to a previously scheduled governor's picnic and was organized by the lieutenant governor's office. The tally doesn't include the estimated $100,000 it cost for a 1-day special session last month in which lawmakers approved Palin's pick to replace Parnell as lieutenant governor and overrode her veto of federal stimulus funds intended for energy efficiency projects. (More Sarah Palin stories.)