This week's federal indictment of state Sen. Vincent Fumo, D-Phila., can be expected to reveal ways in which a powerful lawmaker can use taxpayers' money for personal and political benefit.

The 139-count indictment against Fumo paints a picture of extreme abuse by an elected official, but the public exposure brought by this case could lead to revelations of other legislative leadership abuses in much the same way the controversial pay-raise vote of 2005 opened the public's eyes to many lawmakers' arrogance, sense of entitlement and disrespect for the law.

As the case against Fumo proceeds, the public will likely learn how a powerful state lawmaker, using taxpayers' dollars and a cozy relationship with nonprofits he directed money to, can benefit himself both financially and politically.

Federal authorities charge that Fumo used many of the 90 state employees under his control to oversee the renovation of his 33-room mansion near Philadelphia, help set up and run his 100-acre farm near Harrisburg, drive his daughter to school, put together campaign mailings, organize political fund raisers and even clean his house and pick up his garbage. The list of alleged abuses goes on and on.

Commenting on the charges outlined in the indictment, the Philadelphia Inquirer editorialized that "Fumo is accused of using taxpayer and charitable funds not to merely feather his own nest, but also to clean it."

Public exposure of how Fumo benefited from funneling money to a nonprofit that former staffers created in 1991, called Citizens Alliance for Better Neighborhoods, will reveal how easy it is for abuses of the public trust to occur with a few powerful lawmakers deciding to send millions of dollars of taxpayers' money to nonprofits that they control, or with which they are closely connected.

The Fumo indictment alleges that the powerful Philadelphia pol had the Citizens Alliance charity buy $75,000 worth of power tools to be distributed among his four homes and it also spent $6,500 for 19 Oreck vacuum cleaners, one for each floor in Fumo's four houses. The personal indulgence is so over-the-top that it's almost laughable.

One charge in the indictment claims that Citizens Alliance bought a backhoe for Fumo's farm and also spent $600,000 to refurbish and furnish an office that Fumo leased from the charity for a mere $18,000 a year.

The charity also is alleged to have provided Fumo with a $36,000 van and a fully loaded $55,000 sport utility vehicle, despite Fumo also having a state-supplied Cadillac.

By way of explaining the attitude behind these alleged abuses, the indictment notes that Fumo told a close confidant that it always is best to spend "other people's money."

Fumo, who is a lawyer and bank owner, appears to be an extreme example, but based on the 2005 pay- raise vote, the pension-grab vote of 2001 and the just-revealed $3.9 million worth of legislative bonuses from the four secretive $50 million leadership accounts — the preference for spending other people's money is widespread in Harrisburg.

Fumo's alleged use of a nonprofit to which he funneled money might remind readers of former state Rep. Mike Veon, D-Beaver, who pumped state money into Beaver Initiative for Growth (BIG), a nonprofit that he and state Sen. Gerald LaValle created. About a year ago, news reports revealed that Veon and LaValle had directed $7.4 million to BIG in the final months of 2005 and that BIGwas staffed by people who already were on Veon's legislative payroll.

As altruistic-sounding as these lawmakers' pet nonprofit groups might be, and despite some good work that they might do, they present opportunities for abuse and can be used to benefit the lawmaker politically, if not also financially.

Fumo's alleged abuse of the Citizens Alliance nonprofit should trigger investigations by the state Attorney General's Office into any other nonprofit with close ties to legislative leaders or their staff.

The federal investigation of Fumo was, in part, triggered by 2003 newspaper coverage of a $17 million contribution to the Citizens Alliance nonprofit by Peco Energy Co. at about the time the utility was lobbying Fumo to change his position on electric deregulation in the state.

As that investigation advanced, the FBIalleges that two top Fumo aides were instructed to erase all related computer files and e-mails from computers and even Blackberry hand-held devices used by Fumo and his staffers. The two computer technicians have been charged with obstruction of justice for their role in running programs to wipe clean the memories of computers targeted in the federal investigation of Fumo.

Though Fumo must be considered innocent until proven guilty, the depth and breadth of the charges are stunning. Beyond the use of state employees for domestic chores and purely political duties, Fumo is charged with fraudulently spending $1 million in taxpayer funds and another $1 million from nonprofits.

The 267-page indictment against Fumo could be an education for the public on how a deeply entrenched and powerful lawmaker in Harrisburg abused the public trust, played fast and loose with the law, and spent millions of dollars of other people's (mostly taxpayers') money for personal and political gain.

The Fumo indictment is an eye-opening and detailed description of betrayal of the public trust in the extreme. Time will tell how it ends — and how widely the damage spreads.