Harrisburg was a busy place in July and August, the two months following the missed June 30 deadline to pass a state budget. At least it appeared to be busy, based on the number of lawmakers claiming per diems for official work.

A Pittsburgh newspaper reported that state lawmakers have been paid $532,585 in per diems for July and August.

At first glance, this per diem tab for 107 Democrats and 74 Republicans seems scandalous. The consistent message from newspaper reports is that budget negotiations have been handled by a small number of legislative leaders. In fact, many state lawmakers have complained about being out of the loop.

John Baer, a columnist with the Philadelphia Daily News, has written that most lawmakers have had nothing to do with budget negotiations and a majority of them first hear about budget details in the media.

But according to Tim Potts, of Democracy Rising PA, there still could be legitimate reasons for nearly 200 legislators to have been in Harrisburg this summer. There has been some legislative action, despite the failure to enact a budget, and various committees have met.

Even if rank-and-file lawmakers admit that they have very little involvement in budget negotiations, some might need to be in Harrisburg for other work, or they might feel the need to give the impression that they have been doing what they could, however little that might be, to help get a budget deal.

The value of the work done this summer in exchange for $532,585 in per diems can be debated. But more scandalous than the fact that 181 lawmakers were paid per diems during a period that is normally a summer recess, is how per diems are used — and abused.

As a reminder, lawmakers receive per diems of $158 a day for any day they are in Harrisburg or the Legislature is in session. The $158 payment is intended to cover the expenses of being in Harrisburg, primarily food and lodging.

The first scandalous aspect of the per diems is that lawmakers receive the $158 without providing receipts.

Just about any business person with an expense account must save and turn in receipts for expenses to be covered by their employer. It's the logical way to cover expenses. Yet state lawmakers are not required to turn in any receipts. They receive $158 a day whether or not they spend that much on food and lodging — and many of them never spend anything close to that much. Maybe some spend more, but without receipts the public cannot know.

One lawmaker was quoted in the Pittsburgh newspaper's article about per diems as saying, "Don't let anyone kid you; you don't have to buy a meal in Harrisburg."

That reality has been reinforced by numerous reports that have shown how most lawmakers take advantage of many catered functions while working in the Capitol.

Catered meals are not wrong. Sometimes keeping lawmakers at work rather than have them leave for a restaurant is efficient. But why still receive the full $158 per diem amount when catered meals are common?

And the practice of having lobbyists take lawmakers out for a nice dinner or lunch also is common.

Clearly, more than a few state lawmakers do not pay much for food while in Harrisburg, yet they still are reimbursed $158 a day.

Being reimbursed for expenses not incurred is known as "double dipping," and it's reportedly widespread in Harrisburg.

To get a feel for the volume and value of catered meals in the General Assembly, a newspaper report published last month revealed that the House's chief clerk issued payments of $250,000 for catered meals for lawmakers during the 2007-08 legislative session. Even accepting the fact that many staffers also are fed at these events, that's still a lot of food for lawmakers.

The same article confirmed that many lawmakers are routinely wined and dined by lobbyists and rarely have to buy their own dinners.

The failure to pass a budget is the headline-producing offense in Harrisburg this year, but the ongoing abuse of per diems is another worthy of public attention.

There is no reason why lawmakers cannot turn in actual expenses for food and lodging, like everyone else does. But the folks in Harrisburg are not like everyone else. They're entitled, as their past actions, including the 50 percent pension grab of 2001 and the ill-fated pay-raise vote of 2005, have illustrated.