Investigators with the state legislative auditor's office have been spending lots of time reviewing records at the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad this summer, and the agency's lavish spending -- on meals, entertainment, salaries and overtime -- certainly merits their scrutiny.

The Public Belt Railroad, which oversees 100 miles of railroad track and the Huey P. Long Bridge, receives no tax revenue. However, it oversees a public asset and takes in millions of dollars annually from rail companies that use its track to move freight to and from the Port of New Orleans and cross-country trains that use the track as a throughway.

The money is derived from property that belongs to the public and is critical to the city's economic development. The 17-member commission that runs the railroad and its staff have an obligation to be fiscally responsible.

Runaway spending and lavish perks are not acceptable. Railroad commission staff members racked up more than $435,000 in credit card charges for dining, travel and hotel between 2007 and 2009. James Bridger, who earns $350,000 a year as general manager, spent the most, with more than $108,000 in spending over a three-year period.

While it's not unreasonable for someone in Mr. Bridger's position to spend money on meals and entertainment related to business, records show that during some weeks he charged meals every single day -- sometimes both lunch and dinner.

"I've never seen anything like this," said Rafael Goyeneche, president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, which received complaints from railroad employees that it passed on to the legislative auditor. Most of Mr. Bridger's meals seem to be with senior management or people who are not doing business with the commission, Mr. Goyeneche said. If so, that spending isn't justified.

The railroad also has spent nearly $3 million to refurbish three vintage Pullman coaches, two of which it uses to stage parties that feature top-shelf liquor and meals prepared by fine restaurants. Two staffers are assigned the duty of stocking the cars and booking events at them, earning salaries of $70,000 and $35,000.

The top five salaries for the agency -- including that of the Huey P. Long Bridge superintendent -- exceed that of Mayor Mitch Landrieu, who has taken a cut in pay to help address the city's budget shortfall.

The Public Belt is also feeling pinched. The agency netted more than $6 million in profits annually between 2004 and last year, hitting a high of $13 million in 2008. But now officials are considering unpaid furloughs. Chief Financial and Mechanical Officer John Morrow cited overtime, employee health programs, legal costs and higher fuel costs as factors.

Overtime costs are a reflection of management practices, and they've certainly been significant. Rank-and-file employees earned $430,000 in overtime last year -- one bridge employee took in nearly $32,000 in overtime. The agency also lost its largest client, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, which stopped sending its freight through the Public Belt system in April 2009.

But surely profligate spending is also partly to blame.

It's also a sign, according to Mr. Goyeneche, of an agency that "is not being properly managed either by the staff or the board of directors.''

If the legislative auditor's report bears out that conclusion, significant reform should be the next step.