Rutgers Paid How Much To Host Obama As Commencement Speaker?

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ - Remember when President Barack Obama spoke at Rutgers' commencement last spring? You may be surprised to find out just how much his commencement appearance cost. While Obama spoke for free, the university shelled out a hefty sum for event coordination costs and security, according to new information Friday.

In grand total, Rutgers shelled out $1.43 million on the commencement, NJ Advance Media reported, after requesting the final accounting figures from Rutgers. While some of that money went to paying for extra police officers, two outside vendors got very large contracts from the commencement: Nearly $500,000 went to a Pennsylvania-based production company to coordinate the event and $103,000 was paid to a traffic consulting firm to plan road closures.

Rutgers usually pays its speakers a $35,000 fee, but Obama spoke for free. Also, Rutgers did not pay the cost of flying Obama by helicopter from D.C. to New Brunswick, nor the cost of his Secret Service agents. All of that was covered by the usual federal funding.

But Rutgers defended the price tag, saying Obama's visit and speech brought enormous prestige to New Jersey's state university.

"President Obama came to Rutgers and told the world that America converges here. We couldn't be more proud of his visit," Rutgers spokeswoman Karen Smith told Patch. "His commencement address — the first in Rutgers history by a sitting president — was a unique opportunity for the university to showcase itself on a national stage. The enormous media attention and excitement surrounding his visit benefits the university in numerous ways."

"The additional expenses for the 2016 commencement reflected the significant increase in attendance due to the president's visit," she added. About 52,000 people attended the Obama address, 50 percent more than in years past, and the sheer volume of people drove up costs, according to NJ.com.

According to the report, here is what Rutgers spent money on to host the president:

• $450,975 to Pennsylvania-based Mountain Productions to stage the event. According to its website, Mountain Productions sets up stages, the sound system, lighting, ground covers and barricades for large-scale events such as concerts and political rallies.
• $103,293 to Traffic Safety Services of South Plainfield for road closure, parking planning and equipment
• $131,042 to Academy Bus and First Transit to bus people in and out of the ceremony
• $164,351 for extra police officers from the NJ State Police, Piscataway and New Brunswick
• $61,204 to provide three days worth of food and water for volunteers

Read the entire original reporting on NJ.com.

This year, "Little Steven" Van Zandt of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will be Rutgers' commencement speaker. The final costs for this year's event won't be calculated until after Little Steven speaks.

"Little Steven" Van Zandt to be Rutgers' Commencement Speaker