Honolulu City Council members spent thousands of taxpayer dollars on meals, snacks, travel and other discretionary items over the past year, public records show.

Other expenses ranged from new leather office furniture to the renewal of a passport, according to council spending reports.

Each of the council's nine members receives $12,000 per year to spend as they see fit, provided it is related to their city work. This is in addition to their $49,245 annual salary (the chair earns $55,020).

The expense money typically pays for office supplies, travel, food, lei, gifts, parking and other items. Leftover money reverts to the city's general fund.

Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi was the biggest spender, billing taxpayers for $11,942 in expenses, including $261 for a refrigerator and microwave. Kobayashi said those costs stemmed from council organizational shuffles that led several members to switch offices.

Councilman Rod Tam spent the second most: $11,756, including more than $4,000 on meals and snacks. He said he often meets with constituents at neighborhood coffee shops because they are most comfortable there.

"I'm like a country doctor, visiting and making house calls," he said.

Paying for inexpensive meals and coffee or soft drinks makes people comfortable, he said. "Basically, it's taxpayer money, and the taxpayers are eating their own money," Tam said.

Tam spent more than $2,600 on a trip to Vietnam, including $127 to renew his passport for 10 years. He said it was appropriate to bill taxpayers for the passport because virtually all his foreign travel is for official business.

The Vietnam trip focused on Hue — one of Honolulu's sister cities — and economic development taking place there, he said.

Councilman Donovan Dela Cruz spent the third most: $10,698, including $1,328 for a black leather sofa and $251 for matching chairs. Some additional expenses are still pending.

He said he bought furniture for his new office after he was ousted as council chair and forced to leave similar items behind.

Dela Cruz said he was glad the spending reports are made public so that constituents can see how their money is used.

"The more transparency, the better," he said. "Each council member has an allotment so that it's not all about rewarding friends and punishing enemies, playing petty politics."

Councilman Charles Djou, who spent $2,893, said he is careful to keep expenses low and to return as much as he can to the general fund. "I think paying for a lunch or a meal once in a while is appropriate, but I think using public office as a meal ticket is not appropriate," he said.

Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com.