HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Expensive cigars.

Lavish resorts.

Expensive meals.

Team 4 went to court to get the records of the spending habits at the state's college loan agency -- and on Thursday in Harrisburg, the board of directors met to approve some belt-tightening at the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.

All of this started almost two years ago when WTAE-TV, along with the Associated Press and the Patriot-News in Harrisburg, had to go to court to get PHEAA spending records.

Those records -- finally made public in the past few weeks -- caused an uproar that made its way to PHEAA headquarters on Thursday.

PHEAA's new travel policy forbids personal expenses from being charged to the agency. Also, expenses for spouses -- like the massages and manicures for state lawmakers' wives that Team 4 uncovered -- are no longer allowed.

"No other organization in America has generated more money to help more students than PHEAA without using one cent of tax revenue," PHEAA CEO Richard Willey said.

But the public agency does get $500 million a year in state tax dolllars for student grants and subsidies, and so the board chair issued an apology of sorts for the $900,000 that board members spent on retreats at posh resorts like Nemacolin.

"We have made some mistakes regarding some travel expenses," said Rep. William Adolph, R-Delaware County.

Donna Cooper, Rendell's new represpentative on PHEAA's board, said an apology and a new travel policy don't go far enough.

"We believe that there is continued room here to look at the resources in the organization and identify those resources that can be responsibly applied to increasing the number of student grants and the level of student grants in the commonwealth," Cooper said.

In a letter to WTAE-TV and the Tribune-Review, Rep. Jess Stairs, R-Westmoreland County, claims his wife reimbursed PHEAA for personal expenses at board retreats over a five-year period.

Team 4 wanted to know when those reimbursements occurred for Mrs. Stairs' spa treatments and cooking classes. Parsons asked Rep. Stairs after the PHEAA meeting Thursday.

"You sent us a letter saying you reimbursed PHEAA," Parsons said. "When did you do that?"

"I think you should contact PHEAA," Stairs said. "They'll tell you."

"I have contacted PHEAA," Parsons said. "Why can't you tell me when you wrote the check?"

"You don't trust me, so I'll let PHEAA tell you," Stairs said.

"Why do you think I don't trust you, representative?" Parsons said.

"When you give the facts in a story, I'll trust you," Stairs said.

PHEAA spokesman Keith New told Team 4 that Mrs. Stairs issued a check to PHEAA dated Feb. 27, 2007. That's a year and a half after WTAE-TV, the Associated Press and the Patriot-News first went to court to fight for the agency's spending records.

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