Hate Vegas, love Clovis?

New commandments for federal employees. If you’re skedding a conference: Pick a travel hub. Make it low cost. And avoid resorts.

So, the Wall Street Journal reports, to avoid any potential appearance of having fun, some federal agencies are telling staff NOT to go to Reno, Las Vegas or Orlando –”unless you can provide robust justification.”

Worthy three-star alternatives? Chicago, Denver, Portland (Oregon), St. Louis, Washington (DC), Milwaukee, Phoenix and Fort Collins, Colo. Yeah, nobody every got caught completely blitzed or canoodling in those cities. Nobody every wasted taxpayer money, say, in DC?

You gotta love the last paragraph in Tamara Audi’s Journal story, in which she quotes an unnamed Department of Agriculture employee: “Do you want to take everyone to Fargo in the middle of winter? Just because they’re federal employees you don’t need to mistreat them.”

Here’s another shot for the Clovis Chamber and economic development folks to get on the radar of the Ag and Justice departments — a safe, economical place to brainstorm, watch 3-D movies at Sierra Vista and stroll Old Town.