The AP’s 2010 report laid out some of Perry’s state-funded expenses on the temporary residence, including $8,400 for maintenance on a heated pool, $1,001 for Neiman Marcus window coverings, and $1,000 for repairs on a filtered ice machine. And in a detail that might be of negligible concern to Texas taxpayers but could make for a convenient talking point for Perry’s future GOP opponents, the governor charged the state $70 for a subscription to Food & Wine Magazine at his home.

“We’re paying $10,000 a month for it at a time when Texans are facing a massive budget shortfall, and it’s irresponsible for Texans to have to pay for his extravagant lifestyle,” Texas Democratic Party communications director Kirsten Gray said. “No governor who spends $1,000 in taxpayer money for Neiman Marcus window coverings can call himself a conservative.”

The controversy surrounding Perry’s pricey rental home could take on added resonance after the governor recently signed a budget that several news reports characterized as having been balanced largely through accounting gimmicks.