Shurden Authors Measure to Reform State Vehicle Management; Save Millions for Oklahoma Taxpayers

A veteran State Senator has introduced legislation to reform the way Oklahoma purchases, manages and disposes of state-owned vehicles.

Citing a November 2004 report by the State Auditor and Inspector which said the state could save more than $20 million on vehicle costs over the next 10 years if authority over state-owned vehicles was centralized, State Senate Frank Shurden has introduced the “Fleet Management Reform Act.”

“Under the current system we don’t even know how many cars the state owns,” said Shurden, D-Henryetta. “Centralizing control of the state fleet will save millions that could be better spent on education and health care.”

Shurden said Senate Bill 545 encompasses the recommendations made by State Auditor and Inspector Jeff McMahan in his November audit report.

It gives the state’s Fleet Manager in the Department of Central Services greater authority over how many and what types of vehicles are purchased, how money is spent on upkeep for those vehicles and how the vehicles are disposed of once they are declared surplus property, Shurden said.

DCS currently maintains a state motor pool but also authorizes 22 other agencies to operate their own fleet of vehicles. Under Senate Bill 545, the Fleet Manager would determine whether a new vehicle is needed and what type of vehicle should be purchased before any agency is allowed to add to its fleet or replace a worn out vehicle.

“The audit found that some agencies were using SUVs where less expensive vehicles would have served the same purpose and found that some vehicles were regularly being washed and detailed at $50 or $100 a pop. There’s no justification for that,” Shurden said.

He said another provision of the bill will help preserve the resale value of vehicles by allowing them to be identified as state-owned by using a bumper sticker rather than paint or a decal on the side of the car.
Shurden’s legislation also requires written authorization by the Fleet Manager before any employee in any agency can drive a state-owned vehicle home.

Additionally, Senate Bill 545 requires that the Fleet Manager issue an annual report on the number and use of state-owned vehicles and deliver it to the Governor, Speaker of the House and President Pro Tempore of the Senate.

Shurden explained that, if enacted, Senate Bill 545 will give the Fleet Manager the authority to implement further recommendations in the Auditor and Inspector’s report – things that should be done but aren’t legislated in the bill.

For example, he said, the report found that the state could save $2.4 million immediately by selling and not replacing 1,000 unnecessary cars. It said another $2.3 million could be saved annually by replacing other cars in the 11,365 fleet with cheaper models, for a total savings of $20.7 million during the next seven years.

“That’s money that would be spent wiser making a better tomorrow for our children,” Shurden said.