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A Maricopa County employee welfare program known as the “take-home vehicle” may be coming to an end.
Due to the economic crisis, the county is ordering the use of its 2,500 vehicles to be scrutinized with an eye toward saving money. One of the first things officials want to look at is whether to keep allowing some employees to drive their taxpayer-owned cars home overnight, according to a news release put out today by the county.
(Click here for an MS Word copy of the release).
Nobody will be immune from the study, supposedly:
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As detailed by Deputy Budget Director Brian Hushek, all county departments, agencies, elected officials and judges will report on overnight use of county vehicles by county employees.
Despite the quip about welfare, we don’t know if county employees are driving vehicles home overnight for no other reason than to save wear and tear on their own vehicles (not to mention the savings by using county fuel). Some legitimate reasons for take-home use must exist — though none come readily to mind. Max Wilson, chairman of the Board of Supervisors, says he doesn’t intend to jeopardize undercover law enforcement operations.
The county is also placing a moratorium on the routine replacement of vehicles — previously, it sold them off after a certain number of miles or years.
You know, like a well-off person does.
