Legislative auditors say the state motor pool could save $1.6 million by delaying new vehicle purchases and reducing the size of the fleet by 73 vehicles.
The report presented Wednesday before the Legislative Audit Subcomm-ittee states that 162 of the 736 vehicles in the fleet were driven less than 6,000 miles in 2009 but that management didn't identify that issue because it isn't actively monitoring vehicles for low use.
Auditors also identified 16 vehicles that should have been investigated for improper fuel card use during a four-month period. Suspicious use of fuel cards included one attorney general's investigation of the apparent theft of some $5,000 worth of fuel over the course of a year. The problem wasn't spotted until the state's fuel provider reported three purchases of fuel for one vehicle in one day.
"Unusual fuel purchases for this vehicle should have been identified much sooner since this was one agency's only motor pool vehicle," the audit report states.
It says controls over fuel card use must be monitored closely because fuel purchases for the motor pool totaled more than $900,000 in 2009.
Motor pool administrator Keith Wells accepted the audit findings and its recommendations for improved monitoring and internal controls. He said some of the corrections have already been put in place.