[HISTORY: Adopted by the Suffolk County Legislature as indicated
in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable. Uncodified
sections of local laws amending these provisions are included at the
end of this chapter.]
[Adopted 6-11-1991 by L.L. No. 18-1991 (Ch. 186, Art. I,
of the 1985 Code)]
A.
This Legislature hereby finds and determines that numerous County
vehicles are assigned to individual County employees on what appears
to be an ad hoc basis.
B.
Therefore, the purpose of this article is to establish a reporting
policy whereby County department heads will be required to justify
the assignment of vehicles to the County Legislature and the taxpayers
of Suffolk County.
A.
The heads of each County department or elected Countywide office
shall issue a written report to the County Executive on July 1 and
December 31 of each year setting forth the assignment of County-owned
or County-leased vehicles within said department to individual employees
of that department, together with the justification for said assignment.
B.
Such report shall include the number of vehicles assigned; the existence,
if any, of carpooling by said department or office; and the rationale
behind the assignment of individual vehicles or the creation of a
carpool, as the case may be. If a vehicle is assigned to a County
employee who is permitted to take that vehicle home on an overnight
basis at any time during the year, then said employee shall maintain
a log of mileage incurred for the use of such vehicle by said employee
which specifies, in detail, on a daily basis, where the individual
is traveling; the time the vehicle is in use; the destination as well
as the purpose for which the employee is traveling to that particular
destination; the mileage incurred after the standard daily work shift
assigned to said individual has expired; and the allocation of mileage
between that incurred traveling to or from the individual's residence
to or from work and that incurred for work-related travel.
(1)
The assignment of vehicles to employees whose commuter mileage exceeds
business-related mileage is prohibited.
(2)
All vehicles that are assigned to individuals with a work station
of at least 10 people must be available at the actual permanent work
site for other County employees, to be utilized as pool vehicles.
(3)
Vehicles may be assigned to certain individuals on a specific daily
basis when the individual shall engage in after-hours or before-hours
activities explicitly related to County work. A daily written explanation
card shall then be given to the supervisor as to which car is being
given to that individual, the date and time, the specific and particular
purpose, and the destination of the employee. The explanation card
shall then be countersigned for approval by a supervisor designated
by the pertinent department head. These cards shall be maintained
in the regular course of business by each pertinent department as
part of its ordinary business records.
(5)
No SUV shall be purchased or leased by the County of Suffolk unless:
(a)
Explicit approval for the acquisition of such vehicle, via lease
or purchase, has been granted via duly enacted resolution of the County
of Suffolk and a written justification for the use and assignment
of such vehicle, prepared by the Commissioner or elected head of the
pertinent County department to which such vehicle shall be assigned,
has been submitted to the Purchasing Division of the County Department
of Public Works, the County Executive, and to each member of the County
Legislature; and
(b)
The assignment of an SUV shall be limited to those individuals
whose job title and actual work function are consistent with the written
justification submitted by the pertinent department in compliance
with an annual analysis to be prepared by the County Road Fund: Highway
and Bridge Maintenance Unit in the County Department of Public Works,
no later than January 1 of the year for which such analysis shall
be used, determining the lowest denomination of cost per vehicle using
a grid showing maintenance costs, gas costs, aggregate acquisition
cost, and liability. This analysis shall be deemed the County vehicle
standard. The County vehicle standard may only be deviated from via
duly enacted resolution of the County of Suffolk, incorporating a
clearly articulated justification for such deviation.
(6)
No vehicle of any nature whatsoever shall be purchased or leased
by the County of Suffolk unless:
(a)
The vehicle is acquired, via lease or purchase, off of the state
contract or the County contract, whichever offers the lowest cost,
as long as the vehicle meets the County vehicle standard;
[Amended 12-2-2003 by L.L. No. 30-2003]
(b)
The purchase or lease of the vehicle is based on the County
vehicle standard. All purchases or leases of any vehicle shall comply
with the County vehicle standard unless the requirement is waived
via duly enacted resolution of the County of Suffolk, incorporating
a written justification for the exception issued by the Commissioner
or elected head of the pertinent County department to which such vehicle
shall be assigned; and
(c)
Explicit approval for the acquisition of such vehicle, via lease
or purchase, has been granted via duly enacted resolution of the County
of Suffolk.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law was adopted by the Legislature
after disapproval by the County Executive on 6-13-2003.
C.
All County departments, agencies, divisions, bureaus, offices and
other entities shall cooperate with the County Executive in developing
such semiannual reports by forwarding in a timely fashion such information
as shall be requested by the County Executive.
D.
The County Executive shall provide copies of these reports to the
Chairman and each member of the Ways and Means Committee, or to any
other successor committee thereto, of the County Legislature within
seven days after receiving such reports from the pertinent County
department or office.
E.
The Clerk of the County Legislature shall issue a written report to the Presiding Officer of the County Legislature on July 1 and December 31 of each year setting forth the assignment of County-owned or County-leased vehicles within said Legislature to individual employees of the Legislature, together with the justification for said assignment. This report shall contain the same information required by Subsection B of this section. The Presiding Officer shall forward this written report to the Ways and Means Committee, or to any other successor committee thereto, of the County Legislature within seven days after receiving such reports from the Clerk of the County Legislature.
[Added 8-8-2006 by L.L. No. 41-2006]
A.
The Department of Public Works shall issue a written County vehicle
standard for the purchase or lease of County vehicles, which County
vehicle standard shall include, but not be limited to, requirements
that any County vehicle purchased or leased have a minimum gasoline
mileage rating of 20 miles per gallon city/30 miles per gallon highway,
and that any County vehicle purchased or leased be a flex-fuel vehicle
able to operate on E85 ethanol. The Department of Public Works shall
review and revise the County vehicle standard at least once every
24 months. The requirements of the County vehicle standard shall not
apply to the purchase or lease of vehicles for emergency, public safety
or law enforcement use, for special use vehicles, including minivans
and pickup trucks, or for vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of
over 6,000 pounds.
B.
Nothing contained in Subsection F above shall preclude the Department
of Public Works from including in the County vehicle standard a requirement
that any County vehicle purchased or leased be capable of operating,
either currently or in the future, on alternative fuels or propulsion
technologies, provided that any inclusion of an alternative fuel or
propulsion technology requirement results in an improvement in the
fuel efficiency and environmental standards of County vehicles covered
by the County vehicle standard. No vehicle capable of operating, either
currently or in the future, on alternative fuels or propulsion technologies
shall be purchased or leased by the County of Suffolk without prior
approval of the Suffolk County Legislature.
This article shall apply to the assignment and use of County
vehicles occurring on or after the effective date of this article.
