State & Regional Interest	Thursday, December 11, 2003
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Sanford wants state out of car buying, maintenance business By JIM DAVENPORT, (Published December 2‚ 2003) CAYCE, S.C. (AP) - The state needs to sell more than a third of its car fleet and try get out of the business of buying and maintaining vehicles, Gov. Mark Sanford said Tuesday as he unveiled part of his state budget plan. Sanford, stood in a state parking lot full of cars, pickups and vans Tuesday, as he called for selling 6,155 cars now in the state's 15,052-vehicle fleet. Those sales would generate $33.7 million, with $25 million used to offset rising costs of state employee health insurance, Sanford said. Moving to a system of leasing cars would generate about $8.5 million in annual savings, Sanford said. "I believe there is a role for government and government ought to focus on things that only government can do," Sanford said. About half the 30 people who work with the state's fleet operations would lose their jobs under the governor's plan. Sanford said his plans wouldn't affect the state-owned school bus system, law enforcement cruisers, Transportation Department vehicles or Corrections Department vans used to carry prisoners, Sanford said. "I agree with him," House Ways and Means Chairman Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, said. "I think that's an excellent suggestion that he's made. I expect we'll try to incorporate that in our version of the budget, too." Sanford is in the final weeks of putting together his first executive budget. That spending plan incorporates his government restructuring ideas as it tries to come up with savings to close a gap of more than $300 million between expected revenues and spending. In this case, Sanford would restructure the state Budget and Control Board's fleet operations. What remained would help buy essential cars for some agencies, negotiate leases for others, do some maintenance and administer state gasoline purchase card programs, Sanford said. Sanford also wants car maintenance operations consolidated. He said eliminating the Department of Mental Health maintenance shop would save $850,000. State cars have been an issue for Sanford since he launched agency budget hearings this summer. A bicycle ride that took him through a Mental Health parking lot and loads of idle state cars piqued his interest. "Just to see the number of cars that were sitting there, to me, was surprising," Sanford said. Sanford's staff found a pickup truck used by the agency that oversees redevelopment of the closed Myrtle Beach Air Force Base. The agency pays the state $208.40 for a five-year-old vehicle that has 16,000 miles on it. In October, the truck logged 52 miles. "Based on those numbers, we're paying about four dollars per mile," Sanford said. Other options would be renting a car when it's needed or paying employees to use their own cars, Sanford said. While South Carolina has more than 15,000 fleet cars, North Carolina, which is twice as big, has 9,617. South Carolina has 38 cars for every 10,000 citizens; Tennessee has 17; Alabama, 13; and North Carolina, 12. "We seem to be out of the norm of where other states are," Sanford said.

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