No More Free Rides

The Examiner reported that HoCo Exec Ulman is sharply reducing the number of county-owned vehicles that are issued to employees.

The 207 take-home vehicles in service will be reduced by 119, saving the county as much as $700,000 a year, according to county officials.

Officials spent time reviewing commuting miles versus job-related miles and found that some cars were being used for long-distance commutes from as far as Pennsylvania.

The Sun detailed some of the cuts:

The move would restrict more than half of the 207 county vehicles driven home by employees, including police public information spokeswoman Sherry Llewellyn. Others affected include several deputy department heads, 25 fire officials, 29 sheriff's deputies and 44 Public Works employees, according to county Chief Administrative Officer Lonnie Robbins. Sheriff James T. Fitzgerald, who is elected, will not lose take-home use of his vehicle.

No executive staff members would lose their take-home vehicles, Robbins said.