Bill Text: MS HB938 | 2017 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Motor vehicles; prohibit state agencies from purchasing for one year.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Passed) 2017-04-06 - Approved by Governor [HB938 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2017-HB938-Enrolled.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2017 Regular Session
To: Appropriations
By: Representative Read
House Bill 938
(As Sent to Governor)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 25-1-78, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT FROM JULY 1, 2017, THROUGH JUNE 30, 2018, STATE AGENCIES ARE PROHIBITED FROM PURCHASING, LEASING OR ACQUIRING ANY MOTOR VEHICLE, REGARDLESS OF THE SOURCE OF FUNDS USED; TO EXEMPT VEHICLES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES FROM THE PRECEDING PROVISIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-41, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE STATE AGENCIES TO USE A TRIP OPTIMIZER TYPE SYSTEM DEVELOPED AND ADMINISTERED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION IN COMPUTING THE OPTIMUM METHOD AND COST FOR TRAVEL BY STATE OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES USING A MOTOR VEHICLE WHERE THE TRAVEL WILL EXCEED ONE HUNDRED MILES PER DAY AND THE OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE IS NOT DRIVING A STATE-OWNED OR STATE-LEASED VEHICLE THAT HAS BEEN DEDICATED OR ASSIGNED TO THE OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE; TO PROVIDE THAT THE MAXIMUM AUTHORIZED AMOUNT OF TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT RELATED TO MOTOR VEHICLE USAGE SHALL BE THE LOWEST COST OPTION AS DETERMINED BY THE TRIP OPTIMIZER TYPE SYSTEM; TO AMEND SECTION 25-1-77, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE AGENCIES MAKING REQUESTS FOR AUTHORITY TO PURCHASE, LEASE OR ACQUIRE VEHICLES TO SUBMIT THE LOWEST COST VEHICLE POSSIBLE TO CARRY OUT ITS INTENDED USE; TO PROVIDE THAT THE BUREAU OF FLEET MANAGEMENT SHALL ONLY APPROVE THE LOWEST COST VEHICLE, WHICH IN ITS ESTIMATION, WILL CARRY OUT THE INTENDED USE; TO PROHIBIT AGENCIES FROM PURCHASING ANY VEHICLE THAT THE BUREAU OF FLEET MANAGEMENT HAS DISAPPROVED AS BEING A HIGHER COST OPTION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 25-1-78, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-1-78. (1) For purposes of this section, the term "state agency" means any agency that is subject to oversight by the Bureau of Fleet Management of the Department of Finance and Administration under Section 25-1-77.
(2) Except as otherwise
provided in this section, beginning on July 1, * * * 2017, through June 30, * * * 2018, the Bureau of Fleet Management,
Department of Finance and Administration, shall not approve the purchase, lease
or acquisition of any motor vehicle by a state agency, regardless of the source
of funds used. However, any agency that has a fleet of not more than fifty
(50) vehicles may replace a vehicle that has been wrecked and deemed a total
loss or any vehicle whose repair cost exceeds the cash value of the vehicle as
determined by the Bureau of Fleet Management. Documentation of such loss or
repair costs must be submitted to the Bureau of Fleet Management prior to
replacement of the vehicle.
(3) Beginning July 1, 2012, any state agency with a fleet of more than fifty (50) motor vehicles shall reduce the total number of its motor vehicles by two percent (2%) each fiscal year until June 30, 2016. The Bureau of Fleet Management and the State Auditor shall work together to enforce the provisions of this subsection.
(4) The provisions of subsections (2) and (3) of this section, with regard to the purchase, lease or acquisition of vehicles and to the mandatory reduction of the agency's fleet of vehicles, shall not apply to:
(a) A state agency's law enforcement or emergency vehicles, upon demonstrating to the Bureau of Fleet Management a justifiable need to be excluded from the provisions of subsections (2) and (3) of this section.
(b) A state agency's vehicles that are acquired by the use of grant monies that are specified to be used for that purpose and for which no state matching funds from the State General Fund are required, expended or used.
(c) Vehicles of the Department of Child Protection Services.
SECTION 2. Section 25-3-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-41. (1) Subject to the provisions of subsection (10) of this section, when any officer or employee of the State of Mississippi, or any department, agency or institution thereof, after first being duly authorized, is required to travel in the performance of his official duties, the officer or employee shall receive as expenses for each mile actually and necessarily traveled, when the travel is done by a privately owned automobile or other privately owned motor vehicle, the mileage reimbursement rate allowable to federal employees for the use of a privately owned vehicle while on official travel.
(2) When any officer or employee of any county or municipality, or of any agency, board or commission thereof, after first being duly authorized, is required to travel in the performance of his official duties, the officer or employee shall receive as expenses Twenty Cents (20�) for each mile actually and necessarily traveled, when the travel is done by a privately owned motor vehicle; provided, however, that the governing authorities of a county or municipality may, in their discretion, authorize an increase in the mileage reimbursement of officers and employees of the county or municipality, or of any agency, board or commission thereof, in an amount not to exceed the mileage reimbursement rate authorized for officers and employees of the State of Mississippi in subsection (1) of this section.
(3) Where two (2) or more officers or employees travel in one (1) privately owned motor vehicle, only one (1) travel expense allowance at the authorized rate per mile shall be allowed for any one (1) trip. When the travel is done by means of a public carrier or other means not involving a privately owned motor vehicle, then the officer or employee shall receive as travel expense the actual fare or other expenses incurred in such travel.
(4) In addition to the foregoing, a public officer or employee shall be reimbursed for other actual expenses such as meals, lodging and other necessary expenses incurred in the course of the travel, subject to limitations placed on meals for intrastate and interstate official travel by the Department of Finance and Administration, provided, that the Legislative Budget Office shall place any limitations for expenditures made on matters under the jurisdiction of the Legislature. The Department of Finance and Administration shall set a maximum daily expenditure annually for such meals and shall notify officers and employees of changes to these allowances immediately upon approval of the changes. Travel by airline shall be at the tourist rate unless that space was unavailable. The officer or employee shall certify that tourist accommodations were not available if travel is performed in first class airline accommodations. Itemized expense accounts shall be submitted by those officers or employees in such number as the department, agency or institution may require; but in any case one (1) copy shall be furnished by state departments, agencies or institutions to the Department of Finance and Administration for preaudit or postaudit. The Department of Finance and Administration shall promulgate and adopt reasonable rules and regulations which it deems necessary and requisite to effectuate economies for all expenses authorized and paid pursuant to this section. Requisitions shall be made on the State Fiscal Officer who shall issue his warrant on the State Treasurer. Provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall not include agencies financed entirely by federal funds and audited by federal auditors.
(5) Any officer or employee of a county or municipality, or any department, board or commission thereof, who is required to travel in the performance of his official duties, may receive funds before the travel, in the discretion of the administrative head of the county or municipal department, board or commission involved, for the purpose of paying necessary expenses incurred during the travel. Upon return from the travel, the officer or employee shall provide receipts of transportation, lodging, meals, fees and any other expenses incurred during the travel. Any portion of the funds advanced which is not expended during the travel shall be returned by the officer or employee. The Department of Audit shall adopt rules and regulations regarding advance payment of travel expenses and submission of receipts to ensure proper control and strict accountability for those payments and expenses.
(6) No state or federal funds received from any source by any arm or agency of the state shall be expended in traveling outside of the continental limits of the United States until the governing body or head of the agency makes a finding and determination that the travel would be extremely beneficial to the state agency and obtains a written concurrence thereof from the Governor, or his designee, and the Department of Finance and Administration. However, employees of state institutions of higher learning may expend funds for travel outside of the continental limits of the United States upon a written finding by the president or head of the institution that the travel would be extremely beneficial to the institution.
(7) Where any officer or employee of the State of Mississippi, or any department, agency or institution thereof, or of any county or municipality, or of any agency, board or commission thereof, is authorized to receive travel reimbursement under any other provision of law, the reimbursement may be paid under the provisions of this section or the other section, but not under both.
(8) When the Governor, Lieutenant Governor or Speaker of the House of Representatives appoints a person to a board, commission or other position that requires confirmation by the Senate, the person may receive reimbursement for mileage and other actual expenses incurred in the performance of official duties before the appointment is confirmed by the Senate, as reimbursement for those expenses is authorized under this section.
(9) (a) The Department of Finance and Administration may contract with one or more commercial travel agencies, after receiving competitive bids or proposals therefor, for that travel agency or agencies to provide necessary travel services for state officers and employees. Municipal and county officers and municipal and county employees may also participate in the state travel agency contract and utilize these travel services for official municipal or county travel. However, the administrative head of each state institution of higher learning may, in his discretion, contract with a commercial travel agency to provide necessary travel services for all academic officials and staff of the university in lieu of participation in the state travel agency contract. Any such decision by a university to contract with a separate travel agency shall be approved by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning and the Executive Director of the Department of Finance and Administration.
(b) Before executing a contract with one or more travel agencies, the Department of Finance and Administration shall advertise for competitive bids or proposals once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks in a regular newspaper having a general circulation throughout the State of Mississippi. If the department determines that it should not contract with any of the bidders initially submitting proposals, the department may reject all those bids, advertise as provided in this paragraph and receive new proposals before executing the contract or contracts. The contract or contracts may be for a period not greater than three (3) years, with an option for the travel agency or agencies to renew the contract or contracts on a one-year basis on the same terms as the original contract or contracts, for a maximum of two (2) renewals. After the travel agency or agencies have renewed the contract twice or have declined to renew the contract for the maximum number of times, the Department of Finance and Administration shall advertise for bids in the manner required by this paragraph and execute a new contract or contracts.
(c) Whenever any state officer or employee travels in the performance of his official duties by airline or other public carrier, he may have his travel arrangements handled by that travel agency or agencies. The amount paid for airline transportation for any state officer or employee, whether the travel was arranged by that travel agency or agencies or was arranged otherwise, shall not exceed the amount specified in the state contract established by the Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Purchasing and Travel, unless prior approval is obtained from the office.
(10) (a) For purposes of this subsection, the term "state agency" means any agency that is subject to oversight by the Bureau of Fleet Management of the Department of Finance and Administration under Section 25-1-77.
(b) Each state agency shall use a trip optimizer type system developed and administered by the Department of Finance and Administration in computing the optimum method and cost for travel by state officers and employees using a motor vehicle where the travel will exceed one hundred (100) miles per day and the officer or employee is not driving a state-owned or state-leased vehicle that has been dedicated or assigned to the officer or employee.
(c) The provisions of this subsection shall be used to determine the most cost-effective method of travel by motor vehicles, whether those vehicles are owned by the state agency, leased by the state agency, or owned by the officer or employee, and shall be applicable for purposes of determining the maximum authorized amount of any travel reimbursement for officers and employees of those agencies related to vehicle usage.
(d) The maximum authorized amount of travel reimbursement related to motor vehicle usage shall be the lowest cost option as determined by the trip optimizer type system. All travel claims submitted for reimbursement shall include the results of the trip optimizer type system indicating the lowest cost option for travel by the state officer or employee.
(e) In providing a calculation of rates, the trip optimizer type system shall account for the distance that an officer or employee must travel to pick up a rental or state fleet vehicle, and shall account for the long-term rate discounts offered through the state purchasing contract for vehicle rentals.
(f) This subsection shall not apply to travel by state officials in motor vehicles driven by the official or in vehicles used for the transport of the official. The exemption in this paragraph (f) applies only to the state official and not to the staff or other employees of the state official. As used in this paragraph (f), "state official" means statewide elected officials and the elected members of the Public Service Commission.
SECTION 3. Section 25-1-77, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-1-77. (1) There is created the Bureau of Fleet Management within the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management, Department of Finance and Administration, for the purposes of coordinating and promoting efficiency and economy in the purchase, lease, rental, acquisition, use, maintenance and disposal of vehicles by state agencies. The Executive Director of the Department of Finance and Administration may employ a Fleet Management Officer to manage the bureau and carry out its purposes. The bureau may employ other suitable and competent personnel as necessary. The bureau shall encourage the use of fuel efficient or hybrid vehicles appropriate for the state agency's intended purpose and, when feasible, the use of alternative fuels or energy sources, including, but not limited to, ethanol, biodiesel, natural gas or electric power. The bureau shall prepare a fiscal analysis of the cost-effectiveness of using alternative fuel or energy source vehicles by state agencies, and submit a report of that fiscal analysis to the Legislature by December 15, 2009. Not later than July 1, 2014, at least seventy-five percent (75%) of all vehicles to which the bureau holds title in the name of the state must have a fuel economy estimate by the United States Environmental Protection Agency of forty (40) miles per gallon or higher for highway driving.
(2) The Bureau of Fleet Management shall perform the following duties:
(a) To hold title in the name of the State of Mississippi to all vehicles currently in possession of state agencies as defined in Section 25-9-107(d) and to assign vehicles to such agencies for use; however, the bureau shall exempt any agency or agency vehicles from the provisions of this paragraph (a) if it determines that state or federal law requires that title be vested only in the agency;
(b) To establish rules and regulations for state agency use of vehicles;
(c) To gather information and specify proper fleet management practices for state agencies;
(d) To acquire fleet management software and require agencies to provide necessary information for the bureau to properly monitor the size, use, maintenance and disposal of the state's fleet of vehicles; the bureau shall communicate regularly with the fleet managers of each state agency to determine strengths and weaknesses of the various fleet operations; the bureau shall disseminate information to the agencies so that each can take advantage of any beneficial practices being incorporated at other entities; the bureau shall promulgate rules and regulations concerning the mileage reimbursement practices of each state agency;
(e) To carry out responsibilities relative to budget recommendations as provided in Section 27-103-129;
(f) To reassign vehicles in the possession of any state agency if the bureau believes that another state agency can make more efficient use of a vehicle; however, the state agency receiving the reassigned vehicle shall pay to the previous agency's special fund, or if no special fund exists to the State General Fund, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) wholesale value for the vehicle or the estimated amount for which the vehicle would have sold at auction, as shall be determined by the bureau, whichever is less;
(g) To investigate at any time the vehicle usage practices of any state agency; and
(h) To require each agency to submit to the bureau a vehicle acquisition/use/disposal plan on an annual basis. From the plans received, the bureau shall evaluate the proposed plans and shall submit a recommendation to the Legislature prior to January 1 of each year.
(3) No state department, institution or agency shall purchase, rent, lease or acquire any motor vehicle, regardless of the source of funds from which the motor vehicle is to be purchased, except under authority granted by the Department of Finance and Administration. The Bureau of Fleet Management, Department of Finance and Administration, shall promulgate rules and regulations governing the purchase, rental, lease or acquisition of any motor vehicle by a state department, institution or agency with regard to the appropriateness of the vehicle to its intended use. The Bureau of Fleet Management, Department of Finance and Administration, shall only grant authority to purchase, rent, lease or acquire a motor vehicle which is the lowest cost vehicle to carry out its intended use. Before the disposal or sale of any vehicle, the Bureau of Fleet Management shall make a determination that the lifetime use and mileage of the vehicle has been maximized and that it would not be feasible for another state agency to use the vehicle.
(4) The department, institution or agency shall maintain proper documentation which provides the intended use of the vehicle and the basis for choosing the vehicle. Such documentation shall show that the department, institution or agency made diligent efforts to purchase, rent, lease or acquire a vehicle that is the lowest cost vehicle for its intended use. Such documentation shall be updated as needed when the intended use of the vehicle or any other facts concerning the vehicle are changed. All such documentation shall be approved by the State Fleet Officer prior to purchase, rental, lease or acquisition or change in use of any vehicle and shall be maintained and made available for review by the State Auditor, any other reviewing agency and the Legislature. The Bureau of Fleet Management shall immediately notify the department head of any agency that has a vehicle found to be in violation of the bureau's rules and regulations. At the same time, the bureau shall notify the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Lieutenant Governor of its findings regarding any such vehicle. If the violation is not rectified within five (5) days of the notice, then the bureau may seize the vehicle and dispose of it as the bureau deems to be in the best interest of the State of Mississippi.
(5) On or before September 1 of each year, the Bureau of Fleet Management shall prepare and deliver to the Senate and House Appropriations Committees and the Joint Legislative Budget Committee a report containing any irregularities that it finds concerning purchases of state-owned vehicles.
(6) The Department of Public Safety and the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks may retain any vehicle seized pursuant to the forfeiture laws of this state, and the total number of vehicles assigned to each such agency shall not be reduced by the number of seized vehicles which the agency retains.
(7) The Bureau of Fleet Management, upon request, shall grant an exemption from the provisions of this section for only any vehicle assigned to a sworn officer of the Department of Public Safety and used in undercover operations when the bureau determines that compliance could jeopardize the life, health or safety of the sworn officer.
(8) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any state institution of higher learning.
(9) When making requests for authority to purchase, rent, lease or acquire vehicles as provided in subsection (3) of this section, agencies shall submit the lowest cost vehicle possible to carry out its intended use. Any such request shall be in writing from the agency head, certifying the vehicle requested is the lowest cost option available and acknowledging that any request contrary to this provision shall subject the agency head to penalties as provided in Sections 25-1-91, 31-7-55 and 31-7-57, where applicable. The Bureau of Fleet Management shall only approve the lowest cost vehicle, which in its estimation, will carry out the intended use. No agency may purchase any vehicle that the Bureau of Fleet Management has disapproved as being a higher cost option.
(10) No requests authorized under subsections (3) and (9) of this section shall be approved by the Bureau of Fleet Management if the requesting agency has not properly maintained in the fleet/asset reporting system all information required by the Bureau of Fleet Management. Agencies shall correct any inadequacies or discrepancies in the system noted by the Bureau of Fleet Management before the bureau may approve any requests.
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2017.
