Sens. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., have introduced legislation that would trim the federal vehicle fleet by 20 percent, potentially saving $500 million.
According to Coburn’s office the 662,000 cars, vans, trucks, etc., owned by federal agencies consume about a million gallons a day, and the bill would reduce the amount the government can spend on buying and leasing non-essential vehicles.
It would also task each agency’s inspector general with reviewing the use of agency vehicles to identify savings opportunities.
Coburn noted that the President’s debt commission recommended reducing the number of federal vehicles and said cutting non-essential vehicles is an "easy step."
According to Shaheen, "There’s no reason for some of these agencies to own fleets of SUVs, which are expensive to own and to operate." He added that the "government can get by with fewer vehicles."
