Staff Tools Home | Table of Contents | Search Manual | State Vehicles

XI.D State Vehicles

-Procedures for State operated offices-

5-1-14

1. Overview

It is the policy of DHS and a requirement of Oregon Revised Statutes that state vehicles be used only for official state business and be operated only by authorized persons who meet the Department’s driving criteria. This applies to state-owned vehicles as well as to private or rental vehicles while authorized for use on official state business or at state cost and risk. Click here for the complete list of qualifications and expectations for state employees.
Below are some general reminders for use of state cars:

State vehicles leased by APD for field office use are the property of the Department of Administrative Services (DAS). Click here for the DAS Fleet Management Policy.

Each car should have a copy of the current Vehicle Rules for State Drivers, which contains the DAS Vehicle Use and Access Administrative Rules and the DAS Vehicle Operator's Manual. The Vehicle Operator's Manual includes an overview of Motor Pool procedures, including vehicle maintenance and care, use of the Voyager fuel credit card, emergency and accident procedures, and use of Motor Pool-issued tire chains.

2. Reserving vehicles

Permanently assigned vehicles
An account has been created in Outlook for each permanently assigned vehicle assigned to your local office. This allows you to schedule a car using the Outlook calendar. These cars are listed in the global address book by city, then by street name, then APD, then E plate number, and finally by color; for example, “Medford – 6th – APD 500800 Blue Impala”.
To schedule a car using the Outlook calendar:

  1. Click New Appointment;
  2. In the Subject line, enter the purpose of the appointment, such as “Home visit” or “Vehicle maintenance” or “Training”;
  3. Leave the Location line empty. If you enter information about where the car is going, it will conflict with the information about the vehicle chosen for the appointment. Take care not to include PHI or other protected information in the body of the appointment;
  4. Enter the Start Date and Time and the End Date and Time;
  5. Click on Scheduling Assistant. Your name will appear in the All Attendees box on the left side of the calendar grid;
  6. Click on Add Attendees. This will take you to the Global Address Book;
  7. You have two options at this point:
    1. If a personal contact group has been created, select Contacts under the staff name and select the contact group for the cars, such as “Medford DSO Cars”. Click Resources. Click OK; or
    2. Click on Global Address List. Type in the name of the city where the cars are located. For example, if you type “Medford,” you will find several options. Look for the street name of the office and the description of the car, such as “Medford – 6th – APD 500800 Blue Impala”. Choose the desired car, or to check availability for all cars, highlight all cars for “Medford– 6th”. Click Resources. Click OK.
  1. The calendar group or individual cars will appear under All Attendees. To display each car in the contact group, click the “+” sign;
  2. Check to see if one of the cars is available during the time of your appointment. If so, uncheck all cars except the one you have chosen. If no cars are available, you have the option at the bottom of the screen to change the time or date of the appointment to align with the availability of a car. When the date and time and car have been selected, click Send;
  3. An email will be sent to the Outlook mailbox which says, “Roseburg – Garden – APD Beige Prius has accepted this meeting”;
  4. The appointment will display on your calendar for the date and time reserved.

Personal Vehicle Use

You may request mileage reimbursement for using your own car. You need written approval from your supervisor to use your personal vehicle. Form MSC 0823, Authorization to Use Private Vehicle is used to make this request. DHS policy requires management approval to use a personal vehicle for official state business, including justification for receiving reimbursement at the full GSA rate vs. reduced rate. Before using a private car for state business, the driver is required to present proof of adequate legal insurance on the vehicle to be driven. The form describes auto insurance requirements and limitations of state insurance coverage for damages resulting from an incident in a personal vehicle.


Renting a car

The State of Oregon contracts with both Enterprise Rent a Car and Hertz Rent a Car. Renting a car from Enterprise or Hertz is an option only when state cars are not available and use of a personal vehicle is more costly or not available. Whenever a vehicle is rented by the state, that rental vehicle falls under the same rules and statutes which apply to state owned vehicles.

Enterprise Rent a Car/National Car Rental

State employees can rent a car over the phone, in person or online from Enterprise Rent a Car and National Car Rental. When renting a car you will need to know the direct bill account number and the index number for your office; your manager can provide this information. If possible, the person who will be driving the car should use his or her own name to make the reservation. However, cars can be rented for use by multiple drivers in an office or while on training without additional charges.
Hertz Rent a Car

Hertz Rent a Car also has a contract with the state for renting vehicles. A direct bill account will soon be available. More to come….

Purchasing gas for rental cars

Each state field office has been provided Voyager cards for the express purpose of purchasing gas for rental cars. The Voyager cards must not be used for any other type of purchase.
Each Voyager cards has been assigned a specific PIN which must be entered at the gas pump. For security purposes, it is recommend you key in the number yourself rather than giving the PIN number to the attendant.
All use of Voyager cards for fueling rental cars must be documented and retained for six years in Central Office. Documentation includes:

3. In case of accident or breakdown

Keep a copy of the Vehicle Rules for State Drivers in each state car at all times during use. The Vehicle Operator's Manual section of this booklet gives information about what to do in the case of an accident or a breakdown.
In any true emergency, call 9-1-1.

In general, after any accident, no matter how small it seems, stop and investigate.

If the car needs emergency service, contact the Motor Pool for instructions. The phone number and hours of operation for the Salem Motor Pool are listed on the first page of the Vehicle Operator's Manual section in the Vehicle Rules for State Drivers. If the Motor Pool is not open, and the work needs to be done to reach your destination, follow the steps in the Vehicle Operator's Manual section. Always report any after-hours emergency service to the Motor Pool on the following work day.
For 24-hour non-emergency assistance, contact Fleet Services at 503-881-2451. If no one answers, leave a message. If you do not receive a return call in a reasonable amount of time, contact the fleet assistance number on the back of the Voyager fuel credit card, 1-800-987-6591. This can also be used to request aid.

The Voyager fuel credit card may also be used in an after-hours/weekend situation to pay for repairs should you choose to arrange for repairs yourself. On the next business day, you must notify Fleet Services of the repair details.

4. Changes to an office's fleet
Offices needing more or less cars permanently assigned to them should contact the APD Field Services Manager.
When reassigning cars from one office to another within a district complete DAS Form 07-012 and email to caryn.whatley@state.or.us. On occasion, the Motor Pool will exchange one car with another. Report such changes to APD Field Services as soon as possible.

Temporary changes in cars, such as receiving a loaner while an assigned car is being serviced, do not need to be reported.

5. Vehicle maintenance and care
Offices should refer to the Fleet and Parking Services site for service and maintenance information.