Management of the city's fleet of nearly 1,000 passenger vehicles is inefficient and should be consolidated, according to a study by city auditor Les Tanaka.

Among the major concerns is the lack of enforcement and potential for abuse involving the city's policy allowing some employee to take city vehicles home.

The city's passenger vehicle fleet grew by 13 percent over three years.

The report said "a significant portion of the fleet is older than 10 years (or) racked up more than 100,000 miles."

The report said, "the city has a passenger fleet composed of various models, makes and manufacturers." Because various city agencies have broad authority over vehicles, "there is no incentive for agencies to properly maintain their vehicles or to dispose of vehicles, even when they've passed their useful life," the report said.

The administration, in a seven-page response, said it concurred with some of the auditor's conclusions and is working toward more consolidation of its fleet management. But the administration said the report paints an inaccurate picture by not including non-passenger vehicles and motorized equipment.

While the city's passenger fleet grew by more than 13 percent, the overall vehicle fleet decreased by more than 11 percent in the same period, said Jeoffrey Cudiamat, the city's chief engineer and head of the Department of Facility Maintenance.

The report said there are 2,218 city vehicles and motorized equipment valued at $348 million.

Tanaka said his office limited the study to purchasing and management of the 949 passenger vehicles under the facilities management office "because city agencies have wide discretion in the variety of vehicles, makes, models and types to purchase, and because passenger vehicles are at greatest risk for abuse."

Tanaka concluded: "Ultimately, management of the city's passenger and other vehicles should be consolidated under a single entity that can comprehensively manage the city's fleet from purchase to retirement."

The report also called the city's policy on take-home city-owned vehicles "inadequate and unenforceable."

While forms are supposed to be filed for personal use of a city vehicle, neither the Department of Budget and Fiscal Services nor the Department of Facility Maintenance "effectively monitor which employees have take-home vehicle authority."

During the 2008 fiscal year, only four city employees were authorized to take home city-owned vehicles but "29 unauthorized city employees may be taking home city-owned vehicles" because they are appealing requests they were denied in June 2006.

The former director of the Department of Environmental Services and deputy director of the Department of Design and Construction took home city vehicles in violation of city ordinance, the report said.

Chief Engineer Cudiamat, in his written response, said ongoing efforts to implement a 2005 mayoral directive to curb the practice of take-home vehicles has been stymied in part by collective bargaining issues.

He added that some employees need to be available on an on-call basis to address emergencies, such as a sewage spill.

Cudiamat also said the city has taken major steps that would lead to a more standardized fleet, including requests for vehicle purchases.

As for consolidating more management control under one agency, Cudiamat said, "We must contend with the constraints of a state procurement law ... premised on competition and the lowest bid, the realities of budget constraints in a weakened local economy, the responsibility to honor collective bargaining agreements and client/user agency expectations that their individual needs be addressed."

Councilman Donovan Dela Cruz, who chairs the Council Public Infrastructure Committee, said in a statement that the council "needs to re-look the city's policy ... ."

Dela Cruz said, "I am concerned that city fleet management policies were not followed especially when purchasing new vehicles."

Councilman Charles Djou said he is introducing a resolution urging the administration to look into privatizing maintenance for passenger vehicles.