City of El Paso to implement new take-home car policy

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- A new policy is being implemented to monitor take-home vehicles owned by the City of El Paso. This is happening after an internal audit found there is no citywide program to monitor take-home cars.

The audit found that the city has a fleet of vehicles that are assigned to different departments. Then the heads of the department then decide who gets a take home car.

This audit says, however, that there is no specific department with the responsibility to oversee take home cars.

Today, ABC-7 spoke to the City's Spokeswoman Laura Cruz Acosta. She said the Fire Department, Police Department, and Streets and Maintenance use take-home cars the most. We asked how many vehicles are designated as take home vehicles. She says each department tracks the usage.

Cruz Acosta did not provide a total citywide number. She said ABC-7 would need to submit an open records request.

The audit directed the city to create a formal citywide process. Cruz Acosta said that won't change anything at the ground level or for city staff.

"It doesn't really change, the day to day operations for us, formalizing it gives us something, at least a document to be able to, to point to, to ensure that for years and years to come, this is the existing policy," said Cruz-Acosta.

Josh Acevedo is a City Representative, but he's also the chair of the Financial Oversight Committee (FOAC). He says it's time for a streamlined policy.

"It's good for, efficient government. And so I think that it was an oversight and now it's being corrected," said Acevedo.