Erie County Legislature Majority Leader Joseph Lorigo and Legislator Ted Morton have requested that the county thoroughly examine a leasing option for county vehicles to determine if tax dollars could be saved. Recently, Cattaraugus County partnered with a national car rental company to save $700,000 by leasing 70 vehicles through the company. The Legislators are requesting the county look into this option as it determines how to best maintain its large fleet of vehicles.

“It is our duty to review every possible option to save taxpayer money, and with a fleet as large as Erie County's, it is essential that we examine how we can better handle this expense. At this time we don’t know if leasing would be less expensive, but it is certainly worth investigating," said Majority Leader Lorigo.  “We do know that this system has worked elsewhere, and is therefore worth examining.”

The resolution, sponsored by Legislators Lorigo and Morton, was approved unanimously by the Legislature at the June 25, 2015 session and requests the County Executive and Comptroller work with departments to create a report analyzing what it would cost to lease their fleet compared to purchasing and maintaining vehicles. The resolution specifically requests that the Departments of Public Works and Parks, as well as the Sheriff’s Office participate, with focus on finding ways to save money on high mileage vehicles that require a lot of repair and frequent replacement.

“The departments do a good job getting as much out of county vehicles as possible, while being fiscally responsible but there is only so much they can do. Maintenance costs are expensive. If leasing is proven to be the better option, I would encourage the county to move in this direction with a reputable company. But before we can decide, we need to do our homework and determine if leasing will work for Erie County. This resolution gets the ball rolling and my hope is that we can save money like other counties around the state have been able to do,” said Legislator Morton.

Once the report is complete, the Legislators have requested it be discussed in the Government Affairs Committee.

For additional information, please contact the Legislature at 858-7500 or visit www.erie.gov/legislature.