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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2021 - 2022
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | December 21, 2020 11:41 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Brad Roae |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Banning Legislators from Receiving State Owned or State Leased Vehicles |
| I will soon introduce legislation to ban legislators from receiving state owned or state leased vehicles. Currently legislators can sign up to receive a state leased vehicle to use for official business, campaign use and personal use. Rather than a cost-effective, standard issue, fuel efficient vehicle for legislators, several choices are available including gas guzzling SUVs. Taxpayers pay for almost all of these lease payments, auto insurance, gasoline, repairs, tires, oil changes, etc. In the recent past, one legislator did not even have a valid driver’s license and was involved in a hit and run crash. That same legislator had previously crashed their state leased car two other times. The percentage of usage that legislators pay for state leased or state owned vehicles actually results in a several thousand dollar a year employee benefit which is a courtesy of the Pennsylvania taxpayers. About 90% of Members do not have a state leased vehicle so it is difficult to justify the cost and unnecessary liability exposure. There is also a huge negligent entrustment issue involved that creates large liability exposure that could easily pierce governmental immunity laws. If the state has knowledge of bad driver records or drivers operating state owned or leased vehicles without driver’s licenses and a crash causes a serious injury, it could be disastrous in court. State vehicles for legislators is a perk we need to park. I would greatly appreciate your co-sponsorship of this legislation. |
Introduced as HR24