Audit - Take-Home Vehicles
The Office of Internal Audit (OIA) conducted a city-wide, management audit of take-home vehicles. The audit was included in the fiscal year (FY) 2012 audit plan.
The City of Albuquerque (City) spends a significant amount of resources on acquiring and maintaining a fleet of vehicles and equipment to enable employees to perform their duties. The City’s Vehicle Usage Policy, Administrative Instruction 4-5, identifies vehicles as:
- General Use – Vehicle assigned to a Department to be used as needed on a priority basis, not for the exclusive use of a particular employee,
- Take-Home – Vehicle assigned exclusively to an individual because of the nature of their job duties and that they are authorized to operate outside of normal working hours, and
- Rotating or Seasonal Use Take-Home – Take-Home vehicle assigned to one or more employees, concurrently or sequentially.
Does the City assign take-home vehicles in accordance with Administrative Instruction 4-5, City Vehicle Usage Policy?
Administrative Instruction (AI) 4-5 does not include key operational procedures necessary to effectively monitor and administer the use of City vehicles. AI 4-5 does not contain language to address:
- Vehicle application and submission due dates and specific instances requiring renewal;
- Documentation of periodic reviews by department directors;
- Documentation requirements for after-hour call outs or meetings and what call outs are considered mitigation of public health or safety emergencies; and
- Applicable Internal Revenue Service (IRS) fringe benefit procedures for employer-provided vehicle use.
Does the City have internal controls to help prevent unauthorized use of a take-home and semi-take home vehicle?
Periodic reviews by department directors to ensure adherence to AI 4-5 are not being performed.
Does the City report vehicle usage in accordance with pertinent Internal Revenue Service taxation rules and regulations?
The City has not recognized the personal use of an employer-provided vehicle as a taxable fringe benefit for thirty one of 63 City employees with a take-home vehicle assignment.