Mayoral Vehicle Policy [MVP]
Giovanni Boccaccio (1313 – 21 December 1375) was an Italian author/poet and an important Renaissance humanist. One quote from him is “Do as we say, and not as we do†.
Mayoral Car parked at Searles Building
BY HIS HONOR WILLIAM M. MANZI, III MAYOR
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 019-2009
ORDER REGARDING CITY OWNED VEHICLES
WHEREAS, The City of Methuen has been experiencing a worsening financial crisis and is expecting to face more cuts in State local aid and declining revenues; and
WHEREAS, immediate
measures must be taken to insure that Methuen remains on sound financial footing and is able to provide necessary services to all of its citizens;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, William M. Manzi, III, Mayor of The City of Methuen, by virtue of the authority vested in me as Chief Executive Officer hereby Order as follows:
1. With the exception of the Mayor, Police Chief, Fire Chief, Director of Public Works or his designee, no city employee is allowed to take a city owned vehicle to his or her residence overnight for any reason.
2. All employees who drive a city vehicle during the course of their employment must park that vehicle in a city lot at the end of their shift. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment.
3. This order shall take effect on January 1, 2010 and shall remain in force indefinitely.
Given this 22th day of December 2009.
The above order is an addendum to a previous order quoted here;
BY HIS HONOR WILLIAM M. MANZI, III MAYOR
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 013-2008
ORDER ESTABLISHING A CITY-OWNED VEHICLE POLICY
WHEREAS, The City of Methuen is committed insuring that city-owned vehicles are used responsibility and efficiently;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, William M. Manzi, III, Mayor of The City of Methuen, by virtue of the authority vested in me as Chief Executive Officer hereby establish a city-owned vehicle policy and Order as follows:
1. City of Methuen personnel, approved by the Mayor, who are assigned take home city-owned vehicles may park their vehicles at their place of residence at the end of each work day, provided that their place of residence is within 10 miles of the City limits (NOTE: Contractual). All other vehicles will remain on designated City property after working hours. NOTE: see EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 019-2009 above
2. The Mayor shall receive monthly, an analysis of the total amount of gasoline used and the mileage used by each city-owned vehicle.
NOTE: Freedom of Information Requests for this data reveal that the Mayor receives phone calls on the status and not any formal report, as may be implied by the statement..
3. All vehicles owned by the City of Methuen shall be lettered with the City of Methuen seal, as well as having municipal plates. (NOTE: Unless you are the Mayor?) All undercover, unmarked and surveillance public safety vehicles are not required to be lettered and may have standard plates.
Mayoral Car:No Municipal Plate
Mayoral Car:No City of Methuen seal
4. City-owned vehicles assigned to approved personnel shall only use these vehicles while on official City business. Under no circumstances shall a city-owned vehicle be used for personal or private uses. No city-owned vehicle shall be taken on vacation by any employee. Only approved individuals shall operate said vehicles in carrying out their official City duties.
5. All assigned personnel shall show due diligence in regard to minimizing travel to and from job sites and shall not leave vehicles idling.
6. Misuse of a City-owned vehicle or any violation of this policy by any employee of the City of Methuen shall be just cause for discipline up to and including dismissal of said employee.
Given this ____ day of May, 2008.
Does a literal reading mean we can discipline the Mayor or terminate?
That was enlightening but sometimes if you read deeper into things you find;
THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF METHUEN, MASSACHUSETTS 2000
CHAPTER 6A – PERSONNEL ORDINANCE – MAYOR
Section 6A-6. Automobile Expense
The City of Methuen shall reimburse the Mayor for the expense of operating his/her own vehicle for City business in the sum of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) per month, as a flat fee. Provided further, that no additional mileage shall be paid by the City for the use of his/her vehicle. If the Mayor’s car is out of commission for one month, he/she shall be allowed the use of a City vehicle for that period, but he/she shall not be paid the $200.00 allowance for that month.
I asked under freedom of Information, do we pay the Mayor for the use of his personal vehicle?
No per City Auditor.
My question becomes why aren’t the Councilors looking at items such as these and making corrections. How long does an Executive order last? The term of the Executive who places the order or forever? My take would be it is permanent, based on Federal and state precedent. This should be addressed in the Charter or in the Municipal Code.
I could suggest that the Municipal code be updated to state the Mayor gets no payment per the code if the City provides a vehicle that conforms to Charter, Code or Executive Order. The payment shall be at a rate similar to the Federal reimbursement rate and the Mayor must submit mileage reports to receive payment. (Do away with flat rate fees)
It actually is cost effectve to give the Mayor a vehicle based on numbers received from the City as to cost of Vehicle usage for the past 2 years. [That does not account for appropriation costs of the vehicle, only gas and mileage charges]
*All Photos taken March 9, 2010.*