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Fulton County approves lease-purchase to replace 301 vehicles; county projects maintenance savings and faster refresh cycle
Summary
The Board approved a $3.48 million annual lease purchase to acquire 301 vehicles and include preventive maintenance; county officials said the agreement lets the county replace all policy-eligible vehicles faster than entirely buying replacements and expects maintenance savings of about $600,000 annually.
Fulton County commissioners on May 7 approved a lease-purchase program that will deliver 301 new county vehicles at an annual cost not to exceed $3,480,325.44 and include scheduled preventive maintenance. The vote was 6–0 in favor.
Why it matters: County fleet staff said the program will allow the county to replace all vehicles currently eligible under its replacement policy in a single multiyear action rather than waiting multiple budget cycles. The finance estimate presented to commissioners shows a potential drop of roughly $600,000 a year in maintenance spending for vehicles enrolled in the program because maintenance will be included in the lease terms (tires and brakes excepted).
What the board approved: The package covers 214 vehicles for the general fund (multiple agencies), 26 vehicles funded by the South Fulton Special Service District for pursuit/public-safety use, and 61 vehicles for airport and water/sewer funds. The enterprise-managed lease would allow the county to turn vehicles back to the vendor after a five-year term; the county can also retain or dispose of vehicles at that time.
County staff said the county’s fleet totals 1,117 vehicles and that 286 vehicles were currently eligible for replacement under board policy. If the county used traditional capital purchases, replacing all eligible units would require about $16.5 million and take four to six years under historic annual funding levels. The lease-purchase approach was presented as a way to refresh a large share of the fleet more quickly while smoothing annual costs.
Commissioner Mo Ivory, who led questioning during the presentation, asked about how the vendor’s dealer network would perform maintenance and whether local dealers used now by the county would remain in the mix. County fleet manager Ray Davis said the vendor uses a network of dealers that overlaps with the county’s current contract partners, and preventive maintenance would be billed under the lease agreement rather than by individual repair invoices to the county.
The motion to approve was made by Commissioner Marvin Arrington and seconded by Commissioner Khadija Abdul Rahman; the vote was 6–0.
Details to watch: The county plans to reassess vehicle assignments quarterly and to reassign or put underused vehicles into a motor pool. Staff said they will report to the board annually as procurement regulations require and that the board may exit the program at renewal points if desired.
