Wilson County approves master lease with Enterprise Fleet Management to accelerate vehicle replacements

Wilson County Commissioners approved a master lease agreement with Enterprise Fleet Management to allow county departments to lease vehicles on a standardized, countywide contract. The agreement uses Sourcewell pricing and sets a framework; each vehicle will require an addendum identifying term and pricing.

Staff explained the lease would let the sheriff and other departments replace aging vehicles without returning to court for each procurement and that the expected delivery window for new vehicles is roughly nine months. The sheriff and procurement staff described estimated equity on trade‑in vehicles (presented conservatively at $246,055 across the package) and noted the county currently budgets roughly $420,000 annually for new vehicle purchases. The total initial fleet request for the sheriff was presented as 23 vehicles, with an annual lease payment estimate of $405,407.40 and an upfront outfitting payment of about $210,000; after expected equity from sale of replaced vehicles, staff estimated a net fiscal impact of about $369,352.40 for the initial package.

Commissioners asked whether the county could terminate the master lease if the program proved unsatisfactory. Staff said there are options to pay off the lease or sell vehicles to remove county obligations; each vehicle’s term and exit cost will be clarified in the vehicle‑specific addendum. Commissioners also discussed how the leases will be reflected in the treasurer's reports and agreed staff will establish a separate fund for the program so revenues, expenses and equity are tracked transparently.

The motion to approve the master lease agreement passed by voice vote; commissioners directed staff to include the program’s projected cash flows in the upcoming budget work so any long‑term impacts are visible during adoption.