An audit of Massachusetts’ Salem State University revealed that the university lacks efficient oversight of its fuel card program for university vehicles.
by Michaela Kwoka-Coleman
November 17, 2017
The audit recommended that Salem State University develop a comprehensive fuel card policy to ensure accurate and efficient use of the program. Photo via Fletcher6/Wikimedia
1 min to read
The audit recommended that Salem State University develop a comprehensive fuel card policy to ensure accurate and efficient use of the program. Photo via Fletcher6/Wikimedia
An audit of Massachusetts’ Salem State University (SSU) revealed that the university lacks efficient oversight of its fuel card program for university vehicles.
According to the audit, SSU issues fuel cards to specific vehicles, rather than individual employees. To use the card, employees must enter a PIN and the vehicle’s odometer reading.
Ad Loading...
During the audit period, the commonwealth's Office of the State Auditor analyzed 3,199 fuel card transactions and found 610 instances where the mileage entered was the same as the previous entry, were rounded figures, or was otherwise incorrect.
In 23 cases, the amount of fuel purchased exceeded the vehicle’s tank capacity. Other transactions showed that employees purchased premium fuel, rather than unleaded; eighteen transactions indicated diesel fuel was purchased for vehicles with gasoline engines.
The audit recommended that SSU develop a comprehensive fuel card policy to ensure accurate and efficient use of the program. It also suggested setting up usage alerts from the fuel card administrator, WEX, that include fuel type and gallons purchased per transaction.
As public agencies work to cut emissions from off-road operations, fleets are turning to a mix of renewable fuels, hybrid systems, battery-electric equipment and emerging hydrogen technology.
RoadFlex expands its fueling network for public sector fleets through a new partnership with Refuel, adding more than 250 locations across the Southeastern U.S. to improve access, savings, and efficiency.
Fuel management can become a tricky obstacle, but smart strategies and new tech have turned it into a well-oiled machine where price prediction is art, and cost control is science.
A major point of debate in fleet management is using diesel vs. gas cars and trucks. Choosing to purchase gasoline engines instead of diesel ones for medium-duty trucks may be an unpopular decision, but is it the right one?
On-site fueling has its pros and cons, and even if it seems like the best option for the fleet, there are still two big obstacles to overcome: getting the stamp of approval and basically everything pertaining to the infrastructure.
