UKIAH, CA – With the significant rise in fuel costs, Mendocino County, Calif., fleet costs are skyrocketing. The County provides fuel and maintenance for 275 county vehicles, including those driven by the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, County Public Health, Social Services, building inspectors, among others, according to the Ukiah Daily Journal. Driven about 3 million miles a year, these vehicles have an average fuel economy of 16 miles-per-gallon. County vehicles use approximately 190,000 gallons of gasoline each year. County agencies are billed for gas by the miles they drive, and in order to compensate for higher gas prices, General Services has been raising the charge per-mile for all county vehicles. Some departments may end up paying significantly more for fuel than last year if prices continue to rise. According to the report, the Sheriff’s Office, which accounts for 1.2 million of the 3 million yearly county miles, could end up paying as much as $50,000 more a year for gas if prices continue to rise. The county purchases gas with three different methods:

• From wholesalers in 9,000-gallon trucks that fill tanks at county garages.
  

• For outlying areas that are far from county garages, drivers are issued gas cards for special “card lock” systems that allow those drivers to buy gas at some commercial stations at a reduced price.
  

• Each county vehicle also comes with a Voyager credit card for instances when county employees must drive outside the county. In those cases, gas has to be purchased at commercial prices less the federal excise tax.