HD61 - Data Collection Process and Procedures for Motor Vehicles Owned by State Agencies and Localities


Executive Summary:
In 1994, the subcommittee formed under House Joint Resolution 9, the Clean Fuel Study subcommittee, recognized the need to establish a database to assist in the implementation of the federal Clean Air Act and National Energy Policy Act. Various requirements of these federal statutes relating to clean fuel fleets make it highly desirable for various agencies of the Commonwealth to be able to obtain current and reliable data on the number of vehicles in private vehicle fleets, the places where those fleets are garaged, and the fuels they use. Likewise, careful management of state-owned motor vehicles is particularly crucial to the success of state and federal programs aimed at (i) protecting and improving air quality and (ii) reducing dependence upon imported petroleum products.

The subcommittee believed that the existing forms and procedures used by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) did not fully permit the collection, storage, and ready retrieval of the necessary data to the extent that it would assist in achieving these goals. As a result, the subcommittee introduced House Joint Resolution 8 in order to allow for DMV to provide the appropriate database for the Commonwealth.

DMV's existing procedures and collection methods provide most of the information requested under House Joint Resolution 8 (94). Additional measures are being taken to update this information in order to fully comply with the request. These measures should be in place by January 1996.

The database established by DMV in compliance with the request made by the General Assembly in House Joint Resolution 8 (94) will be as accurate as the information provided to DMV. DMV is relying on agencies and localities that own the vehicles to provide accurate and up-to-date information. The procedures and collection methods in use and being adopted by DMV should provide the most reliable database possible.