On Wednesday, September 19, 2012, the House is scheduled to consider H.R. 6324, the Cutting Federal Unnecessary and Expensive Leasing Act of 2012, under a suspension of the rules requiring a two-thirds majority vote for approval. The bill was introduced on August 2, 2012, by Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY) and referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
H.R. 6324 would reduce the number of vehicle purchases and leased by federal agencies. Specifically, the bill would require the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in consultation with the head of the relevant Executive agency, to collect the following information:
The bill would require that for each fiscal year from 2013 through 2017, each Executive agency would be restricted to obligate no more than 80 percent of its FY 2010 travel budget to purchase and lease civilian vehicles.
H.R. 6324 would ensure that an Executive agency share excess or unused vehicles with another Executive agency that may need temporary or long-term use of additional vehicles through the Federal Fleet Management System.
Finally, the bill would provide an exception for the procurement of any vehicle that has been determined by the President to be essential for reasons of national security.
H.R. 6324 represents a savings recommended by Simpon-Bowles Commission and has also been a YouCut winner. Despite advances in technology, federal travel costs have increased in recent years, growing 56 percent between 2001 and 2006 alone. Government fleets, meanwhile, have grown by 20,000 over the last four years.
Unofficially, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that implementing H.R. 6324 would have no significant impact on the federal budget.
