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<br />ORANGE COUNTY ~Q <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: March 15, 2005 <br />Action Age a <br />Item No. - G <br />SUBJECT• Approval of Equipment and Vehicle Purchases for Fiscal Year 2004-05 <br />DEPARTMENT: Budget <br />PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No <br />ATTACHMENT (S): <br />Attachment 1. Equipment and Vehicles <br />Recommended for <br />Purchase in Fiscal Year <br />2004-05 <br />Attachment 2. Equipment and Vehicles <br />Capital Project Ordinance <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />Donna Dean 245-2151 <br />Dave Stancil 245-2598 <br />TELEPHONE NUMBERS: <br />Hillsborough 732-8181 <br />Chapel Hill 968-4501 <br />Durham 688-7331 <br />Mebane 336-227-2031 <br />PURPOSE: To consider approval of equipment and vehicle purchases for County departments, <br />excluding Information Systems and Solid Waste, for fiscal year 2004-05 and authorization for <br />the Finance Director to finance the purchase the vehicles and major equipment through private <br />placement loan proposals from RBG. <br />BACKGROUND: Historically, the County has funded replacement of County-owned <br />equipment and vehicles through its ten year Capital Investment Plan (CIP). Examples of the <br />types of purchases made with annually appropriated monies include replacement of some <br />portion of the Sheriff's vehicle fleet and Emergency Services vehicles, including ambulances, as <br />well as replacement of other County department vehicles and major equipment (not including <br />Information Technology-related equipment). <br />However, since the State's fiscal crisis began in 2001, the County has redirected a large portion <br />of CIP pay-as-you-go funding that would normally have been available far routine equipment <br />and vehicle replacements to the General Fund to offset unfunded mandates and state and <br />federal funding cuts. Postponement of replacing aged equipment and vehicles over the last few <br />years has caused the County to experience higher than normal maintenance costs for the older <br />vehicles and equipment because of high mileage and hours of usage. <br />For the current fiscal year, the Board approved CIP included a plan to purchase County <br />equipment and vehicles through financing arrangements in the current fiscal year. Over the last <br />few months, the Manager and Budget Staff have worked with individual departments to explore <br />various options for meeting departmental equipment and vehicle needs. Staff recommends that <br />the County pursue two funding arrangements, one for athirty-six month period and the other for <br />a period of fifty-nine months. The life expectancy and cost of the equipment or vehicle would <br />determine whether it was financed for the shorter or longer-term period. Attachment 1 of this <br />abstract outlines the recommended purchases. Examples of recommended vehicles and <br />