LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s policy to provide take-home vehicles to 117 managers and supervisors is under scrutiny, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. In addition to cars issued to those employees, the department assigns vans, SUVs, and large trucks to about 250 other workers. Overall, about 4 percent of the department workforce has an assigned vehicle.

According to the department’s new general manager, H. David Nahai, the take-home vehicle program is being audited as part of the utility’s campaign to identify and cut waste. Nahai also said the Department of Water and Power buys environmentally sensitive hybrids and vehicles that use alternative fuels, and he said the take-home program might be cheaper than paying standard-vehicle allowances.

Department officials estimate the taxable benefit for each employee with a take-home vehicle at about $3,000 per year.

Nahai said the vehicle policy may be reconsidered and changes adopted to pay some workers for company-related mileage when they use their own cars rather than assign them take-home vehicles.