[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book I)]
[February 10, 1993]
[Pages 70-71]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Memorandum on Use of Government Vehicles
February 10, 1993

Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies

Subject: Use of Government Vehicles

    The use of Government vehicles for daily home-to-work transportation 
of high-level executive branch officials is a privilege designed to 
facilitate the efficient operation of the Government and to provide 
security to key Government employees with substantial military and 
national security responsibilities. In the past, however, this privilege 
has been abused by certain executive branch officials and has come to 
exemplify a Government out of touch with the American people. Using such 
perquisites of office outside of the scope of our mission to serve the 
public is unacceptable. Accordingly, I believe that there must be a 
strong presumption against the general granting of this privilege absent 
security concerns or compelling operational necessity.
    The law authorizes me to designate up to

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six employees in the Executive Office of the President to receive daily 
home-to-work transportation in Government vehicles. In addition, the law 
allows me to designate up to 10 additional employees of Federal agencies 
to receive this benefit. However, for the reasons stated above, in my 
Administration, no officer or employee of the Executive Office of the 
President or any other Federal agency is authorized by me to receive use 
of a Government vehicle for daily home-to-work transportation pursuant 
to 31 U.S.C. 1344(b)(1)(B)&(C). The only exceptions, for compelling 
national security reasons, are the Assistant to the President for 
National Security Affairs, the Deputy Assistant to the President for 
National Security Affairs, and the Chief of Staff of the White House.
    The law also allows Cabinet Secretaries and other Executive Level I 
officials to authorize one principal deputy to use a Government vehicle 
for daily home-to-work transportation. The use of Government vehicles 
for this purpose is simply not appropriate for Government officials at 
this level absent security or operational requirements. Accordingly, by 
this memorandum I am instructing you to refrain from authorizing the use 
of Government vehicles for your deputies for daily home-to-work 
transportation. This memorandum does not prevent you from authorizing 
the temporary use of Government vehicles in accordance with the 
requirements of the law.
    I further direct each executive department or agency to reduce the 
number of executive motor vehicles (except armored vehicles) that it 
owns or leases by at least 50 percent by the end of fiscal year 1993. 
Each agency will report on its compliance to the Director of the Office 
of Management and Budget at that time. I order the Director of the 
Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the Administrator 
of General Services, to issue any further directives necessary to 
implement this memorandum and to monitor compliance.
    Finally, I urge the head of each agency to strictly enforce the 
Governmentwide regulations prohibiting the unauthorized use of 
Government vehicles, including the use of corrective or disciplinary 
action where appropriate.

                                                      William J. Clinton