[Adopted 10-21-2008 by Ord. No. 2008:29]
A.
No person whose date of employment begins after the
effective date of this article shall receive a Township vehicle for
his/her business use and/or as part of his/her compensation package.
Furthermore, no employee who replaces an employee who, as of the effective
date of this article, receives a Township vehicle for his/her business
use and/or as part of his/her compensation package shall be entitled
to receive a Township vehicle as part of his/her compensation package.
B.
A list of the names of all employees who have Township
vehicles assigned to them as of the effective date of this article
and are exempt from this article solely because the Township vehicle
in their possession was granted to them as a part of their compensation
package and constitutes a term and condition of their employment,
the loss of which would be actionable in a court of law, shall be
kept on file in the Office of the Township Clerk.
C.
Exempt from this article are emergency service personnel
who rely upon authorized emergency vehicles for the health, safety
and welfare of the residents of the Township of Parsippany-Troy Hills,
the Mayor, and other employees from the various departments who use
Township vehicles substantially and/or wholly in the performance of
their duties and in furtherance of the health, safety and welfare
of the public.
A.
Township-owned vehicles shall be used for official
Township business only. Township vehicles shall be available for Township
business at all times. Any municipal employee who has permission to
drive a municipally owned vehicle to his/her residence shall not drive
the vehicle for personal use. No other person shall be permitted to
drive or be permitted to be a passenger in a Township-owned vehicle
at any time, unless he/she is another Township of Parsippany-Troy
Hills employee. The employee granted the use of a municipal vehicle
for commuting shall not use it for any other purpose than driving
to and from work. If the vehicle is used for any purpose other than
Township business, the employee shall relinquish that privilege immediately.
Exempt from the foregoing language regarding passenger transport are
passengers transported via the Township transit system, police vehicles,
emergency vehicles and those under the Department of Human Services.
B.
All new and existing municipal vehicles shall be plainly
marked or lettered "Township of Parsippany-Troy Hills, For Official
Use," which marking or lettering shall be in letters placed in a contrasting
color on a prominent place on the passenger and driver sides of the
vehicle. All municipal vehicles shall be licensed as municipal government
vehicles and shall display municipal government license plates. Vehicles
used by the police for undercover/investigative purposes shall be
exempted from the requirements of this subsection.
C.
Employees to whom municipal vehicles are assigned
shall be responsible for reporting any mechanical difficulties or
safety defects to the department head. Assigned drivers shall be responsible
for ensuring that vehicles are kept clean, in good operating condition
and are serviced in accordance with a representative maintenance schedule.
Employees shall be held liable for loss or damage to a municipal vehicle
if the loss or damage is the result of gross negligence or reckless
conduct on the part of the employee. All occupants of municipal vehicles
shall wear their seat belts in compliance with N.J.S.A. 39:3-76.2.
All drivers of municipal vehicles shall not use communication devices
as prohibited by N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.3. It shall be the employee's responsibility
to possess a valid driver's license, current vehicle registration
and insurance card and ensure that the vehicle has a current inspection
sticker.
D.
The employee shall inform his/her department head
within 24 hours of an event causing his/her motor vehicle license
or commercial driver's license endorsement(s) to be suspended/revoked
for any reason by a court of law or the Motor Vehicle Commission.
E.
All employees operating municipal vehicles shall comply
with all motor vehicle and traffic laws. Failure to comply with all
motor vehicle and traffic laws may result in disciplinary action,
up to and including termination.
F.
All motor vehicle accidents involving a municipal
vehicle shall be reported to the Police Department in the location
where the accident occurs. A Township internal vehicle accident report
shall be prepared by the driver and his immediate supervisor, including
a vehicle report with all sketches and details. Completed reports
shall be submitted to the department head within 24 hours of the accident.
G.
All Township employees, current and future, who use
a Township vehicle, whether permanently assigned to them or not, shall
be required to fill out an official mileage report that must be signed
by them and certified to be accurate by their immediate supervisor.
(1)
The mileage report will include:
(a)
Identification of vehicle;
(b)
Name of employee using the vehicle;
(c)
Identification of department vehicle is assigned
to;
(d)
Supervisor in charge of verifying vehicle information;
(e)
Date;
(f)
Beginning mileage;
(g)
Ending mileage;
(h)
Description of where the vehicle was driven
to and from;
(i)
Signature of driver; and
(j)
Signature of supervisor.
(2)
Reports will be submitted on a monthly basis and maintained
by the administrator in charge of the various departments.
(3)
Anyone who knowingly submits a fraudulent report may
be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Vehicles of the Fire Department, police vehicles and such
ambulances and other vehicles as are approved by the chief administrator
when operated in response to an emergency as defined by N.J.S.A. 39:1-1.
Includes all vehicles propelled otherwise than by muscular
power, excepting such vehicles as run only upon rails or tracks and
motorized bicycles as defined by N.J.S.A. 39:1-1.
