Traffic flows along Interstate 80 east of exit 432. (Rebecca S. Gratz for Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — The Nebraska auditor on Wednesday flagged “widespread misuse” of state-owned vehicles — including allegations of an employee taking multiple trips to his family’s vineyard and winery and another in which a worker used a state car to “gallivant” around Lincoln for his side business.
In a 38-page report, the State Auditor’s Office focused on 2024 and on a slice of the vehicles handled by the Department of Administrative Services’ Transportation Services Bureau, which controls about 1,200 of the state’s 4,000 vehicles. The TSB leases vehicles to state agency personnel for official government use on an as-needed basis, racking up about 15 million miles a year.
A test sample of 45 fleet vehicles equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking devices revealed, according to the report, that nearly a third, 14 vehicles, were allegedly used for personal purposes such as trips to retail outlets, restaurants, medical facilities, residences of relatives, commuting home without permission and other private errands that the auditor team determined had nothing to do with official duties…