Riverside's elected leaders can take home a city-owned car and use it to attend city meetings and visit constituents, visit the grocery store or take in a movie, all with a gas card that allows them to fill up at taxpayers' expense.
The only caveat is that they have to report the perk as income to the Internal Revenue Service.
Most council members who have been issued city-owned cars say they use the vehicles mainly in the course of their duties for the city. That includes trips to Ojai, Arizona and Ensenada, Mexico, city records show.
Providing a car and free gas costs the city an estimated $5,000 to $7,000 a year, according to Assistant Finance Director Brent Mason. For council members whose $39,408-per-year elected positions are considered part-time jobs, it's a salary boost whose dollar value is tough to calculate.
How much council members use their city cars and where they go is unclear because detailed records are not required. Aside from gas card transactions that show where and when council members filled their tanks, the data is kept is largely confidential because it's considered income-tax information.
Before 2007, none of Riverside's elected officials drove a city car. The change happened without any public discussion.
On a side note: Riverside coalition want the city manager fired and called for investigations of possible malfeasance and civil rights violations by city officials. Read more.
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