By Arthur Foulkes
TERRE HAUTE — The Terre Haute Board of Public Works and Safety gave a green light Monday to a proposal to allow the city to lock in gas prices for the rest of the 2010.
Board members voted without opposition to pass along the proposal to the City Council, which will have the final word on whether the city takes part in the program.
Angie Steeno, a representative of the Indianapolis-based accounting and consulting firm of Crowe Horwath, said that under the program, the city could lock in a price for future 2010 purchases of gasoline and diesel fuel. The actual pump price of fuel could be higher or lower. The benefit of locking in a price is budget stability, she said.
“It’s not necessarily about saving” money on fuel, Steeno told the board. “This is a way [the city] can stabilize the budget.”
Board member Brian Bauer, new to the Board of Works this month, asked Steeno what the city could expect to pay in administrative fees under the program. Steeno said the fees could be as low as 4.5 cents per gallon of fuel. However, the fees would be higher if some of the municipalities and school districts currently interested in the program withdraw.
Terre Haute city vehicles used 195,000 gallons of gasoline and 65,000 gallons of diesel fuel in 2009, Steeno said. During the same year, the city paid $620,000 for fuel, City Controller Leslie Ellis told the board.
n Also at Monday’s meeting, the Board of Works voted with one abstention against a proposal from a Carmel-based firm to take over the city’s credit card processing account. The firm, called Transpay, said it could offer the service below the price currently charged by a local bank.
The board voted to reject the proposal “with no prejudice,” said board president Bill Lower. Board member Jon Stinson abstained from the vote, citing professional conflict of interest.
Pat Ralston, an official with First Financial Bank who was at the meeting on another matter, urged the Board of Works to open up the credit card processing contract to proposals from all interested parties. Several years ago, First Financial lost the city’s credit card service account without explanation, he told the board. The account in question covers fees for the use of credit cards at city golf courses.
Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.
