Car Rental

**NEW PROCESS**

• Effective October 10, 2023, all 12 and 15 passenger vans must be booked through Concur.
• To find a vehicle, first search for availability on Enterprise dot com to determine regional availability at specific locations.
• Then, search for location-specific vans in the Concur booking tool, based on Enterprise dot com search results.
• The OFAM 100 form is still required and must be completed and approved by travelers' managers PRIOR to reserving.
• In Northern and Central California, these vans are only available at select locations, shown below.
• Southern California vans are not restricted to specific locations and are available based on branch inventory at the time of booking.

Electric Vehicles (EV) are available under the state’s contract with Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

• EV is the preferred vehicle type for all commercial car rentals when traveling less than 200 miles per rental.
• Travelers DO NOT need to submit a DGS OFAM 100 Form for EV rentals.
• Electric car rentals are not currently available for shopping in Concur but can be requested at the end of the booking process. If an electric car is desired, book an Intermediate car and you will be prompted at the end of your booking to submit your electric car request.
• EV base rates are discounted, negotiated rates within the contract with Enterprise Holdings, Inc.
• Electric Vehicles are approved with a rental rate of $58.00 a day (intermediate EV)
• If the vehicle needs to be recharged during the rental period, the traveler must pay out of pocket for use of charging stations, similar to refueling. Travelers are required to collect and retain EV charging receipts.

For rentals for more than 30 days, see "Rent a Long-Term Vehicle" tab. 

The state has a commercial vehicle rental contract for short-term rentals (up to 29 days) with The Affiliates of Enterprise Holdings, INC., which is the corporate company of Enterprise Rent-A-Car and National Car Rental. 

How to Pay
The State of California's contracted travel payment system is the only authorized form of payment. 

Refueling
Employees are not required to refill Enterprise rental vehicles prior to returning to the rental branch. The state has negotiated market fuel rates with Enterprise to ensure we receive the best price upon return. If you choose to refuel the rental vehicle prior to return, save the receipt and submit a Travel Expense Claim (TEC) as usual. 

Advance Approval Required for:
- Renting a Vehicle Larger Than the Intermediate Size
- Renting a Vehicle From a Non Contracted Vendor
- Needing Physical or Medical Accommodations Renting the types of vehicles mentioned above requires advance approval.

Obtain approval from your supervisor, complete the Short-Term Vehicle Justification Form and submit it with your TEC.  

** Please note: The below process is required for Executive Branch/state agencies only. All non-executive branch agencies shall submit long-term vehicle requests to StatewideTravelProgram@dgs.ca.gov. **

Long-Term Program Information

• Any vehicle leased/rented for 30 or more consecutive days is considered a “long-term” vehicle and must follow this guidance. Long-term vehicles are included in the current Commercial Car Rental contract with Enterprise.
• Long-term vehicle statements are reviewed monthly to ensure compliance with DGS Office of Fleet and Asset Management’s fleet acquisition policies/procedures.
• Agencies shall not reserve back-to-back short-term vehicle rentals that amount to 30 or more consecutive days. Short-term vehicle statements are reviewed monthly to ensure compliance with DGS Office of Fleet and Asset Management’s fleet acquisition policies/procedures.

Request for Long-Term Vehicle Rental
All state agencies must request a long-term vehicle in writing to the OFAM Fleet & Asset Management Unit (FAMS) at DGSTLTL@dgs.ca.gov. If the request is approved, the FAMS unit will provide the approval to Enterprise, who will create a long-term billing account, make the arrangements for the vehicle(s) and provide the requester with branch contact information and rental details.

Payment
The contracted Travel Payment Services provider is the sole payment mechanism for long-term vehicle rentals through Enterprise. Once a long-term request has been approved by FAMS, Enterprise will create the separate car rental billing account for the requesting agency.

• Locations and Hours
• Locations with Extended Hours (Weekends)
• Locations with Truck Rentals

Some of the larger vehicle classes offered by Enterprise are not available through Concur or CalTravelStore. Due to limited inventory, these vehicles are arranged directly with Enterprise using the Specialty Vehicle Reservation form linked on this page. This is an Enterprise document and must be sent directly to the email address noted on the Specialty Vehicle Reservation Form.

Prior to sending this form to Enterprise, it is expected that all travelers receive supervisor/department approval for the rental. State travelers must also complete, and have a supervisor sign, an OFAM 100 Short-term Vehicle Justification form. The OFAM 100 form is required whenever a vehicle class above a compact or intermediate sedan is rented, and specialty vehicles are no exception. Typically, this form will be sent by the traveler to the department's accounting office - but each agency will have their own process for collecting signed OFAM 100 forms, so it is recommended to contact the agency's travel coordinator with any questions about this process.

After completing these steps, travelers may complete the Specialty Vehicle Reservation form and send it to Enterprise. The OFAM 100 form does not need to be sent to Enterprise as it is not a state of California form. Finally, when emailing the Specialty Vehicle form to Enterprise, please cc the rental car contract manager at StatewideTravelProgram@dgs.ca.gov.

Enterprise staff will address the request as soon as possible. Due to inventory shortages and high demand for certain vehicle types, it is recommended to submit these requests as far in advance as possible.

Do not contact an individual Enterprise branch or the Enterprise central reservation line to inquire about inventory. These sources have limited insight regarding larger vehicle inventory and will not be aware of the details of the state's contract.

Bridge, Tunnel and Toll Road tolls

Tolls incurred by state employees traveling on official business are reimbursable if the travel is approved by the employee’s supervisor. The contract that Statewide Travel Program holds with Enterprise does not include tolls. These charges are always expected to be paid by the employee on time.

Responsibility for tolls always falls on the driver. A state employee traveling on official business is expected to prepare for every trip by researching potential tolls they will incur throughout their trip. Employees must also be vigilant while traveling and watch out for signage indicating that a toll is required. An employee cannot justify nonpayment of a toll by claiming they did not know a toll was incurred or that they assumed it was being handled by another party.

In California, the most common tolls drivers will encounter are bridge tolls in the San Francisco Bay Area and paid toll-roads in Orange County. Due to COVID-19 precautions, all toll collections have been digitized and cash will not be accepted. All payments are now payable online only. Individual units/divisions are authorized to setup FasTrak/TollRoad accounts to handle these charges for their travelers. More information about how to do this can be found in the links below. Since these accounts are not managed or coordinated with the help of the state, the Statewide Travel Program will not be able to assist with setup or billing issues.

San Francisco Bay Area Tolls

Charges at the eight toll bridges in the Bay Area can be paid via the link below to the FasTrak website. After crossing, drivers have 48 hours to go online and pay the toll using their license plate number. If you are driving a rental and have already returned it, the license plate number is available on the rental agreement. Some bridges also allow for prepayment of a toll, prior to crossing. If you are interested in prepaying, you can select your bridge in the link below and see if this is offered. 

If payment is not received within 48 hours, the Highway Toll Administration (HTA) will issue an invoice based on the registration connected to the vehicle that crossed. This will add a processing fee (currently ~$7.50) to the total charge. Note that this is not yet considered a late fee or a toll violation. After the invoice is issued, they generally need to be paid in 21 days. If the vehicle was a rental, Enterprise will pay the initial invoice, and then pass along the charges to the renter. These still must be paid by the driver. If you receive a toll invoice from Enterprise, do not assume your department has or will pay for it. If this happens, you need to pay for it and seek reimbursement from your department.

After the 21-day period, the toll moves from an invoice to a violation. A significant fee will be added to the base charges. Toll violations are not reimbursable except in the most extreme circumstances. 

All San Francisco Bay Area toll bridges

Orange County toll-roads

Toll-road (TheTollRoads) charges can be paid via the link below five days prior to and up to five days after use. The link below will also indicate which highways are considered toll-roads. Evasion notices will be filed for any vehicle that fails to pay within five days of use of the toll roads.   

If the vehicle was a rental, Enterprise will pay the initial invoice, and then pass along the charges to the renter. These still must be paid by the driver. If you receive a toll invoice from Enterprise, do not assume your department has or will pay for it. If this happens, you need to pay for it and seek reimbursement from your department.

All Southern California toll-roads

FasTrak Express Lanes

Parts of the East Bay and Southern California have paid “Express lanes” in place of traditional carpool lanes. Unlike traditional carpool lanes, Express lanes are electronically monitored at all times. Based on the specific freeway, Express lanes are often free for carpools and hybrids. See the list of Express lanes below to find the specific rules of the freeway you will be traveling.

All California Express lanes

TollPass Program via Enterprise

TollPass Program via Enterprise allows travelers to use the quicker express lane and open video tolling options on toll roads and highways.