Car Rental

• 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.
  
  • In Concur, select the "Full-size Van" with a rate of $134.25 per day, as shown below. 
  • After booking this vehicle, call the branch to provide reservation information and provide the desired van size for the reservation. 

  

• 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) (also referred to as "Zero Emission Vehicles" or ZEV) are contractually provided to state travelers via the Commercial Car Rental (CCR) contract with Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

• EV is the preferred vehicle type for employees traveling on official business.
  • Trips that require travel within urban and suburban areas, as well as trips under 200 miles of total travel distance are best suited for EV rentals.
• 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 in 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. 
• Current EV availability statewide is limited. The highest concentrations of EV inventory will be at the following locations:
  • Downtown Sacramento (722 12th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814)
  • Sacramento International Airport (SMF)
  • Ontario International Airport (ONT)

Process for Booking an Electric Vehicle

Charging Support and Tools

• ChargePoint Map - Live map of available charging stations based on location. 
• Electric Vehicle Charging Guide - DGS Office of Fleet and Asset Management
  • Learn where to find and how to use electric vehicle charging stations.
• PlugShare Map - Alphabetical listing of California charging locations by city.
• GreenCars Electric Car Charging Tips
• Hyundai Kona Information
  • Kona EV Features
  • Kona EV Quick Reference Manual
• Kia Niro EV Features and Tips
• Nissan Leaf Charging 101
• Tesla Charging Instructions

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.

• Current state (participating Executive Branch and local government agencies only) employees may take advantage of contracted rates for personal vehicle rentals. This employee benefit provides the base contract rates only. Insurance and other contractual obligations do NOT apply to personal use reservations (i.e. unlimited miles, additional insurance, damage waiver, no one-way drop fees, etc.).
• Personal vehicle rentals must not be booked in Concur or with the state's contracted travel agency.
  •  Specific guidance on how to book personal use rentals can be obtained by contacting your agency's Travel Coordinator.
• Rates for personal vehicle rentals can be found in the current contract (see "Commercial Car Rental Contract" link below).
• Personal vehicle rentals are allowed ONLY on select vehicle types. Refer to the "Commercial Car Rental Contract" link below. 

• 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 the travel agency. 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.

Direct Billing for Tolls

Enterprise is able to set up direct billing of toll charges for participating agencies using rental cars through STP. Directly billing toll charges is not automatic and participating STP agencies must opt-into this service. Some things to consider before implementing direct billing for tolls:

• Agencies should have a policy in place to ensure tolls directly billed to the agency are not paid to travelers as out-of-pocket expenses. 
• Agency Travel Coordinators must educate their travelers on the process for toll charges incurred while using a rental vehicle on state business, as it relates to the specific agency.
• Once set up for this service, agencies will receive a statement from Enterprise each month. This statement will be separate from the monthly statement for rental car charges. 
• Toll statements are typically received one (1) week (approximate) after the monthly statement for rental car charges. 
• Toll statements contain most of the same or similar data as monthly rental car statements.

To set-up direct bill tolls with Enterprise, agency Travel Coordinators need to email StatewideTravelProgram@dgs.ca.gov and request the additional service (ATTN: CCR Travel Specialist). 

If tolls are not directly billed to an agency, the following information is applicable to its travelers. 

Bridge, Tunnel and Toll Road tolls

• If the agency is not directly billing toll charges, these charges are invoiced to the traveler and must be paid by the traveler on time.
• Tolls are digitized and payable online. 
• Employees traveling on official business are expected to prepare for every trip by researching potential tolls to incur throughout their trip.
• There is no acceptable justification for nonpayment of tolls and penalty fees.
  • Tolls not paid on time will be assessed penalty fees that are also the responsibility of the traveler. 

San Francisco Bay Area Tolls

• Charges at the eight toll bridges in the Bay Area can be paid via the following link to the FasTrak website. 
  Bay Area FasTrak
• After crossing the toll bridge, travelers have 48 hours to go online and pay the toll using their license plate number.
  • If driving a rental that has been returned to the car rental branch, the license plate number is available on the rental agreement.
  • Some bridges also allow for prepayment of a toll, prior to crossing.
• 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 adds a processing fee to the total charge. This processing fee is not yet considered a late fee or a toll violation.
  • These invoices need to be paid 21 days from the issue date.
• If the vehicle was a rental, Enterprise will pay the initial invoice and then pass along the charges to the renter.
  • Invoices from Enterprise must be paid by the traveler.
• If the invoice is not paid within 21 days, the toll moves from an invoice to a violation. A penalty fee will be added to the base charges. 
  • Any penalty fees assessed for violations must be paid by the traveler.

Orange County Toll Roads

• Orange County toll road charges (The Toll Roads) can be paid via the following link five (5) days prior to and up to five (5) days after use. 
  The Toll Roads
• Evasion notices are issued for any vehicle toll that is not paid within five (5) days of toll road use.
• If the vehicle was a rental, Enterprise will pay the initial invoice and then pass along the charges to the renter.
  • Invoices from Enterprise must be paid by the traveler.
  • Any penalty fees assessed for evasion must be paid by the traveler.

Carpooling and FasTrak Express Lanes

• Carpools and other eligible vehicles can use carpool lanes at all Bay Area toll plazas and Bay Area Express Lanes.
• There are different rules and requirements depending on whether traveling in a bridge carpool lane or an Express Lane.
• Use the following link to view the list of Express Lanes and find the specific rules for each one.
  FasTrak Carpooling Guide
  

Enterprise TollPass

• The Enterprise "TollPass Program" allows travelers to use the quicker express lane and open video tolling options on toll roads and highways.
• Visit the following link to learn more. TollPass Program