The East Point City Council Addresses City’s Take-Home Car Policy After Controversy Erupts Over Customer Care Manager’s Access to City Vehicle

The East Point City Council last night voted to codify the city’s take-home vehicle policy after controversy erupted over the alleged use of a city vehicle by the East Point Power Customer Care Manager.

Ward D Councilmember Latonya Martin-Rogers urged the council to establish clear guidelines governing which employees would be allowed access to city vehicles, after she questioned decision-making regarding use of the vehicles–usage that the council has not explicitly addressed.

“On May 18 2026 during the FY27 budget discussion, the city manager stated that the city had recently created a take home vehicle policy…he does not have the authority to do that”, Martin-Rogers said. “For the record, no such policy has been presented to mayor and council”.

Martin-Rogers then voiced concern that the city could be held liable if unauthorized persons were to be involved in a car accident, citing the city manager’s own assessment that take home vehicles, “had increased incidence and liability exposure for the city”. Martin-Rogers then urged the council to adopt a clear umbrella policy governing access to the city’s vehicles.

“We need a formal citywide policy that should clearly establish who is eligible, who may authorize assignments, permitted use, geographic limitations, monitoring, and exceptions”.

Martin-Rogers then voiced a motion that included a directive that, “The customer care manager’s take-home vehicle assignment be discontinued effectively immediately”.

She continued: “And that the city attorney draft a formal citywide take-home vehicle policy for mayor and council consideration.

“This motion shall not affect direct reports, the public safety personnel, or employees with documented emergency on-call or operation needs”, Martin-Rogers said then added that the city council and mayor should establish the city’s take home policy, and not a memorandum.

When asked whether city currently has a policy for take-home vehicles, City Manager Redmond Jones said the city has a policy that mostly addresses police take-home vehicles.

Jones then claimed he was unaware of the arrangement and that he had not spoken to the finance manager about the customer care manager’s access to a take-home vehicle. Jones said he only became familiar with the matter as a result of an “email bomb” sent by the Georgia Accountability Project. The finance manager is now the supervisor of the customer care manager–but the city manager oversees the finance manager as well as the customer care manager.

Ward B Councilmember Shean Atkins questioned Martin-Rogers’ motion, arguing the council could potentially be “singling out” a “specific position”.

“In addition to the manager for customer care, are there others who have a take home vehicle that would…we’re singling out a specific position…is there a rationale for singling out a specific position, or does this go across the enterprise for anyone that may fall into the category that you’re thinking of so that it is equitable across the enterprise?

Martin-Rogers then made the distinction between who should have access to city take home vehicles and who should not.

“I think when she (the city attorney) comes back with a policy, it will be equitable”, Martin-Rogers said. “I mean it’s expected that police would have take-home vehicles, fire would have take-home vehicles, the electric department would have take-home vehicles”, she said.

“Anyone that is on call…water and sewer, would have take-home vehicles”.

“But the necessity for a customer service manager to have a take-home vehicle who is still under the probationary period is unacceptable. It is unacceptable”, Martin-Rogers said.

She also pointed out that mileage is calculated on city vehicles and that taxpayers are responsible for the cost of fuel and maintenance on city vehicles.

Last week, the Georgia Accountability Project, an anonymous public advocacy group, reported that the customer care manager, who was hired by Jones, was making use of a city vehicle, including trips from the customer care office to her home in Douglasville. The group raised concerns over the appropriateness and necessity of such access.

The East Point News researched whether or not prior customer care managers have had use of a city vehicle: We could not locate a similar allowance from the past.

Martin-Rogers’ motion was seconded by Ward C Councilmember Tremayne Mitchell, paving the way for the council to adopt Councilmember Martin-Rogers’ motion. The new policy will be formulated by the city attorney and then submitted to council and mayor in an upcoming meeting for approval as an ordinance.