Enterprise Rent-A-Car on July 3 proposed renting cars to the Cape Girardeau County Commission in Missouri to save the county money on mileage reimbursement costs in light of rising fuel prices., according to the Southeast Missourian.

The proposal would allow county officials to rent vehicles from Enterprise at reduced rates already offered to the Missouri state government without having to go through a rebid process.

Cape Girardeau County currently allows its officials to use county-owned vehicles to travel or to be reimbursed for mileage in their personal vehicles. The rental car option would be in addition to those options.

When an official uses a personal vehicle, the county reimburses the individual at 38 cents per mile. At that rate, a 240-mile round trip to St. Louis in a personal vehicle would cost the county $91.20.

If the county were to rent for its official travels, the costs would be for the rental and for fuel. The rental rate presented to the commission for a standard-size vehicle was $35 per day. The rate includes unlimited mileage per day.

Assuming the cost of regular unleaded fuel at $4 per gallon and a standard-size vehicle gets 25 miles per gallon, fuel for the roundtrip to St. Louis would cost $38.40. The total cost of the rental rate and the fuel would be $73.40 for a one-day rental. The total cost of both trips would increase by $35 for each additional day the vehicle is rented. Purchasing insurance from the car rental company could add to the rental cost.

On July 3, the county commission planned to determine whether their insurance extended to cover rental vehicles, according to the Southeast Missourian.