CLUTE, TEXAS – Brazoria County is aiming to make white the standard color for all county vehicles in the next few years, according to Brazosport Facts.

County commissioners voted this week for the color, coming on the heels of a May discussion of standardizing office furniture. No vote was taken in the May meeting, but Monday's vote on automobiles was unanimous, reported Facts.

"White's always available," County Judge E.J. "Joe" King said. "We've discussed this in the past and this is for future purchases. They will all eventually be the same."

Standardization wouldn't apply to law enforcement automobiles, many of which are white, Pct. 1 Commissioner Donald "Dude" Payne said. The county would not paint vehicles already in service.

Trading cars between departments, trading in at dealerships, and the ability to order several vehicles at one time might all be money-savers if the vehicles' color is consistent, Pct. 4 Commissioner Mary Ruth Rhodenbaugh said, reported Facts.

The county currently has about 350 non-law enforcement vehicles, including dump trucks, County Auditor Connie Garner said. In 2009, the county budgeted $1.8 million to purchase vehicles, including those for law enforcement.

However, the county hasn't ordered all the automobiles budgeted, Garner said.

In the fleet overall, the road and bridge department has the most vehicles with 217, while the mosquito control district has 28, parks department 24 and juvenile probation 21, she said. The rest are scattered among other departments.

Pct. 2 Commissioner Matt Sebesta joked it will take 10 years for all vehicles to be replaced, "once they circulate through the parks department," indicating that division uses automobiles the longest and gets new ones last.

The road and bridge department has dump trucks in red, yellow, green, and white, Payne said. Starting with this year's budget, Payne said they'll all be white, reported Facts.