Even electric and natural gas utility fleets are having trouble meeting their mandated acquisitions of alternative-fueled vehicles, according to an informal survey by the National Association of Fleet Administrators (NAFA). Of the 31 utility fleets contacted by NAFA this week, only 11 met their mandate entirely by acquiring the required number of vehicles. The remaining 20 had to take other steps to meet the law’s requirements. When sufficient AFVs were not required, most fleets used credits that their companies had generated in previous years or through other credit-generating actions; 14 fleets exercised this remedy. Two fleets applied for and received exemptions from the U.S. Department of Energy, and another fleet received a partial exemption. One fleet purchased credits. And two fleets acknowledged that they are still trying to figure out what to do. Fuel-provider fleets that have extra credits are almost all keeping them for future use. A total of 23 fleets said they are keeping their excess credits; only one fleet has credits to sell or trade. The Energy Policy Act required fuel-provider fleets to acquire an increasing percentage of alternative-fueled vehicles. Fleets that are unable or unwilling to acquire the mandated AFVs may use credits that they generated themselves or may purchase credits from other companies. The U.S. Department of Energy operates a database of companies that have credits to sell or trade; so far, only about 610 credits have been exchanged. DOE does not track the sale price of credits; however, one fleet advised NAFA that it paid $2,000 per credit. NAFA contacted a sample of fuel-provider fleets, including investor-owned and government-owned utilities.