Micah Beckwith's $87K SUV started with a request for 'all the bells and whistles'
When Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith was criticized for buying a top-trim, $87,000 Chevrolet Tahoe High Country, his office justified the purchase by saying its former SUV "had been in multiple accidents and was suffering from mechanical issues."
But that 2022 Dodge Durango was in good enough shape to be recently reassigned to an agency head in the Braun administration, Indiana Department of Corrections Commissioner Lloyd Arnold.
Public records recently obtained by IndyStar reveal more context behind Beckwith's controversial Tahoe purchase, which along with Secretary of State Diego Morales' new $91,000 SUV, recently inspired legislation at the Indiana Statehouse banning future purchases of top-trim and premium brand vehicles by state officials. Braun recently signed the bill into law.
The records show Beckwith, also a pastor at Life Church in Noblesville, wanted something "newer and larger" than outgoing Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch's Durango, according to a Jan. 2 request from the Lieutenant Governor's Office to the Indiana Department of Administration, which handles the state's vehicle fleet. The car had over 150,000 miles on it.
"Can you tell me what is available - he is looking for a black SUV like a Yukon with all the bells and whistles," according to the request to IDOA from the office's operations director, which came in via Teams message over a week before Beckwith was sworn into the role alongside Gov. Mike Braun.
A Black Yukon would have matched the one used by Morales, who drives around in a taxpayer funded, $91,000 2024 GMC Yukon Denali.
Instead, the IDOA presented Beckwith with two options: a Chevrolet Tahoe Premium, which starts at about $73,000, and the top-trim Chevrolet Tahoe High Country, which Beckwith ultimately selected.
The original cost of the vehicle was nearly $91,000, but the state got a $3,000 discount, leading to the final price of $87,672, according to the purchase order for the SUV.
"IDOA contacted several dealerships, and at the time of the request, only two in-stock models met both the color and feature preferences" requested by the office, IDOA said in a statement.
The 2022 Dodge Durango used by Crouch was returned to the state's fleet for a trade-in value of $25,000, and the lieutenant governor's office then reimbursed the IDOA an additional nearly $63,000 for the rest of the cost of the car, according to IDOA.
Beckwith's office did not respond to a request for comment about the office's request for a vehicle with "all the bells and whistles."
SUV now used by IDOC commissioner
Since Beckwith traded the Durango back into the state's fleet to help pay for the new Tahoe, it has been reassigned and is now being used by Arnold, who leads the state's correctional system.
As head of the IDOC, Arnold makes $190,000 annually, slightly less than Beckwith who makes just under $194,000.
The IDOA told IndyStar the vehicle had demonstrated no mechanical problems.
A CarFax report on the vehicle shows that there were two accidents reported on the vehicle back in 2022. One was a "sideswipe collision" with another car, and another incident caused damage to the front right hand side of the car. Airbags did not deploy in either incident, according to the CarFax report.
IDOA said the SUV had been involved in a previous fender bender in which the former lieutenant governor "hit a yellow post at a gas station," which was repaired by IDOA. It did not respond to IndyStar's request for information about a second accident.
Two manufacturer recalls affecting the car's software are associated with the SUV; remedies are available for both, according to the CarFax, which showed the current retail value of the Durango as $35,610.
Beckwith's office referred to the CarFax report as evidence that the SUV had issues as he previously described.
However, Rep. Mitch Gore, D-Indianapolis, said the information from IDOA proved "waste and deception" on Beckwith's part. He's previously called on Morales and Beckwith to return their SUVs for something more modest.
"His previous vehicle wasn't malfunctioning - it's in perfect working order and is currently being used by a state agency head," Gore said. "His top-of-the-line Tahoe wasn't thrust upon him like he said. In fact, he originally asked for something even more expensive."
The debate over CarGate, as it was dubbed, resulted in a dayslong back-and-forth on social media spawning memes and political debate. Beckwith at one point swapped out the Tahoe for a borrowed Tesla Cybertruck, described by a social media user as an "A+ in trolling."
An IDOA official later confirmed that the state didn't own, and wasn't renting, the Tesla. The following day, the Tahoe was back in Beckwith's parking spot.
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