BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1493|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 445-6614 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1493
Author: Pavley (D), et al
Amended: 6/28/02 in Senate
Vote: 21
PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT
SUBJECT : Vehicular Air Pollution Standards: Greenhouse
SOURCE : Bluewater Network
Coalition for Clean Air
Natural Resources Defense Council
Sierra Club
DIGEST : Senate floor amendments of 6/28/02 delete the
provisions of the bill. This bill now requires the State
Air Resources Board to develop and adopt, by January 1,
2005, regulations that achieve the maximum feasible and
cost-effective reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from
passenger, light-duty, and other non-commercial vehicles.
NOTE: This bill is similar, with modifications, to AB 1058
which passed the Senate 22-13 on May 2, 2002.
ANALYSIS : Existing law:
1.Under the federal Clean Air Act, prohibits states from
adopting or enforcing standards for the control of new
motor vehicles or engines subject to the Act. However,
the Act also authorizes the Administrator of the US EPA
to waive this prohibition and to allow states to adopt
CONTINUED
AB 1493
Page
2
standards if specified conditions are met.
2.Under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975, and
the federal Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings
Act, authorizes the secretary of transportation to
establish standards for new motor vehicle fuel economy
(so-called "corporate average fuel economy" or "CAFE"
standards) and generally prohibits states from enacting
such standards.
3.Under Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code, requires
the state Air Resources Board (ARB) to endeavor to
achieve the maximum degree of emission reductions
possible from vehicular and other mobile sources in order
to achieve attainment of state ambient air standards by
the earliest practicable date.
4.Under Chapter 6 of the Health and Safety Code, requires
the Secretary for Resources to establish a California
Climate Action Registry (CCAR) for the purposes of
allowing parties which emit greenhouse gas emissions
voluntarily to register reductions in their emissions in
order to have them recognized by the State of California
in any future regulatory or treaty protocol requiring the
reduction in greenhouse gases.
5.Also under that chapter, requires the Governor to appoint
a seven-member board of directors to oversee operation of
the registry and establishes detailed procedures for the
quantification and registering of emissions registered
under the registry's auspices and requires the State
Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission
(The California Energy Commission or CEC) to undertake
specified activities relative to the implementation of
the CCAR.
6.Under the Warren-Alquist Energy Resources Conservation
and Development Act, requires the CEC to prepare an
inventory of greenhouse gas emissions produced by the
state, to update that inventory by specified dates, to
establish a task force and advisory committee on climate
change, and to coordinate state responses to the impacts
of climate change on the state.
AB 1493
Page
3
This bill:
1. Not later than January 1, 2005, requires the state
Air Resources Board (ARB) to develop and adopt
regulations to achieve the maximum feasible and
cost-effective reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions from passenger, light-duty, and other
non-commercial vehicles.
2. Prohibits the regulations from taking effect prior
to January 1, 2006 and applying to vehicles
manufactured prior to the 2009 model year.
3. Requires the board to consider the technological
feasibility of the regulations and the impacts of
the regulations on the economy of the state,
including specified job, business, and competitive
impacts.
4. Requires the regulations to provide the maximum
feasible flexibility for persons complying with the
regulations to use alternative methods of
compliance provided the ARB determines that such
methods achieve the equivalent or greater reduction
in greenhouse gas emissions as the standards
adopted by the board.
5. Prohibits the ARB's regulations from:
A.Imposing mandatory taxes or fees under this
provisions of law or any other provision of law.
B.Banning the sale of any vehicle category, including
sport utility vehicles and light duty trucks.
C.Imposing vehicle weight reductions.
D.Imposing trip reduction measures or land use
restrictions.
1. Requires the ARB to conduct specified public
hearings in the state in low-income and minority
communities.
AB 1493
Page
4
2. Requires the ARB to provide emission reduction
credits (ERC's) for actions taken to reduce
greenhouse gases from motor vehicles prior to
implementation of the regulations and requires that
such credits be approved by the board and recorded
with the California Climate Action Registry (CCAR).
3. Requires the ARB to coordinate its regulations with
the activities of the CCAR and the California
Energy Commission (CEC) pursuant to their statutory
responsibilities.
4. Within 10 days of adopting the regulations,
requires the ARB to transmit the regulations to the
appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the
Legislature for review, authorizes the Legislature
to hold at least one public hearing to review the
regulations and authorizes the Legislature to enact
legislation modifying the regulations before they
take effect.
5. Provides that if the federal government adopts a
vehicular greenhouse gas standard for new motor
vehicles which the ARB determines to be equivalent
or greater in its effectiveness, the board may
elect not to adopt standards pursuant to the bill's
provisions.
6. Defines "greenhouse gases" to mean those gases
listed under the provisions of law governing the
CCAR.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/28/02)
Bluewater Network (co-source)
Coalition for Clean Air (co-source)
Natural Resources Defense Council (co-source)
Sierra Club (co-source)
American Lung Association
Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility
Bay Area Air Quality Management District
AB 1493
Page
5
California League of Conservation Voters
Cities of Los Angeles and San Jose
Clean Power Campaign
Community Alliance with Family Farmers
East Bay Municipal Utility District
Planning and Conservation League
Sacramento Municipal Utility District
Coalition of Organizations
160 individual letters from all across the U.S.
OPPOSITION : (Verified 6/28/02)
Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
Automobile Club of Southern California
California Chamber of Commerce
California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance
California Manufacturers and Technology Association
California Motor Car Dealers Association
California State Automobile Association
Daimler Chrysler Corporation
General Motors Corporation
San Diego Industrial Environmental Association
Tustin Chamber of Commerce
Western States Petroleum Association
California League of Off Road Voters
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office
and the bill's supporters, global warming is an
international problem with the potential for state and
local impacts including: reductions in the state's water
supply due to changes in the snow pack levels in the Sierra
Nevada Mountains and the timing of spring run-off; adverse
health impacts from increases in air pollution caused by
higher temperatures; adverse impacts upon agriculture and
food production as a result of projected changes in the
amount and consistency of water supplies; potential damage
to the state's extensive coastline and ocean ecosystems due
to the increase in storms and rise in sea level.
Supporters state that the United States is home to four
percent of the world's population and 25 percent of the
greenhouse gasses. California is the fifth largest economy
in the world. Passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks are
responsible for approximately 40 percent of the total
AB 1493
Page
6
greenhouse gas pollution in the state. More than twice the
amount of greenhouse gas pollution from motor vehicles in
other parts of the country. California has a long history
of being the first in the nation to take action to protect
public health and the environment with respect to motor
vehicles and federal law recognizes the authority of
California to take such actions. Finally, the supporters
note that they have gone to great pains to amend the bill
to address most of the opponents stated concerns.
The purpose of this measure is to direct the ARB to adopt
standards to address greenhouse gas emissions from motor
vehicles.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : Opponents to this measure state
that the provisions of the bill "offers no California
emissions benefits, are bad for consumers, and are
pre-empted by federal law." They note that regulation of
vehicular fuel economy is a federal issue into which the
states may not intrude, and that enactment of the measure
will almost certainly lead to litigation in the federal
courts over its effect. The opponents also state that the
bill will limit consumer choice and increase the costs of
vehicles in the state while potentially making vehicles
less safe due to presumed reductions in their weight to
increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. Opponents
further state that, unlike standards for criteria air
pollutants, greenhouse gas emission standards will not
assist in improving public health since greenhouse gas
emissions disperse evenly in the atmosphere. They state
that California's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions
is less than one tenth of one percent and that adoption of
the standards will have a "negligible effect" on climate
change worldwide. Finally, opponents state that California
voters rejected greenhouse gas emission controls in 1990
when they defeated Proposition 128, the so-called "Big
Green" Initiative.
CP:sl 6/28/02 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****
AB 1493
Page
7