BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 462
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN
AUTHOR: B. Lowenthal
VERSION: 6/7/11
Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: no
Hearing date: June 14, 2011
SUBJECT:
Vehicle registration surcharge: air districts
DESCRIPTION:
This bill allows an air district to use vehicle registration
surcharge revenues to replace natural gas fuel tanks and to
enhance natural gas fueling dispensers.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law establishes a basic vehicle registration fee of
$34, plus a $22 surcharge for additional personnel for the
California Highway Patrol, and authorizes local agencies to
impose separate vehicle registration fee surcharges in their
respective jurisdictions for a variety of special programs,
including authorizing a local air district, until January 1,
2015, to levy a surcharge of up to $6 on registration fees of
motor vehicles registered within that district. After January
1, 2015 the maximum surcharge that an air district may levy is
reduced to $4 per registered vehicle. An air district may only
impose the fee if the district board adopts a resolution
providing for both the fee and a corresponding program for the
reduction of air pollution from motor vehicles in order to meet
its obligation under the California Clean Air Act of 1988.
Upon request from an air district, the Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV) collects these fees upon renewal of a vehicle's
registration and, after deducting up to one percent of the fees
for administrative costs it incurs, distributes the remaining
revenues to the air district based upon the amount of fees
collected from motor vehicles registered within that district.
Under existing law, revenue from the first $4 of the $6
surcharge must be used to reduce air pollution from motor
vehicles and to carry out related planning, monitoring,
AB 462 (B. LOWENTHAL) Page 2
enforcement, and technical studies necessary to implement the
California Clean Air Act of 1988. Revenue from the next $2 may
only be used to implement the following programs that the
district determines remediate air pollution harms created by
motor vehicles on which the surcharge is imposed:
The purchase of new school buses pursuant to the
Lower-Emission School Bus Program adopted by the Air Resources
Board (ARB).
Projects eligible for grants under the Carl Moyer Memorial Air
Quality Standards Attainment Program.
The purchase, retrofit, repower, or addition of equipment for
previously unregulated agricultural sources of air pollution
that become subject to regulation, but only until the
compliance date of the regulation.
An accelerated vehicle retirement or repair program adopted by
ARB.
This bill :
1.Adds two projects to the list of programs that an air district
may fund using the last $2 of the $6 vehicle registration
surcharge:
The replacement of onboard natural gas fuel tanks on
school buses owned by a school district that are 14 years
of age or older, not to exceed $20,000 per bus.
The enhancement of natural gas fueling dispensers
operated by a school district with a one-time funding
amount not to exceed $500 per dispenser.
1.Ensures that should it and AB 470 both get enacted that the
second bill enacted will not chapter out the first.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . According to the sponsor, the South Coast Air
Quality Management District, entities within its jurisdiction
have purchased about 1,400 alternative fuel school buses,
primarily powered by compressed natural gas (CNG), through the
ARB's Lower-Emission School Bus Program. The fuel tanks on
AB 462 (B. LOWENTHAL) Page 3
these buses have a useable life of 15 years. About 200 of
these CNG school buses will reach the end of their 15-year
fuel tank lifespan by 2011-12. The fuel tanks in 100 to 150
additional buses will also reach the end of their useable
lives each year thereafter. The price for purchasing a new
bus is approximately $169,000, whereas the replacement of fuel
tanks costs approximately $20,000 per bus and will extend the
life of the bus another 10 to 15 years. This bill allows
local funds to be used for the replacement of fuel tanks for
CNG buses that are 14 or more years old, regardless of how a
school district originally paid for their purchase. This will
enable air districts to extend the useful life of these
cleaner, alternative-fueled buses, relieve public school
districts from significant replacement costs, and protect
public health and safety.
2.Clarifying amendment . This bill amends the code section that
generally authorizes air districts to levy a vehicle
registration surcharge to help fund districts' efforts to meet
the California Clean Air Act standards, but the Sacramento Air
Quality Management District has a separate authorization in a
different code section. The committee may wish to consider
amending this bill to make the same changes to this other code
section in order to clarify that the Sacramento Air Quality
Management District has this authority, as well.
3.Related legislation . AB 470 (Halderman) allows these air
districts to use these same vehicle registration surcharge
revenues for the retrofit of existing school buses. Also on
today's agenda in the Senate Transportation and Housing
Committee.
4.Refer to Rules . As noted above, this bill is similar to and
amends the same section of the Health and Safety Code as AB
470, which is also on today's agenda. AB 470, however, has a
second referral to the Environmental Quality Committee and
this bill does not. Therefore, should this bill pass the
committee today, the motion should be to pass and re-refer the
bill to the Rules Committee, so that the Rules Committee may
consider referring this bill to the Environmental Quality
Committee.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 58-1
Trans: 12-0
AB 462 (B. LOWENTHAL) Page 4
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 8, 2011)
SUPPORT: South Coast Air Quality Management District
(sponsor)
American Lung Association
Bay Area Air Quality Management District
California Air Pollution Control Officers
Association
California Association of School Transportation
Officials
California Council for Environmental and Economic
Balance
California School Boards Association
California School Employees Assocation
Coalition for Clean Air
Colton Joint Unified School District
Desert Sands Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District
Natural Resources Defense Council
Planning and Conservation League
Public Transportation Cooperative
San Diego Gas & Electric Company
Sempra Energy Utilities
Southern California Gas Company
Union of Concerned Scientists
West County Transportation Agency
OPPOSED: None received.