BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                AB 462
                                                                       

                      SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
                        Senator S. Joseph Simitian, Chairman
                              2011-2012 Regular Session
                                           
           BILL NO:    AB 462
           AUTHOR:     Lowenthal
           AMENDED:    June 7, 2011
           FISCAL:     No                HEARING DATE:     June 27, 2011
           URGENCY:    No                CONSULTANT:       Randy Pestor
            
           SUBJECT  :    SCHOOLBUS RETROFIT

            SUMMARY  :    
           
            Existing law  :

           1) Provides the California Air Resources Board (ARB) with 
              primary responsibility for control of mobile source air 
              pollution, including adoption of rules for reducing vehicle 
              emissions and the specification of vehicular fuel 
              composition.  (Health and Safety Code §39000 et seq. and 
              §39500 et seq.).  The ARB must coordinate efforts to attain 
              and maintain ambient air quality standards.  (§39003).

           2) Provides that air pollution control districts (APCDs) and 
              air quality management districts (AQMDs) have primary 
              responsibility for controlling air pollution from all 
              sources, other than emissions from mobile sources.  (§40000 
              et seq.).  Certain APCDs and AQMDs are established, with 
              related authority, including the Sacramento Metropolitan 
              Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD).  (§40950 et 
              seq.).

           3) Authorizes an APCD or AQMD, until January 1, 2015, to levy 
              a fee up to $6 on motor vehicles registered in the 
              district, with the first $4 in revenue of each fee used to 
              reduce air pollution from motor vehicles and to carry out 
              relating planning, monitoring, enforcement, and technical 
              studies necessary to implement the California Clean Air Act 
              of 1988; and the next $2 of each fee to be used for certain 
              purposes, including purchase of new school buses in 
              accordance with the Lower-Emission School Bus Program 
              adopted by the ARB.  (§44229).  Similar provisions are 









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              specified for the SMAQMD.  (§41081).

            This bill  :

           1) Allows the $2 portion of the fee for APCDs and AQMDs to 
              also be used for:

              a)    Replacement of onboard natural gas fuel tanks on 
                 school district-owned school buses that are 14 years or 
                 older, not to exceed $20,000 per bus.

              b)    Enhancement of deteriorating natural gas fueling 
                 dispensers of school district-operated fueling 
                 infrastructure with a one-time funding amount not 
                 exceeding $500 per dispenser.

           2) Makes technical and clarifying amendments, and contains 
              double-jointing amendments to address chaptering-out 
              problems with AB 470 (Halderman).

            COMMENTS  :

            1) Purpose of Bill  .  According to the South Coast Air Quality 
              Management District, sponsor of AB 462, about 1,400 
              alternative fuel schoolbuses have been purchased by school 
              districts within its jurisdiction through ARB's 
              Lower-Emission School Bus Program.  These schoolbuses are 
              primarily powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) with fuel 
              tanks having a useable life of 15 years.  About 200 of 
              these CNG schoolbuses will reach the end of their 15-year 
              fuel tank lifespan by 2011-2012, with 100 to 150 additional 
              schoolbuses reaching the end of their fuel tank lifespan 
              each following year.  A replacement fuel tank costs about 
              $20,000 compared with the approximate $169,000 cost of a 
              new bus.  AB 462 provides a funding mechanism for 
              replacement of these CNG fuel tanks along with improvements 
              to certain school district-operated fueling infrastructure. 


            2) Background  .  The primary goal of ARB's Lower-Emission 
              School Bus Program is to reduce exposure to cancer-causing 
              and smog-forming pollution.  The program provides funding 










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              for new and safer schoolbuses, as well as air pollution 
              control equipment (retrofit devices) on existing buses.  
              Beginning in the 2000-01 fiscal year budget, $50 million 
              was allocated to the ARB for the program.  According to the 
              ARB in 2000, "ARB and local air districts recognize that PM 
              Ýparticulate matter] emissions from diesel-fueled engines 
              and vehicles are a serious public health concern, 
              particularly for school age children who are more 
              susceptible to its harmful health effects.  When 
              implemented, the Lower-Emission School Bus Program will 
              provide California's school children with less polluting, 
              and in many cases, safer school transportation."

           AB 923 (Firebaugh) Chapter 707, Statutes of 2004, among other 
              things, authorized APCDs, AQMDs, and SMAQMD to increase the 
              registration fee by $2 to be used for certain purposes, 
              including purchase of new schoolbuses in accordance with 
              the Lower-Emission School Bus Program adopted by the ARB.

           Voters approved Proposition 1B (the Highway Safety, Traffic 
              Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006) 
              November 7, 2006.  This bond act provided for a bond issue 
              not to exceed $19,925,000,000 for certain purposes, 
              including $200 million for schoolbus retrofit and 
              replacement to reduce air pollution and children's exposure 
              to diesel exhaust.

           SB 88 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) Chapter 181, 
              Statutes of 2007, contained various provisions to implement 
              Proposition 1B, including the California Clean Schoolbus 
              Program (Health and Safety Code §44299.90 et seq.) which 
              requires ARB to allocate funds in accordance with the 
              following:  a) replace all schoolbuses in operation with a 
              1976 model year or earlier; and b) remaining funds 
              apportioned to local APCDs and AQMDs based on the number of 
              schoolbuses with 1977 to 1986 model years (each school 
              district must determine the percentage of its allocation to 
              spend between replacement of schoolbuses of model years 
              1977 to 1986, and retrofit of schoolbuses of any model 
              year).  All schoolbuses replaced under this program must be 
              scrapped.  SB 88 also requires ARB to prepare guidelines 
              for the program.










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           AB 470 allows the $2 portion of the fee for APCDs and AQMDs 
              enacted under AB 923 of 2004 to also be used for 
              replacement of onboard natural gas fuel tanks on school 
              district-owned school buses that are 14 years or older (not 
              to exceed $20,000 per bus) and enhancement of deteriorating 
              natural gas fueling dispensers of school district-operated 
              fueling infrastructure (with a one-time funding amount not 
              exceeding $500 per dispenser).

            3) Related legislation  .  AB 470 (Halderman) allows the $2 
              portion of the fee for APCDs, AQMDs, and the SMAQMD to also 
              be used for retrofitting existing schoolbus emission 
              control equipment in accordance with the Lower-Emission 
              School Bus Program.  AB 462 and AB 470 contain 
              double-jointing amendments to address chaptering-out 
              problems.

            4) Clarification needed  .  Amendments are needed to:  a) 
              require the programs added by this bill to be pursuant to 
              the Lower-Emission School Bus Program adopted by the ARB, 
              b) add these revised program amendments to provisions 
              relating to the SMAQMD, and c) revise the corresponding 
              double-jointing provisions.

            SOURCE  :        South Coast Air Quality Management District  

           SUPPORT  :       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 
                          Association, 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, 
                          Pupil Transportation Cooperative, The Gualco 
                          Group, Inc., San Diego Gas & Electric Company, 
                          Sempra Energy Utilities, Southern California 










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                          Gas Company, Union of Concerned Scientists, 
                          West County Transportation Agency  

           OPPOSITION  :    None on file