BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: sb 739 SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: lowenthal VERSION: 2/18/11 Analysis by: Jennifer Gress FISCAL: yes Hearing date: April 5, 2011 SUBJECT: Seaports: infrastructure and air quality improvement plans DESCRIPTION: This bill requires the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Oakland, by July 1, 2012, to assess their infrastructure and air quality improvement needs, including assessing the total cost for these projects and identifying potential sources of funding for them. ANALYSIS: Ports are local government agencies governed by port commissions that are responsible for developing, maintaining, and overseeing the operation of shoreside facilities for the intermodal transfer of cargo between ships, trucks, and railroads. Some ports have jurisdiction over affiliated airports (e.g., Oakland), build and maintain terminals for the passenger cruise ship industry, or manage marinas and other public facilities. Existing law establishes 11 ports in the state: Hueneme, Humboldt Bay, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, Redwood City, Richmond, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, and Stockton. Under current law, each port may establish a general plan and port system improvements and prescribe the specifications for such improvements. This bill requires the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Oakland, by July 1, 2012, to assess their infrastructure and air quality improvement needs, including assessing the total cost for these projects and identifying potential sources of funding for them. COMMENTS: 1.Purpose . There have been several plans establishing lists of SB 739 (LOWENTHAL) Page 2 projects for goods movement infrastructure and for reducing emissions from goods movement-related sources. These plans, however, are several years old and most do not identify the sources of funding necessary to complete the projects. The Goods Movement Emission Reduction Plan produced by the Air Resources Board in 2006 estimated the costs to reduce emissions associated with goods movement to be between $6 and $10 billion. The Goods Movement Action Plan, completed by the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency in January 2007, estimated goods movement infrastructure costs to exceed $20 billion over the following decade. Proposition 1B, approved by voters in 2006, authorized the sale of general obligation bonds for transportation purposes, including $2 billion for trade infrastructure and $1 billion for air quality mitigation. These funds have been fully programmed, leaving a gap of $23 to $27 billion in unmet need. This bill, therefore, seeks to update the infrastructure and air quality needs of the regions surrounding the state's largest ports and to identify the sources funding necessary to fill that gap. The author argues that ensuring the completion of infrastructure and air quality improvements in California is especially important in light of increased competition from ports on the East Coast and in the Southern United States, noting that a project to widen the Panama Canal to allow for more shipping between Asia and other parts of the U.S. is expected to be completed in 2014. 2.Related legislation . This bill is nearly identical to SB 632 (Lowenthal), which this committee passed in 2009 on a 10 to 1 vote. That bill was ultimately amended to deal with a different subject matter. 3.Double-referral . This bill is double-referred to this committee and the Committee on Environmental Quality. If this committee passes the bill, it will then be referred to the Environmental Quality Committee. POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on Wednesday, March 30, 2011) SB 739 (LOWENTHAL) Page 3 SUPPORT: South Coast Air Quality Management District OPPOSED: None received.