BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 1076 Page 1 Date of Hearing: August 8, 2012 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Felipe Fuentes, Chair SB 1076 (Emmerson) - As Amended: June 19, 2012 Policy Committee: TransportationVote:13-0 Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: No Reimbursable: No SUMMARY This bill requires tire pressure gauges used to check vehicle tire pressure pursuant to the state's greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction program to be accurate within two pounds. The bill also specifies the standards by which an automotive service provider may consider a tire unsafe and therefore not subject to the requirement to check tire pressure and inflate the tire. The bill sunsets all of its provisions on January 1, 2018. FISCAL EFFECT Negligible state costs, if any. COMMENTS 1)Rationale . The author intends this bill to provide certainty to automotive service providers concerning their responsibility to check tire pressure, which currently is required by ARB regulation. The author has expressed concern with the effect on automotive service providers of ARB's ability to alter the regulation in the future. 2)Background . AB 32 (Núñez, Chapter 455, Statutes of 2006) requires California to limit its emissions of GHGs so that, by 2020, those emissions are equal to what they were in 1990. To that end, AB 32 requires ARB to quantify the state's 1990 GHG emissions and to adopt, by January 1, 2009, a scoping plan that describes the board's plan for achieving the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions of GHG emissions reductions by 2020. SB 1076 Page 2 In keeping with AB 32, ARB adopted numerous regulations to reduce GHG emissions, including the requirement that automotive service providers check and inflate each vehicle's tires to the recommended tire pressure rating, with air or nitrogen, as appropriate, at the time of performing any automotive maintenance or repair service. Specifically, the regulation requires an automotive service provider to: a) Indicate on the vehicle service invoice that a tire inflation service was completed and the tire pressure measurements after the service was performed. b) Perform the tire pressure service using a tire pressure gauge with a total permissible error no greater than two pounds per square inch. c) Have access to a tire inflation reference that is current within three years of publication. d) Keep a copy of the service invoice for a minimum of three years and make the vehicle service invoice available to the ARB or its authorized representative upon request. According to ARB's regulation, an automotive service provider is not required to check tire pressure or inflate tires if the customer signs an affidavit declining the service. In addition, the automotive service provider is not required to check tire pressure or inflate a tire if the provider determines the tire to be unsafe, in accordance with standard industry practice, due to tire tread wear, age, tread irregularity or damage. Notably, this bill, unlike ARB's regulation, does not include age as a factor that may be used by a provider to determine a tire to be unsafe. The author and the bill's supporters report there is no industry standard on the relationship between tire age and tire safety and, for this reason, objects to inclusion of age among the factors a tire provider may consider. 3)Flexibility Versus Certainty. As stated above, the author intends this bill to provide certainty to automotive service providers of their obligation to check tire pressure and inflate tires. The author and ARB agree codification of the tire pressure regulation will make changing that regulation more difficult in the future. The author and the bill's SB 1076 Page 3 supporters see such inflexibility as desirable. However, codification of regulatory requirements will limit ARB's ability to modify its regulations in response to changing circumstances or new information. 4)Related Legislation. This bill is similar to SB 211 (Emmerson, 2011), which was vetoed by the governor, who cited safety concerns and existence of regulations regarding tire inflation. 5)Support. This bill is supported by the California Retailers Association and tire industry organizations. 6)Opposition. This bill is opposed by the Consumer Attorneys of California, who contend it lessens consumer safety. Analysis Prepared by : Jay Dickenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081