BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
SB 793 (Lara) - Air pollution: oceangoing vessels.
Amended: April 1, 2013 Policy Vote: T&H 11-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: May 13, 2013 Consultant: Mark McKenzie
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 793 would deem an oceangoing vessel's initial
visit to each California port as compliant with requirements
specified in California Air Resources Board (ARB) emissions
reduction "at-berth" regulations, if the vessel is being tested
for compatibility between on-board and shore power systems, and
meets other conditions.
Fiscal Impact:
ARB indicates that costs to implement this bill would be
$369,000 in 2013-14, $1 million in 2014-15, and $18,000
ongoing (Motor Vehicle Account). These costs are associated
with updating the at-berth regulations, with includes
significant workload to quantify emissions, economic, and
environmental impacts associated with the exemption provided
in the bill. In addition, since the at-berth regulations
are a part of the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for both
PM2.5 and Ozone, these costs include revising the SIP to
account for any lost emission reduction benefits, and
seeking federal approval for SIP revisions.
Background: In December 2007, ARB adopted a regulation to reduce
emissions from diesel auxiliary engines on certain vessels
berthed at California ports (Airborne Toxic Control Measure for
Auxiliary Diesel Engines Operated on Ocean-Going Vessels
At-Berth in a California Port regulation, otherwise known as the
"at-berth" or "cold-ironing" regulation). The at-berth
regulation applies to all container ships, passenger/cruise
ships, and refrigerated-cargo ships that visit the Ports of
Hueneme, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Diego.
Among other things, the at-berth regulation:
Requires vessel fleet operators visiting California ports to
reduce at-berth emissions by either turning off auxiliary
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engines and connecting to shore-based power, or using
alternative control techniques that achieve equivalent
emission reductions.
Requires that by January 1, 2014, at least 50 percent of a
vessel fleet visits to a port meet operational time limits, as
follows: a vessel may operate its auxiliary diesel engines
for up to three hours if the vessel transfers the engines to
shore-based power, or up to five hours if the vessel does not
connect to shore-based power.
Requires a vessel fleet's onboard auxiliary diesel engine
power generation while docked at berth to be reduced by at
least 50 percent by January 1, 2014.
Requires fleet operators to meet a 70 percent threshold for
both of these requirements by 2017 and to meet an 80 percent
threshold by 2020.
Provides exemptions from limits on auxiliary diesel engine
hours of operation in cases of specified emergency events that
affect the provision of shore-based power.
Imposes penalties on vessel fleet operators if these
thresholds are exceeded.
Upon an initial visit to a California port, each ship must
undergo a "commissioning" process of review and inspection of
the shore power settings on-board a vessel to ensure
compatibility with land-side infrastructure and to ensure that
minimum standards are met. The commissioning process has been
underway as fleet operators invest in capital improvements to
make vessels capable of connecting to external power sources and
ports have installed shore-side power infrastructure. ARB
indicates that 60 berths are operational with shore-side power
to date, and expects another 34 berths to have that capability
in 2013. As a result, there will be shore-side infrastructure
at all ports in California by January 1, 2014, when the at-berth
regulations are fully implemented.
Proposed Law: SB 793 would specify that a ship that is equipped
to receive shore power but fails the commissioning process on
its initial visit would be deemed compliant with the limitations
on auxiliary diesel engine hours of operation if all of the
following conditions apply:
The vessel operator has made the necessary effort to complete
testing and inspection.
The vessel operator has notified ARB.
The vessel operator has properly recorded the testing and
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validation procedures, detailing any lack of compatibility
that prevents connecting to shore-side power and any attempted
remedies, as specified.
The vessel operator or terminal operator has ordered or
scheduled any necessary repairs for the earliest possible
time, and no later than the next visit to a berth equipped
with shore-side power.
Staff Comments: This bill is intended to provide fleet operators
with relief from penalties for exceeding auxiliary diesel
operational time limits specified in the at-berth regulations in
cases where a vessel is equipped to receive shore power but
fails the commissioning process. In those circumstances, the
bill would allow that visit to count as a compliant visit for
purposes of determining a fleet's minimum requirements, and any
onboard auxiliary diesel power generation would be excluded from
the fleet's power reduction calculations. ARB indicates that
there have been no known problems with testing and validation of
vessels to date, and that if problems do occur after January 1,
2014, it has the flexibility to exempt from penalties vessels
that exceed operational time limits in appropriate circumstances
where fleet operators are making a good faith effort at
compliance. Shipping companies would prefer to have a concrete
exemption in statute and regulations to provide more certainty
of relief.
SB 793 would require ARB to revise the at-berth regulatory
package. This would entail: initial consultations and workshops
with port and fleet staffs, and drafting of regulatory changes
in 2013-14; significant workload to calculate the impacts on
emissions, health risks, and quantification of economic and
environmental impacts in 2014-15; and additional workload to
finalize the amended regulations through the Office of
Administrative Law, submit SIP revisions based on the amended
regulation, and work with the US Environmental Protection Agency
to seek federal approval in 2014-15. Ongoing costs would be
associated with implementation and enforcement of the changes.
Staff notes that since the rulemaking process is unlikely to be
completed until at least a year or more after the operative date
of the bill, it does not appear that the exemption provided in
the bill would be achievable by January 1, 2014, when the
penalty phase of the current regulations is implemented.
Recommended Amendments: Staff recommends that codified
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legislative intent on page 3, lines 19-27, be removed from
statutory provisions and inserted after line 3 on page 3.