BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1077
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1077 (DeSaulnier)
As Amended August 4, 2014
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :23-11
TRANSPORTATION 10-4 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Lowenthal, Achadjian, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |
| |Ammiano, Bloom, Bonta, | |Bradford, |
| |Buchanan, Daly, Gatto, | |Ian Calderon, Campos, |
| |Holden, Nazarian | |Eggman, Gomez, Holden, |
| | | |Pan, Quirk, |
| | | |Ridley-Thomas, Weber |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Linder, Patterson, |Nays:|Bigelow, Donnelly, Jones, |
| |Quirk-Silva, Waldron | |Linder, Wagner |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Creates a Mileage-Based Fee (MBF) Task Force (task
force) to guide development and implementation of a pilot
program to study the potential for an MBF as an alternative to
the gas tax. Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes legislative findings and declarations regarding the
inadequacy of the gas tax to meet California's long-term
revenue needs for transportation and the need to explore an
MBF program as an alternative to the antiquated gas tax system
now in place.
2)Creates a 15-member task force within the California
Transportation Commission (CTC).
3)Directs the task force to study MBF alternatives to the gas
tax and to guide development and evaluation of a pilot program
to test MBF approaches.
4)Directs the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) to
implement, by January 1, 2017, a pilot program, based on
guidance from the task force, to identify and evaluate issues
related to potential implementation of an MBF program.
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5)Requires CalSTA to submit a report on the pilot program to the
task force, CTC, and the Legislature, by January 1, 2018.
6)Sunsets and is repealed on January 1, 2018.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)One-time costs to support the task force would be about
$350,000 for two positions. Additional costs to compensate
task force members and to hold some task force meetings
throughout the state would depend on the number of meetings,
but could total in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars.
2)One-time costs for the pilot project would depend in part on
the number of vehicles and locations involved. The California
Department of Transportation (Caltrans) estimates a cost of
anywhere from $1 million to $20 million. Given the significant
impact that changing to a MBF system would have on the state,
it is assumed the study should be as representative as
possible, which implies a cost at the higher end of Caltans'
range.
COMMENTS : Since 1923, California, and the rest of the nation,
has relied heavily on gas taxes to support its local streets and
roads and state highway system. Gas taxes have the benefit of
being fairly inexpensive to administer. Furthermore, until
recently, they have been a reasonably equitable means of
distributing the tax burden amongst drivers in rough proportion
to their use of the roadway system. The gas tax is no longer a
viable, sustainable revenue source, however. According to the
Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, two important
developments have combined to greatly reduce the functionality
of the gas tax:
1)The purchasing power of gas tax revenues has declined
significantly due to inflation. If current tax rates, set in
1994, remain unchanged through 2035, real gas tax revenue will
have declined by over 40%; and,
2)Improvements in vehicle fuel efficiency have cut directly into
gas tax revenues by allowing drivers to travel farther
distances while buying less gasoline. From an environmental
SB 1077
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and energy policy standpoint, this is undeniably desirable.
Decreased fuel consumption reduces greenhouse gasses and our
dependence on foreign oil. But with vehicle fuel efficiency
set to nearly double in the next 20 years, gas tax revenues
will be cut nearly in half.
In the face of rapidly declining gas tax revenues, many have
implored state legislatures and Congress to raise state and
federal gas tax rates. However, raising the gas tax rate is not
a long-term viable funding solution nor does it support the
state's policies goals. An alternative to the gas tax must be
found. The alternative most often cited across the nation is
MBFs.
This bill provides for a rigorous, independent review of a
potential MBF system. Although the task force and pilot program
will likely consume substantial resources, the significance of
this effort should not be underestimated. Billions of dollars
of lost gas tax revenue are at stake. For more than a decade
CTC has raised concerns with respect to the decline and
instability of gas tax revenues. It has urged that the
Legislature and the Administration to consider implementation of
an MBF system to address California's transportation needs. This
bill will finally begin to answer that call.
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0004726