BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1697|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1697
Author: Bonilla (D), et al.
Amended: 8/15/16 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANS. & HOUSING COMMITTEE: 9-1, 6/28/16
AYES: Beall, Cannella, Allen, Galgiani, Leyva, McGuire,
Mendoza, Roth, Wieckowski
NOES: Bates
NO VOTE RECORDED: Gaines
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-2, 8/11/16
AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza
NOES: Bates, Nielsen
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 5/31/16 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle
Technology Program
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill expands the criteria for funding programs
through the state's Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle
Technology Program (ARFVTP) to include workforce training, as
specified.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Establishes the ARFVTP, administered by the California Energy
Commission (CEC). This program provides funding (about $100
million per year) for development and deployment of
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alternative and renewable fuels and advanced transportation
technologies to help attain the state's climate change goals.
This program, along with several others, is funded through
surcharges on vehicle registration fees, a portion of the
vessel registration fee, a portion of the Smog Abatement Fee
(paid to register vehicles less than six model years old and
therefore exempt from smog check), and an increase in the fee
for identification plates for various types of vehicles, such
as logging vehicles operated on public roads.
2)Requires the CEC to prioritize projects that maximize ARFVTP
goals based on the following criteria, as applicable:
a) Ability to provide a measurable transition to a diverse
portfolio of viable alternative fuels that meet petroleum
reduction and alternative fuel use goals.
b) Consistency with state climate change policy and
low-carbon fuel standards.
c) Ability to reduce criteria air pollutants and air toxics
and reduce or avoid multimedia environmental impacts.
d) Ability to decrease the discharge of water pollutants or
other substances known to damage health or the environment,
as specified.
e) Lack of adverse impact on the sustainability of the
state's natural resources, especially state and federal
lands.
f) Provision of non-state matching funds.
g) Provision of economic benefits for the state by
promoting California-based technology firms, jobs, and
businesses.
h) Use of existing or proposed fueling infrastructure to
maximize project outcome.
i) Ability to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at
least 10%, and higher percentages in the future, from
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current reformulated gasoline and diesel fuel standards
established by the state Air Resources Board.
j) Use of alternative fuel blends of least 20%, and higher
blend ratios in the future, with a preference for projects
with higher blends.
aa) Ability to drive new technology advancement for
vehicles, vessels, engines, and other equipment, and
promotion of deployment of that technology in the
marketplace.
1)Makes the following types of projects eligible for ARFVTP
funding:
a) Projects to develop and improve alternative and
renewable low-carbon fuels, as specified.
b) Demonstration and deployment projects that optimize
alternative and renewable fuels for existing and developing
engine technologies.
c) Projects to produce alternative and renewable low-carbon
fuels in California.
d) Projects to decrease the overall impact of an
alternative and renewable fuel's carbon footprint and
increase sustainability.
e) Alternative and renewable fuel infrastructure, fueling
stations, and equipment.
f) Projects to develop and improve light-, medium-, and
heavy-duty vehicle technologies that provide for better
fuel efficiency and lower GHG emissions, alternative fuel
usage and storage, or emissions reductions.
g) Programs and projects that accelerate the
commercialization of vehicles and alternative and renewable
fuels.
h) Programs and projects to retrofit medium- and heavy-duty
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on-road and off-road vehicle fleets with technologies that
create higher fuel efficiencies.
i) Infrastructure projects that promote alternative and
renewable fuel infrastructure development connected with
existing fleets, public transit, and existing
transportation corridors.
j) Workforce training programs related to alternative and
renewable fuel feedstock production and extraction;
renewable fuel production, distribution, transport, and
storage; high-performance and low-emission vehicle
technology and high-tower electronics; automotive computer
systems; mass transit fleet conversion, servicing, and
maintenance; and other related sectors or occupations.
aa) Block grants or incentive programs administered by
public entities or nonprofit entities for projects,
education, and program promotion within the state, and
development of alternative and renewable fuel and vehicle
technology centers.
bb) Life-cycle and multimedia analyses, sustainability and
environmental impact evaluations, and market, financial,
and technology assessments performed by a state agency to
determine the impacts of increasing the use of low-carbon
transportation fuels and technologies and to assist in the
preparation of the investment plan and program
implementation.
cc) A program to provide funding for homeowners who purchase
a plug-in electric vehicle, to offset costs associated with
modifying electrical sources to include a residential
plug-in electric vehicle charging station.
This bill:
1)Adds a criterion to the list on which the CEC must base
project prioritization; specifically, the project's ability to
transition workers to, or promote employment in, the
alternative and renewable fuel and vehicle technology sector.
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2)Recasts the criteria for workforce training programs that are
eligible for funding (see #j above), to add:
a) Training programs related to the development and
deployment of technologies that transform the state's fuel
and vehicle types and assist the state in implementing its
climate change policies
b) Training programs to assist dislocated workers affected
by the state's GHG emissions policies, including those from
fossil fuels
c) Training for low-skilled workers to enter or continue in
a career pathway that leads to middle-skill,
industry-recognized credentials or state-approved
apprenticeship opportunities in occupations related to the
purposes of this bill
Comments
1)Purpose. The author states that as policies to reduce GHG
emissions in California go into effect, the job market will
move toward clean energy and renewable fuels. In order to
remain competitive, the state will need to transition its
workforce to match the growing demand in the green job sector.
Of the $100 million currently available for ARFVTP projects,
only $2.5 million is spent on workforce development. This
bill helps focus those funds to enhance workforce development
in future clean energy development and infrastructure project
proposals.
2)Economic changes call for worker retraining. According to the
analysis by the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economic
Development, and the Economy, the trade, transportation, and
utility sector is the largest employment sector and the second
largest contributor to the state GDP. In 2014, this sector
contributed $351 billion to the California economy, as well as
supporting jobs in other industry sectors including
manufacturing, professional services, and financial
activities. While these industry sectors provide significant
economic advantages, they are primary contributors to GHG
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emissions in California. Meeting the state's GHG
emission-reduction goals will require substantial
restructuring within the economy. Transitioning to a lower
carbon economy carries economic costs; this bill seeks to
address this problem by expanding an existing funding source
to help retrain workers who face potential unemployment when
their middle-wage jobs are eliminated.
3)Recent amendments. The author amended this bill in the Senate
Appropriations Committee to: clarify the bill's provisions by
combining the new criteria for project prioritization into one
criterion; clarify the changes to the workforce development
program component by reincorporating the specified occupations
and sectors; and require the CEC to collaborate with entities
that have expertise in workforce development, including the
California Workforce Development Board, the Employment
Training Panel, the Employment Development Department, and the
Division of Apprenticeship Standards, to implement the
workforce development components of ARFVTP.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
One-time CEC costs of approximately $50,000 for outreach and
information technology costs. (ARFVT Fund)
Ongoing CEC costs of approximately $150,000 annually and 1 PY
of staff to update program regulations, incorporate changes to
the workforce development component, and administer the
revised program. (ARFVT Fund)
SUPPORT: (Verified8/11/16)
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California Labor Federation
California Workforce Association
Cleantech San Diego
Environmental Defense Fund
State Building and Construction Trades Council
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/11/16)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 5/31/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke,
Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,
Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth
Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto,
Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper,
Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim,
Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,
Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte,
O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,
Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting,
Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
Prepared by:Erin Riches / T. & H. / (916) 651-4121
8/15/16 20:10:07
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