BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2170
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
2170 (Frazier)
As Amended August 17, 2016
Majority vote
--------------------------------------------------------------------
|ASSEMBLY: |80-0 |(May 31, 2016) |SENATE: |21-13 |(August 31, |
| | | | | |2016) |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Original Committee Reference: TRANS.
SUMMARY: Requires federal freight revenues apportioned to
California from the Fixing America's Surface Transportation
(FAST) Act be deposited into the Trade Corridor Improvement Fund
(TCIF) and apportioned to state, regional, and local
transportation entities by the California Transportation
Commission (Commission).
The Senate amendments:
1)Requires that federal FAST Act freight funding be deposited
into the TCIF and allocated in accordance with TCIF program
guidelines as well as FAST Act requirements.
2)Provides that the recently released California Sustainable
Freight Action Plan developed pursuant to Executive Order
AB 2170
Page 2
B-32-15 be among the documents consulted by the Commission in
determining eligible projects for funding and deletes
reference to obsolete documents.
3)Requires that projects considered for funding by the
Commission further the state's economic, environmental, and
public health objectives and goals for freight policy, as
articulated in the plans to be consulted by the Commission.
4)Requires the Commission, when selecting projects for inclusion
in the program, to evaluate the total potential costs and
total potential economic and non-economic benefits of the
program to California's economy, environment and public
health.
5)Requires the Commission to adopt any amendments to the 2007
TCIF guidelines on or before April 1, 2017.
6)Requires the Commission, when adopting amended guidelines and
developing and adopting the program, to accept project
nominations from regional and local transportation agencies
and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans),
recognize the key role of the state in project identification,
support integrating statewide goods movement priorities into a
corridor approach, and make a finding that the adoption and
delivery of the program is in the public interest.
7)Made related, clarifying changes.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill:
1)Required that federal FAST Act freight funding be deposited
into the TCIF and allocated in accordance with TCIF program
guidelines as well as FAST Act requirements.
AB 2170
Page 3
2)Updated the list of plans guiding TCIF investments by deleting
references to the outdated port master plan developed by the
California Marine and Intermodal Transportation System
Advisory (CALMITSAC) and the California Air Resources Board's
(ARB's) Sustainable Freight Strategy.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee:
1)Caltrans estimates it would incur annual costs in the range of
$300,000 to $600,000 annually for two to four personnel year
(PY) of staff to administer federal funds and support the
Commission in selecting projects eligible for funding.
2)Ongoing Commission costs of approximately $55,000 (1/2 PY) to
update TCIF guidelines and continue to administer the program.
COMMENTS: The TCIF program was created after voters approved
Proposition 1B in 2006 which authorized the sale of general
obligation bonds to fund transportation projects across the
state to relieve congestion, improve goods movement flow,
enhance the safety and security of the transportation system,
and improve the state's air quality. Of the $19.9 billion
approved by voters, $2 billion of bond proceeds were placed into
the then-newly created TCIF program to fund transportation
corridor improvements. The TCIF program, administered by the
Commission in accordance with the TCIF guidelines, was
designated to fund projects identified in specified
transportation infrastructure planning documents. The TCIF
guidelines ensured that funds were equitably distributed across
the state, that the highest statewide priority projects were
funded, and that funds were leveraged to ensure that the
greatest number of projects were completed. The Commission also
successfully ensured that these projects were completed on
schedule and within budget.
AB 2170
Page 4
Not only did TCIF achieve the goal of getting regions around the
state to work together to complete priority projects, it also
created jobs, reduced congestion, improved the state's air
quality, and helped the state achieve its emissions reduction
goals. Additionally, by requiring that projects receive
matching funds, the TCIF successfully leveraged the program's $2
billion in bond funds to complete $7.2 billion in projects.
While the TCIF program was created to distribute Proposition 1B
funds specifically, in 2014 SB 1228 (Hueso), Chapter 787,
Statutes of 2014, continued the existence of the TCIF and
allowed it to receive funding from sources other than the
general obligation bonds originally authorized under Proposition
1B. In accordance with SB 1228, revenues appropriated by the
Legislature, such as cap and trade revenues, can be transferred
into the TCIF and allocated by the Commission for specified
projects in accordance with TCIF.
In recent years, the federal government has placed a greater
emphasis on planning and funding goods movement projects. For
example, MAP-21 specifically directed the states to create state
freight plans in order to be able to be eligible for future
freight funding. In response, the Legislature passed AB 14
(Lowenthal), Chapter 233, Statutes of 2013, which directed the
development of a state freight plan in accordance with MAP-21
requirements, no later than December, 2014. This plan, the
California Freight Mobility Plan (CFMP), addressed the state's
strategic goals for freight transportation and identified a
total of $138 billion worth of freight system projects across
the state with a total of 94 projects, totaling nearly $31
billion, identified as Tier 1 projects.
On December 4, 2015, the FAST Act was signed into law and
becoming the first federal transportation bill to emphasize
goods movement projects by dedicating up to $6.2 billion
nationally for freight-related projects over five years. Of
this total, California expects to receive an annual average of
$116 million per year over five years for freight projects
AB 2170
Page 5
identified the CFMP. Beyond the requirement that projects be
included in a state freight plan, however, the FAST Act did
specifically outline how the federal freight funding should be
distributed. Recently, the Administration indicated their
intent, through budget trailer bill language, to distribute the
federal freight funds with 50% of the funds allocated to the
state and 50% to the regions through a modified TCIF program.
The language in the budget proposal was dropped because of
AB 2170, which seeks to direct the same funds was already moving
through policy committees.
This bill will direct how the FAST Act funds will be spent and
the amendments taken in the Senate help to prioritize these
expenditures to ensure that key freight projects across the
state are funded to help improve freight mobility, relieve
congestion, and improve air quality.
Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of
this bill.
Analysis Prepared by:
Victoria Alvarez / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093 FN:
0005045