BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 400
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Date of Hearing: August 19, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
SB 400
(Lara) - As Amended June 1, 2015
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| |Natural Resources | |6 - 2 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill:
1)Requires the High-Speed Rail Authority (HSRA) to allocate at
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least 25% of the cap-and-trade revenues received by the
authority for mitigation measures and projects to reduce or
offset greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions generated by
construction of the high-speed rail project.
2)Stipulates that priority for the allocation per (1) is for
projects in communities located in areas designated as extreme
nonattainment.
FISCAL EFFECT:
Under current law, 25% of annual cap-and-trade revenues are
allocated to the high-speed rail project. Assuming $2 billion in
total cap-and-trade revenues for 2015-16, $500 million would be
allocated to high-speed rail, of which $125 million would be
allocated for construction-related mitigation pursuant to this
bill. (This allocation would vary based on total cap-and-trade
revenues in any given year.) To the extent this allocation
exceeds the level of funding currently necessary or contemplated
for mitigation (see below), the bill will increase overall
project costs.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. The communities along the high-speed rail corridor
through California's Central Valley suffer from some of the
state's, and the nation's, worst air quality. The author
introduced SB 400 out of concern for such communities, which
are burdened by nearby, heavily congested highway corridors.
He asserts that, while the high-speed rail project will
eventually reduce GHG emissions and air pollution, the project
will be detrimental to the Central Valley in the short-term
due to the environmental impacts from construction.
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2)HSRA Actions. The authority has committed to achieving
zero-net GHG emissions related to construction activities,
material deliveries, and worker travel. For example, the
authority has committed to planting trees to offset the first
phases of construction. Furthermore, HSRA has entered into a
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) whereby HSRA will pay the
District quarterly based on the use and impact of construction
equipment on the project, with the payments to be used for
programs to, for example, replace aging farm and other
high-polluting equipment. This mitigation is intended to
complement requirements that HSRA already imposes on its
construction contractor to use clean construction vehicles.
HSRA expects that it could pay the District approximately $40
million under the terms of the MOU.
3)Concerns. This bill raises several concerns:
a) The high-speed rail project is severely underfunded.
Other than one-time state bond and federal funds, the
cap-and-trade revenues are the only ongoing funding source
for the project, thus diverting a significant portion of
these revenues for mitigation could exacerbate the overall
funding situation.
b) Though SB 400 is intended to offset the environmental
impacts from construction, the bill, by authorizing
expenditures in areas designated as extreme nonattainment
areas, allows funds to be spent in communities outside the
construction zones.
c) The amount of mitigation required may not bear related
to the actual construction-related impacts.
d) At least 25% of total cap-and-trade revenues are already
earmarked to benefit disadvantage communities, including a
10% allocation directly within such communities.
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Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916)
319-2081