BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1340|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1340
Author: Kehoe (D)
Amended: 4/22/10
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 6-1, 4/6/10
AYES: Lowenthal, DeSaulnier, Kehoe, Oropeza, Pavley,
Simitian
NOES: Huff
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ashburn, Harman
SENATE ENV. QUALITY COMMITTEE : 5-0, 4/19/10
AYES: Simitian, Corbett, Hancock, Lowenthal, Pavley
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner, Strickland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-1, 5/10/10
AYES: Kehoe, Cox, Alquist, Leno, Price, Wolk, Yee
NOES: Walters
NO VOTE RECORDED: Corbett, Denham, Wyland
SUBJECT : Energy: alternative fuels and vehicle
technologies
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill makes the costs of homeowners
electrical work needed to fuel electric vehicles eligible
for subsides under the California Energy Commissions
Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology
Program.
CONTINUED
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ANALYSIS : AB 118 (N??ez), Chapter 750, Statutes of 2007,
created the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle
Technology Program, which the California Energy Commission
(CEC) administers to provide, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, grants, revolving loans, loan guarantees,
loans, or other appropriate funding measures to public
agencies, vehicle consortia, businesses, consumers,
recreational boaters, and academic institutions to develop
and deploy innovative technologies that transform
California fuel and vehicle types to help attain the
state's climate change policies.
Funding of approximately $120 million annually for this
program comes from additional fees on vehicle
registrations, special identification plates for various
vehicles, and vessel registrations, plus $10 million
annually from the Public Interest Research, Development,
and Demonstration Fund, which is derived from a portion of
electric utility rates.
The CEC, through a competitive process, allocates these
funds to alternative fuel and vehicle technology projects.
To set priorities for the allocation of funds, the CEC must
develop an investment plan in consultation with a wide
array of stakeholders. The CEC adopted its first
investment plan at its April 22, 2009 meeting. It is now
in the process of updating that plan for 2010, which the
CEC plans to adopt in the summer.
Due to some borrowing of AB 118 funds and the supplemental
funds that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
(ARRA), the federal stimulus program) provides, last year
the CEC awarded only about $57 million to alternative fuel
and vehicle technology projects. Among the ARRA- and AB
118-funded projects is the installation of over four
thousand new electric vehicle charging stations.
Existing law makes the following projects eligible for
funding under the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and
Vehicle Technology Program:
1. Alternative and renewable fuel infrastructure, fueling
stations, and equipment.
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2. Projects to develop and improve vehicle technology that
provide for better fuel efficiency and lower greenhouse
gas emissions.
3. Alternative and renewable fuel projects to develop,
improve, demonstrate, deploy, produce, and commercialize
alternative and renewable fuels, plus reduce the overall
carbon footprint of these fuels.
4. Vehicle retrofit projects to create higher fuel
efficiencies.
5. Infrastructure projects that promote alternative and
renewable fuel infrastructure development for existing
fleets, public transit, and existing transportation
corridors.
6. Workforce training programs related to alternative fuels
and vehicle technology.
7. Block grants administered by not-for-profit technology
consortia for specified purposes.
8. Analyses and assessments performed by state agencies to
determine the impacts of increasing the use of
low-carbon transportation fuels and technologies.
This bill adds to the projects that are eligible for
funding under the alternative fuel and vehicle technology
program from the CEC "a program that provides funding for
homeowners who purchase an electric vehicle to offset costs
associated with modifying electrical sources to include a
residential plug-in electric vehicle charging station."
In its recent report, Climate Change Challenges, Vehicle
Emissions and Public Health in California , the Public
Policy Institute of California concludes that increasing
the use of battery-electric vehicles provides the greatest
public health benefit per unit of greenhouse gas emission
reduction" among the possible alternative fueling and
vehicle technologies on the horizon. The report also
notes, however, that electric vehicles involve "high cost
and uncertainty" because they "depend on technological
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breakthroughs and broader market penetration to reduce cost
and meet performance targets."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee analysis:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2010-11 2011-12
2012-13 Fund
Developing grant criteria Up to $140
Special*
* Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology
Fund.
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/12/10)
California Air Pollution Control Officer's Association
Bay Area Quality Management District
Nissan North America
Sierra Club California
Southern California Edison
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office notes that
state policies on greenhouse gas reductions and clean
alternative fuels and technologies currently emphasize the
importance of electric vehicle technology, and that using
ARRA funds the CEC is already actively engaged in upgrading
over 4,000 previous electric vehicle charging stations
throughout the state. Additionally, the U.S. Department of
Energy has awarded contracts nationwide under ARRA that
include funding for in-home and public charging stations.
The author's office also points out that major auto
manufacturers will be introducing new electric vehicles and
plug-in electric vehicles in the fall of 2010 and early
2011, and as consumers seek to purchase these vehicles many
will require electrical improvements at their homes. Costs
for these improvements can range from a few hundred dollars
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to several thousand dollars. Despite the air quality and
energy efficiency benefits of the technology, many
potential electric vehicle purchasers may be dissuaded from
buying an electric-drive vehicle if it additionally
requires hundreds of dollars of initial costs at their
homes. This bill gives clear legislative authority for the
CEC to design an AB 118-funded program that helps to
off-set these costs.
JJA:do 5/12/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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