BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: ab 1099
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN
AUTHOR: B. Lowenthal
VERSION: 4/6/11
Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: July 5, 2011
SUBJECT:
Commercial vehicles: emissions and registration
DESCRIPTION:
This bill prohibits the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) from
registering large commercial motor vehicles of a 1996 or older
model year, unless an owner registered the vehicle prior to
January 1, 2012 and an owner continuously registers it in
California after that date.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law assigns the Air Resources Board (ARB) with primary
responsibility for the control of air pollution from vehicles.
To fulfill this duty, ARB establishes, through regulations,
requirements for diesel truck and bus fleets that operate in
California to reduce emissions.
In 2008, ARB adopted its Statewide Truck and Bus Rule to require
the retrofit or replacement of diesel truck and bus engines.
The rule then required that fleet owners begin retrofitting
vehicles in January 1, 2011 and replacing engines on affected
vehicles as of January 1, 2013.
In December of last year, ARB amended the 2008 rule to provide
more time for fleets to comply. Under these amendments, fleet
owners must retrofit vehicles to reduce particulate matter (PM)
emissions beginning January 1, 2012, a one-year delay, and must
replace pre-1996 trucks beginning January 1, 2015, a two-year
delay. ARB undertook these amendments due to the economic
slowdown and resulting reduction in air emissions.
Existing law requires that owners of commercial vehicles over
10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) apply to DMV
AB 1099 (B. LOWENTHAL) Page 2
and pay a weight fee, registration fee, and other fees to
register the vehicle. DMV may not register, renew the
registration of, or transfer the registration of such a
commercial vehicle, however, if ARB or another authority has
cited the vehicle owner for that vehicle being out of compliance
with state air pollution laws, until the ARB determines that the
owner has cleared the violation.
This bill directs DMV to refuse to issue an original
registration for any commercial motor vehicle of a 1996 or older
model year with a gross vehicle weight rating of greater than
10,000 pounds and that requires specified commercial driver
licenses to operate.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The author introduced this bill at the request of
the California Trucking Association to prohibit fleet owners
from bringing older, dirty trucks in from out of state that
would otherwise be subject to ARB's Truck and Bus Rule. ARB's
decision to delay the implementation of this rule creates an
economic incentive for bringing older, dirtier trucks into
California that would have been prohibited under the original
2008 Truck and Bus Rule. The sponsor notes that companies
that made multi-million dollar investments in newer, cleaner
trucks would then be at risk of being undercut by those using
the older, dirtier trucks purchased out-of-state for use in
California. Additionally, the emissions reductions gained by
these investments in newer, cleaner trucks would be overcome
by the increased number of pre-1996 trucks that have higher
emissions.
Proponents assert that leaving a state-created economic
incentive to purchase older trucks in place jeopardizes the
goals of the Truck and Bus Rule and undermines the massive
investments of trucking companies who, in good faith, took
early action to comply with the rule. This bill addresses
this loophole and protects the capital investments made and
environmental benefits gained by California trucking
companies. Trucks registered in California by January 1, 2012
may continue to operate in the state provided that they meet
all applicable environmental and safety requirements and
maintain registration.
AB 1099 (B. LOWENTHAL) Page 3
2.Cost of retrofits and replacements . Proponents report that
fleet owners will spend between $12,000 and $150,000 to
retrofit or replace vehicles they own in order to comply with
the rule. Some estimate an economic advantage of as much as
$70,000 per vehicle to operators that continue to operate
pre-1996 model year commercial vehicles under ARB's December
amendments to the rule annually through 2015 when the rule now
mandates the replacement of pre-1996 vehicles.
3.Just two years . By January 1, 2023, the Statewide Truck and
Bus Rule requires that nearly all of commercial diesel
vehicles have 2010 model year engines or the equivalent in
terms of emissions. The rule applies to nearly all privately-
and federally-owned diesel fueled trucks and buses and
privately- and publicly-owned school buses with a gross
vehicle weight rating greater than 14,000 pounds, but are
phased in based on a schedule in the regulation. ARB's 2010
amendments to the rule delayed that schedule by two years for
replacement of pre-1996 model year vehicles, creating for two
years additional demand for those older vehicles.
4.Amendment . It is unclear to which commercial motor vehicles
this bill applies. The bill identifies vehicles that require
a certain commercial license to operate, but identifying the
driver does not necessarily identify the vehicle. The author
or committee may wish to amend the bill so that it identifies
vehicles by weight instead, as follows:
On page 2, delete lines 12-15 inclusive, and insert:
(b) The department shall refuse registration for any
commercial motor vehicle subject to Section 4000.6 that is
of a 1996 or older model year and is either a single
vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than
26,000 pounds or a three-axle vehicle weighing over 6,000
pounds.
5. A bill may not be the best course. Even with this amendment
in comment #4, there will be vehicles that, under this bill,
are exempt from the ARB's Truck and Bus Rule but that DMV
would still not register. This is because the rule grants
exemptions to 13 groups of vehicles that are a small portion
of the total commercial vehicle fleet but are very difficult
to identify during the registration process. These include,
among others, garbage collection vehicles, municipal vehicles,
AB 1099 (B. LOWENTHAL) Page 4
transit buses, emergency vehicles, drayage trucks, and
personal use trucks over 19,500 GVWR. It would be nearly
impossible to define these vehicles sufficiently in statute
for registration purposes to exempt them from the provisions
of this bill. It may be more appropriate, therefore, for the
proponents to seek another amendment to ARB's truck and bus
rule rather than to pursue statutory change through this bill.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 76-0
Appr: 17-0
Trans: 14-0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday, June 29,
2011)
SUPPORT: California Trucking Association (sponsor)
OPPOSED: California Dump Truck Owners Association (CDTOA)