BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                           Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair


          SB 1076 (Emmerson) - California Global Warming Solutions Act of 
          2006: tire inflation regulation.
          
          Amended: March 19, 2012         Policy Vote: EQ 6-0, T&H 9-0
          Urgency: No                     Mandate: No
          Hearing Date: May 24, 2012      Consultant: Marie Liu
          
          SUSPENSE FILE.  AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.

          
          Bill Summary: SB 1076 would require Automotive Service Providers 
          (ASP) to use tire pressure gauges that are accurate within a 
          range of plus or minus two pounds per square inch of pressure 
          and would exempt an ASP from requirements to check tire 
          pressures if the tires are determined to be unsafe, as defined.

          Fiscal Impact: Minor and absorbable costs, if any, to the Air 
          Pollution Control Fund (special fund).

          Background: On September 1, 2010, the Air Resources Board 
          (ARB)'s Underinflated Vehicle Tire regulations were adopted as 
          an early-action measure to achieve greenhouse gas emission 
          reductions as required by AB 32 (Nunez, Pavley) Chapter 
          488/2006. These regulations require an ASP to check and inflate 
          the tires of each passenger car brought in for service within 
          two pounds per square inch of the recommended tire pressure 
          rating, except if the ASP determines that the tire is unsafe. An 
          "unsafe tire" is defined in the regulation as a tire determined 
          unsafe due to tire tread wear, age, tread irregularity, or 
          damage. 

          Proposed Law: This bill would codify the existing regulations 
          but excludes tire age from the definition of an unsafe tire. ARB 
          would also be required to adopt regulations consistent with the 
          National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
          regulations regarding tire age and safety if the NHTSA adopts 
          such regulations.

          Related Legislation: This bill is substantially similar to SB 
          211 (Emmerson) 2011 with the addition of requirement for ARB to 
          adopt regulations regarding tire age and safety. SB 211 was 
          vetoed by the Governor.








          SB 1076 (Emmerson)
          Page 1



          Staff Comments: Because this bill uses a definition of an unsafe 
          tire that is different from existing ARB regulations, should 
          this bill pass, the ARB would need to modify its existing 
          regulations to reflect this change. This modification would take 
          the workload equivalent of one air pollution specialist for one 
          year at $145,000. 

          This bill would also require ARB to develop regulations, if the 
          NHTSA adopts regulations regarding tire age and safety. Such a 
          regulation would likely be more straightforward than other ARB 
          regulations since it would be based federal regulation. Thus, 
          this regulation development is likely to require the workload 
          equivalent of one air pollution specialist for one year at 
          $145,000. According to the ARB, no federal regulations are 
          currently planned on tire age and safety so it is unlikely that 
          the ARB will incur this cost in the near future.

          Proposed Author Amendments: Delete definition of "unsafe tire" 
          and delete requirement for ARB to adopt regulations on tire age 
          and safety, if the National Highway Traffic Safety 
          Administration does so.