BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1076
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 8, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
SB 1076 (Emmerson) - As Amended: June 19, 2012
Policy Committee:
TransportationVote:13-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill requires tire pressure gauges used to check vehicle
tire pressure pursuant to the state's greenhouse gas (GHG)
emission reduction program to be accurate within two pounds.
The bill also specifies the standards by which an automotive
service provider may consider a tire unsafe and therefore not
subject to the requirement to check tire pressure and inflate
the tire. The bill sunsets all of its provisions on January 1,
2018.
FISCAL EFFECT
Negligible state costs, if any.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . The author intends this bill to provide certainty
to automotive service providers concerning their
responsibility to check tire pressure, which currently is
required by ARB regulation. The author has expressed concern
with the effect on automotive service providers of ARB's
ability to alter the regulation in the future.
2)Background . AB 32 (N��ez, Chapter 455, Statutes of 2006)
requires California to limit its emissions of GHGs so that, by
2020, those emissions are equal to what they were in 1990. To
that end, AB 32 requires ARB to quantify the state's 1990 GHG
emissions and to adopt, by January 1, 2009, a scoping plan
that describes the board's plan for achieving the maximum
technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions of GHG
emissions reductions by 2020.
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In keeping with AB 32, ARB adopted numerous regulations to
reduce GHG emissions, including the requirement that
automotive service providers check and inflate each vehicle's
tires to the recommended tire pressure rating, with air or
nitrogen, as appropriate, at the time of performing any
automotive maintenance or repair service. Specifically, the
regulation requires an automotive service provider to:
a) Indicate on the vehicle service invoice that a tire
inflation service was completed and the tire pressure
measurements after the service was performed.
b) Perform the tire pressure service using a tire pressure
gauge with a total permissible error no greater than two
pounds per square inch.
c) Have access to a tire inflation reference that is
current within three years of publication.
d) Keep a copy of the service invoice for a minimum of
three years and make the vehicle service invoice available
to the ARB or its authorized representative upon request.
According to ARB's regulation, an automotive service provider
is not required to check tire pressure or inflate tires if the
customer signs an affidavit declining the service. In
addition, the automotive service provider is not required to
check tire pressure or inflate a tire if the provider
determines the tire to be unsafe, in accordance with standard
industry practice, due to tire tread wear, age, tread
irregularity or damage. Notably, this bill, unlike ARB's
regulation, does not include age as a factor that may be used
by a provider to determine a tire to be unsafe. The author
and the bill's supporters report there is no industry standard
on the relationship between tire age and tire safety and, for
this reason, objects to inclusion of age among the factors a
tire provider may consider.
3)Flexibility Versus Certainty. As stated above, the author
intends this bill to provide certainty to automotive service
providers of their obligation to check tire pressure and
inflate tires. The author and ARB agree codification of the
tire pressure regulation will make changing that regulation
more difficult in the future. The author and the bill's
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supporters see such inflexibility as desirable. However,
codification of regulatory requirements will limit ARB's
ability to modify its regulations in response to changing
circumstances or new information.
4)Related Legislation. This bill is similar to SB 211
(Emmerson, 2011), which was vetoed by the governor, who cited
safety concerns and existence of regulations regarding tire
inflation.
5)Support. This bill is supported by the California Retailers
Association and tire industry organizations.
6)Opposition. This bill is opposed by the Consumer Attorneys of
California, who contend it lessens consumer safety.
Analysis Prepared by : Jay Dickenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081