BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2658
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 7, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 2658 (Bocanegra) - As Amended: April 21, 2014
Policy Committee: Natural
ResourcesVote:5-1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill extends a sunset date relating to the use of
rubberized asphalt concrete (RAC) and requires CalRecycle to
prioritize projects in disadvantaged communities when awarding
specified grants. Specifically, this bill:
1)Extends the requirement that 50% of asphalt paving materials
used by Caltrans be RAC from January 1, 2015 to January 1,
2020.
2)Clarifies that parklets and greenways are eligible for grants
awarded by CalRecycle for public works projects that use
tire-derived products (TDP).
3)Requires CalRecycle, when awarding grants for parklets and
greenways that use TDP, to give priority to give priority to
projects located in disadvantaged communities.
4)Defines disadvantaged community as a community with an annual
median household income that is less than 80% of the statewide
median household income.
5)Defines greenway as a travel corridor for pedestrians,
bicycles, nonmotorized vehicle transportation, recreation, or
a combination thereof, located along natural landscape
features, such as an urban watercourse.
6)Defines parklet as a small urban park that provides amenities
including, but not limited to, seating, tables, bike racks,
and landscaping.
AB 2658
Page 2
FISCAL EFFECT
1)Negligible, if any costs to Caltrans.
2)Potential grant funding shifts in the TDP due to prioritizing
projects in disadvantaged communities and expanding funding
authorization.
3)No additional costs for CalRecyle to administer the TDP.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale. AB 338 (Levine), Chapter 709, Statutes of 2005
established the requirement that Caltrans use a minimum amount
of recycled tires in paving projects, including the
requirement that 50% of asphalt containing crumb rubber be
RAC. This bill extends this requirement for an additional
five years, until 2020.
When AB 338 was enacted, it was expected that there would be
an American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard
specification for other types of asphalt containing crumb
rubber before the sunset date of 2015. However, ASTM has not
yet developed additional standards.
The TDP grant program provides funding for recycled-content
products that contain waste tires generated in California. AB
2658 will ensure that parklets and greenways receive due
consideration for TDP grants, and will ensure that preference
is given to projects in disadvantaged communities, which are
often "park poor," offering little relief from the urban
environment.
2)Background. RAC is a road paving material made by blending
ground-up recycled tires with asphalt to produce a binder,
which is then mixed with conventional aggregate materals.
While there are a number of recycling technologies for waste
tires, RAC continues to be among the highest and best uses.
RAC has a number of benefits, both environmental and economic.
RAC does not require as thick an application as conventional
asphalt and has a longer life-span due to its resistance to
cutting and cracking. Some studies suggest that RAC lasts up
to 50% longer. RAC also provides significant noise reduction
over conventional asphalt and concrete roads. Moreover, RAC
uses a lot of tires. A two-inch thick resurfacing project
AB 2658
Page 3
uses about 2,000 waste tires per lane mile.
A person who purchases a new tire in California is required to
pay a tire fee of $1.75 for each new tire purchased in the
state. One dollar of the fee is deposited into the Tire
Recycling Fund for oversight, enforcement, and market
development grants relating to waste tire management and
recycling. The remaining $0.75 is deposited into the Air
Pollution Control Fund for programs and projects that mitigate
or remediate air pollution caused by tires.
Analysis Prepared by : Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081