BILL ANALYSIS Ó
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1275|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1275
Author: De León (D)
Amended: 5/6/14
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 11-0, 4/1/14
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso,
Lara, Liu, Pavley, Roth, Wyland
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 6-1, 4/30/14
AYES: Hill, Gaines, Hancock, Jackson, Leno, Pavley
NOES: Fuller
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-1, 5/23/14
AYES: De León, Gaines, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
NOES: Walters
SUBJECT : Vehicle emissions reductions
SOURCE : Coalition for Clean Air
Communities for a Better Environment
Environment California
Greenlining Institute
Natural Resources Defense Council
DIGEST : This bill requires the state Air Resources Board
(ARB) to expand the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program (EFMP)
to provide for ridesharing and car-sharing vouchers as an
alternative to vehicle replacement vouchers. It also requires
ARB to adopt a funding plan for projects under AQIP, adopt
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
2
specified revisions to AQIP, and establish programs to increase
access to and direct benefits for disadvantaged and low- and
moderate-income communities from electric transportation.
ANALYSIS : AB 118 (Núñez, Chapter 750, Statutes of 2007)
establishes the EFMP, AQIP, and the Alternative and Renewable
Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program (ARFVTP). These programs
are funded through surcharges on vehicle registration fees, a
portion of vessel registration fees, a portion of the Smog
Abatement Fee (paid to register vehicles less than six model
years old and therefore exempt from smog check), and an increase
in the fee for identification plates for various types of
vehicles such as farm trailers and logging vehicles operated on
public roads.
Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program (EFMP)
EFMP provides for the voluntary retirement of passenger vehicles
and light- and medium-duty trucks that are high polluters. A
vehicle need not have failed a smog test to qualify for EFMP,
but it must meet ARB's definition of high-polluting. The
vehicle must be currently registered as operable and must have
been continuously registered for two years prior to the
application, unless the owner can provide specified information
to show the vehicle has been operated in the state during that
period. EFMP has a statewide component and a local component.
Under the statewide component, ARB administers a program, in
consultation with the Bureau of Automotive Repair, to retire
high-polluting vehicles. Under this program, EFMP offers a
$1,500 voucher to low-income vehicle owners (household income at
or below 225% of federal poverty level), or a $1,000 voucher to
all other vehicle owners, to retire a high-polluting vehicle.
EFMP retired approximately 25,000 high-polluting vehicles in
2012-13.
Under the local component, ARB administers a program, authorized
in the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and the
South Coast Air Quality Management District, to replace
high-polluting vehicles. In addition to the retirement vouchers
described above, the local EFMP program offers:
A $2,500 voucher to low-income vehicle owners (household
income at or below 225% of federal poverty level) to replace a
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
3
high-polluting vehicle, by either purchasing a vehicle eight
years old or newer, or using the voucher toward public
transit.
A $2,000 voucher to all other vehicle owners to replace a
high-polluting vehicle by either purchasing a vehicle four
years old or newer, or using the voucher toward public
transit.
EFMP has issued less than two dozen replacement vouchers since
the program's inception in 2010, all in the South Coast Air
Quality Management District.
Air Quality Improvement Program (AQIP)
ARB administers AQIP in consultation with local air districts.
AQIP provides competitive grants to fund projects to improve the
air quality impacts of alternative fuels and vehicles, vessels,
and equipment technologies. AQIP encompasses several programs:
The Clean Vehicle Rebate Program (CVRP), administered by ARB's
contractor, the California Center for Sustainable Energy,
provides rebates of up to $2,500 for purchasing or leasing a
new zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) or plug-in hybrid electric
vehicle.
The Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive
Project (HVIP), administered by ARB and its contractor
CALSTART, provides vouchers to California fleet owners to help
purchase hybrid and zero-emission trucks and buses.
AB 118 Advanced Technology Demonstration Projects,
administered by ARB, provides grants to local air districts
and other public agencies to fund advanced-technology vehicle,
equipment, or emission-control projects that are not yet
commercialized.
The On-Road Heavy-Duty Vehicle Air Quality Loan Program (Truck
Loan Assistance Program), administered by ARB and the
California Pollution Control Financing Authority, provides
loans to fleets to help implement ARB emissions reduction
regulations related to trucks, buses, and heavy-duty
(tractor-trailer) vehicles.
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
4
Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program
(ARFVTP)
ARFVTP, administered by the state Energy Commission, provides
funding for development and deployment of alternative and
renewable fuels and advanced transportation technologies to help
attain the state's climate change goals. Eligible projects
include, for example, development, improvement, and production
of alternative and renewable low-carbon fuels; improvement of
light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicle technologies; and
expansion of infrastructure connected with existing fleets,
public transit, and transportation corridors.
This bill:
1.Requires ARB to expand EFMP to provide for public
transportation and car-sharing vouchers as an alternative to
vehicle replacement vouchers.
2.Establishes the Charge Ahead California Initiative
(Initiative), to be administered by ARB in consultation with
the CEC, local air pollution control districts and air quality
management districts, and public stakeholders.
3.Establishes that the goal of the Initiative is to place in
service at least one million zero-emission and near-zero
emission vehicles by January 1, 2023, to create a
self-sustaining zero-emission and near-zero emission vehicle
industry, and to increase access of those vehicles to
disadvantaged communities and promote environmental benefits
for those communities.
4.Pursuant to this Initiative, this bill requires ARB to adopt a
plan to meet the goals of the Initiative, commencing in
2016-17, that establishes an estimate for total funding
necessary for programs and projects including, but not limited
to, the following:
A. CVRP;
B. HVIP;
C. AB 118 Advanced Technology Demonstration Projects;
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
5
D. ZEV and near-ZEV fueling infrastructure projects
eligible under ARFVTP;
E. Light-duty, medium-duty, and heavy-duty ZEV and near-ZEV
deployment projects eligible under ARFVTP;
F. Medium-duty and heavy-duty ZEV and near-ZEV technology
demonstration projects eligible under ARFVTP;
G. Pre-commercial demonstration projects of advanced
freight and transit technology to move cargo and passengers
in the state; and
H. Programs adopted pursuant to this bill to benefit
disadvantaged communities.
1.Requires the plan be updated at least every three years
through January 1, 2013.
2.Requires ARB to adopt revisions to CVRP criteria and
guidelines, by June 30, 2015, to phase down rebate levels in
multiyear increments, and expand access and eligibility to
low- and moderate-income individual.
3.Requires ARB to adopt revisions to HVIP criteria and
guidelines, by June 30, 2015, to ensure program eligibility
for a truck or bus retrofitted or remanufactured to be a ZEV
or near-ZEV.
4.Requires ARB to establish programs to increase access to, and
direct benefits of, electric transportation for disadvantaged
and low- and moderate-income communities, including, but not
limited to, loan or loss reserve financing, car sharing
programs and charging infrastructure in multiunit dwellings in
disadvantaged communities.
5.Requires the above programs to provide outreach to
disadvantaged and low- and moderate-income communities.
EFMP regulations are a work in progress . SB 459 (Pavley) of
2013 (see "Previous legislation" below) requires ARB, in
consultation with the Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR), to
update EFMP regulations by June 30, 2015. SB 459 requires the
guidelines to include a variety of new policies, including
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
6
allowing for retirement and replacement vouchers of larger
amounts, focusing the program more heavily on lower-income
owners, and streamlining program requirements to facilitate
participation. ARB has been soliciting stakeholder input as it
drafts the revised regulations. In March, ARB issued a white
paper describing the proposed revisions; ARB is scheduled to
vote on the final revised regulations in June.
AQIP also being revamped . AB 8 (Perea, 2013) (see prior
legislation below) requires ARB and the Energy Commission to
apply a benefit-cost score, as specified, when determining
projects that will be awarded funds under ARFVTP and AQIP. In
addition, board members directed ARB staff to develop a
long-term vision for AQIP. ARB staff have been conducting
public workshops and soliciting stakeholder input. ARB will
release draft recommendations to the public in May; ARB will
vote on the recommendations in June. The Energy Commission is
similarly revising the solicitation process under ARFVTP.
Prior Legislation
SB 359 (Corbett, Chapter 415, Statutes of 2013) provides $48
million in additional funding in the current fiscal year to ARB
to support CVRP, HVIP, the Truck Loan Assistance Program, and
EFMP.
SB 459 (Pavley, Chapter 437, Statutes of 2013) requires ARB, in
consultation with BAR, to update the EFMP guidelines as
specified by June 30, 2015.
AB 8 (Perea, Chapter 401, Statutes of 2013) extends until
January 1, 2024, extra fees on vehicle registrations, boat
registrations, and tire sales in order to fund EFMP, AQIP,
ARFVTP, and specified other ARB programs that support the
production, distribution, and sale of alternative fuels and
vehicle technologies, as well as air emissions reduction
efforts. It also suspends until 2024 ARB's authority to require
through regulation any fuel supplier to provide hydrogen fueling
stations and instead allocates up to $220 million of these fee
funds to construct and operate retail hydrogen fueling stations.
AB 8 also extends the authority of local air districts to
impose vehicle registration surcharges in their areas to achieve
air emission reductions from vehicles and off-road engines.
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
7
Comments
According to the author's office, accelerating the deployment of
ZEVs and providing clean transportation choices are essential to
achieving California's healthy air standards and greenhouse gas
reduction targets and to reducing air pollution in the state's
most heavily impacted communities. In addition, the use of
electricity as a transportation fuel can help keep money in the
state, stimulating the economy and insulating family budgets
from gas price spikes, which hit lower-income households
especially hard. The author states that money saved at the pump
by charging up on electricity stays in California, creating 16
times more jobs than money spent on gasoline. Although
California accounts for one-third of the country's electric
vehicle sales, transforming the market to benefit all
Californians will take a sustained, long-term commitment to
better serve the state's most polluted communities.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
ARB indicates it will incur costs of approximately $619,000
and four personnel years in 2014-15, and ongoing costs of
$454,000 and three personnel years ongoing to adopt the
specified funding plan and administer the components of that
plan. (Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund [GGRF])
ARB indicates it will incur ongoing costs of approximately
$165,000 and 1 PY beginning in 2014-15 to develop and
administer each of the following new programs specified in
the bill: a loan-loss credit enhancement program, a car
sharing program in disadvantaged communities, and deployment
of a charging infrastructure program. (GGRF) Actual costs
and staffing needs would depend upon the amount of funding
dedicated to the specified programs.
ARB indicates it will incur annual costs of $344,000 and
two personnel years, beginning in 2016-17, to develop and
implement a certification program for truck and bus hybrid
and zero-emission vehicle retrofits and remanufactures.
(GGRF)
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
8
Unknown ongoing costs to fund additional program
expenditures, likely in the millions to tens of millions
annually. (GGRF)
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/23/14)
Coalition for Clean Air (co-source)
Communities for a Better Environment (co-source)
Environment California (co-source)
Greenlining Institute (co-source)
Natural Resources Defense Council (co-source)
American Lung Association in California
Asian Pacific Environmental Network
Asthma Coalition of Los Angeles County
Baz Allergy, Asthma and Sinus Center (San Joaquin Valley)
Black Business Association
Breathe California
California Electric Transportation Coalition
California Environmental Justice Alliance
California League of Conservation Voters
California Society for Pulmonary Rehabilitation
California Solar Energy Industries Association
California Thoracic Society
CalPIRG
CALSTART
Catholic Charities Diocese of Stockton
Cerebrotech
Environmental Defense Fund
FAME Corporations
Global Green USA
Health Care Without Harm
Los Angeles County Medical Association
Mom Clean Air Force
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Los Angeles
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Sacramento
Physicians for Social Responsibility, San Francisco Bay Area
Regional Asthma Management and Prevention
San Francisco Asthma Task Force
San Francisco Medical Association
Sierra Club California
Solar Energy Industries Association
St. John's Well Child and Family Centers
TransForm
Union of Concerned Scientists
CONTINUED
SB 1275
Page
9
Valley LEAP
Vote Solar
West Angeles Community Development Corporation
OPPOSITION : (Verified 5/23/14)
CalTax
JA:nl 5/23/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****
CONTINUED