Important Update
On Friday May 23, the Senate Committee on Appropriations met to dispense with its Suspense File. CSDA's co-sponsored measure, SB 496 (Hurtado) Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation: appeals advisory committee: exemptions, was one of the measures dispensed with. The measure was held in committee, meaning it will not advance.
The bill would have added flexibility for local agencies seeking to comply with the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) Advanced Clean Fleet (ACF) regulation concerning medium and heavy-duty vehicle fleet electrification. The measure would have exempted vehicles used to respond to emergency situations or support those efforts, added greater flexibility to an existing infrastructure delay exemption, and created an exemption Appeals Advisory Committee.
Despite this setback, the measure gained significant traction in the Senate, having received unanimous votes in the Senate Environmental Quality Committee and Senate Transportation Committee.
CSDA thanks the 173 special districts and others that submitted support letters in response to our Call to Action, and the special districts that provided support testimony. Your efforts helped to highlight the need for changes to the regulation.
Background
On October 1, 2023, CARB’s Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation took effect. This mandate, among other things, generally requires a phased transition of medium- and heavy-duty fleets from internal combustion engines (ICEs) to zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) by 2045.
These regulations are having a significant effect on state and local government agencies, by increasing the amount of reporting required annually for all vehicles added to and removed from a state or local government agency’s fleet, the unfunded procurement of new technologies, and the development of the infrastructure needed to service these new technologies, while still meeting the same the performance as current technologies.
SB 496 (Hurtado) will protect communities and provide relief to local agencies by:
- SB 496 establishes an Appeals Advisory Committee by which local agencies may request a review of exemption request denials. This ensures transparency while protecting due process for those seeking further review.
- Additionally, SB 496 would update the emergency vehicle exemption, allowing those vehicles that respond to and support critical operations related to emergencies and disasters, often under austere conditions, to continue to protect our communities.
- Finally, this measure promotes affordability amid rapidly rising cost pressures on essential local services by averting the costly acquisition of ZEVs before it is possible to install the infrastructure required to use them.