SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) The transportation sector accounts for almost 50 percent of the emissions of greenhouse gases in California, with light-duty vehicles making up 70 percent of the sector’s emissions. Additionally, approximately 80 percent of the smog that continues to plague our state comes from the tailpipes of cars.
(b) California continues to have some of the most polluted air in the nation. According to the American Lung Association’s 19th Annual Air Quality Report, seven of the 10 most polluted cities in the nation are in California.
(c) Air pollution creates
health impacts. The American Lung Association estimated that California suffered fifteen billion dollars ($15,000,000,000) in health costs in 2015 due to air pollution, including increases in respiratory illnesses and premature deaths.
(d) Senate Bill No. 375 (Chapter 728 of the Statutes of 2008) requires local governments to meet regional targets for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases, set by the State Air Resources Board, through the coordination of land use and transportation planning.
(e) The Clean Energy and Pollution Reduction Act of 2015 (Chapter 547 of the Statutes of 2015) establishes a state policy of encouraging transportation electrification and requires the State Air Resources Board and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to pursue transportation electrification, including increasing access to zero-emission vehicles for low- and
moderate-income communities, through investments in vehicle charging infrastructure and the removal of regulatory barriers.
(f) In 2012, Governor Edmund G. Brown issued Executive Order B-16-2012 that created a goal of 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025.
(g) In October 2016, the Governor’s Interagency Working Group on Zero-Emission Vehicles released the “2016 ZEV Action Plan,” updating the “2013 ZEV Action Plan,” and those action plans have served as the state’s roadmap to achieve the goal of 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on California’s roads by 2025.
(h) In 2018, Governor Brown issued Executive Order B-48-18 that created an additional target of 5 million zero-emission vehicles by 2030. That order also sets zero-emission vehicle infrastructure goals of 200 hydrogen fueling stations and
250,000 zero-emission vehicle chargers, including 10,000 direct current fast chargers, by 2025.
(i) The State Air Resources Board has established the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project, as a part of the Air Quality Improvement Program (Article 3 (commencing with Section 44274.3) of Chapter 8.9 of Part 5 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code), to subsidize the purchase of zero-emission vehicles by providing rebates for the purchase of new zero-emission vehicles, with a priority and an augmented funding amount for low-income drivers.
(j) Additionally, the State Air Resources Board has established the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program (Article 11 (commencing with Section 44125) of Chapter 5 of Part 5 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code) and the Financing Assistance for Lower-Income Consumers (Financing Assistance Pilot Project) program to subsidize the purchase of, and
provide for low-cost financing for, zero-emission vehicles by low-income drivers. Under the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Plus Up Pilot program, a low-income individual can be eligible for up to nine thousand five hundred dollars ($9,500) toward the purchase of an advanced technology vehicle.
(k) In 2017, the State Air Resources Board approved the first cycle of investment from the Volkswagen Settlement, which plans to invest eight hundred million dollars ($800,000,000) over a 10-year period in zero-emission vehicle charging infrastructure, public outreach on zero-emission vehicles, and investments in projects, such as car-sharing programs, that will increase access to zero-emission vehicles for all consumers in the state, including those in lower-income and disadvantaged communities.
(l) The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission administers the
Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program (Article 2 (commencing with Section 44272) of Chapter 8.9 of Part 5 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code) which invests up to one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) annually in zero-emission vehicle fueling and charging infrastructure throughout the state.
(m) Ride-hailing services, known formally as transportation network companies, are services that offer on-demand rides by connecting drivers using their personal vehicles with passengers hailing a ride through a technology-based platform. As more Californians use ride-hailing services, transportation network companies are well positioned to help state and local governments meet pollution and emission reduction goals, advance sustainable land-use objectives, and help meet goals to increase access to clean mobility options for low- and moderate-income individuals, by increasing use of ride-hailing services that utilize
zero-emission vehicles, promoting and encouraging shared rides, and helping to reduce congestion.
(n) Zero-emission vehicles not only have environmental benefits, but are significantly cheaper to operate than gas combustion vehicles. Transportation network company drivers with high vehicle miles traveled are ideal candidates for zero-emission vehicles because they drive more miles each year than the average driver and will save on fuel costs and maintenance costs. Barriers to the adoption of zero-emission vehicles by transportation network companies include limited driving range and increased fueling time, but improvements in vehicle and fueling technology continue to reduce these barriers.
(o) Investor-owned utilities can help support the increased deployment of zero-emission vehicles.
(p) In furtherance of state,
regional, and local goals to align pollution and greenhouse gas emissions reduction from light-duty vehicles with sustainable land-use planning and to promote access to clean mobility for all, including low- and moderate-income individuals, it is the intent of the Legislature to support transportation decarbonization and the widespread deployment of zero-emission vehicles throughout the state, and particularly by transportation network companies, in a manner that promotes accessible, good quality jobs, sustainable land use, reduced congestion, and increased mobility for all Californians.