Vehicular air pollution: vehicle retirement.

Existing law creates an enhanced fleet modernization program for the retirement of high polluting vehicles to be administered by the Bureau of Automotive Repair in the Department of Consumer Affairs pursuant to guidelines adopted by the State Air Resources Board. Existing law requires the department to pay a person who retires his or her vehicle $1,500 for a low-income motor vehicle owner, as defined, and $1,000 for all other motor vehicle owners, and authorizes additional payments above these amounts based on consideration of specified criteria. Under existing law, the Bureau of Automotive Repair establishes the Consumer Assistance Program to provide incentives for low-income motor vehicle owners to retire a qualified vehicle. This bill would require the guidelines adopted by the state board to additionally include specific goals for retirement and replacement of passenger vehicles and light- and medium-duty trucks that are high polluters. The bill would require the state board and the bureau to cooperate in the issuance of a specified number of replacement vouchers through the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program for specified fiscal years and a specified number of retirement vouchers through the Consumer Assistance Program and the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Program for specified fiscal years. The bill would state the intent of the Legislature regarding the funding of these activities. The bill would require the state board to study and consider specified elements. The bill would require the state board and the bureau, on or before September 1, 2016, to make publicly available, on their respective Internet Web sites, a report regarding whether the goals for the numbers of vehicle retirements and replacements have been met and, if not, the manner in which the state board and the bureau plan to revise the program to increase the numbers of vehicle retirements and replacements.