California Air Resources Board

Project Statistics

The Project has not yet been implemented.

• $1.5 million allocated
• All funds expected to benefit priority populations
• This program does not have quantified emissions benefit reductions

Socioeconomic Benefits

In a continued effort to provide transparency and commitment to data, CARB is taking measures to improve data collection for the evaluation, analysis, and reporting of socioeconomic benefits for program participants. This includes an updated survey to provide for more streamlined data collection, analysis, and identification of benefits or areas for improvement. These surveys are self-reported by participants on improved access to employment and goods and services, reliability, and participant testimonials. The table below demonstrates relationships and metrics that these surveys will capture and quantify.

Participation Demographics

The Project has not yet been implemented. Demographics will be displayed at a later date.

Project Statistics

Zero-emission school bus projects:

• 116 school buses and charging stations ordered.
• 91 on the road transporting students as of July 2023.

Hybrid or Internal Combustion Engine school bus projects:

• 78 school buses ordered.
• 72 on the road transporting students as of July 2023.

In February 2017, NCUAQMD released a solicitation for school districts to apply for grant funding. The solicitation closed on March 30, 2017, and 422 old school bus applications were received requesting $127 million in funding.

A new solicitation was held in June 2018 receiving nearly 600 old school bus applications, with requested funds totaling approximately $185 million.

External Press/Outreach

• State program helps rural school districts replace aging buses (pressdemocrat.com)
• Calaveras Unified School District video announcement on Youtube

Project Goals

This project encourages the turnover of the California school bus fleet to lower carbon transportation choices. Older diesel school buses are more polluting with higher deterioration of the engines and particulate matter filters due to aging, exposing children, a sensitive population group, to more emissions. Turning over the oldest school buses also has the added benefits of supporting California’s air quality, climate change, and petroleum reduction goals. Rural and low-income communities actively participate in the acceleration for the introduction and deployment of zero-emission technologies through the Rural School Bus Pilot Project.

Guiding Legislation/Policy Drivers

This project is driven by three main goals: to reduce children’s exposure to harmful pollutants, to speed adoption of zero-emission technologies, and to fulfill recommendations set forth in CARB’s SB 350 Barriers Report and Final Guidance Document.

CARB aims to reduce children's exposure to harmful pollutants through regulatory requirements and incentive funding for new, cleaner school buses. The Children's Health Study, initiated in 1992, confirmed that exposure to high concentrations of particulate matter (PM) reduces lung development, has immediate adverse health effects, and with continued exposure, has lasting adverse health effects later in life. The Children's School Bus Exposure Study, conducted in 2003, further demonstrated that the school bus's own exhaust greatly increases children’s exposure, and the oldest school buses have the highest rates of in-vehicle exposure. CARB is committed to prioritizing the most sensitive population groups and aims to reduce health risks through regulatory action and incentive programs for new clean technology.

CARB has taken several actions to reduce children’s exposure to vehicle-related pollutants during their school bus trips. Under the Truck and Bus Regulation, all school buses are required to have a particulate matter exhaust filter; either original manufacturer equipment or retrofit, or they must operate less than one thousand miles per calendar year. School buses of any fuel type are restricted from school bus idling at or near public or private schools, drivers are required to turn off engines immediately upon arrival at a school, and restart no more than thirty seconds before departure. Finally, school bus fleets must regularly test for excessive smoke.

Along with regulatory requirements, financial incentives are a major part of CARB’s efforts to ensure clean school buses are operating at our schools and in our neighborhoods. CARB has been working to provide financial incentives for school districts to replace older diesel-fueled school buses for nearly twenty years, starting with the Lower-Emission School Bus Program in 2001, with the goal of reducing children’s exposure to harmful diesel exhaust.

Additionally, funding that supports some or all of the cost of a new, clean technology vehicle, incentives help to drive the development of newer and cleaner technologies by speeding up their adoption by school bus fleet owners.

And, this project implements the recommendation from the SB 350 Final Guidance Document to secure commitments from school bus fleet owners to purchase zero-emission and near-zero emission school buses.

Project Funding/Allocations/History

Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds:

• FY 2016-17 $15,000,000
• FY 2017-18 $25,000,000
• FY 2018-19 $18,550,000
• FY 2019-20 $  3,000,000

The U.S. EPA’s Diesel Emission Reduction Act State grants provided an additional $1,759,787 of Federal funds towards the replacement of 20 old diesel school buses, co-funded with Rural School Bus Pilot Project funds.

Recent Project/Policy Changes

This pilot project was included in the FY 2015-16 Funding Plan with a $5 million allocation with the anticipation that additional funds would be allocated in future years. However, CARB was not able to fund this pilot project because of the smaller than anticipated FY 2015-16 Low Carbon Transportation budget appropriation.

For FY 2016-17, CARB allocated $10 million for this project. The overwhelming response during the project’s application period for the FY 2016-17 funding cycle demonstrated a strong interest by California school districts to participate in the project and utilize zero-emission school buses. In January 2018, CARB redirected an additional $5 million to the FY 2016-17 grant with NCUAQMD.

$10 million was allocated to continue this project for FY 2017-18. No changes to project criteria were proposed. A new solicitation was held in June 2018 receiving nearly 600 old school bus applications, with requested funds totaling approximately $185 million. CARB reallocated $15 million of FY 2017-18 reserve funding for a total of $25 million to meet the strong demand for cleaner school buses.

In development of the FY 2018-19 Funding Plan, $15 million was allocated to continue to fund projects from the 2018 solicitation and ranked list, with no changes to project criteria.

The FY 2019-20 Funding Plan proposed allocating $4.45 million that could fund approximately 13 additional new school buses. Due to reductions directed by the Department of Financing per the Budget Act of 2019 associated with lower fourth quarter Cap-and-Trade auction proceeds, resulted in a reduction to project funding allocation. Ultimately, NCUAQMD was awarded $3 million in a grant agreement to select from the 2018 solicitation pool of old school bus applications. Staff proposed two changes to the program, starting with FY 2019-20 funds. The first change required dismantling of all old school buses replaced by this program. The second change required checking the old school buses’ compliance status with the Truck and Bus Regulation as part of the award amount determination. School buses are regulated under 13 CCR 2025(k), the school-bus specific section of the Truck and Bus Regulation which requires that any diesel school bus over 14,000 lbs. gross vehicle weight rating, either have a diesel particulate filter (either original from the factory or as an add-on retrofit), or operate less than 1,000 miles per calendar year. School buses (individually, not as a fleet) that do not meet this requirement receive a lower funding amount. This change ensured that those school districts that had not complied with the regulations are not prioritized over fleets that are in compliance.

After several years of successful implementation, in FY 2021-22 the Rural School Bus Pilot Project transitioned from a pilot to a full-scale project. The FY 2021-22 State Budget included funding for a multi-year commitment to replacement of older, internal combustion engine school buses with zero-emission school buses. CARB received a total appropriation of $265 million with $130 million available for the first year of the incentive program. The Public School Bus Set-Aside funding was implemented through the Clean Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP). Some Rural School Bus Pilot Project requirements migrated to the HVIP set-aside funding, including prioritization of rural areas and scrappage of an older school bus. 

Principal Investigator/Authors: Charisma Acey, Margaretta Lin                 

Contractors: University of California, Berkeley

Sub-contractors: Just Cities and West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project

Contract number: 21RD009

Project Status: Active

Relevant CARB programs: Sustainable Communities & Climate Protection Program, Research Planning

Topic areas: Sustainable Communities, Research & Sustainable Communities, Sustainable Community Strategies (SCS), Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) Reduction & Climate Goals, Land Use & Transportation Research

Research Summary:

This project will examine public investment policies and systemic precedents that contribute to the inequitable distribution of resources and resulting disparities across California communities. The project will identify opportunities and potential resources to address these inequities in public infrastructure investment policies and practices in the housing, land use, and transportation sectors. The project findings and resulting report, will identify and prioritize equitable policies that also contribute to reductions in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and preserve, protect, and allow to produce more affordable housing across the state. In addition to offering opportunities to identify how existing and new public investments can be utilized to yield economic, environmental, and social returns to support healthy and more sustainable community development.

The project will develop an online policy mapping tool with multiple resources to support local decision-makers and advocates in preventing current and future harm for people of color and other vulnerable populations as well as reduction in VMT and GHG emissions. The mapping tool will share a research action model to help users identify local conditions and impact (environmental, health, housing, transportation) to understand their connection to inequitable policies and practices in their selected regions. In addition, the tool will include six unique case studies cataloguing history of policies and impacts (drivers of pollution and inequity), existing solutions, and visionary solutions proposed by communities. Moreover, the mapping tool will feature a database of equitable and inequitable investment policies, practices, and strategies across California that have prevented or created harm in distinct geographies. All tools will be developed through a transformative planning process alongside an Environmental Justice Advisory Council.

Keywords: sustainable community strategies (SCS); transportation and land use; equitable climate policy; evaluation methods

Project Goals

The Financing Assistance Program is one of CARB's suite of equity projects that provides financial resources to help lower-income Californians purchase advanced clean vehicles. The project offers vehicle price buy-downs (grants) at the point of sale, guarantees fair financing through lower-interest loans, and provides home charger incentives or portable chargers and prepaid charge cards where there are home charger installation barriers.

Guiding Legislation/Policy Drivers

Senate Bill (SB) 1275 directs CARB to establish financing assistance projects for lower-income consumers. This project supports the statutory goals of SB 1275 and SB 350 recommendations by prioritizing funds for clean transportation and mobility options. This is accomplished by implementing programs that expand the new and used vehicle ownership programs with point-of sale incentives (price buy-downs) and low-cost loans; increasing awareness of clean transportation and mobility options by educating consumers of clean transportation options and infrastructure investments; and incentivizing charging infrastructure for lower-income residents.

Project Funding/Allocations History

*The $14.5 million remaining from the FY 2021-22 allocation was added to the solicitation for the new statewide Financing Assistance program that will replace the Clean Vehicle Assistance Program and the Driving Clean Assistance Program. Funding allocated in FY 2022-23 will also be used to fund the new statewide Financing Assistance Program for a total of $80.5 million allocated for the future program. A solicitation for a grantee to administer this program was released in February 2023 and the program is expected to launch by the end of 2023.

Funding Breakdown

Recent Project/Policy Changes

• Transitioning from a first-come, first-serve model to a need-based approach where consumers with certain criteria will be prioritized in application processing and assistance.
• Applied purchase price cap of $45,000

Project Info/Reports

 https://cleanvehiclegrants.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/2021-CVAP-Report.pdf

Resolutions are a document the Board uses to vote on a proposed action. After the Board approves a resolution, it will be posted within two weeks after the Board meeting.

Principal Investigator/Author: John Seinfeld

Contractor: California Institute of Technology

Contract number: 22RD015

Relevant CARB programs: California State Implementation Plans

Topic areas: Air Pollution Exposure, State Implementation Plans (SIPs), Particulate Matter (PM), PM2.5, Emissions Data

Research Summary:

Caltech researchers are investigating air quality in the South Coast Air Basin, focusing on understanding the impact of a special type of chemicals called volatile chemical products. They are using field measurements, lab experiments, and computer models to analyze data collected during a 2021 research campaign. By identifying and studying these chemicals, they aim to grasp their effects on air pollution and contribute to cleaner air in California.

Keywords: PM2.5, secondary organic aerosols, volatile chemical products, air quality, emission sources, state implementation plans, source apportionment, air quality trend

Sustainable Transportation Equity Project (STEP) Implementation Grant

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) | Our Community, Our Shuttle: Bayview-Hunters Point Equitable Mobility 

June 2022 – March 2026

Project Details

Our Community, Our Shuttle includes a zero-emission, on-demand, and dynamic shuttle service in the Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood. SFMTA will augment this new shuttle service, working with partners to: install a series of pedestrian and transit safety and accessibility improvements identified through the Bayview Community-based Transportation Plan, recruit and train shuttle drivers from within the community in coordination with the CityDrive workforce program, and run a transportation resource center to answer transportation-related questions and connect residents with transportation services and subsidies. All project elements will include extensive outreach and public engagement, including oversight from a Community Congress.

Funding Details

Grant Amount: $10,569,100

Resource Contributions: $3,477,200

Project Total: $14,046,300

By the Numbers

Services, Vehicles & Equipment Funded

• 6 zero-emission shuttles
• About 50 community engagement events planned
• 5.6 miles of bike lane/sidewalks
• Up to 9 pedestrian bulb-out projects
• 2 quick-build active transportation projects
• Shuttle driver trainings completed for 20-30 participants annually
• 0.6 full-time equivalent Transportation Liaison at the Transportation Resource Center
• 6 Transportation Resource Center Youth Champions supporting the Transportation Resource Center
• 10 Community Congress meetings, convening 15 community delegates

Estimated Quantifiable Benefits

• GHG emission reductions: 473 MTCO2e
• NO_x reductions: 143 lbs
• PM_2.5 reductions: 31 lbs
• ROG reductions: 36 lbs
• Passenger VMT reductions: 1,759,709 miles
• Travel cost savings: $800,668
• Transportation fossil fuel reductions:​ 35,450 gallons
• Direct Jobs: 127
• Indirect Jobs: 24
• Induced Jobs: 40

Community Details

The project focuses on the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco. Bayview-Hunters Point is a resilient and culturally rich community in the southeast of San Francisco with a long history of successful environmental justice advocacy. One of the historical centers of the City’s African American community, Bayview is now a majority Asian, African American, and Hispanic/Latinx community with a high percentage of limited English speakers. Almost half of residents live below 200% of the federal poverty level, with a high concentration of very low-income households in redeveloped public housing, or HOPESF sites, that are in geographically isolated areas and have limited access to the city’s Muni transportation system. 21% of residents do not own a car, with the highest concentrations of car-free households in HOPESF housing. 3.4 miles of streets in the STEP Community are designated on the City's High Injury Network; almost all of these high-injury streets are located on major transit corridors with critical community destinations or in close proximity to HOPESF affordable housing sites.

Demographics of Community Served by Project

36% Asian, 26% Black or African American, 24% Hispanic/Latino, 9% White, Other 8%
Median Household Income: $56,724

Community Benefits

This project intends to co-create services that directly address mobility gaps for Bayview-Hunters Point residents, paving the way for an equitable transportation network. The project will take a people-first approach that is restorative and embedded within community context and culture, intended to:

• Increase mobility and choice for those most vulnerable to transportation challenges
• Generate holistic environmental and socio-economic benefits through the provision of sustainable and accessible zero-emissions transportation alternatives, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and greater access to critical community-serving destinations
• Seek to repair harm, incorporate restorative measures, and utilize lessons from the past to design a better future
• Deliver culturally relevant solutions that are embedded within community context 
• Center community decision-making and ownership of data
• Ensure investment and accountability from local leadership that parallels community contributions

Outreach & Engagement Strategies

• Surveys
• Pop-up events
• Focus groups
• Project demonstrations
• Community meetings
• Work groups
• Flyers and brochures 

Target Populations

• Youth
• Seniors
• Residents with a disability
• Residents with limited English proficiency
• Residents in affordable housing

Partnership Structure

Grantee

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) is a department of the City and County of San Francisco responsible for the management of all ground transportation in the city. The SFMTA has oversight over the Municipal Railway (Muni) public transit, as well as bicycling, paratransit, parking, traffic, walking, and taxis, creating transportation options that are constant, practical and everywhere and connecting people with their community to enhance the economy, environment and quality of life.

Subgrantees 

• A. Philip Randolph Institute San Francisco
• Young Community Developers
• Community Youth Center
• Bayview Hunters Point Community Advocates
• Mission Neighborhood Centers
• Hunters Point Family
• Amplify Impact
• Bay Area Community Resources
• Office of Economic and Workforce Development
• San Francisco Arts & Cultural District

Community Partners

• Rafiki Coalition
• Bayview Hunters Point YMCA
• BMAGIC
• Hunters Point Shipyard Citizen Advisory Committee
• Wu Yee Children's Services
• Southeast Community Facility Commission
• San Francisco Recreation and Parks
• Economic Development on Third
• Social & Environmental Justice Committee SEIU 1021
• Bayview Hunter's Point Citizen Advisory Committee

Contact

Robert Lim | (415) 646-2403 | SFMTA

El Grupo de Trabajo de Equidad de Vehículos de Cero Emisiones (ZEV) (Grupo de Trabajo) reúne a líderes en el transporte de cero emisiones, como defensores de la justicia ambiental, fabricantes de automóviles, el gobierno estatal y otras organizaciones clave para desarrollar estrategias para expandir el acceso de las comunidades a ZEV y movilidad de cero emisiones.

Antecedentes

El Grupo de Trabajo de Equidad ZEV se está formando en respuesta a la dirección de los miembros de la Junta de Recursos del Aire de California (CARB por sus siglas en ingles) a través del lenguaje en la Resolución 22-12 de las Regulaciones de Advanced Clean Cars II para "ampliar el acceso de las comunidades desfavorecidas y de bajos ingresos". a los ZEV y la movilidad de cero emisiones”.

En mayo de 2023, se formó el Grupo de trabajo para cumplir con este objetivo. El objetivo principal del grupo de trabajo es acelerar el despliegue de ZEV e infraestructura de carga en comunidades desfavorecidas y de bajos ingresos en todo el estado. Planeamos lograr esto mediante la formación de asociaciones que conduzcan a proyectos tangibles en el terreno y, en última instancia, aumenten el acceso a los ZEV y la movilidad de cero emisiones.

Grupos de trabajo

Con base en la encuesta realizada antes de la reunión del Grupo de Trabajo del 30 de mayo y las discusiones durante la reunión, se identificaron cuatro categorías para agrupar los proyectos. Cada categoría tendrá su propio grupo de trabajo donde los miembros se reunirán para discutir ideas de proyectos y determinar las mejores estrategias para lograr un impacto significativo. Los grupos de trabajo son:

• Proyectos e Incentivos de Movilidad Limpia
• Infraestructura
• Divulgación y Educación
• Desarrollo de la Fuerza Laboral

Reuniones

Reuniones del Grupo de Trabajo de Equidad de ZEV

Las reuniones del Grupo de Trabajo de Equidad de ZEV se reunirán varias veces al año y reunirán a representantes de varios sectores involucrados en vehículos de cero emisiones y movilidad. Los objetivos principales de estas reuniones son recibir actualizaciones de los grupos de trabajo, idear estrategias para superar las barreras encontradas y compartir información colectivamente sobre iniciativas y proyectos estatales.

Reuniones de Grupos de Trabajo

Los grupos de trabajo se reunirán mensualmente, desarrollando proyectos relacionados con el tema del grupo de trabajo. Los grupos de trabajo informarán al Grupo de Trabajo más grande con breves actualizaciones en cada reunión del Grupo de Trabajo de Equidad.

Recursos adicionales

• Resolución 22-12 Idioma
• Borradores de Acuerdos de Reunión
• Borrador de Principios Guia

Únase al Grupo de Trabajo o a un grupo de trabajo

Si está interesado en tomar medidas para lograr resultados tangibles, lo animamos a que se unan al Grupo de Trabajo y/oa uno de los sub-grupos de trabajo. Puede proponer un nuevo proyecto o contribuir a propuestas existentes que se alineen con nuestro objetivo general. Para obtener más información sobre los grupo de trabajo o convertirse en miembro, contáctenos en ZEVEquity@arb.ca.gov.