SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Diane Dixon (R-Newport Beach) provided the following statement on the Transportation Committee’s defeat of her Assembly Bill 3153 and the dismissal of Assembly Bill 2626 without a hearing:
“AB 3153 would have provided the Balboa Island Ferry 15 more years to comply with the California Air Resources Board’s electrification regulations. Currently, two of their ferry boats must meet a deadline of December 2026, and one must meet a deadline of December 2025. The Ferry is a small business that is a critical resource for Orange County; now it faces an estimated $13 million cost to convert its fleet from diesel fuel to zero-emissions power. AB 3153 would have simply offered more time to find funding and new-to-the world technology to comply. It is but one example of California regulating businesses out of business.
“Assembly Bill 2626 similarly would have provided a 10-year extension for local government agencies throughout the state to comply with the Advanced Clean Fleets regulation set by CARB. Many local governments have been sending SOS signals at the fast approaching deadline, as well as sharing concerns about their ability even to meet the mandate. The Advanced Clean Fleet regulation threatens the very financial wellbeing of their communities. Unfortunately, AB 2626 was never set for a hearing.
These bills are both common sense extensions for private and public entities to meet expensive and potentially impossible state mandates. The zero emission engine technologies and marketplace availability for ferries and vehicle fleets are not readily available. The California Air Resources Board, the state’s powerful regulatory agency, makes decisions with limited input from the Legislature. I look forward to working on the issue further and plan to come back next year and try again to help save business and cities in California from onerous regulations that are killing budgets.”