ARB UNVEILS CLIMATE FEE-EXPENDITURE DETAILS; COURT DATE SET

The air board has released documentation outlining how revenues raised by its proposed climate change program fee will be used to pay for new staffing needs and other activities, partially in response to an industry lawsuit seeking the information. The board’s documents attempt to account for how $26 million of an estimated total of $57 million in fee revenue will be used in the first few years of the climate program.

Meanwhile, a lawsuit filed by industry groups attempting to force the board to release information explaining its rationale behind the fee is scheduled to be heard in court June 12.

The Air Resources Board May 29 posted on its website detailed information about how revenue generated from an administrative fee to be adopted later this month will be used to help implement its climate change program under the 2006 law AB 32. The AB 32 administrative fee in question, scheduled for board adoption June 25, would be assessed on fossil fuels combusted in California, the major sources of industrial process GHG emissions, and imported electricity, based on the fuels used for its generation.

Revenue from the fees would be used to pay ARB’s program costs starting in the 2009-10 fiscal year, which is estimated at about $36.2 million per year. Revenues would also be used to repay loans to fund the 2007-2009 AB 32 activities undertaken by ARB.

A coalition of industry groups last month sued ARB for allegedly failing to comply with the state Public Records Act requiring the release of internal documents explaining how the board developed its AB 32 administrative fee (see May 15 issue).

An industry source said the lawsuit is scheduled to be heard June 12 in Sacramento County Superior Court.

ARB staff, apparently in response to the lawsuit, said in a May 29 post on its website: “Staff is aware that some stakeholders would like more detail regarding these program costs, and has therefore developed spreadsheets with more detailed information.” Copies of the ARB spreadsheets are available at InsideEPA.com.

ARB staff will consider all comments before any final decision is made about whether to adopt the proposed fee regulation, according to the ARB website.

The spreadsheets detail ARB staff resources needed for carrying out AB 32 during the 2007-2009 fiscal years, while the ARB website notes that “while this information is the best available as of May 26, it may change if more information becomes available. Information provided for 2008/2009 is particularly subject to change, as fiscal year 2008/2009 is ongoing.”

The spreadsheets show how fee revenue would be used, including: AB 32 staff salaries; the different AB 32 program areas staffers are working in; the number of staffers in each area; and percentage of time staff spent working on AB 32 in each fiscal year.

Industry sources did not respond by press time about whether ARB’s release of the information would satisfy the documents request that is the subject of the lawsuit, or whether the information raises questions about how the funding is used.

But an industry source said the spreadsheets account for $26 million of the $57 million expected to be generated by the fee for the first two years of the AB 32 program.

Questions also remain about why ARB is still planning for a June board vote on the fee proposal without giving stakeholders appropriate time to review the entire fee numbers and to comment, the source said. “Wouldn’t it be a more thorough, open process if all the information was available? If stakeholders are expected to provide deliberative comments it stands to reason they should have access to all the information.”

Source: Inside CalEPA

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