Back

Recognize and Appropriate Funds for PM2.5 Program

SYNPOSIS: 

EPA has allocated $483,665 from Section 103 Grant funds to continue the PM2.5 network program during the calendar year 2000. This action is to recognize $483,665 additional funds for the PM2.5 program upon receipt, and appropriate these funds to the FY 1999-00 Budget.

COMMITTEE: 

Administrative, February 11, 2000, Recommended for Approval

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

1. Recognize $483,665 revenue from EPA Section 103 Grant funds for the continuation of the PM2.5 program.
   
   
2. Upon receipt of the grant, appropriate $483,665 from the Undesignated Fund Balance to the Monitoring & Analysis FY 1999-00 Budget, as follows: Salaries and Employee Benefits Major Object, $270,000; and Services and Supplies Major Object, $213,665.
   
   
3. Authorize the Executive Officer to execute a two-year lease-purchase agreement with Ford Credit Company in an amount not to exceed $91,082 ($45,541 per fiscal year), for four (4) CNG vans funded with PM2.5 funds.

Barry R. Wallerstein, D.Env.
Executive Officer

Background

Since the inception of the PM2.5 air monitoring program in 1998, EPA has granted to AQMD, under Section 103 Grant funding, a total of $1,401,716 for the start-up of PM2.5 monitoring at 17 locations. These funds are to fully cover the costs of the basic network and the PM2.5 speciation monitoring network.

The receipt of the current funding is to cover the costs of operation and maintenance of federal reference method samplers deployed by AQMD at 18 air monitoring sites. This amount includes funds for the collection and analysis of all filters collected by AQMD as part of the base PM2.5 monitoring program for the calendar year 2000. Additional funding for the chemical speciation portion of the program is anticipated later this year.

Use of Funding

Under the Section 103 Grant program, funds can only be used for the purpose intended. With previous carry-over funds from last year’s Section 103 Grant, there will be a total of $1,078,096 in the FY 1999-00 Budget for the implementation of the PM2.5 program.

To meet the implementation needs of the PM2.5 program, Monitoring & Analysis will be leasing four (4) CNG vans, one for each of the four technicians recently hired with Section 103 Grand funds. These vehicles will provide the requisite transportation in the servicing of the eighteen (18) PM2.5 air monitoring sites. The two-year lease-purchase agreement with Ford Credit Company will not exceed $91,082 ($45,541 per fiscal year), for four (4) CNG vans.

It should be noted that subsequent to the approval of this item at last month’s Administrative Committee meeting, there has been a procedural change to one element of the funding. Specifically, for the four CNG vehicles, funds were initially allocated to "Rents and Leases of Equipment." Since that time, however, the leasing company advised us that they would not accept an escape clause (in the event of lack of future EPA funding) unless the lease/purchase agreement covered only two years. Therefore, the item "Rents and Leases of Equipment" in the amount of $25,000 was changed to "Principal Repayment," and increased to $31,000 in order to cover the first year leased costs. Other budgeted categories were reduced slightly to balance the funded amount of $483,665.

EPA has accepted this change, and indicated that after the two-year lease/purchase is completed, the AQMD will retain title and ownership of these vehicles.

Proposal

Staff proposes that the Board recognize from EPA and appropriate to the FY 1999-00 Budget, $483,665 for the PM2.5 program, as described below:

Fiscal Impacts

These grant funds are a supplement to the FY 1999-00 Budget, and have no negative impact on the budget. It should be noted, however, for the mandated PM_2.5 program, AQMD has no assurance that EPA will continue to provide sufficient funding in subsequent years, and should sufficient funding not occur, staff will need to consider either reducing the level of the program, or readjusting the existing resources to meet program commitments. In the event EPA funding for PM2.5 program does not continue, the AQMD will not be held liable to continue with the lease-purchase agreement with Ford Credit Company.

Since the receipt and appropriation of funds by the AQMD constitutes a budget supplement within the definition of Health and Safety Code Section 40720(j), public notice of this proposed supplement was published in the Los Angeles Daily Journal, Riverside Press Enterprise, Orange County Register, San Bernardino Sun, and the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin.

/ / /