BOARD MEETING DATE: December 7, 2007
AGENDA NO. 27

REPORT:

Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee

SYNOPSIS:

Below is a summary of key issues addressed at the MSRC’s November 8, 2007 meeting. The MSRC will not meet in December. The next MSRC meeting is Thursday, January 17, 2008, at 2 p.m. in Conference Room CC8.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Receive and file.

Michael D. Antonovich
AQMD Representative on MSRC

Adoption of 2008 Meeting Schedule

The MSRC adopted its 2008 meeting calendar, which calls for meetings of its Technical Advisory Committee (MSRC-TAC) on the first Thursday and MSRC meetings on the third Thursday of every month. The MSRC-TAC meets at 1:30 p.m. and the MSRC at 2:00 p.m. Meetings are conducted in Room CC8. Attached is the calendar for your information (Attachment 1).

FY 2007-08 Work Program

At its meeting last month the MSRC conceptually approved 11 funding categories totaling $13.7 million to implement its FY 2007-08 Work Program and directed staff to prepare five solicitations and return for further discussion on the remaining elements. At its November 8, 2007 meeting, the MSRC unanimously approved release of the five solicitations, award of two sole-source contracts, and approved moving forward with the remaining four categories. The FY 2007-08 Work Program comprises the following elements and funding targets:

1.	Local Government Match Program	$3,000,000
2.	Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Program	2,500,000
3.	Alternative Fuel School Bus Program	$1,200,000
4.	On-Road 0.2 Gram Engine Incentive Program	$1,500,000
5.	Off-Road 0.2 Gram Engine Incentive Program	$1,000,000
6.	Big Rig FSP Sole-Source with Metro	$1,500,000
7.	Big Rig FSP Sole-Source with OCTA	$1,500,000
8.	On-Road “Showcase” Demonstration Program	$1,000,000
9.	Off-Road “Showcase” Gap Filler Program	$250,000
10.	ITS Category Development Study	$50,000
11.	Rideshare-2-School Incentive Program	$245,000
	Total	$13,745,000

On December 7, 2007, the AQMD Board will consider release of five solicitations to implement the first five elements and the award of the two sole-source contracts to implement the Big Rig FSP Program. The MSRC will consider solicitations or mechanisms to implement the remaining four elements at its January 17, 2008 meeting. The MSRC will seek AQMD Board approval at that time as appropriate.

CARB Update on Recent SIP Actions Related to Use of Motor Vehicle Fees

The CARB representative on the MSRC reported on the recent adoption of the SIP for ozone and PM2.5, including the actions incorporated relative to the use of motor vehicle fees. He reported that identifying sufficient NOx emissions reductions by 2014 to meet the AQMD’s PM2.5 target was the biggest challenge because an additional 74 tons per day of NOx were still needed. Representatives from the AQMD, CARB and SCAG met and reached consensus on a package of actions to achieve the additional tons of NOx. It requires all major stakeholders to do their part, both federal and local governments. The MSRC was provided a listing of the additional measures and their estimated NOx reductions, and it was noted that included in the measures is the action to take credit for the SIP-creditable projects funded by DMV registration fees. The goal is to achieve 4 tons per day of NOx reductions in 2014 from the projects funded by DMV registration fees. The focus of the action is to have local cities and counties make a stronger effort at funding cost-effective SIP-quantifiable projects in order to help meet PM2.5 goals. The action also identified that MSRC projects which achieve surplus emissions reductions in 2014 could also be quantified for SIP credit. It encourages the MSRC to carry on its mission to fund cost-effective projects that achieve surplus emissions reductions, with perhaps a bit more focus on SIP-creditable projects through 2014. For future work programs the CARB looks forward to working further with the MSRC to identify such projects and recognizes the MSRC will act as a guiding light to the cities and counties to show them how to implement such programs.

Additional CNG School Bus Incentives Awarded

Under its FY 2006-07 Work Program, the MSRC allocated $6 million to provide buydown incentives toward CNG school buses, $4 million to private pupil transportation providers and $2 million to public school districts. The public school district incentives are implemented by two vendors, A-Z Bus Sales and BusWest, which were previously qualified under an RFQ process. Initially each vendor was awarded $500,000, with additional funds to be awarded based on performance. Ultimately, A-Z Bus Sales received a total of $1.5 million, which they have expended or committed in full. At its November 8, 2007 meeting, the MSRC awarded A-Z Bus Sales an additional $420,000 to fulfill new purchase orders from Desert Sands Unified School District for two full-sized buses and from Coachella Valley Unified School District for five full-sized buses, each of which would be eligible for a $60,000 per bus incentive. Since all funds had been awarded under the FY 2006-07 CNG School Bus Program, the MSRC used $155,000 from unallocated funds and reallocated $265,000 from the funds originally allocated to the private pupil transportation providers.

Contract Modification Requests

At its November 8, 2007 meetings, the MSRC considered three contract modification requests and took unanimous action, as follows:

1. For Downs Energy, Contract #MS04052, which provides $250,000 for installation of an LNG/LCNG station in Temecula, approval of a six-month no-cost time extension;
2. For County of Los Angeles, Department of Public Works, Contract #ML04044, which provides $80,000 to upgrade a park&ride lot, approval of a seven-month no-cost time extension; and
3. For Westport Fuel Systems Contract #MS06043X, which currently provides $2 million to implement an advanced natural gas engine incentive program, approval of a nine-month term extension and to reallocate $100,000 to conduct a demonstration component under this contract. The program provides funding at a $50,000 per incentive level to install HPDI systems on Cummins ISX engines to convert heavy-duty trucks to natural gas. The $100,000 will be used to purchase one Class 8 truck equipped with an HPDI system and conduct demonstrations with fleet owners interested in purchasing the HPDI system. The vehicle will be leased or sold within the AQMD’s jurisdiction upon completion of the demonstration period.

Contracts Administrator’s Report

The MSRC's AB 2766 Contracts Administrator provides a monthly written status report on all open contracts from FY 2000-01 through the present. The Contracts Administrator’s Report for November 2007 is attached for your information (Attachment 2).

Attachment (EXE 490kb)
(1) Adopted 2008 Meeting Schedule
(2) Contracts Administrator’s Report