DIAMOND BAR, CA September 9, 2005 - In a year when the South Coast Air Basin will reclaim the top spot for most polluted air in the country after a six-year hiatus, critical new Clean Transportation Funding is being made available to help reduce emissions in the Southland. Today the Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee (MSRC) announced the release of requests for funding applications in three categories designed to achieve mobile source emissions reductions throughout the four-county jurisdiction of the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD).
A total of $2.5 million has been allocated for a new program to assist in the construction, upgrade and expansion of alternative fuel infrastructure. The program ( the most comprehensive alternative fuel infrastructure program ever offered by the MSRC ) makes funding available to most, if not all, entities interested in pursuing alternative fuel infrastructure, including public and private site owners, fleet owners, infrastructure and fuel providers and school districts. Funds can be used for new facilities, or for upgrading or expanding existing facilities, as well as for modifications to maintenance facilities needed to support alternative fuel vehicles. The funding will be available throughout a nine-month open application process, beginning October 4, 2005 and running through June 30, 2006. Up to 50 percent of project costs can be covered with the public funding from MSRC as well as any funding obtained from SCAQMD.
An additional $3 million is being made available to cities and counties in the region to match, on a dollar-for-dollar basis, local expenditures for the purchase of heavy-duty alternative fuel vehicles and for new, expanded or upgraded supporting infrastructure. Local governments must receive Motor Vehicle Registration Fee Subvention Funds (Assembly Bill 2766 funding) in order to qualify for the Clean Transportation Funding match. Applications will be accepted any time between October 4, 2005 and January 31, 2006, with funds awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
The third program sets aside $1.25 million for fleet owners and operators to retrofit diesel engines with diesel particulate filters or diesel particulate matter plus NOx after-treatment devices. Diesel exhaust is associated with a wide variety of toxic, cancer, and non-cancer health impacts. The Clean Transportation Funding program will cover up to 50 percent of the cost of purchasing and installing a diesel particulate filter verified by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), up to a maximum of $4,500, or a CARB-verified diesel particulate matter plus NOx after-treatment device, up to a maximum of $10,000. The program is open to all operators of qualifying on- and off-road heavy-duty diesel vehicles on the South Coast AQMD, including school bus operators, public and private fleets, and local governments. Funds will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis during a four-month application period running from October 4, 2005 to January 31, 2006. "There has never been a better time to invest in cleaning up air pollution from transportation-related sources," said MSRC Chair Gwenn Norton-Perry, a Chino Hills City Councilmember. "The technologies are proven and reliable, and deliver outstanding emissions benefits. Additionally, the conversion to clean, alternative fuels is also helping fleet operators save money on operating costs, as gasoline and diesel prices have soared." Potential applicants with questions can participate in bidders conferences for each of the funding categories. For more information on the bidders conferences and copies of the RFPs, log on to msrcdev.exemplifi.io. For additional information on the RFPs, call the MSRC at (909) 396-2479.
The third program sets aside $1.25 million for fleet owners and operators to retrofit diesel engines with diesel particulate filters or diesel particulate matter plus NOx after-treatment devices. Diesel exhaust is associated with a wide variety of toxic, cancer, and non-cancer health impacts. The Clean Transportation Funding program will cover up to 50 percent of the cost of purchasing and installing a diesel particulate filter verified by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), up to a maximum of $4,500, or a CARB-verified diesel particulate matter plus NOx after-treatment device, up to a maximum of $10,000. The program is open to all operators of qualifying on- and off-road heavy-duty diesel vehicles on the South Coast AQMD, including school bus operators, public and private fleets, and local governments. Funds will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis during a four-month application period running from October 4, 2005 to January 31, 2006. "There has never been a better time to invest in cleaning up air pollution from transportation-related sources," said MSRC Chair Gwenn Norton-Perry, a Chino Hills City Councilmember. "The technologies are proven and reliable, and deliver outstanding emissions benefits. Additionally, the conversion to clean, alternative fuels is also helping fleet operators save money on operating costs, as gasoline and diesel prices have soared." Potential applicants with questions can participate in bidders conferences for each of the funding categories. For more information on the bidders conferences and copies of the RFPs, log on to msrcdev.exemplifi.io. For additional information on the RFPs, call the MSRC at (909) 396-2479.