HomeBlogNewsWork Group Meeting for Heavy-Duty Projects in the Fiscal Year 2019-20 Funding Plan

Work Group Meeting for Heavy-Duty Projects in the Fiscal Year 2019-20 Funding Plan

  • July 24, 2019
  • Category a: News

On Wednesday, July 17, the California Air Resources Board held a work group meeting to discuss changes to the Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Program (HVIP) and pilot projects and concepts for the Heavy-Duty portion of the Clean Transportation Incentives budget for fiscal year 2019-2020. The purpose of the meeting was to solicit feedback from stakeholders on heavy-duty vehicle and off-road equipment investments. Jason Crow started off the work group by stating CARB is in a financial crisis for the Clean Transportation Incentives program. There is more demand for HVIP than funds available for vouchers. The proposed funding plan for 2019-2020 would be $142 million for HVIP and $40 million for 2-3 key advanced technology demonstration and commercial pilot projects to be funded. CARB proposed the following six concepts for allocation of the $40 million, with focus on the first three:

  1. Possible $15-20 million for a zero emission drayage truck pilot project to be in one or two large trucking fleets (that have at least 50-100 trucks in total)
    • One goal of this type of project would be to access the cost of hydrogen at a larger scale deployment.
  2. Possible $10-20 million for ship at berth bonnets, specifically for oil tankers, to capture a fraction of CO2 from the vessel
  3. Possible $5-15 million for an inducement prize given to a participant in a project that achieves a technological feat
  4. Possible $5-15 million for a zero emission freight facility project to include container handling equipment (CHE) and truck refrigeration units (TRUs)
  5. Possible $10-15 million for zero emission harbor craft, to also include container handling equipment (CHE)
  6. Possible $10-20 million for a fuel cell bus project

CARB is accepting comments on their proposed pilot project concepts as well as other ideas. The CHBC presented verbal comments at the work group advocating for a large, statewide freight facility project to connect existing Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell truck projects around the San Pedro Bay ports with agriculture exports in the Central Valley. The majority of the work group discussion was around the proposed changes to HVIP, focused around limiting applicants to zero emission technologies. More information on the work group can be found here. Comments are on the work group should be submitted to Jason Crow, ARB Mobile Source Control Division Jason.Crow@arb.ca.gov by August 13th. The comments received will be implemented into the 2019-2020 draft funding plan that will be released for a comment period beginning at the end of September and going until the plan goes before the CARB Board meeting for approval in October.