Chapter 5.7. San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District of California Health And Safety Code >> Division 26. >> Part 3. >> Chapter 5.7.
(a) The San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control
District formed by the Counties of Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera,
Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare pursuant to Chapter 3
(commencing with Section 40150), and consisting of the Counties of
Fresno, Kings, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare,
and that portion of the County of Kern that is within the San Joaquin
Valley Air Basin, is a single integrated agency with all staff under
one centralized management structure that is able to implement
programs on a basinwide basis, and has all of the following:
(1) An individual air pollution control officer who is responsible
for the issuance of all permits by the unified district.
(2) A single budget for the unified district with resources
allocated based on the program needs of the San Joaquin Valley Air
Basin.
(3) A uniform fee structure.
(4) Three hearing boards established pursuant to Section 40800.
One hearing board shall serve the northern region, one shall serve
the central region, and one shall serve the southern region.
Identical policies governing the operation of each hearing board
shall be established by the unified district board and shall be
binding upon each hearing board.
(5) A citizen's advisory committee.
(b) Rules and regulations adopted by the San Joaquin Valley
Unified Air Pollution Control District are binding on all counties
within the unified district. The unified district shall enforce all
permits issued by the unified district and all permits issued by the
individual county districts prior to formation of the unified
district. The unified district shall review, revise, adopt, and
implement any air pollution control plans required within the San
Joaquin Valley Air Basin by state and federal law.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the San Joaquin
Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District shall be governed by a
district board composed of 15 voting members, appointed as follows:
(1) Eight members, one of whom shall be appointed by each of the
Counties of Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin,
Stanislaus, and Tulare. The board of supervisors of each of those
counties shall, by majority vote, appoint one of its members to serve
as a member of the district board.
(2) Five city council members appointed by the special city
selection committee created pursuant to Section 40600.5. The special
city selection committee shall not appoint more than one city council
member representing a city located in the same county. Of the five
city council members appointed pursuant to this paragraph, three
shall be from a city having a population of less than 100,000, with
one member selected from the northern region, one from the central
region, and one from the southern region of the district. The other
two city council members appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall
be from a city having a population of 100,000 or more, with each
member selected from different regions of the district.
(3) The terms of office for members appointed pursuant to
paragraph (2) after April 1, 2007, shall be three years.
(4) Two public members appointed by the Governor, with the advice
and consent of the Senate, as follows:
(A) One public member who is a physician, actively practicing
within the district, whose daily practice or research specialty lies
in the health effects of air pollution on vulnerable populations.
(B) One public member who has medical or scientific expertise in
the health effects of air pollution.
(5) The terms of office for the members initially appointed
pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (4) shall be as
follows:
(A) For the member appointed pursuant to subparagraph (A) of
paragraph (4), the term shall be four years.
(B) For the member appointed pursuant to subparagraph (B) of
paragraph (4), the term shall be two years.
(6) After the initial term of appointment, the terms of office for
the members appointed pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of
paragraph (4) shall be four years.
(d) Each member shall be appointed on the basis of his or her
demonstrated interest and proven ability in the field of air
pollution control and their understanding of the needs of the general
public in connection with air pollution problems of the San Joaquin
Valley Air Basin.
(e) Each member shall be appointed on the basis of his or her
ability to attend substantially all meetings of the district board,
to discharge all duties and responsibilities of a member of the
district board on a regular basis, and to participate actively in the
affairs of the district. A member shall not designate an alternate
for any purpose or otherwise be represented by another person in his
or her capacity as a member of the district board.
(f) All members shall be residents of the district.
(g) Any vacancy in the office of a member of the district board
shall be filled promptly by the appointing authority.
(h) As used in this section, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(1) "Central region" means the Counties of Fresno, Kings, and
Madera.
(2) "Northern region" means the Counties of Merced, San Joaquin,
and Stanislaus.
(3) "Southern region" means the Counties of Kern and Tulare.
(a) The special city selection committee is hereby created
to appoint city council members to the district board. The
membership of the special city selection committee shall consist of
one member from each city council in each city located within the
territory of the unified district, selected by a majority of each
city council. The members of the special city selection committee
shall serve without receiving compensation from the unified district,
but a member may be compensated by the city that he or she
represents.
(b) If a member of the special city selection committee is unable
to attend a meeting of the special city selection committee, he or
she shall designate a member of that member's city council to attend
and vote at the meeting in his or her place.
(c) A majority of the total membership of the special city
selection committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of
business. A majority vote of the total membership of the special city
selection committee is required for the special city selection
committee to take action.
(d) The special city selection committee shall appoint from among
its members a chair, one or more vice chairs, and any other officers
that it deems necessary. The chair shall preside over the meetings of
the special city selection committee and the vice chair shall
preside in the chair's absence.
(e) The special city selection committee may adopt rules for the
conduct of its activities. These rules may include, but are not
limited to, the procedures for nominating and appointing city council
members to the district board.
(f) The meetings of the special city selection committee are
subject to the Ralph M. Brown Act (Chapter 9 (commencing with Section
54950) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code).
(g) The unified district's air pollution control officer shall act
as the special city selection committee's permanent secretary and
maintain the records of the actions of the special city selection
committee. The minutes of the special city selection committee shall
record the aye and no votes taken by its members for all motions and
appointments.
(h) At least two weeks before the date of any meeting of the
special city selection committee, the air pollution control officer
shall give notice of the meeting to each city that is located within
the territory of the unified district. The notice shall contain the
time, date, and place of the meeting, along with a brief general
description of the business to be transacted or discussed at the
meeting. The air pollution control officer shall also give notice to
any person who has filed a written request for notice. The air
pollution control officer may give notice in any other manner that he
or she deems necessary or desirable.
The district board may adopt rules and regulations by the
earliest feasible date that do all of the following:
(a) Require the use of best available control technology for new
and modified sources, and the use of best available retrofit control
technology for existing sources.
(b) Promote the use of cleaner burning alternative fuels.
(c) Encourage and facilitate ridesharing for commuter trips into,
out of, and within the district.
(d) Require all businesses described below within the district
that employ at least 100 people to establish a rideshare program:
(1) That are located within an incorporated city with a population
of at least 10,000, as determined by the Demographic Research Unit
of the Department of Finance.
(2) That are located within an incorporated city with a population
of less than 10,000, as determined by the Demographic Research Unit
of the Department of Finance, or that are located within the
unincorporated area of a county, of which more than 50 percent of
their employees work at least 2,040 hours per year.
(a) The district shall expand the office of small business,
established by the district, to include agriculture assistance, in
order to provide administrative and technical services and
information to small businesses, farmers, and the public.
(b) The office shall do all of the following:
(1) Facilitate and encourage compliance with district rules and
regulations by small businesses and farmers.
(2) Assist small businesses and farmers in applying for permits
and variances, and facilitate the participation of small businesses
and farmers in the development of rules and regulations and in other
proceedings of the district.
(3) Provide information on the public health, environmental, and
economic effects of district rules and regulations on small
businesses and farmers in the district.
(4) Make available to small businesses and farmers information
regarding alternative processes, cleaner fuels and solvents, and
low-cost financing for air pollution control equipment.
(a) The district shall establish expedited permit review and
project assistance mechanisms for facilities or projects that are
directly related to research and development, demonstration, or
commercialization of electric and other clean fuel vehicle
technologies.
(b) The mechanisms shall include all of the following:
(1) The issuance of consolidated permits, for both construction
and operation, in order to expedite the permitting process.
(2) The review and processing of permits on a facility or project
basis rather than on an equipment basis, to ensure a single point of
contact for the applicant and to allow entire projects to be reviewed
and evaluated on a single, consolidated schedule.
(3) The establishment of a "fast track" permitting procedure to
approve permits in an average of 30 days from receipt of all
information requested by the district, except for any of the
following facilities:
(A) Facilities that may emit significant amounts of toxic air
contaminants.
(B) Facilities that require public notice.
(C) Facilities that require additional review to meet the
requirements of the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7401 et
seq.) or the California Clean Air Act of 1988 (Chapter 1568 of the
Statutes of 1988).
(4) The development and implementation of postconstruction
enforcement procedures to ensure that new and modified sources are
constructed according to permit requirements.
(5) The establishment of a liaison program to assist facilities
participating in research and development, demonstration, or
commercialization of electric and other clean fuel vehicle
technologies with preparing permit applications, complying with other
district administrative procedures, and identifying and applying for
state, federal, district, or other available funds set aside for
electric and other clean fuel vehicle related projects.
(c) For purposes of this chapter, "clean fuels" are fuels
designated by the state board for use in zero emission or partial
zero emission vehicles and include, but are not limited to,
electricity, hydrogen, liquefied petroleum gas, methanol, and natural
gas.
(a) The district board shall adopt, by regulation, a
schedule of fees to be assessed on areawide or indirect sources of
emissions that are regulated, but for which permits are not issued,
by the district to recover the costs of district programs related to
these sources.
(b) That fee schedule shall be designed to yield a sum not
exceeding the estimated cost of the administration of this chapter
and mitigation of emissions, and for the filing of applications for
variances or to revoke or modify variances. All applicants shall pay
the fees required by the schedule, including, notwithstanding Section
6103 of the Government Code, an applicant that is a publicly owned
utility.
(a) The district board shall adopt a surcharge on the
registration fees applicable to all motor vehicles registered in
those counties within the district, as specified in Section 9250.16
of the Vehicle Code.
(b) Fees generated by the surcharge imposed pursuant to Section
9250.16 of the Vehicle Code shall only be used to reduce emissions
from vehicular sources, including, but not limited to, the following
activities:
(1) The establishment of a clean fuels program.
(2) The adoption and implementation of motor vehicle use reduction
measures.
(c) No more than 2 percent of the funds collected pursuant to the
surcharge shall be used by the district for administrative expenses.
(d) The district board shall adopt accounting procedures to ensure
that revenues from motor vehicle registration fees are not
commingled with other program revenues.
The district board has the authority to monitor emissions
from all stationary agricultural pumps in the district, including,
but not limited to, those designated by the federal Environmental
Protection Agency as "nonroad" engines that are subject to the
requirements of Title II of the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
7521 et seq.).
The district shall install one or more monitors for
monitoring airborne fine particles smaller than 2.5 microns in
diameter (PM 2.5) in primarily low-income and underserved areas in
the western region of the County of Fresno.
(a) The district may develop and adopt by regulation, not
later than January 1, 2008, a program to offset or mitigate the
increased emissions of air contaminants resulting from the operation
of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program within the district. If the
district implements a program under this subdivision, the district
shall provide grants to projects that the district determines will
provide measurable reductions in emissions of air contaminants in the
district, and may include projects that reduce emissions from
stationary or mobile sources within the district. Any emission
reductions achieved pursuant to this program shall be surplus,
quantifiable, permanent, and enforceable and shall not otherwise be
required by law or regulation.
(b) For purposes of this section:
(1) "Joint Strike Fighter Impact Zone" means Kings County.
(2) "Base fiscal year" means the 2003-04 fiscal year.
(3) "State tax revenues" includes revenues derived from the
imposition of taxes under the Sales and Use Tax Law (Part 1
(commencing with Section 6001) of Division 2 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code), the Personal Income Tax Law (Part 10 (commencing with
Section 17001) of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code), and
the Corporation Tax Law (Part 11 (commencing with Section 23001) of
Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code).
(c) (1) The California Research Bureau, in consultation with the
State Board of Equalization and the Franchise Tax Board, shall, no
later than December 31, 2004, calculate the state tax revenues
derived from, or attributable to, the Joint Strike Fighter Impact
Zone during the base fiscal year.
(2) The California Research Bureau, in consultation with the State
Board of Equalization and the Franchise Tax Board, shall, no later
than December 31, 2007, and no later than December 31 of each
following year, calculate the state tax revenues derived from, or
attributable to, the Joint Strike Fighter Impact Zone during the
preceding fiscal year.