BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 375
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   August 22, 2007

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mark Leno, Chair

                   SB 375 (Steinberg) - As Amended:  July 17, 2007 

          Policy Committee:                              Local  
          GovernmentVote:5-1
                        Transportation                        8-5

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          Yes    Reimbursable:              Yes

           SUMMARY  

          This bill makes numerous changes with respect to regional  
          transportation and land use planning, with the overall goal of  
          reducing greenhouse gas emissions attributable to the  
          transportation sector in California. Key provisions require the  
          larger regional transportation planning agencies to develop more  
          sophisticated transportation planning models, and to use them  
          for the purpose of creating "preferred growth scenarios" in  
          their regional plans that limit greenhouse gas emissions. The  
          bill also provides incentives for local governments to  
          incorporate these preferred growth scenarios into the  
          transportation elements of their general land use plans.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          1)The California Transportation Commission would incur one-time  
            costs of up to $200,000 in 2007-08 for the adoption of  
            modeling guidelines. Potential minor ongoing costs associated  
            with updated guidelines and reviews of regional models.

          2)The California Air Resources Board would require one-half of  
            an additional PY in 2007-08 and 2008-09 (annual cost of  
            $72,500), and a full additional PY thereafter (annual cost of  
            $145,000) for the workload associated with this bill.

          3)The requirement that regional transportation planning agencies  
            develop enhanced travel demand models and preferred growth  
            scenarios may result in a reimbursable state mandate,  
            potentially resulting in state costs exceeding several  
            millions of dollars.  








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           SUMMARY (CONTINUED)
           
          The main provisions of this bill are as follows:

          1)Requires the California Transportation Commission (CTC), in  
            consultation with the Air Resources Board (ARB), to adopt  
            guidelines for travel demand models that are used by the  
            larger regional transportation planning agencies. Requires  
            these guidelines to account for the relationship between land  
            use density and household automobile usage, the impact of  
            enhanced transit service levels on vehicle usage, and the  
            amount of new travel and land development resulting from  
            highway or passenger rail expansion.

          2)Requires the California Air Resources Board (ARB), in  
            consultation with the affected transportation agencies, to set  
            regional greenhouse gas emission reduction targets related to  
            the transportation sector, and establish measures to reduce  
            these emissions.

          3)Requires regional transportation agencies to include in their  
            regional transportation plans a "preferred growth scenario,"  
            consistent with state planning priorities, which includes  
            various land-use elements (such as accommodation of housing  
            needs and development exclusions for open space and  
            farmlands), complies with the federal Clean Air Act, includes  
            an inventory of the region's emission of greenhouse gases from  
            automobiles and light trucks sector, and establishes measures  
            to reduce these emissions to the target levels developed by  
            the ARB. If the preferred growth scenario is unable to achieve  
            the ARB emission targets, the transportation agencies are  
            further required to prepare a supplement report showing how  
            the targets could be achieved through additional  
            transportation investments, land use incentives, or other  
            programs and incentives.

          4)Requires that the preferred growth scenario exclude from  
            development a variety of lands, including publicly owned  
            parks, open space, habitat protection areas, farmland, and  
            floodplains. 

          5)Requires that most transportation projects funded beginning in  
            2009 be consistent with regional transportation plans.  
            Excludes from this requirement projects contained in the 2006  








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            and 2008 federal transportation improvement programs or funded  
            pursuant to Proposition 1B. 

          6)Authorizes certain projects within an eligible local  
            jurisdiction to be exempted from specified California  
            Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requirements. In order to  
            receive the exemption, the local jurisdiction must have  
            amended its general plan so that the land use, circulation,  
            housing, and open space elements are consistent with the  
            region's preferred growth scenario.

           COMMENTS  

           1)Background.   Existing law requires regional transportation  
            planning agencies to develop a transportation plan to provide  
            policy guidance to local and state officials in achieving a  
            coordinated regional transportation system. The regional plans  
            must contain a policy element, an action element, and a  
            financial element. Existing law also requires the CTC to adopt  
            the state transportation improvement program, which includes  
            all of the projects that are to receive state transportation  
            funding. About three-fourths of STIP funding is allocated  
            through regional transportation planning agencies. 

            Travel demand models are planning tools used by regional  
            transportation agencies in developing transportation plans.  
            The models attempt to quantify the impacts of alternative  
            transportation policies on such variables as automobile usage,  
            miles traveled, travel patterns, traffic congestion, and  
            regional development. The models differ from region to region  
            in terms of their size, sophistication, and the types of  
            variables forecasted. This bill is intended to provide a  
            uniform framework for regional agencies follow in improving  
            travel demand modeling statewide.

           2)Rationale  . Sponsors of this bill assert that changes in land  
            use and transportation policy must be made to achieve the  
            greenhouse gas emission reduction goals of AB 32.  The bill is  
            intended to accomplish these objectives by (a) requiring  
            planners to develop and use sophisticated modeling tools to  
            estimate the impacts of growth policies on vehicle usage, and  
            (b) implementing a planning framework, along with fiscal  
            incentives, for achieving targeted emissions reductions.  

           3)Opponents  assert that the bill requires unworkable new  








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            land-use rules that erode local control. They also claim it  
            will (a) create undue complications with respect to housing  
            development, (b) result in costly reimbursable state mandate  
            for development of models and preferred growth scenarios, and  
            (c) potentially compromise future transportation funding. 
           
           
          Analysis Prepared by  :    Brad Williams / APPR. / (916) 319-2081