"Industry argues that market signals don't exist for consumers to buy low-greenhouse-gas and fuel-efficient vehicles," said Daniel Sperling, director of the UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies and a member of the Air Resources Board. "This bill fixes the market forces."
Even if California is able to enact limits on tailpipe emissions, other strategies would be needed to meet the state's broader commitment to slash heat-trapping gases to 1990 levels over the next 13 years, officials say. That goal requires radical cuts in transportation emissions, which are responsible for about 40% of California's carbon footprint, according to the air board.
While the board has not formally endorsed the bill, Chairwoman Mary Nichols said, "We've been looking at feebates for a long time. A modest break for consumers to buy cleaner cars is a good deal."
Auto companies, whose profit margins are higher on big cars, vigorously oppose feebates.
"Feebates harm businesses and consumers who need a range of vehicles," said Gloria Bergquist of the Washington, D.C.-based Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, noting that carbon emissions will drop due to a new average fuel economy standard of 35 miles per gallon by 2020.
Brian Maas, a lobbyist for the California Motor Car Dealers Assn., predicted a dip in sales tax revenue from the law. "If it is successful, and more people buy fuel-efficient vehicles, those are smaller, less expensive cars. We're talking about a hit to local and state government in the millions of dollars."
Under the bill, the air board would rank passenger vehicles, beginning with 2011 models, according to the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases they emit. Fees and rebates would be applied on a sliding scale. About a quarter of vehicles would be unaffected, and about 35% would be charged a fee collected by auto dealers and sent to the State Board of Equalization. The fees would pay for rebates to about 40% of purchasers.
The Union of Concerned Scientists, an advocacy group that worked closely with Ruskin, estimates that California's emissions could drop by as much as 57 million metric tons a year by 2030 as a result of the feebates. That would be equivalent to taking about 9 million cars and trucks off the road.
Opponents, including automakers and the United Auto Workers, warn that the fees could have a disproportionate effect on lower-income buyers who may need large family cars and businesses that haul equipment.
