The Federal Clean Air Act, the California Clean Air Act, and in addition the Lewis-Presley Act, are part of State law and can be found in the California Health and Safety Code beginning with Section 40400. The legislature of the state of California enacted Government Code Section 44243 of the Health and Safety Code in order for the city to receive fee revenues for the purpose of implementing programs to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles.
(Ord. 2362 § 28, 2003)
The South Coast Air Basin has the worst air pollution in the United States. This region exceeds Federal air quality standards over 50 percent of the days annually. Motor vehicles generate approximately 90 percent of the carbon monoxide, 70 percent of the oxides of nitrogen, and 50 percent of the reactive organic gasses found in the regions' air. The intent of the city is to help reduce emissions from mobile sources by participating in a Trip Reduction Plan.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
The city is committed to improving the public health, safety and welfare, including air quality, by implementing a Trip Reduction Plan.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
Recognizing that mobile sources are a major contributor to air pollution in the South Coast Air Basin, the city's goal is an average vehicle ridership of 1.5.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
Recognizing that air quality goals for the region established by State law cannot be met without reducing air pollution from mobile sources, incentives will be offered to employees for using alternative ways to report to work.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
The city supports the South Coast Air Quality Management Plan (SCAQMP) which calls upon cities and counties to reduce emissions from motor vehicles consistent with the requirements of the California Clean Air Act of 1988 by developing and implementing mobile source air pollution reduction programs.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
The city recognizes that such programs place demands upon the city's funds. Those programs should be financed by shifting the responsibility for financing from the General Fund to the motor vehicles creating the demand, to the greatest extent possible; whereas, Section 44223, added to the Health and Safety Code by action of the California Legislature on September 30, 1990, (Chapter 90-1705) authorizes the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) to impose an additional motor vehicle registration fee of $2, commencing on April 1, 1991, increasing to $4, commencing on April 1, 1992, to finance the implementation of transportation measures embodied in the Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) and provision of the California Clean Air Act; whereas, forty cents of every dollar collected under Section 44223 of the Health and Safety Code shall be distributed to cities and counties located in the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) that comply with Section 44243 of the Code, based on the jurisdiction's prorated share of population as defined by the State Department of Finance.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
The city is located within the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and is eligible to receive a portion of the revenues from the additional motor vehicle registration fees contingent upon adoption of the ordinance.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
Whereas, the prorated share of the fee revenues for cities that fail to adopt an ordinance pursuant to Section 44243(b)(2) of the Health and Safety Code shall be distributed instead to the jurisdictions within the district that have adopted an ordinance.
(Ord. 2362 § 29, 2003)
Now, therefore, be it resolved that the city, after careful consideration, hereby finds and declares that the imposition of the additional motor vehicle registration fee by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) to finance mobile source air pollution reduction programs is in the best interest of the city and promotes the general welfare of its residents.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
This ordinance is intended to support the South Coast Air Quality Management District's (SCAQMD) imposition of the vehicle registration fee and to bring the city into compliance with the requirements set forth in Section 44243 of the Health and Safety Code in order to receive fee revenues for the purpose of implementing programs to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)
As applied in this ordinance, the following words and terms shall be defined as follows:
"City"
shall mean the city of Westminster.
"Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Programs"
shall mean any program or project implemented by the city to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles which it determines will be consistent with the California Clean Air Act of 1988 or the plan proposed pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 40460) of Chapter 5.5 of Part 3 of the California Health and Safety Code, or successor provisions.
"Fee Administrator"
shall mean the finance director of the city or his designee.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991; Ord. 2362 § 30, 2003)
A. 
Receipt of fee: The additional vehicle registration fees disbursed by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and remitted to the city, pursuant to this ordinance, shall be accepted by the fee administrator.
B. 
Establishment of Air Quality Improvement Trust Fund: The fee administrator shall establish a separate interest-bearing trust fund account in a financial institution authorized to receive deposits of city funds.
C. 
Transfer of funds: Upon receipt of vehicle registration fees, the fee administrator shall deposit such funds into the separate account established pursuant to Subsection (2) above. All interest earned by the Trust Fund Account shall be credited only to that account.
D. 
Expenditure of Air Quality Trust Fund revenues:
All revenues received from the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and deposited in the Trust Fund Account shall be exclusively expended on mobile source emission reduction programs as defined in Subsection C(2) above. Such revenues shall be expended within one year of the completion of the programs.
E. 
Audits: The city consents to an audit of all programs and projects funded by vehicle registration fee revenues received from the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) pursuant to Section 44223 of the Health and Safety Code, or successor provisions. The audit shall be conducted by an independent auditor selected by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) as provided in Section 44244.1 of the Health and Safety Code, or successor provisions. The city may conduct audits through the public hearing process designated by Section 44244.1(C) of the Health and Safety Code, or successor provisions.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991; Ord. 2362 § 31, 2003)
The provisions of this ordinance shall be construed as necessary to effectively carry out its purposes, which are hereby found and declared to be in furtherance of the public health, safety, welfare, and convenience.
(Ord. 2151 § 1, 1991)
Should any sentence, section, clause, part or provision of this ordinance be declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the same shall not affect the validity of the ordinance as a whole, or any part thereof, other than the part declared to be invalid.
(Ord. 2152 § 1, 1991)