April 1st is best known for April Fools jokes…and while I wish the topic of this editorial was also a joke, unfortunately it is not.
At the beginning of next month, The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is set to impose regulations that threaten to close more than 6,000 gas stations statewide – which will result in increased gas prices, higher unemployment, dirtier air, and will seriously jeopardize $3 billion in gas tax revenues that our State needs for vital services.
Several years ago CARB adopted regulations requiring gas stations to install new equipment to reduce air pollution levels – something many of us strongly support and agree needs to be done.
However, due to bureaucratic delays, high fees, and onerous regulations, only 1 in 5 gas stations statewide have so far been able to comply.
Adding to this challenge is the present worldwide financial crisis which has frozen needed financial capital for small business owners to be able to finance the necessary upgrades – a major barrier that even CARB has acknowledged is a huge problem in the effort for compliance.
The other major hindrance has been the lack of certified and compliant equipment by regulators.
It was not until October 2008 – six months prior to the implementation deadline- that CARB finally certified an alternative system that helped minimize major obstacles that services stations were encountering at the local level.
As a result of the deadline, equipment costs have soared from $17,000 to as much as $85,000 per station for compliance.
Even if every single station in the State could secure financing, obtain the necessary approvals and contract for installation, more than 200 systems would need to be installed each and every day to achieve compliance – an impossible task.
So what does it mean with less than 28 days to go and more than 78% of California’s 11,000 gas stations out of compliance?
It means widespread closure of gas stations throughout the entire State – resulting in thousands of people being laid off and a financial blow to California revenues that we simply cannot afford.
Inner city areas will be especially hard hit. Anticipated problems include: increased gasoline prices as a result of decreased competition, increased crime and blighted areas due to station closures, and most ironically, increased pollution resulting from longer drive times to find compliant gas stations that are still open.
The remedy for this crisis is simple – to allow all service stations a one-year extension for compliance – an action that is not unprecedented and one that ensures that station owners ultimately comply.
We encourage all Californians to call on Governor Schwarzenegger and the California Air Resources Board to grant an extension before it is too late – otherwise the only April Fools victims will be hardworking California motorists and our environment.