BOARD MEETING DATE: February 6, 2009
AGENDA NO. 14

PROPOSAL:

Consider Issuance of Local Government Match Program Announcement and Contract Modification as Part of FY 2008-09 AB 2766 Discretionary Fund Work Program

SYNOPSIS:

At its January 22, 2009 meeting, the MSRC approved the release of a Local Government Match Program Announcement and a contract modification for A-Z Bus Sales providing additional funds for alternative fuel school buses as part of its FY 2008-09 AB 2766 Discretionary Fund Work Program. The MSRC seeks AQMD Board approval of the Program Announcement release and contract modification at this time.

COMMITTEE:

Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review, January 22, 2009

RECOMMENDED ACTIONS:

1. Approve the issuance of a Program Announcement, with a targeted funding level of $3,000,000, for the Local Government Match Program, under the FY 2008-09 Work Program, as described in this letter;
2. Approve a funding augmentation in an amount not to exceed $240,000 to existing contract #MS09002 with A-Z Bus Sales under the Alternative Fuel School Bus Incentives Program, from the balance of funds previously allocated for this category, under the FY 2008-09 Work Program, as described in this letter;
3. Authorize MSRC the authority to adjust contract awards up to five percent, as necessary; and
4. Authorize the Chairman of the Board to execute a modified contract under FY 2008-09 AB 2766 Discretionary Fund Work Program, as described above and within this letter.
    

Barry R. Wallerstein, D.Env.
Executive Officer

Background

In September 1990 Assembly Bill 2766 was signed into law (Health & Safety Code Sections 44220-44247) authorizing the imposition of an annual $4 motor vehicle registration fee to fund the implementation of programs exclusively to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles. AB 2766 provides that 30 percent of the annual $4 vehicle registration fee subvened to the AQMD be placed into an account to be allocated pursuant to a work program developed and adopted by the MSRC and approved by the Board.

Local Government Match Program

At its November 20, 2008 meeting, the MSRC approved additional elements as well as increased funding levels for existing elements of its FY 2008-09 Work Program. The MSRC and AQMD Board already approved several awards to implement portions of the FY 2008-09 Work Program. At its January 22, 2009 meeting, the MSRC considered a Program Announcement to implement the Local Government Match Program, one of the additional elements of their FY 2008-09 Work Program. Further details are described below in the Proposals section.

Alternative Fuel School Bus Incentive Program

As part of its FY 2008-09 Work Program, the MSRC has allocated a total of $3,000,000 for an Alternative Fuel School Bus Incentive Program to provide buydown incentives for school districts. To implement the Program, on August 21, 2008 the MSRC awarded a contract to A-Z Bus Sales, who was previously qualified to offer these incentives in response to the MSRC’s Request for Vendor Qualifications in FY 2007-08; subsequently, A-Z Bus Sales’ contract value has been increased due to sales performance, resulting in a total contract value of $1,240,000. At its January 22, 2009 meeting, the MSRC considered a request from A-Z Bus Sales for an additional $240,000 for a purchase from Desert Sands Unified School District; further details are provided below in the proposals section.
 

Outreach

For the Program Announcement described below, in accordance with AQMD’s Procurement Policy and Procedure, a public notice advertising the multiple solicitations and inviting bids will be published in the Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register, the San Bernardino Sun, and Riverside County Press Enterprise newspapers to leverage the most cost-effective method of outreach to the entire South Coast Basin.

Additionally, potential bidders may be notified utilizing AQMD’s own electronic listing of certified minority vendors. Notice of the solicitations will be mailed to the Black and Latino Legislative Caucuses and various minority chambers of commerce and business associations, the State of California Contracts Register website, and placed on the Internet on both the MSRC’s website at http://www.cleantransportationfunding.org and on AQMD’s website (http://www.aqmd.gov, where it can be viewed by making menu selections “Inside AQMD”/“Employment and Business Opportunities”/“Business Opportunities” or by going directly to http://www.aqmd.gov/rfp/index.html). Information will also be available on AQMD’s bidder’s 24-hour telephone message line (909) 396-2724.
 

Bidders’ Conferences

To assist potential bidders in submitting qualified applications, a non-mandatory Applicant Workshop for the Local Government Match Program Announcement will be conducted at AQMD headquarters at 10:30 a.m. in Room CC6 on Wednesday, March 4, 2009.
 

Proposal Evaluation and Panel Composition

Proposals received in response to the Program Announcement (further outlined under the Proposals section) will be evaluated by members of the MSRC’s Technical Advisory Committee (MSRC-TAC), comprised of individuals appointed by participating member agencies as prescribed in the Health & Safety Code.
 

Proposals

The MSRC considered two recommendations from its MSRC-TAC and unanimously approved the following:

Local Government Match Program

At its January 22, 2009 meeting, the MSRC unanimously approved release of Program Announcement #PA2009-07 under the FY 2008-09 AB 2766 Discretionary Fund Work Program. The Program Announcement, with a targeted funding level of $3,000,000, provides the traditional dollar-for-dollar match funding for heavy-duty alternative fuel vehicles up to $25,000 per vehicle and alternative fuel infrastructure up to a maximum amount per project of $400,000. A category for the purchase of fleet management systems which provide remote monitoring and diagnostics of vehicle emission control system performance is also continued this year with awards limited to $50,000 per entity, with the category total capped at $250,000. Additionally, the Program Announcement includes new categories for the re-power or retrofit of diesel-fueled emergency response vehicles and for the re-power or retrofit of off-road heavy-duty diesel equipment, with maximum per-vehicle awards of $50,000 for re-power and $20,000 per retrofit. The final category is for projects which would coordinate and/or synchronize traffic signals between two or more jurisdictions. For this category only, the Program Announcement offers a match level of $0.50 against each dollar, with the category total capped at $500,000. Funding for all eligible entities will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis with a geographic minimum per county of $375,000. The Program Announcement includes an open application period commencing March 24, 2009 and closing May 29, 2009.
 

Alternative Fuel School Bus Incentive Program

The MSRC previously awarded a total of $1,240,000 to A-Z Bus Sales to continue implementation of the Alternative Fuel School Bus Incentives Program, based on their pending orders. This $1,240,000 has already been expended or has purchase orders issued against it. A-Z Bus Sales then received an order from the Desert Sands Unified School District for a total of four CNG school buses. These buses would each be eligible for a $60,000 incentive, totaling $240,000. These buses have not yet been delivered; A-Z Bus Sales is securing funding prior to delivery, as anticipated by contract #MS09002. Therefore, A-Z Bus Sales requested an additional $240,000 to cover the buydown incentives for these four buses. As mentioned above, the MSRC has allocated a total of $3,000,000 for the Alternative Fuel School Bus Incentives Program as part of their FY 2008-09 Work Program, with a balance of $1,760,000 remaining. At its January 22, 2009 meeting, the MSRC unanimously awarded $240,000 out of this allocation to A-Z Bus Sales in order to provide the full incentives for the ordered buses.

The MSRC respectfully requests the Board’s approval of the above contract modification and to release the Program Announcement under the FY 2008-09 Work Program. Additional FY 2008-09 Work Program elements may be brought forward in the next few months. The MSRC also requests authority to adjust the funds allocated to each project specified in this Board letter by up to five percent of the project's recommended funding. The Board has granted this authority to the MSRC for all past work programs. Finally, the MSRC requests the Board authorize the AQMD Chairman of the Board the authority to execute all agreements described in this letter.
 

Resource Impacts

The AQMD acts as fiscal administrator for the AB 2766 Discretionary Fund Program (Health & Safety Code Section 44243). Money received for this program is recorded in a special revenue fund (Fund 23) and the contracts will be drawn from this fund. These contracts will have no fiscal impact on the AQMD’s operational budget.
 

Attachment (DOC, 1.2m)

Local Government Match Program Announcement #PA2009-07