Ca $25 billion water conveyance project12/3/2023 ![]() California’s transportation policy progress is overshadowed by continued investments in more driving, worse trafficĬalifornia’s transportation investments should be guided by the State’s commitments to cleaning our air, advancing equity, creating high-road jobs, and improving safety for all travelers-whether in cars or on foot or bike. ![]() Rather than cutting successful, proven programs, the state should, at minimum, maintain funding for public transit, as well as identify opportunities for new investments, such as community carsharing programs, on-demand microtransit, school transportation, e-bike incentives, and other community- and climate-friendly projects. The Governor and members of the legislature have expressed interest in reauthorizing AB 118 revenues streams which would provide more long term stability, but additional guardrails are needed to ensure the benefits of those programs are directed to low-income and disadvantaged communities. These cuts highlight the need for a permanent funding stream for clean transportation to shield these critical programs from destabilizing boom and bust funding cycles. While most of these guaranteed cuts will be realized in the 2023-2024 budget year, there is no guarantee that ZEV investments in future budget years will be fully preserved, and that the $10 billion ZEV package will not be further reduced. This budget line item should be going up, not down, especially for programs that prioritize investment in most-impacted communities who stand to benefit most from State rebates and subsidies. Over the past two years, the California Legislature approved more than $10 billion in investments for zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure-described by the Governor’s office as “ZEV investments with a focus on communities that are the most affected”-which this year’s proposed budget would cut by at least $1.1 billion. This setback to the State’s zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) goals- to the tune of $3 billion annually-puts added pressure on the budget process. A critical investment gap remains in the State’s transition to zero-emissions vehiclesĬalifornia failed to pass Proposition 30 in 2022, which would have invested $100 billion over the next twenty years to fight and prevent catastrophic wildfires, expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and help all Californians access electric vehicles. The budget process presents a critical opportunity for State leaders to put their money where their mouths are. As much leadership as the State has showed, pollution data clearly indicate that continued, deeper, and more comprehensive action is required. This is true in spite of the State’s national leadership in setting zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) standards, selling electric vehicles, and the passage of multiple statewide policy reforms designed to align land use and transportation decisions with the State’s pollution-reduction goals. Transportation remains the largest source of climate pollution in California, and pollution from the sector has stubbornly resisted the State’s efforts to reverse course toward a clean transportation future. The Legislature now has the responsibility to carefully consider how it will make clean transportation investments that deliver public health, climate, and jobs benefits to communities throughout the state. Unfortunately, the state is facing a $25 billion deficit this year, but the Governor’s recently released budget proposal would steer the state in the wrong direction on transportation funding, imposing significant cuts to clean transportation investments critical to putting the State on a path to achieving its ambitious climate goals by 2030. California finds itself at a difficult crossroads this budget season, with one path regressing toward the polluting status quo and the other driving progress toward aligning the State’s transportation spending with its climate priorities.
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