On Friday, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), elected officials and the clean-transportation industry celebrated the 2,000th voucher awarded under the Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP). Redwood Products, a small business based in Chino, Calif., received the milestone voucher for investing in a hybrid delivery truck.
According to a CARB announcement, the incentive program has contributed to air-pollution reductions in neighborhoods throughout California. The agency says that since the program's launch in 2010, the HVIP has provided more than $63 million to help California fleets statewide purchase more than 430 zero-emission trucks and buses and 1,800 hybrid trucks and buses – and additional funding is on the way. Funding for the program is primarily supported through California Climate Investments, programs funded by the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund using proceeds from the state's cap-and-trade auctions.
“Thanks to California Climate Investments, which support clean transportation programs like HVIP, our communities are getting an infusion of resources that help businesses buy low-carbon vehicles, support economic growth and help clean the air – all which will pay dividends for generations to come,” said CARB Executive Officer Richard Corey.
As CARB explains, HVIP provides vouchers of up to $95,000 for California purchasers and lessees of zero-emission trucks and buses, as well as up to $30,000 for eligible hybrid trucks and buses, on a first-come, first-served basis. HVIP also offers incentives of up to $110,000 for zero-emission trucks that provide benefits to disadvantaged communities.
Redwood Products, which provides mulch, wood chips and other products to nurseries and the landscape industry in five western states, is the recipient of a $23,000 voucher, which covered close to one-third of the price of a low-carbon Hino hybrid truck.
Those who gathered to mark the occasion included State Sen. Connie M. Leyva; Christopher Craig, a representative for California Assemblyman Freddie Rodriguez; CARB member Barbara Riordan; and representatives from Redwood Products, Hino Trucks, Rush Truck Centers, the South Coast Air Quality Management District, and CALSTART.
CALSTART, a clean-transportation nonprofit in the state with 150 member companies, helps CARB administer the HVIP.
“In the absence of any federal tax credit for advanced trucks and buses, the California Air Resources Board has demonstrated leadership by providing incentives for electric and hybrid trucks and buses,” said John Boesel, CALSTART's president and CEO, in a statement to NGT News. “By an order of magnitude, as a direct result of this program, there are more cleaner, lower-carbon commercial vehicles in California than in any other state. We have greatly appreciated the opportunity to partner with CARB in the effective management of this program.”
CARB also notes it recently approved a $373 million funding plan that covers all investments in advanced technologies for fiscal-year 2015-16, from zero-emission heavy-duty trucks and buses to rebates for low- and zero-emission passenger vehicles.
More information about the HVIP is available here.
