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%A -s' LEAGUE COMMENTS ON PROPOSED ARB DIESEL GARBAGE TRUCK RETROFIT RULES This week, the League, joined by CSAC, the Regional Council of Rural Counties (RCRC) and the Solid Waste Association of North America — Califomia Chapters ( SWANA), sent a letter to the California Air Resources Board (ARB) opposing the ARB's proposed diesel retrofit rules for solid waste trucks. The joint letter focuses on the portion of the proposed rules that would apply to garbage trucks that operate in a city or county under a franchise or contract and are rate regu- lated by local governments. In the letter, the League, CSAC, RCRC and SWANA state that "...we believe that the pro- posed rule inserts local governments into an inappropriate enforcement and regulatory role for which we are not qualified and for which we do not have the implementation resources. We believe this is a role more appropriate for the ARB, not local governments." requirements to substantial civil penalties." The July ARB hearing to discuss the proposed rule has been postponed until September. In the interim, the League will continue to work with the ARB and other stakeholders to try to reach a more workable solution. A copy of the joint letter may be found on the Environmental Quality issues page on the League's website at www.cacities.oro. GRASSROOTS ADVOCACY (This is an occasional report on some of the non - budget related grassroots activities carried out at the division level by city officials and League regional representatives.) In addition to objecting to the monitoring, reporting and compliance provisions, the pro- posed rule would subject local governments to civil penalties. The letter states: "Finally, we note that Section 2021.1 (d) of the draft regulations provides the following: "Non - Compliance by a Municipality. Any violations of this section may carry civil penalties as specified in state law and regulations, including, but not limited to, Health and Safety Code section 44381." Thus, the proposed rule would subject local governments to civil penalties for failure to submit the proper reports or for submitting a late report of not less than $500 and not more than $10,000 per day that the report is not submitted properly." In addition, the letter stated: "It appears that the regulations not only expect local agencies to evaluate the technology, deter- mine what is appropriate and calculate the cost for the fleets operating under its rate regulatory authority, they anticipate that the local agency will act to "bring the contractor into compliance." Not only is this not an appropriate role for local govern- ments, the proposed regulations would subject a local agency that does not meet all of these The League's legislative issues and priorities are now being shared with members of eight Chambers of Commerce in the Peninsula Division. A new, monthly column written by Regional Representative Rebecca Elliot for the Chambers' newsletters highlights priority League bills such as AB 1221, SB 440 and the work of the League's Institute for Local Self Government. "This is a wonderful venue for educating a diverse business base on legislation and issues important to cities ", said Elliot. "The Chambers of Commerce are natural partners for cities and the business community is very receptive to its' city's concerns and needs ". In addition to writing the column for the Chamber newsletters, Elliot and the League other Regional Representatives routinely serve as speakers at Chamber events and attend Chamber meetings in an on -going effort to engage the business community in dialogue and enrich the partnership between local government and its citizenry. Visit the League's Official Web Site-- www.cacities.org PRIORITY FOCUS /PAGE 5