REQUEST FOR AN EARLY EFFECTIVE DATE 

Pursuant To Government Code Section 11343.4(c) 

The Air Resources Board (ARB or Board) formally requests, under Government Code 

section 11343.4(c), that the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) prescribe an early effective 

date for the adopted amendments to the California Low-Emission Vehicle Program 

Regulations (LEV Regulations), title 13, California Code of Regulations, including 

amendments to Sections 1900, 1956.8, 1960.1, 1961, 1961.1, 1965, 1968.2, 1968.5, 1976, 

1978, 2037, 2038, 2062, 2112, 2139, 2140, 2145, 2147, 2235, and 2317, and adoption of· 

new Sections 1961.2 and 1961.3, that were considered by the Board on January 26-27, 

2012 and subsequently adopted. Specifically, ARB requests that the regulations be · · 

effective on the date of OALapproval. ARB believes that "good cause" exists for OAL to 

grant ARB's request- i.e., that the amendments become effective with OAL's approval and 

filing of the regulations with the Secretary of State. 

DEMONSTRATION OF GOOD CAUSE 

In this rulemaking, the Board considered and subsequently adopted amendments to 

California's LEV Regulations which will require a reduction in fleet average emissions of 

new passenger cars, light-duty trucks, and medium-duty passenger vehicles to "super ultralow-emission vehicle" levels from 2015 through 2025. Under the adopted amendments 

automobile manufacturers are required to take the initial steps towards achieving the 

emissions reduction goals with 2015 model year vehicles which will be offered for sale to 

the public in calendar year 2014. Considering the production cadence typically followed by 

vehicle manufacturers, this means vehicle development and demonstration of emission 

compliance at full useful life, 150,000 miles, must begin in the very near future if 2015 

model year vehicles are to be production ready by the 2014 calendar year. 

Also, modifications to the LEV Regulations require manufacturers of hydrogen vehicles to 

report projected California sales of those vehicles beginning with the 2012 calendar. year. 

This data will be used in the Clean Fuels Outlet Regulation, which requires major 

refiner/importers of gasoline to install clean fuel outlets for a particular fuel once the number 

of vehicles that operate on that fuel are projected to reach a certain threshold. For the 2012 

calendar year only, the manufacturer of vehicles that use hydrogen fuel will be required to 

submit this data twenty-nine months prior to January 1 of the model year for which the 

vehicles will be certified. Since the 2012 calendar year has already begun, an early 

effective date is needed to ensure that the Advanced Clean Cars package becomes 

effective in sufficient time to enable automobile manufacturers to implement this reporting 

requirement. 

In addition, ARB must submit the adopted regulations to U.S. EPA requesting a waiver of 

federal preemption under section 209(b) of the Clean Air Act. Because EPA typically does 

not begin waiver proceedings until California's regulations are effective, and because some 

of the adopted regulations apply to vehicles produced starting in the 2013 calendar year 

and EPA's waiver process typically takes a minimum of six months, it is imperative for these 

regulations to become effective upon filing. 
Accordingly, to allow automobile manufacturers adequate lead time to comply with the 

amendments, and to best ensure timely EPA action, ARB believes there is good cause for 

OAL to grant ARB's request for an early effective date that coincides with its approval of the 

amendments and filing of the amendments to the Secretary of State pursuant to 

Government Code section 11343.4(c).