The Air Resources Board (ARB) released a draft of their Cap and Trade Proceeds Interim Guidance to Agencies Administering Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) monies.  The draft describes a general approach for all of the project categories and administering agencies on the projects types that are most likely to be located within or provide benefits to disadvantaged communities.  Senate Bill 535 (De Leon 2012) required California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) to identify a specific list of disadvantaged communities and requires state agencies to allocate 25 percent of the available moneys in the GGRF to projects that provide benefits to disadvantaged communities, and to allocate a minimum of 10 percent of the available monies in the GGRF to projects located within disadvantaged communities.  

CalEPA and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) developed the CalEnviroScreen for this purpose.  RCRC is concerned that strictly using the CalEnviroScreen limits rural county eligibility for GGRF monies, and will be submitting comments.  Comments on this draft Interim Guidance and the alternative approaches that might be used to identify disadvantaged communities are due September 15, 2014, with the ARB consideration at their September 18, 2014 Board meeting.  RCRC staff is requesting member county comments on the draft Interim Guidance.  The draft Interim Guidance can be accessed here.  The Alternative Approaches to Identifying Disadvantaged Communities can be accessed here.