The California Air Resources Board has released a proposed methodology for identifying low-income communities to meet the requirements of Assembly Bill 1550 (Gomez), which was signed into law in 2016. The bill changed the requirements for allocating proceeds from the State’s Cap-and-Trade program, which previously required that 25 percent be spent in or to the benefit of specifically defined disadvantaged communities, to now mandate that an additional 5 percent be spent in low-income communities around the state, and another 5 percent be spent in communities within one-half mile of an already established disadvantaged community.
While RCRC has long been critical of the way the California Environmental Protection Agency has chosen to define disadvantaged communities for allocating Cap-and-Trade funds, the proposed methodology for defining low-income communities will capture many of the socioeconomically challenged areas in RCRC member counties that have previously been shut out of many funding opportunities. The new definition also allows for those California communities not already receiving benefits from Cap-and-Trade funds to push for the 5 percent to be spent in new areas, and in different ways, such as grant programs to help private landowners mitigate the impacts of tree mortality. RCRC will be actively advocating during the State Budget process for funds to be spent on projects that benefit rural, low-income communities not already receiving benefit from disadvantaged communities funding.
The proposed methodology for identifying low-income communities, along with interactive maps and related documents, can be accessed here.