On and off-road mobile emissions responsible for up to 74% of NOx in state's non-attainment areas

(AUSTIN) -- Legislation filed today by state Sen. Kip Averitt (R-Waco) will re-tool and enhance two state programs designed to reduce on and off-road mobile emissions, the primary source of NOx in the state's non-attainment areas.

Under Averitt's Senate Bill 12, the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP) and the Low-Income Vehicle Repair Assistance Program (LIRAP) will be significantly augmented, providing the potency the programs need to help the state meet the rapidly approaching air quality deadlines set by the Environmental Protection Agency.

"Mobile emissions are arguably the most important piece of the state's air quality puzzle," said Averitt, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Natural Resources. "I've been looking at this issue for a long time from a lot of different angles, and Senate Bill 12 will maximize programs that taxpayers have already invested in to produce meaningful, expeditious air quality improvements for Texas."

Averitt's legislation broadens the field of TERP-eligible projects and extends the TERP deadline to 2013, providing the program more time to achieve emission reductions needed to comply with the State Implementation Plan. The LIRAP improvements in Senate Bill 12 include an increase in the income eligibility level -- from 200% of the federal poverty level to 300% -- and increases in reimbursements for the replacement of old, heavily polluting vehicles and the purchase of hybrids.

Both TERP and LIRAP maintain substantial fund balances totaling nearly a quarter of a billion dollars -- money that has been collected from Texans and cannot be spent elsewhere in the state budget. In conjunction with his Senate Bill 12 efforts, Averitt will work with fellow members of the Senate Finance Committee to appropriate the programs' fund balances and new revenue to cover the cost of program improvements.