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AB 1106

State Air Resources Board: regional air quality incident response program.

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Ben Allen and 1 co-sponsor

AB 1106 would require CARB to expand to a statewide network of local air quality incident response centers to rapidly monitor air quality and share health information during disast

In committee: Held under submission.
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Bill Summary · AB 1106

AB 1106 — State Air Resources Board: Regional Air Quality Incident Response Program

Author: Michelle Rodriguez
Introduced: February 20, 2025
Status: In committee — Held under submission (Assembly Appropriations, 05/23/2025)

Purpose

AB 1106 creates a statutory framework requiring the State Air Resources Board (CARB) to expand its incident air monitoring program — subject to legislative appropriations — to support a regional network of air quality incident response centers operated by local air districts. The intent is to improve coordinated, rapid air monitoring and public-health information during disasters and other air-quality incidents (e.g., wildfires, industrial accidents).

What the bill does (key provisions)

  • Adds Chapter 9 (Sections 39950–39954) to Part 2, Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code.
  • Definitions: establishes terms such as “air contaminant” and “air quality incident response center” (Sec. 39950).
  • Program expansion: requires CARB, subject to appropriation, to expand its incident air monitoring program to support a regional network of district-operated air quality incident response centers (Sec. 39951).
  • Geographic requirement and coordination:
    • CARB must establish centers throughout the state, including at least one within the South Coast Air Quality Management District (Sec. 39952).
    • Before establishing a center in a district, CARB must coordinate and develop operational plans with that district; CARB and districts operate centers only to the extent funding is provided (Sec. 39952).
  • Permitted uses of funding (Sec. 39953):
    1. Plan, create, equip, and maintain centers (monitoring equipment, vehicles, facilities) and develop/implement incident response protocols.
    2. Data collection, analysis, modeling, dissemination, and integration with unified command/joint information centers.
    3. Staffing (including a State Air Quality Health Officer), regional emergency response coordinators, and technical staff at districts.
    4. Training and preparedness exercises.
    5. State board-supported research on health impacts (e.g., wildfires), risk communication, and inventory/source-profile updates.
  • Role of State Air Quality Health Officer: translate monitoring results into public-health impacts and coordinate with state/local agencies, public health departments, and unified command/joint information centers (Sec. 39953(b)).
  • Monitoring operations: centers must monitor targeted contaminants of concern during incidents and recovery (Sec. 39954 — truncated text in available documents but described generally).

Who is affected

  • State agencies: CARB (responsible for program expansion and coordination).
  • Local/regional air districts: operate incident response centers when funded and participate in planning and response.
  • Local public health departments, emergency responders, and the public — receive improved monitoring data, health guidance, and coordinated communications.
  • Potential state and local fiscal impacts (see below).

Fiscal and procedural notes

  • Implementation is explicitly subject to appropriation by the Legislature; the bill does not itself appropriate funds.
  • The measure may impose a state-mandated local program to the extent it expands district duties. It provides that if the Commission on State Mandates finds reimbursable costs, reimbursement would follow existing state procedures.
  • Legislative progress: Referred to Natural Resources, amended and passed that committee (04/28/2025), re-referred to Appropriations (05/07/2025, suspense file), held under submission (05/23/2025).

Potential impacts and considerations

  • Public-health benefit: better localized, rapid monitoring and clearer public communications during air-quality emergencies (e.g., wildfire smoke).
  • Operational costs: requires legislative funding for equipment, staffing, training, and ongoing operations.
  • Coordination demands: success depends on effective interagency planning and data integration (unified command/joint information center compatibility).

This summary is based on bill text and committee documents as of May 2025.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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