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On December 30, 2022, the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved amendments to the Commercial Harbor Craft (CHC) Regulation, section 2299.5, title 13, division 3, chapter 5.1 and section 93118.5, title 17, chapter 1, subchapter 7.5 of the California Code of Regulations (CCR). The amended CHC Regulation is effective January 1, 2023.

The amended CHC Regulation will reduce emissions from harbor craft operated near California’s coast and improve public health in nearby communities, many of which are disadvantaged. By 2035, the amended CHC Regulation is expected to result in an 89 percent reduction of diesel particulate matter and a 52 percent reduction in nitrogen oxides. The amended regulation will also reduce the cancer risk to over 22 million residents who live near the coast and up to 50 miles inland.

To assist regulated parties with implementation, CARB staff is preparing several “fact sheet” documents to explain the core requirements of the amended regulation and posting the fact sheets on the CHC Program Factsheet Page as they become available. Key implementation dates are also provided in the table below.

Key Implementation Dates for the Amended CHC Regulation 

Background

On September 21, 2021, CARB posted a “Notice of Public Hearing to Consider Proposed Amendments to the Commercial Harbor Craft Regulation.” The amendments were first presented to the Board on November 19, 2021 and approved by the passage of Resolution 22-6 on March 24, 2022 following additional stakeholder engagement. On May 19, 2022, CARB staff issued a “Notice of Public Availability of Additional Documents and Information,” which proposed additional changes to the regulation amendments in response to Board direction as provided in Resolution 22-6. CARB staff initially submitted the rulemaking package to OAL on July 21, 2022.

On September 1, 2022, OAL disapproved the rulemaking package. On September 8, 2022, OAL issued a “Decision of Disapproval of Regulatory Action,” that identified 17 subsections of the proposed regulatory text that OAL determined did not comply with the clarity standard of Government Code section 11349, subdivision (c), and Cal. Code Regs., title 1, section 16. As provided in CARB’s “Response Letter to OAL’s Decision of Disapproval,” to remediate the issues identified in OAL’s written decision, CARB staff issued a second “Notice of Public Availability of Additional Documents and Information” on October 15, 2022. On November 15, 2022, CARB staff resubmitted the rulemaking package to OAL. Based on OAL’s feedback on the November 15, 2022 resubmittal, additional non-substantive edits were incorporated into the Final Regulation Order and described in the updated Addendum to the Final Statement of Reasons posted on the Commercial Harbor Craft Regulation Amendments webpage on December 30, 2022. All formal rulemaking documents are posted on the Commercial Harbor Craft Regulation Amendments webpage.

The regulatory development process for the 2022 CHC Amendments began in early 2018. During this five year long process, CARB staff has conducted over 500 meetings, conference calls and site visits with stakeholders, held seven public workshops and webinars, reviewed 3,310 written public comments submitted to the docket, evaluated several hours of verbal testimony from both Board hearings, and communicated with stakeholders extensively via emails and individual phone calls. CARB staff continues to be available to assist the public and regulated parties with inquiries regarding the regulatory amendments and compliance requirements.

Contact

Questions regarding the CHC Regulation can be directed to the CHC Program Inbox.

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