TIRE FEE MAINTENANCE REKINDLES DISPUTE OVER PROPER ARB SPENDING

A budget conference committee vote this week to block the reduction of an environmental fee on new tire sales has angered industry officials and rekindled a debate over the legality of such fees being funneled to the air board to pay for diesel-engine cleanup projects. While these critics said they will not actively oppose the lawmakers' action, they are working in the longer term to convince the Legislature to significantly lower the fee, based on the argument that the waste...