California Air Resources Board
Logo of the California Air Resources Board
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | 1967 |
| Preceding agencies |
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| Jurisdiction | California |
| Headquarters | 1001 I Street Sacramento, California |
| Employees | 1,365 |
| Annual budget | $581.1 million |
| Agency executive |
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| Parent agency | California Environmental Protection Agency |
| Website | http://www.arb.ca.gov |
The California Air Resources Board, also known as CARB or ARB, is the "clean air agency" in the government of California. Established in 1967 when then-governor Ronald Reagan signed the Mulford-Carrell Act, combining the Bureau of Air Sanitation and the Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board, CARB is a department within the cabinet-level California Environmental Protection Agency.
The stated goals of CARB include attaining and maintaining healthy air quality; protecting the public from exposure to toxic air contaminants; and providing innovative approaches for complying with air pollution rules and regulations. CARB has also been instrumental in driving innovation throughout the global automotive industry through programs such as its ZEV mandate.
One of CARB's responsibilities is to define vehicle emissions standards. California is the only state permitted to issue emissions standards under the federal Clean Air Act, subject to a waiver from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Other states may choose to follow CARB or federal standards but may not set their own.
CARB's governing board is made up of 14 members, soon to be 16 with 2 members being non-voting.
Six of the governor-appointed board members are chosen from regional air pollution control or air quality management districts, including one each from:
Three governor-appointed board members are experts in automotive engineering; science, agriculture, or law; and medicine. The governor's three remaining appointees are members of the public, including an expert in air pollution control or one of the fields mentioned above.
The two legislature-appointed board members work directly with communities affected by air pollution.
CARB has nine major divisions:
The division assesses the extent of California's air quality problems and the progress being made to abate them, coordinates statewide development of clean air plans and maintains databases pertinent to air quality and emissions. The division's technical support work provides a basis for clean air plans and CARB's regulatory programs. This support includes management and interpretation of emission inventories, air quality data, meteorological data and of air quality modeling.
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