The California State Senate and Assembly approved a measure to continue the state's clean vehicle and fuel incentives through 2023.

Assembly Bill 8, authored by Assembly member Henry T. Perea, with Sen. Fran Pavley as principal co-author, would provide more than $2 billion in funding to help fleets and consumers purchase clean and low carbon cars, trucks, buses and construction equipment. It is now with Gov. Jerry Brown for his signature.

The programs that would be extended include the AB 118 clean fuel and vehicle programs and the Carl Moyer and AB 923 local air district funds for diesel emission reduction. By extending the programs through 2023, AB 8 would provide more than $2 billion in clean air and transportation funding in California.

The bills also dedicate funding, in lieu of regulatory action, to construct the minimum fueling infrastructure necessary to support the impending introduction of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

The Senate voted to pass AB 8 on a bipartisan 29 to 6 vote. The bill went back to the Assembly for concurrence, where it garnered the required a two-thirds majority.

In addition to CALSTART, the other two co-sponsors of the Perea-Pavley bill are the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA) and the American Lung Association in California.