Anti-Smog Business Fees to Be Voted On
Small businesses may have to pay $17.20 per employee to help Ventura County get smog-belching clunkers off the road under a proposal before the Board of Supervisors today.
Under the plan, 118 employers with 50 to 99 workers would be asked to contribute to the fund to purchase old cars that typically are heavy polluters.
The proposal is designed to help the smaller businesses avoid the county’s tough anti-pollution code--called Rule 210--that requires employers to provide incentives for employees to car-pool.
County officials estimate that the alternative to Rule 210 could be far cheaper for some companies than the costly and time-consuming effort to persuade employees to share rides.
Some business administrators estimate that it costs as much as $310 a year per employee for companies to develop car-pooling strategies.
A public hearing on the plan to form the clunker fund is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. today at the county Government Center in Ventura.
County officials said they expect to pay $850 per car to retire the old cars to the junkyard.
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