Clean Vehicles Program Overview
Welcome to the homepage of H-GAC's Clean Vehicles grant program! We look forward to working with you on a project! As a first step, we invite you to view "An Introduction to the Clean Vehicles Program", which provides a basic overview of program eligibility, our three-phase project management system, and options to explore if eligibility problems are encountered. We also encourage prospective applicants to review the complete Program Guidelines prior to submitting a grant application.
To learn how we've helped other fleets in the region, visit our Success Story page!
Check out our Projects page to get a list of past participants and basic statistics about the program!
To download application forms, see a listing of qualified engines and technologies, review boilerplate contract language, and/or to find the monitoring report templates and due date schedule, look at our complete Program Documents page.
Questions are always welcome, so feel free to contact us for more information or to set-up a meeting! Below are answers to some frequently asked questions...
Q: How much funding could I receive?
A: The amount of funding you could receive depends on a number of variables, including the funding type(s) you are eligible for, average vehicle usage, the age of the engines in question, the fuels/technologies type(s) being considered, the vehicle weight, etc. In the past several years, "typical" Clean Vehicles projects have received on average about $20,000-$40,000 per heavy-duty engine replaced, and about $5,000-$15,000 per light-duty engine replaced.
Q: Are you currently accepting applications? When are applications due?
A: Applications are accepted and evaluated on an on-going basis until funds are exhausted. There is no deadline for submitting applications.
Q. What application form(s) do I need to fill out, and where can I find them?
A. Complete application submission information is listed in Section
3.1.1 of the Program Guidelines. An abbreviated checklist is also available for reference. Both items may be found on the program documents webpage.
Q: How much funding is currently available?
A: Funding availability changes on a day-to-day basis. However, as of December 12, 2011, approximate funding availability is as follows:
Funding Type |
Available Amount |
| CMAQ (Congestion Mitigation/Air Quality) |
$17.5 million |
| SEP (Supplemental Environmental Projects) |
$80,000 |
Please note this does not include funding relating to H-GAC's other fleet programs, such as Regional TERP and Drayage Loan.
Please see the Grants page for more complete information about currently available funding opportunities.
Q: My fleet is interested in using an alternative fuel. What kind of funding is it eligible for, and where can I find more information about alternative fuel options & infrastructure?
A: The Clean Vehicles program is a fuel/technology-neutral program. Therefore, any alternative fuel or technology may be funded by our program so long as all of the other program requirements are met.
More information regarding alternative fuels and advanced technology options may be found through the Greater Houston Clean Cities Coalition (GHCCC) pages. The GHCCC is dedicated to reducing air pollution through the displacment of petroleum usage, and supports general education and outreach opportunities as they relate to this mission.
Q. Why does Clean Vehicles only fund accelerated turnover for replacements?
A. At first glance, it does seem counter-intuitive that a vehicle could be "too" old to qualify for replacement - afterall, generally anytime an old vehicle is replaced by a new vehicle it yields air quality benefits, which is the goal of the program. However,
the purpose of the program is more than just supporting pollution reduction projects; the purpose is to generate air quality benefits that would not otherwise have happened without the program. If a vehicle has come to the end of its normal life, its replacement would happen with or without the program, and investing money into projects that would have happened anyway is not a wise use of money from a public policy perspective.
Moreover, there are technical concerns with taking "credit" for air quality benefits that are not "surplus" (air quality benefits from normal vehicle turnover are not considered "surplus"). For both of these reasons, it is important that the replacement projects receiving Clean Vehicles funding represent accerlated turnover.
View a graphical representation of how an engine's useful life relates to the "surplus" emission reductions that the program is targeting.
To help determine if your vehicle would meet the accelerated turnover criteria, a simple Excel-based Accelerated Deployment Calculator is available (for on-road vehicles only) on the Program Documents page, as is a current listing of the Expected Useful Life thresholds used in the determination.
Q: Is TERP the same thing as Clean Vehicles?
A: In spite of the fact that the Clean Vehicles program and the Texas Emission Reduction Plan share a similar goal - to reduce air pollution by providing grants to fleets interested in upgrading to cleaner technologies - the two programs are completely separate from an administrative perspective. TERP is a state-sponsored and funded program administered by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), whereas the Clean Vehicles program is administered by the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) and primarily utilizes Federal Highway Administration funding. TERP has somewhat different selection criteria and in general is more competitive because their application pool is geographically larger. As a result of this and a number of other regulatory issues, TERP funds and Clean Vehicles funding cannot be combined.
Although TERP is administered primarily by the TCEQ in a direct manner, the TCEQ does have several "third-party" agreements that target particular audiences (certain fuel types, geographic regions, etc.), and through which TERP funds are administered by a separate agency on behalf of TCEQ. H-GAC's Regional TERP program is just one of these third-party efforts. However, the funds are still considered TERP funds and ultimate oversight of these projects still resides with TCEQ.
Q: I have a new business/product that I want to fund/promote. Can the Clean Vehicles grant program help me?
A: The Clean Vehicles grant program is generally intended to accelerate the deployment of cleaner technologies that have reached the commercilization phase of development and are already certified/verified by the applicable state/federal agencies. Those interested in R & D opportunities, as well as those interested in general business development should view the "Business Opportunities" section of the Greater Houston Clean Cities Coalition.
Q: I want to upgrade my fleet to reduce particulate matter, greenhouse gases, etc. How much funding can the Clean Vehicles program provide for this?
A: Although we encourage the reduction of all types of air pollution, at the present time the Clean Vehicles program primarily targets nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions in order to reduce ozone pollution in the greater Houston region. In the future, we hope to broaden our scope by gaining access to new funding sources that could target different pollutants; however, until this happens, no funding is available which specifically targets greenhouse gases, particulate matter, etc.
Clean Cities/Clean Vehicles is a program of the
Houston-Galveston Area Council
3555 Timmons, Suite 120, Houston,
TX 77027
713.627.3200 • Fax 713.993.4508
