California has set up a loan program for truckers to meet looming stricter emissions requirements next year, but some carriers say the industry is in such a difficult state that they may not last long enough to get the loans, the Santa Cruz (Calif.) Sentinel reported Tuesday.
State Treasurer Bill Lockyer last week announced of a $48 million loan guarantee program to help the state’s truckers comply new diesel standards, the paper said.
The California Capital Access Program, or CalCap — a joint partnership program between the California Air Resources Board and the California Pollution Control Finance Authority — is set up to encourage banks and lenders to make loans available to small businesses that fall below most conventional underwriting standards, the Sentinel reported.
The program will place money in a reserve for each participating lender at an amount equal to 14% of the principal on each loan while providing 100% coverage on defaults, the paper said.
Bruce Woolper, president Santa Cruz County construction company Granite Rock Co., told the paper that the loan program might not be enough to sustain his company, which has more than 200 trucks, saying it could cost up to $20,000 to retrofit just one older truck.
