From The Jersey Sierran, July - September 2022
By Bill Beren, Beren1@verizon.net
President Biden’s BiPartisan Infrastructure Bill includes $5 billion dollars over 5 years to help subsidize the purchase of electric and low pollution school buses. The first-year funding will be in the form of rebates, but subsequent funding in years two through five is expected to be in the form of grants. School districts or private school bus companies that contract with school districts can apply directly to the US Environmental Protection Authority for these grants. Instructions for the grant process can be found at here.
The rules for applying for these grants were expected to be finalized in May and the application process will be open for 3 months. School districts and contractors that submit qualified grant applications will be selected for funding by lottery.
Separately, the NJ Assembly Transportation Committee has released a bill that would provide $45 million in grant funding to get an electric school bus program up and running. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) would administer the program and school districts would receive up to $15 million yearly for the first three years.
The NJ Chapter of the Sierra Club, Environment New Jersey, NJ Environmental Justice Alliance, and others are in support of the legislation. Diesel-powered school buses have toxic emissions that affect the health of students who ride them. This legislation is hoped to begin the process of transforming all NJ school buses to battery power.
The DEP program would also help state leaders understand what is involved in making this process happen.