Over the last two and a half months, the federal government has frozen and unfrozen (and in some cases re-frozen) funding programs across dozens of agencies. It’s been difficult to track what’s happening, even for funding recipients. When it comes to federal programs for clean school buses, here’s what we know:
The State of Federal Funding
While EPA has released funding for the first two rounds of the Clean School Bus Program (as well as the singular grants round of the Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Program), recipients of the Clean School Bus 2023 Rebates still do not have access to their awards. They can access the online portal, but are unable to draw down funds.
This means 530 public school districts throughout 47 states, as well as D.C. and several Tribes and territories, are waiting for promised funds to clean up their school bus fleets. These awards were announced nearly a year ago, so hundreds of school districts and school bus operators had already placed their orders for buses and chargers and begun putting their projects in motion.
The impacts of these cuts are already being felt:
- School districts are facing holes in their budgets — potentially multi-million dollar deficits — as well as losing the savings they were expecting from switching to cleaner transportation. They may also be legally responsible for contracts they had signed with vendors in anticipation of receiving funding.
- Dealers are awaiting payment from school districts who placed purchase orders. Every bus sitting on a lot waiting to be delivered is accruing interest dealers have to pay.
- Children (and bus drivers) meant to be riding in cleaner school buses are still riding in older diesel buses, breathing dirtier air. A 2024 Harvard study found that replacing one diesel school bus with an electric model yielded $43,800 in health savings, from less air pollution and reduced rates of mortality and childhood asthma.
- Manufacturing companies had already started producing these buses per the purchase orders. Manufacturing workers across the United States, who experienced a boom over the last three years as companies hired more workers and opened new plants to meet demand for electric school buses, are unclear what their futures hold.
- Electric utilities are stalled in their work to set up charging stations and other necessary infrastructure — which, in some cases, had already been installed.
We all lose when the U.S. government becomes an unreliable partner. Public school districts and communities are asking: Can we count on the federal government to honor its commitments?
Check the list below to find a school district near you that has lost funding.
Here’s What You Can Do
Wondering how you can help? Congress passed the bipartisan infrastructure law that created the Clean School Bus Program, and Congress must direct EPA to restore access for funds that have already been awarded.
If You’re An Advocate
Schools and kids are counting on a clean ride to school. Contact your Congressional representative and senators and remind them:
- The Clean School Bus Program has been overwhelmingly successful.
- Since 2022, the Clean School Bus Program has awarded nearly $3 billion for almost 8,700 new clean school buses at over 1,200 school districts across 50 states, D.C., four U.S. territories and about 60 federally-recognized Tribes.
- 75% of awards have gone to low-income, rural or Tribal school districts.
- More than 2,200 electric school buses have already been delivered to U.S. schools under the program.
- The Clean School Bus Program is so popular it is struggling to keep up with demand.
- Applicants have sought nearly $8 billion in funding for only $3 billion offered so far.
- EPA offered applicants $500 million for the 2023 Rebates. Due to immense demand — $1.7 billion in applications — EPA ended up awarding over $900 million for 3,400 new school buses to approximately 530 school districts across 47 states, as well as D.C. and several Tribes and territories. Another 330+ school districts were on the waitlist for 2023 rebates.
- Even the Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Program, which was meant to serve all kinds of heavy-duty vehicles, saw incredible demand for electric school buses in the applications, reflected in the eventual awards.
- Cutting off clean school bus funding puts millions of dollars for public schools into question, leaving thousands of school districts stranded and millions of children without a clean ride to school. We need to restore — and permanently protect — clean school bus funding.
Ready to take further action? Join our Day of Action on May 6th as we deliver handwritten notes to Congressional offices urging our representatives and senators to protect a clean ride for kids. Contact the Alliance for Electric School Buses to participate.
If You’re A School District
If you’re a school district affected by these cuts, we especially encourage you to directly contact your Congressional office and let them know how you’ve been impacted.
- Here’s a sample letter to send to Congressional offices.
- Sign onto a group letter from multiple school districts asking Congress to protect clean school bus funding.
- Reach out to the Alliance if you’d like to discuss other options.
What’s Next
Under the current budget negotiations, all this funding could be cut to make room for tax cuts — leaving our children with dirtier air and our schools with older, more polluting buses.
It’s not just the third round of rebates that’s at risk; it’s also the funding that remains allocated by Congress, but not yet awarded by EPA. The Clean School Bus Program still has another $2 billion left to distribute, and the Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Program has another $200 million. Tax credits like 45W for Qualifying Commercial Clean Vehicles and 30C for Alternative Fuel Refueling Infrastructure, which school districts were only recently eligible to claim under elective payment, are also threatened.
Let’s act now to protect a clean ride for kids.