(AGENPARL) – gio 26 settembre 2024 Issued: Sep 26, 2024 (10:00am EDT)
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Biden-Harris Administration Makes $965M Available to Fund Clean School Buses
that Reduce Pollution, Save Money, and Protect Children’s Health
Latest funding opportunity under the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing
in America agenda builds on nearly $3 billion already invested into clean
school buses nationwide
WASHINGTON — Today, Sept. 26, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
announced the latest round of funding from the Clean School Bus Rebate Program
with up to $965 million available to school districts. The Biden-Harris
Administration’s Investing in America agenda continues to accelerate the
transition of the nearly 500,000 school buses in America to cleaner
technologies, helping to protect the more than 25 million children who ride a
school bus every day from harmful air pollution. This fourth round of funding
will build on the previous nearly $3 billion in investments being distributed
nationwide to further improve air quality in and around schools, reduce
greenhouse gas pollution fueling the climate crisis, and help accelerate
America’s leadership in developing the clean vehicles of the future.
Under the Clean School Bus Program’s multiple grant and rebate funding
opportunities to date, EPA has awarded almost $3 billion to fund approximately
8,700 school bus replacements, approximately 95% of which are zero-emission,
battery-electric. Funding has been awarded to nearly 1,300 school districts in
nearly all 50 states and Washington D.C., along with several federally
recognized Tribes and U.S. territories, many of which are identified as
priority areas serving low-income, rural, and, or Tribal students.
“Over the past three years, we’ve seen tremendous interest from schools
across the country to upgrade to clean and zero-emission buses,” said EPA
Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Thousands of new buses on the road mean our
children are breathing cleaner air on their way to and from school, their
communities are seeing cleaner air and less climate pollution, and schools are
supporting good paying American jobs.”
The 2024 Clean School Bus Rebate Competition
Applications for this year’s Clean School Bus Rebate Program are due on the
EPA online portal by 4 p.m. EST on January 9, 2025. Applicants can request up
to $325,000 per bus for up to 50 buses per application, an increase in the
total buses per project in response to stakeholder feedback for larger
projects to help achieve faster fleet turnover. Funds can be used to cover bus
and infrastructure costs for awardees requesting electric school buses, as
well as eligible training costs for bus drivers, electricians, and others
working with the new buses or infrastructure.
Selectees may also be eligible for Inflation Reduction Act tax credits
applicable to their bus and infrastructure purchases. For example, the clean
vehicle tax credits for qualifying school buses are worth up to $40,000.
Narrowing the cost difference between clean school buses and diesel school
buses remains an integral goal of the EPA Clean School Bus Program. The agency
adjusted electric school bus funding levels in this rebate program to help
stretch funding further and drive down long-term electric school bus costs. 
EPA is committed to ensuring the Clean School Bus Program advances
environmental justice and delivers on President Biden’s Justice40
Initiative, which sets a goal that 40% of the overall benefits of certain
federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by
underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. EPA will prioritize
applications that replace buses serving low-income, rural, and Tribal
students. Large school districts with communities of concentrated poverty may
also submit documentation to be prioritized if their application focuses on
clean school buses serving those communities.
The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to investing federal dollars in a
way that drives high-quality job creation and inclusive economic growth in the
clean energy economy. It’s a priority for EPA that school districts prepare
for how to support their workers, including bus drivers, mechanics, and other
essential personnel, to safely operate and maintain the new buses and maintain
high labor standards. As a result, workforce training is an eligible use of
program funds, and EPA strongly encourages school districts to develop
comprehensive workforce plans in partnership with their employees to help them
prepare for the transition to clean school buses.
EPA is working closely with the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation
(JOET) of the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Transportation
to provide school districts with support as they plan for and implement adding
electric school buses to their fleets. Clean School Bus Program applicants and
selectees can receive free technical assistance from JOET through resources
such as one-on-one meetings and public webinars. The EPA and JOET are also
able to connect school districts with local utility providers to assist them
in the infrastructure planning necessary for projects including
battery-electric school buses.
Proactive and ongoing communication with key stakeholders such as school
boards and local utilities is critical to successful bus and infrastructure
deployment. This rebate cycle incorporates a number of best practices to
ensure that these key stakeholders are engaged and coordinating effectively.
More information regarding required application materials are available in the
Program Guide on the Clean School Bus Rebate Program webpage.
EPA is accepting rebate applications from Sept. 26 until Jan. 9, 2025.
EPA Clean School Bus Program Overview
EPA’s Clean School Bus Program was created by President Biden’s Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law, which provides an unprecedented $5 billion of funding to
transform the nation’s fleet of school buses. The Clean School Bus Program
funds zero and low-emission buses, including electric, propane, and compressed
natural gas (CNG) buses that produce lower tailpipe emissions compared to that
of their older diesel predecessors. 
Diesel air pollution is linked to asthma and other public health problems that
cause serious health concerns and missed days of school, with outsized impacts
in overburdened communities. New zero-emission and clean buses will not only
reduce air pollution and help address the outsized role of the transportation
sector on climate change, but will also produce cleaner air for students, bus
drivers, school staff working near bus loading areas, and people living in
communities that buses drive through each day. Over the lifespan of the
vehicles, clean school buses can also cost less to maintain and fuel than the
older buses they are replacing – freeing up needed resources for schools.
EPA’s Clean School Bus Program is now responsible for over two-thirds of the
committed electric school buses across the country, and each of these clean
buses provide immediate public health and educational benefits as soon as the
new buses hit the road. This funding, along with help from states and others,
is helping transform the school bus market.
School districts will proceed with purchasing and deploying their new buses in
a time frame that best suits their unique situation, including factors like
the number of new buses they’re deploying, need for utility upgrades, and
familiarity with new bus technologies. As the project period comes to a close
for the first funding opportunity, the 2022 CSB Rebates, EPA anticipates that
many of the first wave of these zero-emission and clean school buses will be
in service for the 2024-2025 school year, while many buses funded under
subsequent funding opportunities, such as the 2023 CSB Rebates, will be in
service for the 2025-2026 school year.
To learn more about the EPA Clean School Bus Program, visit the Clean School
Bus Program webpage. Questions and feedback may be directed to
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