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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2023 - 2024
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | June 6, 2023 10:58 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Brandon J. Markosek |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Transitioning to Electric School Buses |
| The United States Environmental Protection Agency currently has a Clean School Bus Program to help assist school districts across the country obtain new electric school buses (ESBs). However, this program does not address many of the additional costs that come with purchasing ESBs, such as charging stations and additional infrastructure. As such, school districts face significant barriers when attempting to use this program to transition their bus fleet to electric alternatives. The upfront costs of charging infrastructure and bus replacement costs make it difficult for school districts to afford the switch, one that could save them in the long run. ESBs not only have much lower costs of ownership compared to diesel buses, offering opportunities to save money on fuel and maintenance costs over the life of the vehicle, but protect their occupants from the harmful air pollutants that come with diesel exhaust. To address this issue, I will be introducing legislation to ensure that Pennsylvania school districts are well-positioned to make a transition to ESBs. This legislation will create an ESB-specific grant program, administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, to provide technical assistance and grants for school districts to off-set the costs of depot and facility upgrades, charging infrastructure, costs associated with staff training, and grant writing costs. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important legislation to aid school districts in making the transition from outdated diesel buses to ESBs. |
Introduced as HB1542