Members of the Alliance for Electric School Buses Applaud Bipartisan Federal Legislation to Reauthorize the Successful & Popular Clean School Bus Program

A group of lawmakers in the House has introduced a bipartisan bill to extend the EPA's Clean School Bus Program for another five years, through 2031. The program, created by the 2021 infrastructure law, was originally funded at $5 billion through 2026 and pays for replacing diesel school buses with electric or other low-emission models. So far it has awarded $2.6 billion to more than 1,100 school districts in 49 states, funding over 8,000 new buses. School districts have asked for far more than the program has been able to give out, requesting $7.7 billion in total.

This isn't a program homeowners apply to directly, but it affects local school districts, which many homeowners help fund through property taxes. A group of environmental and advocacy organizations, including the Sierra Club and Moms Clean Air Force, praised the bill, arguing electric buses cut diesel pollution that can trigger asthma and harm child development, especially in communities already dealing with heavy pollution. They also pointed to lower operating costs for districts and a technology called vehicle-to-grid, which lets parked electric buses send stored power back into the electric grid, potentially helping stabilize grid costs for everyone connected to it.

The bill would need to pass Congress before becoming law. For now, it's a proposal to keep federal money flowing to school districts that want to switch their bus fleets away from diesel, not a new rebate or incentive aimed at individual households.