Alliance Claims Victory in
Clean School Bus Lobbying Effort

Press Release
Cleanschoolbus.org Alliance
August 15, 2005

WASHINGTON D.C.) In a major victory years in the making, the National Clean School Bus Grant Program was signed into law not once but twice as part of both the Transportation and Energy bills.  The bills would both fund a school bus retrofit and replacement program to the tune of $55 million per year (a major difference from the $7 million recently appropriated for the EPA's current Clean School Bus USA grant program). There were some slight differences in the two bills, most notably that the Transportation version allows money to be spent on biodiesel and other so-called alternative fuels. Due to the timing of the President's signing of these bills, it will be the Transportation version that will become the operating legal language.  Click here for the full text of that language .

So, for the first time, the EPA will now have a fully authorized program that we hope will make it easier in the future to get the program fully funded and the money directed to those school districts most in need of assistance. 

Next year comes the other half of the battle.  We must ensure that the $55 million authorized for Fiscal Year 2007 is actually appropriated so that the full benefit of this program can be realized. 

But, for now, we should all give ourselves a tremendous pat on the back for the culmination of years of hard work, education, and advocacy on the federal, state, and local level.  Together, we were able to elevate this issue into the non-partisan children's health priority it needed to be in order to become law.  This is a tremendous accomplishment that we all had a part in.

Update: Just a quick note that we have generated over 13,500 messages into state pupil transportation directors all over the country asking them to participate in this year's school bus grant cycle.  We have heard that applications have been robust thus far, and will fill you in on the details as soon as EPA is forthcoming with that information.