The EPA’s Diesel Emissions and Reduction Act awarded over $15 million in school bus replacement funding throughout the United States in 2021. The most recent round of rebates awarded $1.53 million across multiple school districts in Virginia to support the transition to propane and battery-electric school buses. Of those funds, $900,000 has been awarded to Petersburg City Public Schools for Electric School Buses. Here are the awarded districts in Virginia.
Newport News Public Schools – $250,000
Loudoun County Public Schools – $200,000
Culpeper County Public Schools – $80,000
Carroll County Public Schools – $100,000
Petersburg City Public Schools – $900,000
The Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) of 2010 allows the EPA to offer rebates in addition to grants to reduce harmful emissions from older, dirtier diesel vehicles. The rebate program has funded vehicle replacements or retrofits for over 2,000 vehicles. Typically, the rebate application period opens in the fall, and projects are completed in less than one year. Keep an eye out for the next round of EPA DERA rebates expected in the fall, and also look out for EPA’s Clean School Bus Program, expected to announce the details for its first round of funding in April 2022.
VCC also has an exciting opportunity for school districts to experience these vehicles first-hand through our Mid-Atlantic Electric School Bus Experience Project (MEEP).
With over 25 million U.S. children relying on school bus transportation to get to school, these rebates help pave the way towards achieving cleaner air and lowering harmful diesel bus emissions.
