The new state budget gives authority to the State Education Department Commissioner to give a 4-year delay of the mandated electrification of all school buses to some school districts. But, only districts that can demonstrate a need for a delay will be granted an exemption and not forever.
The existing law regarding the mandate for electrification of school buses requires that districts and providers stop buying new diesel buses by 2027 and stop using all diesel buses by 2035.
JP O’Hare, Communications Director for the State Department of Education told South Shore Press, “The enacted State Budget for 2025–26 includes important updates to the state’s Zero Emission Busing mandate — a policy originally championed by the Governor. The New York State Education Department (NYSED), which has been tasked with implementing the mandate, continues to engage with school districts across the state, listening to their concerns and advocating for practical solutions.”
Districts and transportation providers across the state have expressed deep concerns about this mandate for issues related to expense, reliability in winter and rural areas, electric capacity, and lack of infrastructure for charging. Fire departments have even weighed in with concerns about fire hazards and difficulty extinguishing EV fires and large charging bays.
The law now allows for up to two 2-year waivers that districts can apply for if they are unable to meet the mandate on the original timeline.
“The first waiver must consider factors such as the availability of zero-emission buses and the infrastructure to support them, the availability of state or federal funding to offset local costs, operational changes required by the district, employee training, and whether the district has received technical assistance’” said O’Hare. “NYSED will report why a waiver was approved and will notify NYSERDA once a district receives one.”
Assemblyman Mike Fitzpatrick (R-Smithtown) says, “When it comes to this whole issue of electric vehicles, especially the school bus mandate, all of the discussion and analysis and conversation that I've been a part of this, one quote sticks out and it's this, you can't force technology before it has matured.”
“I repeat that everywhere I go because what is happening with our Democrat friends, who follow this as a religion, is that they are blind and indifferent to the cost of these policies and mandates, to the disruption and to the safety issues involved. They just think let's pass the mandate and we'll work out the details later. And, it's much more complicated than that,” continued Fitzpatrick.
“Thank you for the reprieve, but it’s not enough,” said Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano (R,C-Medford). “This is just another unfunded mandate put on the taxpayers by Albany that will siphon even more money from the hard working people of this state. Forced school bus electrification should be immediately repealed.”
To qualify for a second waiver, a district must have worked with NYSERDA to develop a Fleet Electrification Plan. NYSERDA will then inform NYSED in writing whether it supports the waiver request. If NYSERDA concludes that a waiver is unnecessary, none will be granted. NYSED will publish full waiver application guidelines and eligibility criteria by December 31, 2025.