Pupil transportation: schoolbuses: zero-emission vehicles: scrapping.

Budget Education

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Soria
Last action: 2025-08-29
Official status: In committee: Held under submission.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

It is unclear what conditions must be met by small school districts to request yearly extensions.

School Bus Zero-Emission Vehicle Rules

This law allows schools to delay buying zero-emission buses if there isn't enough support like charging stations or repair services available, and it lets older school buses be sold instead of scrapped under certain conditions.

What This Bill Does

Allows local educational agencies to ask for more time to buy zero-emission schoolbuses if there isn't enough support like charging stations or repair services available.
Permits small school districts and frontier areas to request yearly delays in buying zero-emission buses until 2045, under certain conditions.
Exempts older schoolbuses from being scrapped when they are replaced with new zero-emission ones if the old bus is sold to another eligible agency.

Who It Names or Affects

Local educational agencies that need to buy or replace schoolbuses.
School districts, especially small and frontier areas, seeking extensions for buying zero-emission buses.
Older schoolbuses that might be transferred instead of scrapped when replaced with new ones.

Terms To Know

zero-emission vehicles: Vehicles that do not produce any exhaust emissions, such as electric or hydrogen fuel cell buses.
frontier local educational agency: A school district located in a remote area with unique challenges like difficult terrain and long routes.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify how much funding will be available for buying zero-emission buses.
It is unclear what conditions must be met by small school districts to request yearly extensions.
Details about the requirements for transferring older schoolbuses are not fully explained.

Bill History

2025-08-29 California Legislative Information
In committee: Held under submission.
2025-08-18 California Legislative Information
In committee: Referred to suspense file.
2025-07-22 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-07-22 California Legislative Information
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (July 16).
2025-07-02 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on E.Q. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (July 2). Re-referred to Com. on E.Q.
2025-06-18 California Legislative Information
Referred to Coms. on ED. and E.Q.
2025-06-04 California Legislative Information
In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
2025-06-03 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 73. Noes 0. Page 1986.)
2025-05-27 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-05-23 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (May 23).
2025-05-14 California Legislative Information
In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
2025-05-01 California Legislative Information
Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-04-30 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended.
2025-04-29 California Legislative Information
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (April 28).
2025-04-22 California Legislative Information
Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.
2025-04-21 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended.
2025-04-16 California Legislative Information
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
2025-04-10 California Legislative Information
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on TRANS. (Ayes 8. Noes 1.) (April 9).
2025-04-01 California Legislative Information
Re-referred to Com. on ED.
2025-03-28 California Legislative Information
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.
2025-03-28 California Legislative Information
Referred to Coms. on ED. and TRANS.
2025-02-21 California Legislative Information
From printer. May be heard in committee March 23.
2025-02-20 California Legislative Information
Read first time. To print.

Official Summary Text

AB 1111, as amended, Soria.
Pupil transportation: schoolbuses: zero-emission vehicles:
extensions:
scrapping.
(1)
Existing law authorizes state funds, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to be distributed to the Superintendent of Public Instruction for distribution to certain local educational agencies for the purchase of low- or zero-emission schoolbuses that replace, or increase the number of, schoolbuses in the existing schoolbus fleet or for retrofitting existing schoolbuses to achieve reductions in emissions, as specified.
Existing law, commencing January 1, 2035, requires 100% of all newly purchased or contracted schoolbuses of a school district, county office of education, or charter school to be zero-emission vehicles, where feasible. In order to comply with that requirement, existing law authorizes those local educational agencies to request a one-time extension for a term not to exceed 5 years if a local educational
agency determines that the purchase or contracting of a zero-emission schoolbus is not feasible due to both terrain and route constraints, provided that certain conditions are met. Existing law, commencing January 1, 2040, authorizes a frontier local educational agency, as defined, if it determines that the purchase or contracting of a zero-emission schoolbus is not feasible due to both terrain and route constraints, to request annual extensions with the last extension expiring on January 1, 2045, if specified conditions are met.
This bill would authorize a local educational agency to also use the lack of sufficient infrastructure that is necessary to support the operation of a zero-emission schoolbus, or a lack of availability of sufficient repair and maintenance that is necessary to support the operation of a zero-emission schoolbus, as reasons to determine that the purchase or contracting of a zero-emission schoolbus is not feasible, thereby allowing the local educational agency to request the extensions described above. Commencing January 1, 2040, the bill would also authorize a small school district, as defined, to request the above-described annual extensions that are applicable to frontier local educational agencies.
(2)
Existing
Existing
law appropriates, for the 2023–24 fiscal year, $375,000,000 from the General Fund to the State Air Resources Board for the California Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP) to fund grants to local educational agencies, as defined, for zero-emission schoolbuses to replace heavy-duty internal combustion schoolbuses owned by local educational agencies, as specified. Existing law requires any schoolbuses that are replaced pursuant to the HVIP to be scrapped no later than 24 months from date of delivery of the replacement.
Existing law requires grantees to provide to the state board proof of scrap of the retired internal combustion schoolbus or schoolbuses.
This bill would
exclude a schoolbus from that scrapping requirement if the schoolbus is 25 years of age or less at the time of delivery of the replacement vehicle and its ownership is transferred to a frontier local educational agency
or small school district
meeting certain requirements.

Current Bill Text

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