An Act establishing the Electric School Bus Grant Program and the Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund; and imposing duties on the Department of Education.

PRINTER'S NO. 1810
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 1539
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY MADSEN, McANDREW, RIVERA, MADDEN, HILL-EVANS,
GIRAL, RABB, MALAGARI, SANCHEZ AND D. WILLIAMS, JUNE 2, 2025
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, JUNE 3, 2025
AN ACT
Establishing the Electric School Bus Grant Program and the
Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund; and imposing duties
on the Department of Education.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Electric
School Bus Grant Program Act.
Section 2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Charging infrastructure." A facility or equipment that is
used to charge a battery or other energy storage device of a
vehicle that is fully or partially powered by electricity.
"Department." The Department of Education of the
Commonwealth.
"Electric school bus." A school bus that is powered
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exclusively by an electric motor that draws its current from
rechargeable storage batteries that are recharged with
electricity from an electric vehicle charging station.
"Electric vehicle." A vehicle that is exclusively powered by
and refueled by electricity and must be plugged in to charge.
"Eligible applicant." Any of the following:
(1) A school entity.
(2) A nonprofit or for-profit entity that provides
contracted transportation services to a school entity.
"Eligible costs." Any of the following:
(1) Costs related to:
(i) the procurement and maintenance of electric
school buses;
(ii) the conversion of internal combustion engine
buses to electric school buses;
(iii) the procurement or installation of charging
infrastructure and electrical upgrades as necessary to
support charging infrastructure;
(iv) training for personnel on electric school bus
operation and maintenance; or
(v) workforce development initiatives to support
electric school bus deployment.
(2) Administrative costs associated with the
procurement, conversion or maintenance specified under
paragraph (1), including up-front third-party administrative
costs associated with developing and implementing a proposal
for the procurement, conversion or maintenance.
(3) Any other costs approved by the department.
"Fund." The Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund
established under section 5(a).
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"Grantee." A recipient of a grant under the program.
"Internal combustion engine school bus." A school bus
powered by diesel, gasoline, compressed natural gas or propane.
"Nonattainment area." An area of this Commonwealth that has
been designated by the Environmental Protection Agency as being
in nonattainment with national ambient air quality standards.
"Program." The Electric School Bus Grant Program established
under section 3(a).
"School bus." As defined in 75 Pa.C.S. § 102 (relating to
definitions).
"School entity." A public school, including a school
district, an intermediate unit, an area career and technical
school or a chartered school for the education of the deaf or
the blind, operating within this Commonwealth.
Section 3. Electric School Bus Grant Program.
(a) Establishment and purpose.--The Electric School Bus
Grant Program is established within the department to award
grants for eligible costs to eligible applicants on a
competitive basis to the extent that money is appropriated for
this purpose.
(b) Duties.--The department shall:
(1) Administer the program, including providing the
necessary technical assistance for the program to eligible
applicants. Technical assistance includes:
(i) Guidance on grant application preparation and
submission.
(ii) Support for developing long-term cost-effective
fleet transition plans.
(iii) Assistance with identifying appropriate
charging infrastructure solutions.
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(iv) Coordination with utility providers for
infrastructure upgrades.
(v) Training for staff on electric school bus
operations and maintenance.
(vi) Resources to help school entities identify and
leverage additional funding opportunities.
(2) Establish an application process through which the
eligible applicants can apply for grants. The following
apply:
(i) The application process must be designed to be
as streamlined and minimally burdensome as possible for
applicants, while still ensuring that the department
collects the necessary information to evaluate
applications effectively.
(ii) The department shall post information about the
application process, including an application form that
the department develops for the program, on the publicly
accessible Internet website of the department.
(3) Establish guidelines necessary to implement and
administer this act.
(c) Application.--
(1) An eligible applicant shall submit an application on
a form and in a manner as determined by the department.
(2) The application shall require an eligible applicant
that is a nonprofit or a for-profit entity that provides
contracted transportation services to a school entity to
specify with which school entity or entities the
transportation entity will utilize the proposed grant and the
length of the contract currently in effect or anticipated
between the transportation entity and the school entity.
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(d) Audits.--The department may randomly audit and monitor
grantees to ensure the appropriate use of grant money and
compliance with the provisions of this act and department
guidelines established under subsection (b)(3).
Section 4. Award of grants.
(a) Criteria.--The department shall develop criteria for
grantees under the program, which shall give priority to an
eligible applicant that meets any of the following criteria:
(1) Is located in a nonattainment area.
(2) Is receiving a concentrated poverty adjustment under
section 2502.53(c)(1)(iv) of the act of March 10, 1949
(P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949.
(3) Is receiving a sparsity or size adjustment under
section 2502.53(c)(1)(vii) of the Public School Code of 1949.
(4) Retires or converts:
(i) at least a certain percentage, as determined by
the department, of the eligible applicant's internal
combustion engine school buses; or
(ii) the eligible applicant's internal combustion
engine school buses in a certain manner.
(5) Purchases electric school buses that are Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-336, 104 Stat.
327) accessible or equipped with wheelchair lifts, with
additional funding consideration for the increased costs
associated with these accessibility features.
(b) Accountability and compliance.--The department shall:
(1) Require periodic reporting requirements for a
grantee to demonstrate that a grant awarded under the program
is being used in accordance with this act.
(2) Develop procedures for addressing a grantee's
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noncompliance with this act, including procedures for the
reimbursement of a grant awarded under the program.
(c) Limitation.--The department shall limit the amount of a
grant under the program as not to exceed 100% of the difference
between the cost of an internal combustion engine bus and the
total eligible costs for an electric school bus.
(d) Charter school.--A grant received by a school district
under the program shall not be included when calculating the
amount to be paid to a charter school under section 1725.1-A of
the Public School Code of 1949.
(e) Utilization.--If a grant under the program is based on a
priority category listed under subsection (a), the eligible
applicant shall be required to utilize the grant to provide or
upgrade services in the areas specified in the grant
application.
Section 5. Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund.
(a) Establishment.--The Electric School Bus Grant Program
Fund is established within the State Treasury.
(b) Administration.--The department shall administer the
fund for the purposes of this act.
(c) Sources and deposits.--
(1) The fund shall consist of:
(i) Federal money.
(ii) Gifts, grants and donations from public and
private entities.
(iii) Money transferred or appropriated to the fund
by the General Assembly for implementation of the
program.
(2) The department shall transmit money received under
paragraph (1) to the State Treasurer, who shall deposit the
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money into the fund.
(d) Authorization.--The department may seek, accept and
receive money described in subsection (c).
(e) Appropriation.--Money in the fund is appropriated on a
continuing basis to the department for the purposes of this act.
(f) Interest and income.--The State Treasurer shall credit
all interest and income derived from the deposit and investment
of money in the fund to the fund.
(g) Direct or indirect costs.--The department may use up to
8% of the money in the fund to cover the direct and indirect
costs that the department incurs in administering the program.
(h) Technical assistance.--The department shall reserve a
portion of the money in the fund to provide ongoing technical
assistance to school entities, including assistance in obtaining
and utilizing financial resources and understanding fleet
transition considerations.
Section 6. Reports.
(a) Issuance.--On or before January 1, 2026, and on or
before the January 1 of each odd-numbered year thereafter, the
department shall issue a report summarizing the progress of the
program.
(b) Submittal.--Each report under subsection (a) shall be
submitted to:
(1) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Education Committee of the Senate.
(2) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Education Committee of the House of Representatives.
(3) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Environmental Resources and Energy Committee of the Senate.
(4) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
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Energy Committee of the House of Representatives.
(5) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Transportation Committee of the Senate.
(6) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Transportation Committee of the House of Representatives.
(c) Accessibility.--The department shall post a copy of each
report under subsection (a) on the publicly accessible Internet
website of the department.
Section 7. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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