Relates to exempting school buses from certain regulations on the percentage of zero-emission vehicles in manufacturers' sales fleets

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Steve Rhoads says this is needed

This bill exempts school buses from regulations relating to the percent- age of zero-emission vehicles in manufacturers' sales fleets of medium- duty and heavy-duty vehicles. New York's mandate, which goes into effect in 2027, requires all new school buses purchased in New York to be zero- emission, and that all buses in a school's fleet be fully electric by 2035. This mandate is fiscally irresponsible, unviable, and unrealistic. School districts have expressed concern over their ability to afford this mandate. Not only is the cost of obtaining these zero-emission buses high, but districts are also responsible for paying for the construction and maintenance of the infrastructure required to charge the buses. Schools are already struggling to balance their budgets to offer their students valuable education. Money has been made available to school districts to help them cover the cost of this transition, but it is nowhere near the amount needed. This gap in funding will lead to schools cutting programs to meet this mandate. This requirement forces school districts to choose buses over education, teachers, and students, when schools already have fleets that get the job done. The viability of zero-emission buses is another concern. New York is a regionally diverse state made up of urban, suburban, and rural communi- ties. Rural school districts have expressed concerns that these new school buses will not be able to complete the longer routes they must trek due to the greater distance covered by each district. The new state budget provides a waiver process that would allow districts to extend a four-yearxeXtension on meeting these zero-emission require- ments. Requiring school 8uses to be included in manufacture sales fleets is counterproductive until the technology matches the cost, safety and range needs of school districts.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.