The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act President Biden is expected to sign on Monday includes Senator Murray’s Clean School Bus Act to begin electrifying nation’s school bus fleet
Thanks to Senator Murray’s push to include the provisions, the bipartisan infrastructure bill will deliver thousands of electric school buses nationwide, helping school districts across the country buy clean, American-made, zero emission buses
ICYMI: Senator Murray Holds Roundtable on Electrifying Nation’s School Buses to Protect Children’s Health – MORE HERE
(Washington, D.C.) – In case you missed it, the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which President Biden is expected to sign into law on Monday, includes Senator Murray’s Clean School Bus Act to start electrifying our nation’s school bus fleet, investing $5 billion in zero emission and clean buses. As chair of the Senate Education Committee, Senator Murray also secured provisions in the legislation to prioritize funding for clean electric school buses to communities that are often hardest hit by pollution.
Traditional diesel school buses get our kids to and from school, but they are also a significant source of pollution. The bipartisan infrastructure bill includes provisions from Senator Murray’s Clean School Bus Act, which will deliver thousands of electric school buses nationwide, including in rural communities, helping school districts across the country buy clean, American-made, zero emission buses, and replace the yellow school bus fleet for America’s children by investing $5 billion in zero emission and clean buses. Senator Murray introduced the bill in February of this year.
These investments will drive demand for American-made batteries and vehicles, creating jobs and supporting domestic manufacturing, while also removing diesel buses from some of our most vulnerable communities. In addition, they will help the more than 25 million children and thousands of bus drivers who breathe polluted air on their rides to and from school. Diesel air pollution is linked to asthma and other health problems that hurt our communities and cause students to miss school, particularly in communities of color and Tribal communities—in her role as Senate Education Committee Chair, Senator Murray fought to secure key provisions to ensure the bill will prioritize funding for communities with high percentages of students from families with low incomes.
The Clean School Bus Act was supported in 2019 by American Lung Association, California Association of School Transportation Officials, Chispa – Clean Buses for Healthy Niños, Environmental Law & Policy Center, Green for All, Hispanic Access Foundation, League of Conservation Voters, National Resources Defense Council, San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, South Coast Air Quality Management District, and U.S. Public Interest Research Group. This year it is also supported by the Environmental Defense Fund and the BlueGreen Alliance.
See recent coverage of Senator Murray’s Clean School Bus Act from the past year below:
The Columbian: Sen. Murray’s push for electric school buses highlights Vancouver example
Sen. Patty Murray is spreading the word about her plan to electrify the nation’s fleet of public school buses by highlighting one example already out for a test-drive in Clark County… “As we invest in clean energy, we want to ensure equity and environmental justice are a central part of our efforts,” Murray said. “This legislation is good for the health of our students, for the economy and for our climate, and really it’s long overdue.”
Seattle Times: What’s Washington state’s cut of the Senate’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill?
The legislation includes two measures sponsored by Murray, a Clean School Bus Act that would provide federal grants to help shift the nation’s school bus fleet from diesel to electric, and a $2.75 billion provision to provide grants to state and local communities to improve internet access. “This bill represents a historic, generational investment in our infrastructure — it will be the single largest investment in bridge repair since we built the interstate highway systems and the largest investment in public transit and clean-energy transmission in history,” said Murray, who chairs the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
AP: Amid air quality concerns, districts embrace electric buses
The nearly $1 trillion infrastructure bill includes $5 billion for electric and hybrid school buses. Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, a former preschool teacher who chairs the Senate Committee on Health, Education Labor & Pensions, and other advocates want $5 billion more for electric school buses in President Joe Biden’s $3.5 trillion rebuilding plan.