Time to pump the brakes on electric school bus mandate
Buried within the 2022 NYS Budget’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) is the requirement that every school bus purchase in districts across the state must be an electric, zero-emission vehicle beginning in 2027. This requirement by the state necessitates entire fleets of school buses to be all electric by 2035, setting an incredibly unrealistic goal.
On top of the countless other costs of living in New York, over the next few years Democrats in Albany are making taxpayers pick up the tab for replacing almost 45,000 diesel buses currently in rotation (according to estimates from the Empire Center). These buses would be swapped out by those costing almost 3 times as much, with the average EV bus costing about $400,000 each. The totals of this mandate are estimated to be between $8 and $15.25 billion. These extraordinary costs are enough to make anyone upset, even without considering the countless other problems these buses pose. From weather-related obstacles, reliability, and maintenance issues to the unfeasible burden on the energy grid. Why are we using our students as a test case for the lofty environmental goals of the state?
The state has not done anything to consider the countless issues school districts will face with an electric fleet, including the concerns raised by energy providers and school administrators regarding the grid expenses, and infrastructure costs needed to make this transition possible. Though some help does exist for schools through tax credits and other programs to allow for the purchase of these buses, the state is falling short of its responsibility and commitment to students.
At Shenendehowa Central School District, simply bringing enough power to the campus to charge an EV fleet is projected to cost over $30 million for a substation. This does not account for additional infrastructure costs such as electric chargers, which have a useful life of approximately 8 years each, and more robust bus lifts to work on these significantly heavier buses, just to name a few.
School districts, including some of those within the Capital Region that have taken actions to get ahead of the mandate by purchasing electric buses now are a testament to how disastrous this mandate will be. These districts have faced problems with maintenance, safety concerns, storage difficulties, overheating batteries and a comparatively limited mileage range to conventional diesel fleets. In addition, the amount of training required for driving these vehicles combined with the bus driver shortage already in existence will make finding drivers a nightmare. Many districts, especially rural ones, could have issues offering reliable transportation due to the distance of their routes, and the rural landscape they traverse. Other concerns involve the fluctuating cold temperatures which significantly decrease the range (particularly if the inside of the bus is heated for students’ comfort).
The safety of our children should be a top priority, but unfortunately, some policy makers are willing to gamble that, by overlooking unresolved safety issues such as electric vehicle fires involving lithium-ion batteries, which require more resources and training for fire departments to extinguish than in traditional vehicles. At a press conference held on February 12th, one 30-year veteran bus mechanic expressed concerns that should an EV bus ignite, evacuating kids, especially students who are wheelchair-bound, could yield tragic results.
The hypocrisy is clear in Albany’s push to electrify buses, as the rest of the state’s fleet of vehicles is on a much slower timetable than what has been forced upon school districts.
The state isn’t required to electrify its heavy-duty vehicles until 2040, thirteen years after schools. This appalling double standard demonstrates just one more “do as I say, not as I do” approach to governing.
I am proud to partner with my colleagues in the Assembly by co-sponsoring Assembly Bill A.8447 (Palmesano) that would delay the school bus requirement until 2045 or until all other state agencies have transitioned their fleets. This legislation would also reverse the 2035 zero-emission fleet requirement completely and direct the commissioner of the New York State Education Department to complete a cost-benefit analysis for each school district in relation to compliance with the zero-emission school bus mandate. The legislature commissions a number of studies each year, some with questionable benefit; however, this study on EV school buses is critically important to provide a reality check on this environmental mandate.
The mandate on electric buses completely disregards the exorbitant expenses and rushed timeline for school districts. I am in no way opposed to clean energy efforts, but common sense must prevail as part of the equation. Our students and school taxpayers deserve nothing less.