Thursday, March 20, 2025
The New York State Assembly introduced a bill that would allow local school districts to opt out of a new state law mandating the transition to electric school buses. Lawmakers argue that the measure, which requires districts to replace diesel buses with zero-emission models, presents significant energy and cost-related challenges.
“School districts across New York have raised serious concerns about the financial burden of the mandated transition to electric school buses,” said Assemblyman Ed Ra in a statement. Ra represents the 19th district, including West Hempstead. “The cost of purchasing these buses—along with the necessary charging infrastructure—is simply unsustainable for many districts, including those in Nassau County.”
At a news conference on Jan. 28, the proposed Assembly and Senate bills were introduced. If passed, they would give school districts the option to apply for a waiver from the state’s commissioner of education, allowing them to bypass certain zero-emission bus requirements.
“I support giving school districts the flexibility to make decisions based on their financial and logistical realities rather than imposing a one-size-fits-all state mandate,” said Ra. “This legislation is a pragmatic step toward recognizing the challenges schools face and providing them with a much-needed opt-out option.”
Under current law, starting in 2027, school districts in New York will be required to purchase electric school buses to replace traditional diesel models. The state offers transportation aid as partial reimbursement for bus purchases, but the new measure has raised concerns about its affordability.
“Even though the Environmental Bond Act offers both public school districts and contracted fleet operators over $500 million in funding toward school bus electrification, this is not nearly enough to fund this transition,” said Assemblywoman Judy Griffin, who represents Malverne and the rest of the 21st district, in a statement. She expressed her concerns that the additional costs of this “well-intentioned” mandate would fall to local taxpayers. “School districts must be assured that state and federal resources will be provided to help school districts efficiently and cost-effectively comply with the timeline.”
A group of Republican state senators sent a letter to Gov. Kathy Hochul, expressing concerns over the high costs of electric buses. The U.S. Department of Energy reports that the average new electric school bus costs approximately $400,000, compared to about $130,000 for traditional diesel buses.
Hochul defended the initiative in a statement. “It is not enough to encourage New Yorkers to buy electric — we must build green infrastructure that will drive New Yorkers to choose cleaner and greener modes of transportation.”
The push for electric school buses is part of New York’s broader environmental goal of reaching 850,000 zero-emission vehicles by 2025, with plans for all new passenger vehicles to be electric by 2035. Critics of the mandate argue that electric buses cost two to four times more than traditional buses.
One analysis estimated that it could cost between $8 billion and $15.25 billion for school districts to transition their fleets from gas-powered to electric buses. Though these estimates do not include the costs of infrastructure and facility upgrades that would be needed to support these buses.
“I believe the timeline to transition to zero-emissions school buses needs to be reevaluated,” said Griffin. She expressed her concerns about the existing increased costs of transportation school districts face and is open to alternative ideas for funding this transition, along with other transportation related costs. “I don’t believe that the measure to permit districts to simply opt out of the zero-emission bus transition meets the moment.”
Additional reporting contributed by Madison Gusler.
