Republicans pushing to make New York’s electric school bus mandate optional

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — New developments in the state legislature could impact the future of electric school buses in New York. Republican lawmakers are advocating for a bill that would allow school districts to opt out of the upcoming electric school bus mandate.

The proposed mandate requires all school districts to cease purchasing diesel buses by 2027 and completely phase them out by 2035. However, Republican legislators argue that the mandate is unrealistic.

“This school bus mandate was passed in the budget with no cost analysis given, no feasibility study given, no safety analysis, and no ensuring that it’s sourced with US parts,” said Assemblyman Phil Palmesano.

Locally, districts like Greece are collaborating with utility companies to ensure that the power grid can support a fleet of electric buses.

News10NBC has been following the developments on the plan for electric school bus fleets for months. Our Jennifer Lewke investigated as many districts faced challenged determining if there is enough power on the grid locally to sustain the switch. 

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