Extends the date by which school districts must purchase and solely operate and maintain zero-emission school buses; authorizes certain school districts to apply for and be granted an annual one-year extension for compliance with zero-emission school bus requirements until 2045.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9187
SPONSOR: Eachus TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to the purchase and oper-
ation of zero-emission school buses
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Extends the date by which school districts must purchase and solely
operate and maintain zero-emission school buses.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends subdivision 2 of section 3638 of the education law to
change the date after which all new school bus purchases must be zero-
emission from 2027 to 2030.
Section 2: Amends subdivision 3 of section 3638 of the education law to
change the date after which all school buses in operation must be zero-
emission from 2035 to 2040.
Section 3. Adds a new subdivision 4-a to section 3638 of the education
law to add an extension application process for certain small and rural
school districts.
Section 4. Sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
New York has long been recognized as a national leader in advancing bold
climate policy and environmental protection. Many New Yorkers believe in
reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, improving air quality, and the goal
of moving toward cleaner school transportation. At the same time, howev-
er, the current statewide mandate regarding the transition of school
buses presents serious logistical, operational, and financial risks for
many school districts -- particularly rural, geographically large, or
resource-limited districts.
The upfront incremental cost of electric school buses (ESBs) plus the
necessary supporting infrastructure (charging stations, electrical
upgrades, depot modifications) is substantial. According to NYSERDA's
September 2023 Roadmap, "
the estimated incremental cost to transition
approximately 3,000 vehicles to electric school buses (including associ-
ated chargers) by 2027 is roughly $780 million." Those 3,000 vehicles
would represent just 8% of the state's school bus fleet, meaning the
complete transition would require a drastically larger sum of money.
Many school districts face tight budgets, and the cost difference
between a diesel/gasoline bus purchase plus infrastructure versus an ESB
purchase plus infrastructure remains large. The risk is that districts
must either reduce other educational expenditures, raise taxes, or delay
replacement of aging vehicles.
In addition, a key enabler of the transition is the readiness of charg-
ing infrastructure and the underlying electrical grid capacity at bus
depots. Yet many districts -- particularly in rural or remote regions --
have older facilities or limited grid infrastructure, and may face util-
ity capacity upgrades, long permitting timelines, site preparation, and
unexpected costs. That same 2023 NYSERDA Roadmap notes that "
most
depots across the.State currently lack sufficient electrical capacity to
charge more than a few buses, and many are in areas with limited capaci-
ty." Without a full upgrade of distribution infrastructure -- including
substations, feeder lines and depot service connections -- the risk is
that buses will be unable to reliably charge, costs will escalate, or
districts will face service disruptions.
Another issue is that, although ESB models are improving, range remains
a concern -- especially for districts that cover long distances, have
remote stops, or run extra-duty trips (such as sporting events or field
trips). According to NYSERDA, as of 2023, ranges vary from 75 to 210
miles depending on model and duty-cycle. Cold weather, hilly terrain,
long idling, or extended auxiliary loads (e.g., heating) can further
reduce effective range. In districts where one bus may be expected to
serve multiple trips,'late-run athletics, and inter-district travel, the
"one-size-fits-all" mandate may not reflect operational realities.
A 2023 survey estimated approximately 1,285 electric school buses in 40
states have been delivered or are in operation -- a small fraction of
the more than 450,000 total school buses nationwide. That raises ques-
tions about whether manufacturers and supply chains can scale to meet
the mandate in a compressed timeframe. Having personally spent decades
building solar and electric vehicles with high schoolers, I know that
while electric vehicles have many benefits, there remains limited long-
term field data on heavy-duty electric-bus operation across diverse
climates, duty-cycles and terrain. Before mandating across all
districts, additional operational data - especially in'rural, cold-
weather, high-mileage contexts - would help reduce risk and liability
exposure.
Finally, it is worth noting that while New York was the first U.S.
state to adopt a statewide electric school-bus mandate, many other
states, including California, are proceeding but with more flexible
timelines or pilot programs.
Given the above concerns, it is necessary to modify the mandate timeline
in order to ensure a workable, fiscally responsible, and safe transi-
tion.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9187
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
November 3, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. EACHUS -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the purchase and oper-
ation of zero-emission school buses
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The opening paragraph of paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of
2 section 3638 of the education law, as added by section 1 of subpart A of
3 part B of chapter 56 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
4 No later than July first, two thousand [twenty-seven] thirty, every
5 school district shall:
6 § 2. The opening paragraph of subdivision 3 of section 3638 of the
7 education law, as added by section 1 of subpart A of part B of chapter
8 56 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
9 No later than July first, two thousand [thirty-five] forty, every
10 school district shall:
11 § 3. Section 3638 of the education law is amended by adding a new
12 subdivision 4-a to read as follows:
13 4-a. A school district with an average daily attendance of fewer than
14 six hundred students or fewer than ten residences per square mile may
15 apply annually to the commissioner for a one-year extension to comply
16 with the requirements of subdivisions two and three of this section. The
17 department may grant such one-year extensions annually until the year
18 two thousand forty-five.
19 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14002-01-5
