Regular Session 2023-2024 House Bill 1542 P.N. 1794

PRINTER'S NO. 1794

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1542

Session of

2023

INTRODUCED BY MARKOSEK, MADDEN, HILL-EVANS, KENYATTA, BRENNAN,

MALAGARI, SCHLOSSBERG, KAZEEM, SANCHEZ, HOHENSTEIN, MERSKI,

STEELE, KRAJEWSKI AND GREEN, JUNE 29, 2023

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, JUNE 29, 2023

AN ACT

Establishing the Electric School Bus Grant Program and the

Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund; providing for duties

of the Department of Education; and making an appropriation.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Electric

School Bus Grant Program Act.

Section 2. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Charging infrastructure." A facility or equipment that is

used to charge a battery or other energy storage device of a

vehicle that is fully or partially powered by electricity.

"Department." The Department of Education of the

Commonwealth.

"Disproportionately impacted community." Any of the

following:

(1) A community that is in a census block group, as

determined in accordance with the most recent Federal

decennial census, where:

(i) the proportion of households that are low income

is more than 40%;

(ii) the proportion of households that identify as

minority is more than 40%; or

(iii) the proportion of households that are cost-

burdened is more than 40%.

(2) A community identified or approved by a State agency

as a disproportionately impacted community if any of the

following apply:

(i) The community has a history of environmental

racism perpetuated through redlining, anti-Indigenous,

anti-immigrant, anti-Hispanic or anti-Black laws.

(ii) The community is impacted by multiple factors,

including socioeconomic stressors, disproportionate

environmental burdens, vulnerability to environmental

degradation and a lack of public participation, which may

act cumulatively to affect the health and environment and

contribute to persistent disparities.

"Electric-powered school bus." A school bus that is powered

solely by electricity.

"Fund." The Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund

established under section 6(a).

"Grantee." A recipient of a grant under the program.

"Internal combustion engine school bus." A school bus

"Nonattainment area." An area of this Commonwealth that has

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been designated by the Environmental Protection Agency as being

in nonattainment with national ambient air quality standards.

"Program." The Electric School Bus Grant Program established

under section 3(a).

"School bus." A school bus as defined in 75 Pa.C.S. § 102

(relating to definitions).

"School entity." A public school, including a charter school

or cyber charter school, intermediate unit or area career and

technical school operating within this Commonwealth.

"Secretary." The Secretary of Education of the Commonwealth.

Section 3. Electric School Bus Grant Program.

(a) Establishment.--The Electric School Bus Grant Program is

established within the department. The department shall award

grants under the program to a school entity or a contracted

nonprofit organization or private entity acting on behalf of the

school entity to finance the following:

(1) The procurement and maintenance of electric-powered

school buses, the conversion of internal combustion engine

school buses to electric-powered school buses, charging

infrastructure and electrical upgrades on each customer's

side of the meter as necessary to support charging

infrastructure.

(2) The administrative costs associated with the

procurements, conversions, maintenance or retirements

specified under paragraph (1), including up-front

administrative costs associated with developing and

implementing a proposal for the procurements, conversions or

maintenance.

(b) Duties.--The department shall administer the program,

including providing the necessary technical assistance for the

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program. The department may provide no more than the equivalent

of one-half of a full-time employee of the department to provide

technical assistance to a school entity regarding applying for a

grant under the program and implementing a project with the

awarded grant money.

application process for a school entity or a contracted

nonprofit organization or private entity acting on behalf of the

school entity to apply for a grant under the program. The

department shall post information about the program application

process, including an application form that the department

develops for the program, on the department's publicly

accessible Internet website.

Section 4. Criteria for awarding grants under program.

(a) Criteria.--The department shall develop criteria for

awarding grants under the program, which shall include all of

the following:

(1) Giving priority to a school entity:

(i) located in or attended by students living in a

disproportionately impacted community;

(ii) located in a nonattainment area;

(iii) where at least a certain percentage of

students, as determined by the department, receive free

or reduced-price lunches under the National School Lunch

Program; or

(iv) that retires or converts at least a certain

percentage, as determined by the department, of the

grantee's internal combustion engine school buses or

retire or convert the grantee's internal combustion

engine school buses in a certain manner.

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(2) Periodic reporting requirements for a grantee to

demonstrate that the grant money awarded under the program is

being used in accordance with this act.

(3) Procedures for addressing a grantee's noncompliance

with this act, including procedures for the reimbursement of

grant money awarded under the program.

(b) Limitation.--The department shall limit the amount of a

grant awarded under the program to a school entity as necessary

to achieve cost parity between the costs associated with the

school entity's existing internal combustion engine school buses

and costs associated with the procurements, conversions,

maintenance, retirements and administrative costs specified

under section 3.

Section 5. Contract terms for transportation services.

(a) Transportation services.--If a contract for the

furnishing of transportation of students to and from a school

entity is executed by the school entity on or after the

effective date of this subsection, the contract shall be made

for a term not to exceed 15 years. The contract shall be

renewable at the option of the school entity and the party

contracted to provide transportation services, jointly, at the

end of the term of the contract. The renewed contract shall

include all of the terms and conditions of the previous

contract, including any provisions increasing rates based on

increased costs.

(b) School bus leases.--

(1) Except as provided under paragraph (2), if a

contract is executed by a school entity for the lease or

rental of a school bus on or after the effective date of this

subsection, the contract shall be made for a term not to

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exceed 15 years.

(2) If the contract under paragraph (1) provides that

the school entity may exercise an option to purchase the

school bus or cancel the lease or rental at the end of each

annual period during the period of the contract, the contract

may be made for a term not to exceed 20 years.

law, nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a

contract specified under subsection (a) or (b) from being

negotiated annually within the contract period when economic

factors indicate negotiation is necessary to maintain an

equitable pricing structure, subject to the approval of each

contracting party.

(d) Compliance.--Any rental, lease or lease-purchase of a

school bus shall comply with any other applicable laws of this

Commonwealth.

Section 6. Electric School Bus Grant Program Fund.

(a) Establishment.--The Electric School Bus Grant Program

Fund is established within the State Treasury. The department

shall administer the fund for the purposes of this act. The fund

consists of money transferred or appropriated to the fund for

implementation of the program and available money from Federal

sources and gifts, grants and donations received under

subsection (b).

(b) Sources.--

(1) The fund shall consist of money appropriated to the

fund by the General Assembly.

(2) The department may seek, accept and receive money

from Federal sources and gifts, grants and donations from

public and private entities for deposit into the fund. The

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department shall transmit money received under this paragraph

to the State Treasurer, who shall deposit the money into the

fund.

continuing basis to the department for the purposes of this act.

The State Treasurer shall credit all interest and income derived

from the deposit and investment of money in the fund to the

fund. Unexpended and unencumbered money remaining in the fund at

the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse.

(d) Direct or indirect costs.--The department may use up to

8% of the money in the fund to cover the direct and indirect

costs the department incurs in administering the program.

(e) Technical assistance.--The department shall reserve a

portion of the money in the fund to provide ongoing technical

assistance to a school district to seize available Federal funds

and understand fleet transition considerations for the school

district's specific situation.

Section 7. Contracted nonprofit organizations or private

entities.

In order to expediently process contracts for the provision

of transportation services funded by a grant awarded under the

program, a school entity may select a preapproved contracted

nonprofit organization or private entity that meets all of the

following criteria:

(1) The nonprofit organization or private entity

provides any of the following:

(i) An electric school bus.

(ii) An electric school bus charging infrastructure.

(iii) Charging and charging management services.

(iv) Electric school bus services.

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(2) The nonprofit organization or private entity has

sought and received approval from the secretary to provide

any of the products or services listed under paragraph (1).

Section 8. Reports.

(a) Submission.--On or before January 1, 2025, and on or

before January 1 of each odd-numbered year thereafter, the

department shall prepare a report summarizing the progress of

the program and submit the report to the following:

(1) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Education Committee of the Senate.

(2) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Education Committee of the House of Representatives.

(3) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Environmental Resources and Energy Committee of the Senate.

(4) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Environmental Resources and Energy Committee of the House of

Representatives.

(5) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Transportation Committee of the Senate.

(6) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Transportation Committee of the House of Representatives.

(b) Accessibility.--The department shall post a copy of each

report under subsection (a) on the department's publicly

accessible Internet website.

Section 9. Effective date.

This act shall take effect in 60 days.

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