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School Bus Retrofit and Replacement Account

Intent or Criteria: Proposition 1B, which was approved by the voters on November 7th, 2006, enacts the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006. This bond act authorizes $200 million for replacing and retrofitting school buses. Funds shall be available upon appropriation by the Legislature for the Lower-Emission School Bus Program to fund replacement school buses and retrofit devices thereby reducing air pollution and reducing children's exposure to diesel exhaust.

Guidelines: Program Guidelines for fiscal year 2007-2008 were adopted by the Air Resources Board (ARB) on March 27, 2008.

Project List: Funds have been awarded to local air districts to replace or retrofit school buses per Health & Safety Code section 44299.91.

Program Status: The Air Resources Board has received all installments of bond funds for the Lower-Emission School Bus Program (Program), which brings the Program to 100 percent of its projected funding of approximately $196 million.

Administrative Agency : California Environmental Protection Agency/Air Resources Board

Recipient Agencies: Local air districts and the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA).

Accountability Plan: The three-part accountability structure for this Program, required by Executive Order S-02-07, was approved by the Department of Finance on February 27, 2008.

Report to the California Legislature

2011 Consolidated Annual Report on Implementing the Proposition 1B: Goods Movement Emission Reduction Program and Lower-Emission School Bus Program (PDF - 723 KB)

Reports to the Department of Finance

The Air Resources Board is required by Senate Bill 88, the legislation that enables Proposition 1B, to report to the Department of Finance on a semi-annual basis the activities and progress made toward implementation of the Lower-Emission School Bus Program.

Current Activities

Proposition 1B Funds Transfer

Senate Bill 1018 allows Proposition 1B funds to be transferred on or before January 1, 2013, to another local air district that demonstrates an ability to expend the funds by January 1, 2014. The Air Resources Board has worked with the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association to establish the list of recipient air districts below:

District Transferring Funds District Receiving Funds Total Being Transferred
Butte Shasta $2,423.00
Colusa Shasta $153,360.19
El Dorado Yolo-Solano $2,601.00
Glenn Shasta $12.00
Great Basin San Joaquin $4,264.61
Lassen Tehama $33,795.52
Lassen Amador $52,885.32
Lassen Antelope $55,550.49
Lassen Calaveras $4,700.62
Lassen Northern Sierra $30,470.98
Mendocino Tehama $149,933.35
Modoc Calaveras $4,828.40
Modoc Northern Sierra $75,735.39
Modoc Lake $44,702.47
Modoc Tuolumne $120,240.78
Modoc Mariposa $65,471.98
Placer Yolo-Solano $1,563.00
Siskiyou Shasta $328,041.71
Total $1,130,580.81

Expenditure Deadline for Proposition 1B Funds Extended

Passage of Senate Bill 1018 extends the expenditure deadline for Propositions 1B funds by two years - from June 30, 2012, to June 30, 2014.  See Mail-Out #MSC 12-15 for more information.

Installments of Bond Funding for the Lower-Emission School Bus Program

The Air Resources Board has received all installments of bond funds for the Lower-Emission School Bus Program (Program), which brings the Program to 100 percent of its projected funding of approximately $196 million.

ARB received the first installment of $12 million in bond funding to cover disbursements made to local air districts prior to December 2008.  ARB received the next installment of $71 million in bond funding in May 2009 to purchase replacements of eligible pre-1977 model year school buses, to fund projects covered by signed grant agreements, and fund projects in areas with the largest air quality need.

The third installment consists of $56.7 million of Build America Bond (BAB) funds, and as with the previous BAB funds, there are some constraints that accompany this funding.  These funds do not allow expenditures for contracts for services associated with the maintenance of retrofit devices and do not allow expenditures for administrative costs. The fourth installment of bond funds are non-BAB funds, and these funds may only be used for administrative costs.

Additionally, the Department of Finance has returned for allocation approximately $2.8 million.

The fifth installment consists of almost $44.5 million in bond funds for both administrative and project costs.  The sixth installment of $9.8 million in bond funds are BAB funds, and as with the previous BAB funds, there are some constraints that accompany this funding. These funds do not allow expenditures for contracts for services associated with the maintenance of retrofit devices and do not allow expenditures for administrative costs.

The Allocation of Bond Fund Installments shows how funds are allocated.

Program Review

State law provides ARB with the oversight responsibility and authority to review the local districts’ implementation of Incentive Programs.  Incentive Programs include Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment (Carl Moyer) Program, Lower Emission School Bus Program, and Proposition 1B: Goods Movement Emission Reduction (Goods Movement) Program.  Information on audits and reviews of school bus program funds can be found here

Case-by-Case Determinations

As a resource to air district staff, ARB posts case-by-case determinations for the Lower-Emission School Bus Program.  These decisions are posted to assist air districts in preparing a case-by-case request.

ARB Implementation of the Lower-Emission School Bus Program

The Air Resources Board is acting with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (SJVAPCD) as the implementing agency for 13 local air pollution control and air quality management districts. If your school district, joint powers authority, or private transportation contractor provides transportation to public schools and operates in one of these 13 air districts, then you would apply for funding directly to the SJVAPCD, not your local air district.

SJVAPCD is the implementing agency for the following air districts: Amador, Antelope, Colusa, Feather River, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Mojave, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Siskiyou, and Tehama.

Please see the website for the Lower-Emission School Bus Program at the SJVAPCD.

School districts in other air districts can use the LESBP Contact List for School Districts (pdf - 136 KB) to locate the appropriate contact person.  

Resources:

Contact Information:

Regulatory Items

Truck and Bus, Off-Road, and Drayage Trucks Regulations

Fact Sheet