Congressman James E. Clyburn announced the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is awarding $58.46 million from President Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to South Carolina school districts through the newly created Clean School Bus Program, including $20.54 million for the Sixth Congressional District. South Carolina will receive the third highest total funding among the states. This funding, administered through the EPA, will help 16 South Carolina school districts purchase electric school buses and charging stations that will aid in the transition to zero emission vehicles and produce cleaner air in and around schools and communities.
“I am pleased to see how the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is continuing to serve South Carolina in our pursuit to improve quality of life through infrastructure,” said Congressman Clyburn. “This funding will provide students with the reliable transportation they deserve while reducing climate pollution.”
The Clean School Bus Program will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save money for school districts, and produce cleaner air. Diesel air pollution is linked to asthma and other conditions that harm students’ health and cause them to miss school, particularly in communities of color and Tribal communities. Phasing out these diesel engines will ensure cleaner air for students, bus drivers, and school staff working near the bus loading areas, and the communities through which the buses drive each day. The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from these bus replacements will also help to address the outsized role of the transportation sector in fueling the climate crisis. The program will also save school districts money by covering the cost to upgrade school bus fleets, replacing older, heavily polluting buses with brand new clean school buses.
The South Carolina school districts receiving funded are: Abbeville 60 Anderson 3, Anderson 5, Barnwell 45, Chester 1, Dorchester 4, Fairfield 1, Georgetown 1, Hampton, Jasper 1, Laurens 56, Marion 10, McCormick 1, Orangeburg, Richland 1 and Sumter 1.
These awards are part of the first $1 billion allocated from the five-year, $5 billion Clean School Bus Program.
