School districts have the opportunity to compete for nearly $5 million in transportation funding through two programs operated by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. The deadline to apply is Dec. 20, and OSSBA hosted an informational webinar with DEQ officials on Dec. 5 to share information and answer questions about these opportunities.

****View the recorded webinar here.****

Alternative Fuel School Bus Program

The Alternative Fuel School Bus Program is designed to assist schools in replacing older (2009 or older) diesel-powered school bus with new alternative fuel buses (including CNG, LNG, LPG/propane and electric), repowering old diesel technology with new alternative fuel technology and establishing charging infrastructure for all-electric school buses. The $4.1 million in funding is available through Oklahoma’s share of the VW settlement.

Key Facts:

• The deadline to apply is Dec. 20. Projects must be complete by Sept. 1, 2021.
• New/repowered vehicles can be all electric, hybrid electric, CNG, LNG or LPG/propane.
• Selected districts could receive up to $300,000 toward qualifying projects on a reimbursement basis.
• The amount eligible for reimbursement is dependent on the school bus type but could be nearly half the cost of some buses.
• See the DEQ website for more details.

Oklahoma Clean Diesel (DERA) Program

The Oklahoma Clean Diesel (DERA) Program is designed to help underwrite the retrofitting of exhaust controls on a wide variety of old diesel vehicles and replace old (1995-2006) diesel-powered school buses with new diesel or gasoline powered buses.

Key Facts:

• The deadline to apply is Dec. 20. Projects must be completed by Sept. 1, 2019.
• More than $650,000 is available and the reimbursable amount awarded per district isn’t capped.
• New/retrofitted buses must be diesel or gasoline.
• See the DEQ website for more details.