BILL NUMBER: S8003
SPONSOR: MAYER
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to lease terms for zero-
emission school buses
 
PURPOSE:
To give districts additional flexibility about the length of a lease
term for electric school buses.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends subdivision 21-a of section 1604 of the education law
to allow districts to agree to a lease term of up to 12 years for elec-
tric school buses.
Section 2 amends subdivision 25 of section 1709 of the education law to
allow districts to agree to a lease term of up to 12 years for electric
school buses.
Section 3 amends paragraph e of subdivision 7 of section 3602 to allow
districts to receive transportation aid over a period that aligns with
the term of their lease.
Section 4 sets forth the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York State law requires all school districts to transition to an all
zero-emission electric school bus fleet by 2035. The shift to zero emis-
sion buses will provide significant benefits to our students, school
communities and state as a whole. Replacing diesel and gas buses with
electric buses reduces exposure of children to pollutants which can
increase risk of asthma and otherwise harm children's health and devel-
opment. And the states'law represents an important piece of our commit-
ment to transitioning to a clean energy economy and drastically reducing
our carbon emissions.
While the benefits are myriad, school districts are navigating a whole
host of new costs and logistical challenges as they plan for and begin
to purchase or lease electric buses. Chapter 563 of the laws of 2024
sought to address one of these challenges by shortening the amortization
period for electric school buses. Under state law, districts receive
transportation aid from the state as partial reimbursement for certain
transportation expenses, including the purchase or lease of new buses,
which is paid out over the course of the amortization period.
This legislation makes a further change to the amortization period,
giving districts that wish to enter into a longer lease period more
flexibility. The bill allows districts to enter into leases up to 12
years, and allows them to receive transportation aid over a schedule
aligned with the lease period they agree to. A district that enters into
an 8-year lease would'still'receive transportation aid over a period of
8 years; a district that enters into a 12 year lease, would receive aid
over a period of 12 years.
Enabling school districts to choose any lease term between eight and 12
years will give districts flexibility to choose the terms that work best
for them locally as they prepare for the full adoption of zero emission
buses. This flexibility will also make operating in New York financially
viable for the companies whose business model relies on a longer lease
period. Without these changes, it is likely that some market partic-
ipants may not pursue agreements with school districts in the state,
thereby putting further financial and operational stress on districts as
they look to come into compliance ahead of the new state requirements.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S8003: 1604 education law, 1604(21-a) education law, 1709 education law, 1709(25) education law, 3602 education law, 3602(7) education law