Remarks for the DeKalb County Electric Bus Event, As Prepared for Delivery
Michael Regan, EPA Administrator
DeKalb County, Illinois
Thank you, Bennie, for that introduction—what a tough act to follow!
Hello, everyone! It’s my honor to join you all today.
Superintendent Dr. Horton, thank you for joining us, and to all the staff at Stone Mountain Middle School, thank you for hosting us.
Senator Warnock, thank you for being here. We appreciate your outstanding work and unwavering commitment to the people of Georgia.
Representatives Johnson and Williams, it’s great to see you both. Thank you for your leadership.
We could not be here today without the members of Congress who fought so hard to pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, so I’d like to give a special thanks to our Congressional partners.
I’d also like to thank the state and local leaders who are here with us. You all will play a critical role in ensuring funding for clean and electric buses reaches communities across the state, and we appreciate your leadership.
To Ms. Kristen Jones, Dekalb (Duh-Cab) County School District’s 2023-2024 Teacher of the Year, we’re so honored to have you with us today and so grateful for your exemplary work in the classroom.
We’re also grateful to have representatives from Blue Bird Corporation with us today. Thank you for your partnership.
My team knows this well, but my favorite days on the job are those when I have an opportunity to engage with young folks.
You all represent the best and the brightest our country has to offer, and every single day I’m inspired by young leaders just like you.
So, it’s only right that we kick 2024 off with a clean school bus event.
At EPA it’s our privilege and greatest responsibility to ensure that all people have clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and an opportunity to lead a healthy life, and so many of the decisions we make and actions we take as an agency directly impact the lives and the future of you... our children.
And folks, that is not a responsibility I take lightly.
As a parent myself, I can say with certainty there is no higher priority for me than ensuring that our children can thrive in clean and healthy communities.
Every single day, millions of children across the country ride the bus to and from school—for many, it’s a quintessential childhood experience.
But traditional vehicles that transport our students rely on internal combustion engines that emit toxic pollutants into the air.
Not only are these pollutants harmful to the environment, but they can also be harmful to people’s health—to the children who ride the bus, the bus drivers responsible for transporting our precious cargo, and folks in the surrounding community.
Earlier today, I was proud to announce that EPA has selected 67 applicants to receive nearly $1 billion through our first Clean School Bus Program grant competition.
And of that one billion, nearly $60 million, will land right here in the state of Georgia—bringing cleaner, electric school buses to communities across the state, on top of high-quality union manufacturing jobs at Blue Bird’s factory in Fort Valley.
In total, the funding announced today will help selectees purchase over 2,700 clean school buses in 280 school districts nationwide.
Transitioning to clean school buses means cleaner air and less pollution. It means healthier kids and healthier communities. It means less time away from school and increased focus and productivity. And it means good-paying American manufacturing jobs right here in Georgia and across the country.
And folks, the best part is we’re just getting started.
These awards represent only the second round of funding from a five-year, $5 billion dollar program created by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Today’s grant announcement builds on previous Clean School Bus Program funding opportunities and to date, EPA’s Clean School Bus Program has awarded nearly $2 billion for approximately 5,000 electric and low-emission buses nationwide.
We are improving air quality in and around schools, reducing greenhouse gas pollution, and expanding our nation’s leadership in developing the clean vehicles of the future.
EPA will distribute awards to selectees in 37 bipartisan states.
I’m also pleased to announce that school districts in low-income, rural, and or Tribal communities make up approximately 86% of the projects selected to receive funding.
Not only are we creating cleaner and healthier communities, but we are doing so while delivering on President Biden’s Justice40 initiative, which aims to deliver 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal investments to underserved and overburdened communities.
I couldn’t be more optimistic about where we’re headed together. And I couldn’t be more grateful for the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris, who are working every single day to build a better future for our children.
Mark my words: zero emission school buses can, and one day will be, the American standard.
Thank you for helping us get there. Now it’s time to hit the accelerator!