Red Hook seeks to add electric buses at little expense with proposition

The Red Hook Central School District is seeking to purchase four new electric school buses as it progresses toward meeting New York State’s zero-emission vehicle mandates.

The bus purchases would be of little cost to local taxpayers thanks to grants and state aid reimbursement programs.

In addition, the district announced the two electric buses voters approved last spring will retroactively also come at little cost to taxpayers, through the same programs.

The Board of Education at its meeting Thursday expressed its intention to add a proposition to purchase additional electric buses on the May 20 school budget and board election ballot, following a presentation from district officials.

Take a look at the presentation to the board here, and find video of the meeting on the district’s YouTube page.

The district has traditionally proposed voters approve the purchase of two to three buses per year, following a roughly 12-year cycle for replacing the entire district fleet. By purchasing four this year, the district would capitalize on aid programs intended to assist schools’ transition from combustion to non-combustion vehicles and reach clean energy goals.

Officials from the State Education Department State Aid Office informed the district it would be eligible for reimbursement on roughly 50% of the electric vehicles’ full cost. The district also remains eligible for a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, or NYSERDA, grant for roughly $220,000 per bus for up to six buses.

Between the two programs, a bus that may cost roughly $460,000 can be obtained for around $10,000.

The exact percentage of reimbursement and cost of the bus is expected to fluctuate, making it impossible to give an exact estimate of how cheap the final expense will be. The district will also have to put forward the cost of the buses before being reimbursed by the state. Consequently, the exact ballot proposition posed to residents will ask if they will support spending several hundred thousand dollars per bus – the exact amount is to be determined – even though there will ultimately be little-to-no impact on taxes following the reimbursement.

Last spring, voters approved the district spending up to $500,000, and no more than $250,000 per bus, to purchase its first two electric school buses. The state reimbursement program, which was not known to the district at the time, applies to that purchase, as well, meaning most of the roughly $237,600 spent by the district per bus will be recovered. The district expects to receive those buses by May 1.

Under a state mandate, no school district will be permitted to purchase a vehicle with a combustion beginning in 2027, and all districts will be required to use only non-combustion vehicles by 2035.

The state believes the shift will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, decrease negative environmental impacts and reduce noise. A district analysis last year showed it would save $1,600 per year, per bus on fuel costs with electric buses.

Red Hook’s fleet encompasses 29 buses and 15 SUVs, vans and sedans, in addition to the two electric buses. By beginning to satisfy the state mandate early and gradually cycling out those combustion vehicles with new electric purchases, the district is seeking to capitalize on available assistance while limiting the fiscal burden that a larger purchase closer to the state deadline would create.