Volkswagen Update: August 2018
The status of states’ Environmental Mitigation Trust plans is a daily moving target. We are getting closer to understanding what the next few years of Volkswagen funding for school buses and other on-road vehicle replacement programs will look like. As we take a snapshot in August 2018, 22 states and Washington, D.C., have finalized their beneficiary mitigation plans and are moving forward with the first phase of funding programs. Seven states currently have open school bus funding opportunities and are actively seeking applicants. Twenty states have draft plans published; six of which are seeking comments from the public. Eight states plus Puerto Rico are still holding out and have not published any official plan for comment.
Many of the recent plans published, either in draft or final form, have identified a range of funding that will be applied toward on-road or specific bus funding programs. We do know that we are approaching $400 million so far that has been carved out for school bus-only replacement programs. Another $300 million plus has been set aside for competitive on-road vehicle replacement programs that include school buses.
Our job is not over, and the most important part of this process will be to ensure our customers submit winning applications when funding becomes available. The ROUSH CleanTech and Blue Bird teams have been working closely over the last few months to refine the process and identify the most helpful ways to support you and your customers.
Reach out to Kuba Szczypiorski (Kuba.Szczypiorski@blue-bird.com) or Chelsea Jenkins (Chelsea.Jenkins@roush.com ) for help as you work with your state funding agency and customers to maximize success.
As of August 2018
Twenty-two states plus Washington, D.C., have final plans:
Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Georgia, Idaho, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming
Twenty states have draft plans:
Alaska, Delaware, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Washington
Eight states plus Puerto Rico are still developing their plans and are accepting comments:
Alabama, Florida, Hawaii, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and West Virginia
Visit www.roushcleantech.com/volkswagen-settlement for more information.
