Texas Clean School Bus Program (TCSB)

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is soliciting applications for the Texas Clean School Bus (TCSB) Program, which provides incentive funding to public school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, and county-wide transportation systems in Texas that operate diesel-fueled school buses. The program aims to reduce children's exposure to diesel exhaust by funding retrofit projects to install emissions reduction systems on existing buses or replacement projects to replace pre-2007 diesel buses with newer, cleaner models. Eligible applicants can apply for up to 5 retrofit or replacement activities, with the potential for TCEQ to increase this maximum. The application period is open from February 14, 2024 to July 19, 2024, and all grant-funded equipment must be operational by April 30, 2026. Retrofit projects may be eligible for up to 100% reimbursement of equipment and installation costs, while replacement projects can receive up to 80% of the incremental cost of the new bus, not to exceed TCEQ's established maximum grant amounts.

This grant program is open to public school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, and county-wide transportation systems located in Texas, with a focus on the Austin area jurisdictions of Travis County and the City of Austin. TCEQ may reduce grant amounts based on other financial incentives available to the applicant and reserves the right to limit funding to any single applicant. The total amount of available funding will depend on revenue received into the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP) Fund. Applicants must comply with various administrative and contracting requirements, including maintaining appropriate insurance coverage and agreeing to return grant funds if the emissions reductions are not achieved.