The School District of Palm Beach County's newest electric buses are parked and charge at the bus depot and maintenance facility on Summit Boulevard in unincorporated Palm Beach County, Fla., on February 21, 2025. The buses will be in service by the end of the month. Florida Power and Light worked with the department to install the 60,000-watt chargers that will charge the buses.
Sacramento, California – California is moving forward with its ambitious climate goals, announcing a $500 million investment to install 1,000 additional electric school buses and 500 new charging stations across 130 rural and low-income school districts.
Governor Gavin Newsom’s office unveiled the plan Wednesday, positioning California as a national leader in the push for zero-emission school transportation. The state already operates the largest fleet of electric school buses in the U.S., with 1,100 currently in use and over 2,300 funded. Some school districts are already operating fully electric fleets.
“California is committed to continuing efforts to reduce children’s exposure to toxic diesel pollution through the deployment of zero-emission school buses,” said Liane Randolph, chair of the California Air Resources Board. The board oversees air pollution control and is a key player in the state’s broader climate change initiatives.
The move comes as other states have seen clean school bus initiatives stall due to delays in federal funding. Over 500 school districts nationwide have been left in limbo, awaiting roughly $1 billion in EPA rebates for more than 3,400 electric buses. The delay caused many districts to postpone or cancel their clean-fleet purchases. The EPA announced Wednesday that it’s disbursing funding to districts that passed its quality checks.
While others wait, California’s funding—sourced mainly from the state’s cap-and-trade program—is keeping the momentum alive. Cap-and-trade limits carbon emissions and requires polluters to buy permits, generating revenue for climate-friendly initiatives like this school bus expansion.
The new buses and charging infrastructure are critical to California’s goal of nearly full school bus electrification by 2035 and broader ambitions to reach carbon neutrality by 2045. But state officials warn that federal rollbacks could hinder progress. A recent executive order from former President Donald Trump aims to strip states of their ability to enforce stricter emissions standards, a move Newsom sharply criticized as “turning back the clock.”
Despite the political headwinds, California remains committed to setting the national pace on environmental policy.
“We won’t be derailed,” Newsom said.
With more than $1.3 billion already invested in clean school transportation, California’s latest funding round reinforces its position as a climate policy leader—even as uncertainty clouds the future for other states.
