HEADLINES DERA Survives in 2012 Without New Funding Te Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) has funded nu-
merous projects throughout the country, bringing cleaner, new school buses to the steps of many districts and allowing others to clean up their older diesels with retrofit technology. Te pro- gram, which has garnered much support from the industry as one of the few federal programs to benefit school buses, will not be seeing any significant, positive changes in the 2012 fiscal year, but it will survive for another year. “Te DERA program will not be terminated,” said EPA spokes-
person Stacy Kika. “In the face of significant budget constraints, EPA has made the difficult budget decision not to propose new DERA grant funding for [fiscal year] 2012.” According to EPA, during this time the program will continue
to support on-going projects funded through DERA and federal stimulus funds, “adding to the tremendous public health benefits associated with the program that have resulted from significant reductions in air pollution, particularly in our cities and around our ports and transportation hubs.” In an effort to keep the program running and supporting
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positive changes and improvements in air quality, the National School Transportation Association sent a letter supporting the program to members of Congress in late May. NSTA members stressed the importance of the program and highlighted the fact that, for every federal dollar spent, there is a return of between $13 and $20 in community health benefits. Although the letter did not specify a specific dollar amount, it reminded that Con- gress provided $50 million for fiscal year 2011. Schools that will continue to receive retrofit and school bus
purchase funds to drive current projects include those in Yuma County, Ariz. Yuma Elementary School District 1 was installing retrofits on 47 buses while Crane Elementary School District was funding 23 buses. Somerton Elementary School District was working on 10 buses and Harvest Preparatory Academy in Yuma was also receiving funds for 10 school buses. Meanwhile, Washoe County School District serving the Reno,
Nev., area was in the process of staging retrofit replacements for its entire fleet of 275 school buses. For more on the install, see the article on page 58. ■
www.mcc-hvac.com See Us At Booth # 213 26 School Transportation News Magazine July 2011
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