will help free of charge. Other times, when outsourcing for one, districts can find a workable loophole. “Generally it can be written into the
grant to have a management fee that not only covers the initial expense of writing the grant (once it is awarded), but also money to administer the grant and do any necessary reporting. Grant writers there- fore write their expense into the grant so if it is awarded, the grant writer is basically self-funded,” said Dale. For
some alt fuel advocates, tax
incentives help keep the current incen- tives around to benefit future green movements. Jessica Robinson, a spokes- person for the National Biodiesel Board, pointed to the group’s efforts to immedi- ately implement a biodiesel tax incentive extension, which would help keep bio- diesel prices competitive with heavily subsidized petroleum.
“We are urging biodiesel supporters to
call on the Senators to support H.R. 4213, the bill that houses the tax provision. Te incentive expired December 31, 2009. Te legislation as proposed would make the incentive retroactive,” said Robinson.
An Ever-Changing Landscape But there is still hope for those who
have tried in the past and failed to find funding for their vision of greener fleets. Over the past two years a significant amount of grants have become avail- able through federal and state stimulus funded programs. And although much of this money has been allocated to spe- cific projects, there are still numerous opportunities available throughout the country. In 2009, the U.S. Department of Energy issued energy related grants that could be used in whole or in part for pro- pane automotive projects, including $10
million in Indiana, $13 million in New York and $12 million in Texas. According to Barbara Johnson, assistant
vice president of grants, risk management and human resources for Clean Energy, the focus of incentives is now to create jobs in addition to reducing emissions. “Job creation is one of the scoring cri-
teria. It is strategic to demonstrate how your project will create or sustain jobs in the local economy and help develop a green sustainable future by deploying alternative fuel vehicles. Of importance
significant is the demonstration of
decreasing America’s dependence on for- eign oil,” she added. And with job creations come tax- payer dollars, which school
teachers,
administrators, district officials and trans- portation departments rely on to keep their operations funded. n
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