EL MONTE, Calif. — The California
Air Resources Board in January informed
air districts, school districts
and new school bus and diesel particulate
fi lter vendors that it has been
instructed to freeze all new disbursements
of funds that support the Lower-
Emission School Bus Program.
Due to California’s current budget
crisis, the State Treasurer’s Office has
been unable to access the bond market
to generate funds for programs such as
the Lower-Emission School Bus Program.
As a result, until there is a resolution
to the budget, all state agencies
and departments have been instructed
to cease entering into new grants or
agreements and freeze disbursements
on existing grants.
Additional disbursements of program
funds will not be issued until
the Treasurer’s Office has access to the
bond market and the ability to re-establish
the disbursement process.
Lower-Emission School Bus Program
staff extended the Feb. 1 deadline
for executed contracts and ordering
for pre-1977 school bus replacement,
as well as other program milestones as
needed to accommodate the disruption
in the disbursement process.
All implementation deadlines currently
outlined in the 2008 Lower-Emission
School Bus Program guidelines
were put on hold until further notice.