EPA Inspector General Flags Concerns Over Clean School Bus Program Recipient Selection

For the second time in less than a year, the Office of the Inspector General for the Environmental Protection Agency is raising concerns about the Clean School Bus Program. 

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocated $5 billion for the EPA to issue grants and rebates for the purchase of clean or zero-emission school buses, which are operated using either an alternative fuel or electricity.

School Bus Fleet reported that in its Dec. 2023 findings, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) stated that the way the statutory text governing the program is written doesn't require applicants to “expressly attest to the accuracy and truthfulness of their Clean School Bus applications.” The EPA also has no mechanism for verifying an applicant’s supplied information.

Now, the OIG is concerned that the EPA's process for selecting program recipients provides an increased risk of potential fraud, waste, and abuse.

The Inspector General's Report At a Glance

In a July 31 report, the OIG stated that while the EPA followed six of the seven requirements to select recipients of Clean School Bus Program funds, the agency did not have sufficient internal controls in place to ensure that it selected recipients with eligible school buses.

The EPA did not require sufficient documentation to demonstrate that recipients’ existing school buses met the fuel, weight, and operational status requirements or that the replacement buses would provide a school district with bus service for at least five years, according to the report. 

The OIG believes the agency would mitigate the potential for fraud, waste, and abuse by first requiring and then verifying this documentation before awarding program funds. 

Additionally, the report stated that the EPA did not provide oversight to verify that applicants requesting funds specifically for zero-emission school buses have school districts with suitable local conditions for these types of buses.

The EPA did not require these applicants to conduct a suitability analysis or submit one as part of their applications.

"Without such information, the EPA cannot provide assurance that the zero-emission school buses funded by the Clean School Bus Program would suitably and effectively operate in the recipient school districts," the report continued.

What the OIG Recommends and how the EPA Responded

Below are the four recommendations from the OIG for the assistant administrator for Air and Radiation, followed by the EPA's responses to those recommendations.

Recommendation 1: Issue guidance to Clean School Bus Program rebate and grant applicants on the types of documentation needed to support that their existing school buses are eligible for replacement and that replacement school buses will provide bus service for five years.

EPA Response: Agreed with the recommendation; it is resolved with corrective action pending.

Recommendation 2: Require future Clean School Bus Program rebate and grant applicants to provide sufficient documentation to support their applications, including documentation that their existing school buses are eligible for replacement and that replacement school buses will provide bus service for five years.

EPA Response: Agreed with the recommendation; unresolved. The Office of Air and Radiation said it would instruct potential applicants about what materials to maintain — such as bus logs — to demonstrate school bus eligibility in the event of an EPA audit. The agency said it would be burdensome to applicants to require them to provide bus logs, and reviewing bus logs as part of the EPA’s audits of recipients would yield more accurate results.

Recommendastion 3: Update the standard operating procedures and trainings for Clean School Bus Program application reviewers. They should address confirming —  before the EPA awards funds — the eligibility of applicants and their school buses, including that their existing school buses are eligible for replacement and that replacement school buses will provide bus service for five years.

EPA Response: Agreed with the recommendation; stated that it had already completed the recommendation. The OIG reviewed the Office of Air and Radiation’s updated standard operating procedures for application reviewers and found that the corresponding recorded trainings do not fully meet the intent of the recommendation. While the updated SOPs required application reviewers to verify these requirements, they do not require application reviewers to verify that existing school buses meet other requirements.

Recommendation 4: Establish procedures to verify that if an applicant is requesting Clean School Bus Program funds to replace existing school buses with zero-emission school buses, zero-emission school buses are suitable for the applicant’s school district.

EPA Response: Disagreed; unresolved. The Office of Air and Radiation stated that fleet owners are best positioned to know their unique needs, including routes and terrains. The agency has developed a webpage for technical assistance and provided resources for conducting fleet and route analyses. 

Resolution efforts are underway on recommendations 2, 3, and 4.