WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH),
chairman of the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee,
announced that the
Biden
administration is providing competitive grant opportunities to communities to
allow them to invest
in low- and no-emission public transit buses, accelerate development of clean
heavy-duty trucks, and begin replacing the iconic
yellow school bus with pollution free, electric buses. Ohio transit
agencies will have the opportunity to apply for approximately
$1.5 billion of
competitive grant funds to help modernize bus fleets and facilities across the
country.
These historic investments in clean public
transportation
were made possible by
the
Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which
Brown helped
write and pass.
“Ohioans
deserve world-class public transit and school bus service that is delivered
with modern, buses built by American workers, and beginning today, more Ohio
communities will have that opportunity,” said Senator Brown. “Employers,
entrepreneurs, and workers have all been asking for better transit. These
investments will create good-paying American jobs that cannot be shipped
overseas, and that will help Ohio communities all over the state thrive and
grow. And I’ll be working to make sure
Ohio communities get their fair share of this investment.”
Building
these buses in America will not only reduce air pollution – helping reduce
asthma in children – but also create good-paying, union jobs. The Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) is also proposing a new rule that would significantly
lower the harmful nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from heavy-duty vehicles and
establish stricter greenhouse gas emission standards for certain heavy-duty
vehicles.
Brown recently
announced approximately $73.5 million
in transit funding for public transit agencies across Ohio. The Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law will provide a record investment in public transit funding
over the next five years. Ohio will receive $1.3 billion of guaranteed transit
formula funding over the next 5 years. In fiscal year 2022, the state’s urban
and rural transit providers will receive $260 million, with the $73.5 million
available immediately and the remainder delivered later this year. This
critical down payment on Ohio infrastructure will help public transit agencies
invest in expanding service for Ohioans, job training, and new low- and no-
emission buses.
The final bill was signed into law in November and
passed with
several key provisions Brown secured for Ohio communities. As the
Chairman of a key committee on infrastructure legislation, Brown
delivered
big investments
for Ohio. The historic, bipartisan law includes Brown’s
Bridge Investment
Act, which will put Ohioans to work repairing, replacing and
upgrading outdated infrastructure throughout the state. It also includes
Brown’s
Build America Buy
America Act, which will ensure American labor, iron, and steel are used for
these publicly funded bridge, broadband, waterway, and public transit projects.
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