Illinois to Receive EV Charging Stations, Electric School Buses Through Federal Grants

 

Illinois to Receive EV Charging Stations, Electric School Buses Through Federal Grants

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The federal government announced $622 million in grants for electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure through the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program and nearly $1 billion in grants for clean school buses through the EPA’s Clean School Bus Program, both of which were funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

CFI Grant Program

The Illinois Finance Authority was awarded $14.9 million via the CFI program to install 845 level-two EV charging stations and 36 DC fast charging stations across Illinois. These stations will be distributed among 273 locations, with an emphasis on dense urban communities, small or rural towns, disadvantaged communities, and places of recreation.

The $2.5 billion CFI grant program is working in tandem with the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, carrying a $7.5 billion allocation to support the deployment of 500,000 EV chargers in the United States over five years.

Clean School Bus Program

Illinois has received $42 million in funding to purchase 180 electric school buses, including 50 for Chicago Public Schools and 15 for Peoria Public Schools District 150.

The Clean School Bus Program aims to deploy a total of $5 billion in funding through grants and rebates to transform the national school bus fleet by adopting zero-emission school buses.

Electrification Coalition Executive Director Ben Prochazka released the following statement:

“Electrifying our nation’s school bus fleet represents an important opportunity to end our oil dependency, saving 2.3 billion gallons of fuel and more than $6 billion annually. They will also protect our most vulnerable Americans. For too long, our children have been breathing dangerous emissions from diesel school buses every day as they travel to and from school. This funding will ensure that students in Illinois will soon be riding quiet, cleaner school buses. Electric school buses benefit students through reduced emissions, benefit schools through lower fuel and operating costs, and benefit America by reducing our dependence on oil and creating new manufacturing jobs.

“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act are providing critical down payments on our transportation future that will not only end our nation’s dependence on oil but will also create important economic opportunities in communities around the country. They are also helping reduce one of the most significant barriers to EV adoption: the availability of charging across Illinois and the nation.

“This legislation is also spurring leadership and investments from the private sector that is already increasing manufacturing capacity. CFI, along with other local, state, and federal funding, will be a catalyst to accelerate EV adoption and end oil’s monopoly on our transportation systems. We applaud the Biden-Harris administration and the members of Congress who passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, ensuring that the U.S. is a leader in the global transition to electric transportation.”

The Electrification Coalition is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that promotes policies and actions to facilitate the widespread adoption of plug-in electric vehicles (EVs) on a mass scale to overcome the economic, public health and national security challenges that stem from America’s dependence on oil. For more information, visit ElectrificationCoalition.org.

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