COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina will buy dozens new school buses statewide from money it got from a settlement with Volkswagen, state leaders announced Tuesday
The South Carolina Department of Insurance says $9.33 million will be used to replace 81 buses in the state. The buses will utilize clean energy sources. A total of 78 propane school buses will be going to the Department of Education, two Proterra electric transit buses will be going to Charleston, and one compresses natural gas will be going to the City of Anderson.
These buses are supposed to reduce emissions and provide safe and clean transportation for students and citizens. The buses that will be replaced will be in Lexington One, Richland Two, Beaufort County, and Horry County. Those buses have been in services since 1998.
According to Superintendent of Education, Molly Spearman, the buses will be available in 4 to 5 months.
The Department of Insurance received public input on how to utilize the settlement money, an allocation of $34 million.
They published the final plan for the use of these funds in December of 2018 and opened applications in March. There will be more applications to allocate the remainder of the money.
In September 2015, after investigations by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board, Volkswagen officials admitted to installing "defeat devices" that were intended to cheat diesel emissions tests, resulting in emissions of nitrogen oxides that were over the levels allowed under the U.S. Clean Air Act and the California Health and Safety Code.
These devices were installed in 600,000 vehicles sold in the U.S. starting in 2009.
In court settlements with the U.S. and Califronia, VW is required to mitigate excess emissions through the establishment of an Environmental Mitigation Trust totaling $2.925 billion.
The money in the trust is supposed to be used to benefit the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. South Carolina will receive $33,895,491.39, 1.16 percent of the Trust.
In June of 2017, Governor Henry McMaster announced the South Carolina Department of Insurance would be administering the state's allocation of almost $34 million.