Sen. Chris Ryan, D-Syracuse, is pictured during a meeting earlier this legislative session. Ryan is sponsoring legislation to delay the state’s electric school bus mandate that Albany insiders are saying is likely to be included in the state’s 2026-27 budget.

Legislation introduced in April to push back the state’s electric school bus mandate an additional five years is gaining traction in state budget negotiations.

Sen. Chris Ryan, D-Syracuse, introduced S.9667 on April 1, with the legislation referred to the Senate Education Committee – the same committee that recently rejected a similar bill sponsored by Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay. Ryan’s bill advanced May 7 to a third reading – meaning it is poised for a floor vote after being approved unanimously by the committee.

Ryan’s bill is straightforward. There is no NYSERDA study as Borrello called for in his bill (S.4748). Borrello also wanted to eliminate the zero-emission bus mandate, while Ryan seeks to delay the mandate. Four Republicans – Peter Oberacker, Bill Weber, Rob Rolison and Jack Martins – have signed on as co-sponsors of Ryan’s bill.

“New York State has committed to an ambitious transition to zero-emission school buses in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and protect public health,” Ryan wrote in his legislative justification. “However, since the enactment of the original timelines, school districts have raised significant concerns regarding the feasibility of meeting the current deadlines. These concerns include supply chain and distance limitations, high upfront costs, insufficient charging infrastructure, and workforce readiness challenges. The current waiver system for school districts to opt-out of the mandate is insufficient and places more administrative burdens on our already strained schools. This legislation provides school districts with additional time to plan, budget, and implement this transition in a fiscally responsible and operationally feasible manner, while preserving the State’s commitment to full electrification of school bus fleets.”

News outlets in Ryan’s legislative district, including the Syracuse Post-Standard, reported Wednesday that the electric bus mandate delay is increasingly likely to be included in the 2026-27 state budget once bills are written and available for legislative approval. That could happen as early as next week, according to Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins.

Borrello said during Tuesday’s committee meeting that early adopters of electric school buses are running into enough problems to merit consideration of a delay in the transition from diesel buses as well as the NYSERDA study Borrello proposed. He said the Lake Shore Central School District launched 20 electric buses, and at least once this winter heating in the bus was cut back to spare the battery life. He also cited experiences in Naples where cold weather decreased electric bus performance and increased charging demands, pushing operating costs higher than anticipated. The Bethlehem Central School District in suburban Albany reported in its school budget mailing to district residents that it will not expand its current fleet of 10 electric buses due to ongoing performance and charge management issues that limit service miles, Borrello said.

“For years, I have fought hard against this unrealistic mandate and warned about the serious financial and operational problems it would create for school districts across New York,” Borrello said in a news release Tuesday. “It is gratifying to finally see Albany show at least some recognition of reality and provide schools with some badly needed breathing room. As more districts became early adopters of these buses, the problems became impossible to ignore, from buses struggling to maintain heat during upstate winters without draining battery life, to frequent breakdowns and extended periods out of service, to enormous costs not only for the buses themselves, but also for the electrical infrastructure upgrades required just to charge them.”

Borrello said in a news release he is supports the delay, though he still supports a straight elimination of the electric bus mandate.

“While this delay is certainly a step in the right direction, I still believe my legislation to repeal the mandate and replace it with a statewide pilot program is the better approach,” Borrello said. “A pilot study would provide policymakers with real-world data on where, when and under what conditions electric school buses can realistically work across a state as large and varied in climate and geography as New York. At a minimum, this additional time will allow school districts to more carefully assess the long-term viability, costs and operational demands of these buses before being forced into full implementation. It may also provide time for the technology itself to improve and become more reliable, practical and affordable for schools.”