Interview: Adirondack School Superintendent Kristy McGrath and BOE President Mike Kramer talk upcoming district vote on October 24 for EPA grant to help cover first group of electric school buses

BOONVILLE- Come July of 2027, school districts across New York State will no longer have the option of choosing to purchase gas and/or diesel buses.

By 2035, all bus fleets for New York school districts will need to be fully electrified. This means that several school districts are now preparing to meet that timeline, including Adirondack Central School.

"This transition will be a huge undertaking that our districts needs to plan for financially and through capital projects," said Board of Education President Mike Kramer.

Now that school districts statewide are beginning to receive or plan for their first set of new electric busses, it appears some members of the public have questions and concerns, specifically about costs.  

"Ultimately, we will be paying for about 2.26% of the total cost," said Superintendent of Schools, Kristy McGrath, as she explained final costs if an EPA grant is approved by district taxpayers during a special vote October 24. 

"The other thing that I would like to share is that we already have levied our taxes for '23 - '24, so no one's taxes will increase this year, if this proposition is approved. 

Be sure to listen to our latest on-air coverage with Mike Kramer and Kristy McGrath for more details:

Letter issued to district taxpayers.

The district just hosted a public hearing this week for district taxpayers to ask questions and voice their comments on an upcoming vote on October 24, which will ultimately accept or deny an EPA grant opportunity, which Adirondack has already applied for. 

"The grant contributes $375,000 per-electric bus and $20,000 per-bus towards the charger and electrical upgrades," Kramer explained. 

"The total cost is approximately $1.33 million. So the remaining cost to the district after the grant and trade-ins is $117,238," said Superintendent of Schools Kristy McGrath. 

In addition, the district gets reimbursement from the state on transportation aide and the rate is 73.9%. "So therefor when transportation aide is applied, our local cost will be approximately $30,000."   

The vote will take place from 12:00 noon to 8:00 p.m. See the flyers and charts below for more details and stay tuned, we will share another report prior to the vote:  

Adirondack Central School images.