§ 3623-a. Allowable transportation expense. For the computation of
transportation aid pursuant to the requirements of subdivision seven of
section thirty-six hundred two of this article and this part, allowable
transportation expense shall include expenditures for aidable regular
transportation as defined in section thirty-six hundred twenty-two-a of
this part, provided that such expense shall be limited to expenditure
items listed in subdivision one of this section as transportation
operating expense and in subdivision two of this section as
transportation capital, debt service and lease expense.

1. Transportation operating expense shall include base year
expenditures for the following, provided that such transportation
operating expense shall meet the requirements set forth in subdivision
three of this section:

a. Computerized bus routing services;

b. Contracting for the transportation of any or all of the pupils
attending school in such school district, other than a contract with a
public service facility for such transportation operated on routes under
franchise;

c. The use of public service facilities on routes operated under
franchise or by a municipality or public authority for any or all of the
pupils in the district, provided that the allowance for each pupil using
such facilities shall not exceed two single fares a day for such pupil
multiplied by the number of days which such pupil attends school;

d. The school district's share of the cost of a regional or joint
transportation system;

e. The following expenses for district operated transportation
systems, including operation of district owned or district leased school
buses:

(1) salaries and retirement benefits related to transportation, except
salaries and retirement benefits for assistant drivers on buses
transporting nondisabled pupils;

(2) employers' social security contributions for transportation
personnel for whom salaries are allowable;

(3) health, life and other insurance premiums for transportation
personnel for whom salaries are allowable;

(4) premiums for collision and other insurance coverage for school
buses;

(5) uniforms for transportation personnel for whom salaries are
allowable;

(6) costs incurred by the employer for qualifying criminal history,
drivers license, or other required testing attributable to special
requirements for drivers of school buses pursuant to state or federal
law including pre-employment and random drug and alcohol testing as
required under subdivision six of section five hundred nine-g of the
vehicle and traffic law;

(7) fuel, oil, tires, chains, maintenance and repairs for school
buses, provided that for purposes of this article, fuel shall include
electricity used to charge or hydrogen used to refuel zero-emission
school buses for the aidable transportation of pupils, but shall not
include electricity or hydrogen used for other purposes;

(8) bridge tolls;

(9) transportation by boat or airplane, because of the location of the
school district in relation to the school which the children of the
district attend, or required room and board in connection therewith
necessitated because of impassable waters or adverse weather conditions,
which has been approved by the commissioner;

(10) the consideration for the contract or contracts made for the
purpose of providing transportation by horse-drawn vehicle or vehicles,
if any school district shall be required to provide such transportation;
and

(11) other expenses for district operated transportation systems, as
approved pursuant to regulations of the commissioner.

f. Other transportation operating expenses as approved pursuant to
regulations of the commissioner.

2. Allowable transportation capital, debt service and lease expense
shall include base year expenditures as described in this subdivision,
net of revenue received with the express purpose of funding such
expenditures as prescribed by the commissioner, except as provided in
paragraph d of subdivision three of this section.

a. The purchase of school buses as approved by the commissioner;

b. The lease, as approved by the commissioner, of a school bus by a
school district from another school district, board of cooperative
educational services or a county vocational education and extension
board, or any school bus leased by a school district from any other
source under emergency conditions, as determined by the commissioner, or
any school bus leased by a school district from any other source as
otherwise authorized by this chapter;

c. The purchase of equipment deemed a proper school district expense,
including: (i) the purchase of two-way radios to be used on old and new
school buses, (ii) the purchase of stop-arms, to be used on old and new
school buses, (iii) the purchase and installation of seat safety belts
on school buses in accordance with the provisions of section thirty-six
hundred thirty-five-a of this article, (iv) the purchase of school bus
back up beepers, (v) the purchase of school bus front crossing arms,
(vi) the purchase of school bus safety sensor devices, (vii) the
purchase and installation of exterior reflective marking on school
buses, (viii) the purchase of automatic engine fire extinguishing
systems for school buses used to transport students who use wheelchairs
or other assistive mobility devices, and (ix) the purchase of other
equipment as prescribed in the regulations of the commissioner;

d. Other transportation capital, debt service and lease expense, as
approved pursuant to regulations of the commissioner;

e. Any approved cost of construction, reconstruction, lease or
purchase of a transportation storage facility or site in the amount of
ten thousand dollars or more shall be aidable in accordance with
subdivision six of section thirty-six hundred two of this article and
shall not be aidable as transportation expense; and

f. Approved costs relating to the lease, purchase, construction, or
installation of zero-emission school bus electric charging or hydrogen
fueling stations. For the purposes of this section, a zero-emission
school bus electric charging station is a station that delivers
electricity from a source outside a zero-emission school bus into one or
more zero-emission school buses. An electric school bus charging station
may include several charge points simultaneously connecting several
zero-emission school buses to the station and any related equipment
needed to facilitate charging plug-in zero-emission school buses. Any
work related to the construction or installation of zero-emission school
bus electric charging or hydrogen fueling stations under this paragraph
shall be considered public work and shall be subject to prevailing wage
requirements in accordance with section two hundred twenty and two
hundred twenty-b of the labor law.

3. a. The transportation operating expense for any school district
furnishing transportation for pupils attending a school within such
district shall be reduced by any moneys received for transportation.

b. If a district transports nonresident pupils, moneys received for
such transportation shall also be deducted in calculating transportation
aid, provided that in no case shall there be any deduction made in
determining transportation aid on the basis of bus mileage travelled in
transporting children pursuant to a contract executed in accordance with
paragraph h of subdivision twenty-five of section seventeen hundred nine
of this chapter.

c. Where a school district contracts for the transportation of its
pupils with a contractor and such contract results in the joint use of
one or more school buses with another district or districts contracting,
independently, with the same contractor, the transportation operating
expense applicable to such bus or buses for such route or routes shall
be prorated to each district. The total transportation operating expense
for all districts that are parties to such contract shall not exceed the
consideration of the contract.

d. (1) For aid payable in the two thousand twenty-four--two thousand
twenty-five school year and thereafter, notwithstanding any provision of
law to the contrary, approved transportation capital, debt service, and
lease expenses for apportionments to school districts under subdivision
seven of section thirty-six hundred two of this article shall include
the final value of any vouchers paid on behalf of a school district,
payments, and grants authorized pursuant to section 58-0701 of the
environmental conservation law for costs associated with the purchase of
or conversion to zero-emission school buses and supporting
infrastructure.

(2) In the case of allowable expenses for transportation capital, debt
service, or leases which are related to costs associated with the
purchase of or conversion to zero-emission school buses and supporting
infrastructure and which are supported in whole or in part by vouchers,
payments, or grants authorized under section 58-0701 of the
environmental conservation law, such allowable expenses at the time in
which the expense is claimed for aid shall not exceed the sum of (i) the
product of the transportation aid ratio calculated pursuant to
subdivision seven of section thirty-six hundred two of this article
multiplied by allowable expenses, plus (ii) the final value of any such
vouchers paid on behalf of a school district, payments, and grants
authorized under section 58-0701 of the environmental conservation law.

(3) The entity authorized to provide state assistance payments or
grants pursuant to subdivision two of section 58-0703 of the
environmental conservation law shall provide to the commissioner a list
of grants awarded and payments to each school district or vouchers paid
on behalf of a school district for the purchase of or conversion to
zero-emission school buses and supporting infrastructure no later than
one month prior to the end of each calendar year and each school year.
This list shall include the type and number of zero-emission school
buses to be funded by these payments or grants, the supporting
infrastructure to be funded by these payments or grants, the award
amounts of each payment or grant, the direct recipient of each payment
or grant, the district receiving such payment or grant or that
benefitted from such voucher, the date on which the payment or grant was
received, and any other information necessary for the calculation of aid
pursuant to subdivision seven of section thirty-six hundred two of this
article.

4. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or any other
provision of law to the contrary, for the computation of transportation
aid pursuant to the requirements of subdivision seven of section
thirty-six hundred two of this article, allowable transportation
expenses shall also include transportation operating expenses described
in subdivision one of this section and transportation capital, debt
service and lease expenses described in subdivision two of this section
incurred in the two thousand nineteen--two thousand twenty school year:
(i) during the state disaster emergency declared pursuant to executive
order 202 of 2020 in the case of expenses pursuant to subdivision eight
of section thirty-six hundred twenty-two-a of this part; and (ii) during
the period between the issuance of executive order 202.4 on March
sixteenth, two thousand twenty and the issuance of executive order
202.28 on May seventh, two thousand twenty in the case of expenses
pursuant to subdivision nine of section thirty-six hundred twenty-two-a
of this part. Such expenses shall be allowable transportation expenses
even where aidable regular transportation as defined in section
thirty-six hundred twenty-two-a of this part of transportation after
four pm pursuant to section thirty-six hundred twenty-seven of this part
was not provided.