Senator James Inhofe is scheduled to open the 49th annual National School Transportation Association Annual Meeting and Convention, scheduled for July 20-24 in Tulsa, Okla.
Inhofe, who currently serves as the ranking member on the Senate Committee on Armed Forces and is a strong supporter of the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) program, will present his keynote speech on Monday, July 22. In April, President Obama’s proposed budget included a line item to slash DERA funding by 70 percent. Soon thereafter, EPA published its second report to Congress that detailed the successes of the federal emissions-reduction program since its implementation in 2007. EPA said DERA projects saved 63 million gallons of fuel from 2008 to 2010 and removed more than 203,000 tons of NOx, 12,500 tons of PM and 2.3 million tons of CO2.
DERA includes the Clean School Bus Program, which EPA launched in 2003. EPA officials have said the school bus industry has been the leading benefactor of the program, with 38 percent of grant wins.
The NSTA event next month will also include seminars with information to improve operations.
Additional events include the President’s Party at Gilcrease Museum, NSTA’s awards dinner and the School Bus Driver International Safety Competition, which ends with an awards banquet and ceremony where the winners of the competition are announced. A rules booklet and driver registration forms are available at www.yellowbuses.org. Registration ends June 21.
For more information, click here for a detailed agenda.
