The Trump administration is beginning to unfreeze funding for at least one federal program aimed at reducing the pollution that is driving climate change.
Some school districts on Thursday said they were able to access millions of dollars in federal grants to buy electric school buses. That funding, approved by Congress and overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency, had been blocked since January, when President Trump ordered a pause and review of climate and clean energy programs.
Only a portion of the school bus money has been released. Congress had initially approved $5 billion to help schools replace their worn-out diesel buses with electric models, which produce less pollution. Diesel powers most school buses in the United States, and its exhaust is linked to serious health effects among children, including asthma. Diesel buses also emit greenhouse gases. During the Biden administration, the E.P.A. made three rounds of awards to 1,344 school districts, totaling $2.8 billion.
The second round of grants has now been unfrozen, several awardees said. But the third round of rebates for electric school buses is still on hold. And it is not clear whether the E.P.A. plans to award the remaining $2.2 billion authorized by Congress.
The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The electric school bus program had proved popular with many school districts, as well as some Republicans. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Republican of West Virginia, toured a new electric bus factory in her state last fall and told Politico this month that she was pressing the E.P.A. to release the frozen funds.
Some school districts found themselves in a tough spot without the promised money.
In Arkansas, the Little Rock School District was counting on its second-round award, worth $9.8 million, to buy 25 electric school buses. As part of its grant, the district had to permanently disable many of its older diesel buses. When the grant was paused, the district was left short of buses and had to halt work on a new charging depot.
“We were extremely upset,” said Linda Young, the director of grants at the Little Rock School District. But on Thursday, the district was finally able to access its funds, she said.
The district is still waiting to hear about a separate $11.25 million federal grant to replace older heating and cooling systems in 17 schools. It remains on hold by the Energy Department. “Hope we can get good news,” Ms. Young said.
Two federal judges have ordered the Trump administration to end its freeze on federal grants authorized by Congress. On Feb. 10, one of those judges, Judge John J. McConnell Jr., said in Rhode Island federal court that the White House was defying his order by withholding funds.
Other agencies are starting to unfreeze funding. On Thursday, the Department of Agriculture announced it was releasing a “first tranche” of $20 million in conservation spending for farmers that had been authorized by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, which contained tens of billions of dollars in climate grants.
In a statement, the agency said that it “continues to review IRA funding to ensure that we honor our sacred obligation to American taxpayers — and to ensure that programs are focused on supporting farmers and ranchers” instead of “far-left climate programs.”
