JEFFERSON CITY — The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is ending vehicle replacement funding programs under the Volkswagen Settlement Environmental Mitigation Trust. However, funding for future projects will still be available through the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act.
Since 2018, the department has accepted applications from local governments and private entities for replacing diesel-powered school buses, medium- and heavy-duty trucks, transit buses, tugboats and cargo-handling equipment. During that time, more than 700 projects were awarded, totaling more than $37 million across Missouri and reducing nitrogen oxide (NOX) emissions by nearly 2,000 tons. Included in these awards were more than 350 school buses operating in more than 150 districts, as well as 12 fire trucks and ambulances, which were awarded in the most recent and final funding round for vehicle replacements.
Although these important projects have exhausted the available funding in these categories, assistance is still available through the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act. The DERA is a related funding program that will continue to use a portion of the remaining VW Trust funds for vehicle replacements and upgrades. This category is open to many of the same project types as before and will continue to be a source of funding for years to come.
Additionally, the department will continue funding Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Program projects. Missouri dedicated more than $6 million of its VW Trust funds to EV infrastructure. Presently, the department has used approximately half of the allotted funding for awards to install publicly available fast chargers at 13 sites across the state’s major highways. A public stakeholder workgroup is providing guidance on how to use the remaining EV infrastructure funding. Contact the department at MOVWTeam@dnr.mo.gov to be a part of that conversation.
In 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency filed a complaint alleging Volkswagen violated the Clean Air Act with the sale of motor vehicles between 2009 and 2016 equipped with defeat devices designed to perform differently during normal vehicle operation than during emissions tests. This meant vehicles exceeded EPA’s compliance levels for NOX during normal use.
Volkswagen agreed to settle some of the allegations by creating an Environmental Mitigation Trust to fund strategies that reduce the NOX emissions. Missouri received approximately $41 million in Volkswagen Trust funds for mitigation projects to be distributed over several years.
More information on the VW Trust is available at dnr.mo.gov/air/what-were-doing/volkswagen-trust-funds.