{"id":2316814,"date":"2024-07-31T14:51:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-31T18:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/school-district-turns-to-diesel-after-attempt-to-convert-bus-fleet-to-electric-proves-disastrous\/"},"modified":"2024-07-31T15:00:11","modified_gmt":"2024-07-31T19:00:11","slug":"school-district-turns-to-diesel-after-attempt-to-convert-bus-fleet-to-electric-proves-disastrous","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/school-district-turns-to-diesel-after-attempt-to-convert-bus-fleet-to-electric-proves-disastrous\/","title":{"rendered":"School District Turns to Diesel After Attempt to Convert Bus Fleet to Electric Proves Disastrous"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fschool-district-turns-to-diesel-after-attempt-to-convert-bus-fleet-to-electric-proves-disastrous%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2316814&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The summary presents\u200b an overview of a memorandum \u200bissued by Megan Davey Limarzi, the Inspector General of\u200c Montgomery County,\u200c Maryland, \u2063regarding the mismanagement\u200d of an electric bus contract by Montgomery County\u200b Public Schools (MCPS). \u2063The investigation found that MCPS failed\u200b to hold the bus contractor accountable, leading \u2062to substantial financial waste, including\u2063 over $2 million in lost fees and\u2064 the need to purchase\u200b additional diesel\u2064 buses. The ambitious\u2064 plan to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/electric-buses-purchased-from-bankrupt-company-no-longer-running\/\" title=\"Bankrupt company&#039;s electric buses no longer in service.\">replace diesel buses<\/a> with electric ones, costing \u200dnearly $169 million, fell\u2063 short \u2063as the \u200bcontractor\u200d did \u2062not deliver the expected vehicles on time. Furthermore, \u2062the \u2062electric buses that \u200bwere\u200c delivered experienced numerous mechanical issues, raising concerns about their reliability. Limarzi concluded that \u200bMCPS&#8217;s \u200dreluctance to enforce the \u2063contract \u200band assess penalties \u200dfor non-compliance resulted in significant taxpayer \u2062losses, highlighting a critique of the\u2062 underlying motivations driven by climate change initiatives within the county&#8217;s \u200daffluent\u200d liberal community. the \u200bcase\u2063 illustrates issues with accountability and the\u200d consequences of\u2062 lofty environmental aspirations not matched by effective execution.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> <script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Affluent liberals will do nearly anything to parade their own perceived moral virtue, including fleecing their neighbors at gunpoint.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, however, the only thing on parade is tragicomic liberalism.<\/p>\n<p>On July 25, Megan Davey Limarzi, Inspector General of Montgomery County, Maryland, issued a blistering <a href=\"https:\/\/montgomerycountymd.gov\/OIG\/Resources\/Files\/PDF\/IGActivity\/FY2025\/MOI-FY25%20MCPS%20Electric%20Bus%20Fleet.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">memorandum<\/a> regarding her office&rsquo;s (OIG) investigation into Montgomery County Public Schools&rsquo; catastrophic management of an electric bus contract, which has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-push-for-student-debt-forgiveness-would-cost-taxpayers-millions\/\" title=\"Democrats push for student debt forgiveness, would cost taxpayers millions\">cost taxpayers millions<\/a> and forced MCPS to rely on diesel buses.<\/p>\n<p>The sad story began with the usual <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/numerous-athletes-fleeing-olympic-village-woke-virtue-signalling-creates-nightmare-conditions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">virtue signaling<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;On February 23, 2021, as part of its commitment to sustainability, MCPS announced it was replacing 326 diesel school buses with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kamala-harris-pushes-for-20b-in-infrastructure-funding-to-go-to-electric-school-buses\/\" title=\"Kamala Harris pushes for B in infrastructure funding to go to electric school buses\">electric school buses<\/a>,&rdquo; Limarzi wrote.<\/p>\n<p>  <script> \t\t\t\tif( ! getCookie( 'ff_subbed' ) ) if( typeof FFADS.replace_ict !='undefined' ) if( FFADS.replace_ict ) eval( FFADS.replace_ict ); \t\t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>That ambitious purchase came at a cost of $168,684,990.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/247wallst.com\/income\/2024\/04\/18\/these-are-the-richest-counties-in-maryland\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">24\/7 Wall St.<\/a>, Montgomery County ranks as the 3rd-wealthiest county in Maryland with a median household income of $125,583.<\/p>\n<p>In the 2020 election, President Joe Biden won Montgomery County by a staggering 60 percentage points, per <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/2020-election\/results\/maryland\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Politico<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, these are exactly the sort of affluent liberals who worship the god of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/alert-biden-plots-declaring-national-climate-emergency-granting-sweeping-powers-ahead-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">climate change<\/a>&nbsp;and would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/vs-u-s-study-exposes-profound-threat-authoritarian-elites-pose-ordinary-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">adopt even the most authoritarian remedy<\/a> if it meant that they could feel good about saving the planet.<\/p>\n<p>Alas, Limarzi found that the electric bus contractor &ldquo;did not deliver any of the buses expected in FY2022 through FY2024 by August 1st as required by the agreement&rsquo;s delivery schedule.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Nor will the contractor meet said delivery goal for the 2024-25 school year.<\/p>\n<p>With that in mind, MCPS should have assessed fees, as it would have done under a diesel bus contract. But it did not do so, which cost an additional $1.8 million.<\/p>\n<p>This led Limarzi to conclude that MCPS had utterly fleeced taxpayers.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;MCPS&rsquo;s failure to hold the contractor accountable to the terms of the contract and their decision not to include provisions to offset incurred expenses has led to millions of dollars in wasteful spending,&rdquo; the local inspector general wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, MCPS ignored the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/electric-bus-loses-power-going-hill-rolls-backward-crashes-line-cars\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">electric buses&rsquo;<\/a> chronic mechanical failures.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Mechanical and\/or charging infrastructure issues resulted in buses not being able to run routes on more than 280 instances from February 10, 2022, through March 31, 2024,&rdquo; Limarzi wrote.<\/p>\n<p>And yet, despite the contractor&rsquo;s repeated failures to service the buses, MCPS inexplicably assessed no fees. That decision cost taxpayers another $372,100.<\/p>\n<p>Incredibly, lost fees alone cost taxpayers more than $2.1 million.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, MCPS has spent another $14,749,919 on 90 diesel buses to cover the shortfall. Thus, in light of the original purchase, the total cost to taxpayers has approached $200 million.<\/p>\n<p>In sum, the OIG investigation &ldquo;substantiated that MCPS&rsquo; reluctance to enforce the terms of the agreement and failure to include penalties to offset incurred expenses has led to millions of dollars in wasteful spending and drastically hindered MCPS&rsquo;s ability to meet its environmental goals.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Though drafted in no-nonsense language, Limarzi&rsquo;s memorandum highlighted the pseudo-religious hysteria at the core of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/climate-agitators-storm-course-interrupt-scottie-schefflers-decisive-putt-patriotic-crowd\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">climate change<\/a> narrative.<\/p>\n<p>First, to showcase their &ldquo;commitment to sustainability,&rdquo; MCPS authorized an outrageous original outlay of $168,684,990.<\/p>\n<p>Then, when they failed to receive the electric buses on time, they did not assess a fee. Better to leave one&rsquo;s neighbors holding the bag than to undermine one&rsquo;s beliefs by rebuking an EV contractor.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, the buses that did arrive suffered nearly 300 operational issues over a two-year period. Again, though, better to make taxpayers foot the bill than to entertain questions about electric buses&rsquo; reliability.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, taxpayers must pay their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/biden-calls-record-high-taxes-closing-50-rate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">taxes<\/a> &mdash; at the point of a gun if necessary. That is tragicomic liberalism on parade.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> <label>* Name<\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> <\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> <label>* <\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> <\/div>\n<p> <label>* Message<\/label> <br \/> <textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea>  <\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> <input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\">  <\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script>  <\/div>\n<p>   <script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Affluent liberals often go to great lengths to showcase their perceived moral superiority, even if it means exploiting their neighbors. Ultimately, what is on display is a form of tragicomic liberalism. On July 25, Megan Davey Limarzi, the Inspector General of Montgomery County, Maryland, released a scathing memorandum about her office&#8217;s investigation into the disastrous management of an electric bus contract by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), which has resulted in millions lost for taxpayers and a reliance on diesel buses.<\/p>\n<p>The unfortunate saga began with typical virtue signaling when MCPS announced on February 23, 2021, that it would replace 326 diesel school buses with electric ones as part of its sustainability commitment. This ambitious initiative came at a staggering cost of $168.7 million. According to 24\/7 Wall St., Montgomery County is the third-wealthiest county in Maryland with a median household income of $125,583. In the 2020 election, President Joe Biden won this county by an impressive margin of 60 percentage points according to Politico\u2014these are precisely the affluent liberals who fervently support climate change initiatives and would endorse even authoritarian measures if it made them feel virtuous about protecting the environment.<\/p>\n<p>However, Limarzi discovered that the contractor responsible for delivering these electric buses failed to meet any delivery deadlines from FY2022 through FY2024 as stipulated in their agreement and will not fulfill delivery goals for the upcoming school year either. MCPS should have imposed penalties as they would have under a diesel bus contract but chose not to do so\u2014resulting in an additional loss of $1.8 million.<\/p>\n<p>Limarzi concluded that MCPS had effectively taken advantage of taxpayers: \u201cMCPS\u2019s failure to hold the contractor accountable and their decision not to include provisions for offsetting incurred expenses has led to millions wasted,\u201d she stated in her report. Additionally, MCPS overlooked ongoing mechanical issues with these electric buses; there were over 280 instances where buses could not operate due to mechanical or charging problems between February 10, 2022 and March 31, 2024.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these repeated failures from the contractor regarding bus serviceability, MCPS inexplicably did not impose any fees\u2014costing taxpayers another $372,100 alone. The total losses from unassessed fees exceeded $2 million while MCPS spent nearly $14.75 million on acquiring additional diesel buses due to shortfalls caused by this situation; thus bringing total taxpayer costs close to $200 million when considering initial purchases.<\/p>\n<p>In summary, Limarzi\u2019s investigation confirmed that MCPS&#8217;s reluctance to enforce contractual terms and lack of penalties contributed significantly towards wasteful spending while severely undermining its environmental objectives: \u201cThe reluctance&#8230;and failure&#8230;has led&#8230;to millions wasted.\u201d Although written plainly enough for clarity&#8217;s sake\u2014the memorandum underscores an almost religious fervor surrounding climate change narratives; first showcasing their &#8220;commitment&#8221; through extravagant spending then failing accountability measures when things went awry\u2014all while leaving taxpayers bearing financial burdens rather than confronting uncomfortable truths about electric vehicle reliability\u2014a true display indeed!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2316815,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/school-bus.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[36799,36800,32410,8068],"class_list":["post-2316814","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-diesel-buses","tag-electric-conversion","tag-school-district","tag-transportation"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/school-bus.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2316814","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2316814"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2316814\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2316815"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2316814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2316814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2316814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}