DeWine Launches $10 Million Ohio School Bus Safety Grant Program

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce have launched the Ohio School Bus Safety Grant Program, a new initiative aimed at enhancing the safety of school transportation across the state through a total funding amount of $10 million in competitive school bus safety grants.

In its report issued in January 2024, Governor DeWine’s Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group concluded that while school buses remain the safest mode of transportation for students traveling to and from school, opportunities existed to make school buses even safer than they are today. To accomplish this goal, the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group recommended the state offer funding to districts to offset the costs associated with upgrading school bus fleets with safety equipment that meets specific needs. Read the full recommendations here.

The Ohio School Bus Safety Grant Program will provide competitive grants to eligible applicants for the repair, replacement, or addition of authorized school bus safety features to school buses in active service or for safety enhancements to the purchase of a new school bus. The program is designed for flexibility to allow for tailored purchases that meet specific safety needs, while also considering finances

The Ohio School Bus Safety Grant Program application window opens Oct. 15 and closes Nov. 14, 2025, at 5 p.m. Applications will be accepted through the Department’s e-grant ED STEPS system.

Eligible applicants include city, local, exempted village, and joint vocational school districts, as well as community schools, chartered nonpublic schools, STEM schools, educational service centers, and county boards of developmental disabilities.