II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 494 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for a credit for 

zero-emission buses. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 1, 2021 

Ms. CORTEZ MASTO introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide 

for a credit for zero-emission buses. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Green Bus Tax Credit 

5 Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CREDIT FOR ZERO-EMISSION BUSES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart D of part IV of sub8 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

9 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

10 section: 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 494 IS

1 ‘‘SEC. 45U. ZERO-EMISSION BUS CREDIT. 

2 ‘‘(a) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT.—For purposes of sec3 tion 38, in the case of a manufacturer of a zero-emission 

4 bus, the zero-emission bus credit determined under this 

5 section for a taxable year is an amount equal to 10 percent 

6 of the sum of the sale price of each zero-emission bus sold 

7 by such taxpayer during such taxable year. 

8 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The sale price of a zero-emission 

9 bus may not be taken into account under subsection (a) 

10 to the extent such price exceeds $1,000,000. 

11 ‘‘(c) ZERO-EMISSION BUS.—For purposes of this sec12 tion— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘zero-emission 

14 bus’ means a motor vehicle which— 

15 ‘‘(A) has a gross vehicle weight rating of 

16 not less than 14,000 pounds, 

17 ‘‘(B) is not powered or charged by an in18 ternal combustion engine, 

19 ‘‘(C) is propelled solely by an electric 

20 motor which draws electricity from a battery or 

21 fuel cell, 

22 ‘‘(D) is designed to carry 15 or more pas23 sengers, and 

24 ‘‘(E) satisfies the requirements established 

25 under section 5323(j) of title 49, United States 

26 Code. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 494 IS

1 ‘‘(2) MOTOR VEHICLE; MANUFACTURER.—The 

2 term ‘motor vehicle’ and ‘manufacturer’ have the 

3 meaning given such terms in paragraphs (2) and (3) 

4 of section 30D(d), respectively. 

5 ‘‘(d) SPECIAL RULES.— 

6 ‘‘(1) SALE PRICE.—For purposes of this sec7 tion, the sale price of a zero-emission bus shall be 

8 reduced by any rebate or other incentive given be9 fore, on, or after the date of the sale. 

10 ‘‘(2) DOMESTIC USE.—No credit shall be al11 lowed under subsection (a) with respect to a zero12 emission bus to a manufacturer who knows or has 

13 reason to know that such vehicle will not be used 

14 primarily in the United States or a possession of the 

15 United States. 

16 ‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall pre17 scribe such regulations as may be necessary or ap18 propriate to carry out the purposes of this section, 

19 including procedures for manufacturers to certify 

20 compliance with the requirements under subsection 

21 (c)(1)(E) and to conduct audits with respect to vehi22 cles for which a credit is allowed under this section 

23 to ensure such requirements have been satisfied. 

24 ‘‘(e) TERMINATION.—This section shall not apply to 

25 sales after December 31, 2026.’’. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 494 IS

1 (b) CREDIT MADE PART OF GENERAL BUSINESS

2 CREDIT.—Subsection (b) of section 38 of such Code is 

3 amended by striking ‘‘plus’’ at the end of paragraph (32), 

4 by striking the period at the end of paragraph (33) and 

5 inserting ‘‘, plus’’, and by adding at the end the following 

6 new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(34) the zero-emission bus credit determined 

8 under section 45U.’’. 

9 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

10 for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

11 of such Code is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 45U. Zero-emission bus credit.’’. 

13 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

14 this section shall apply to sales after the date of the enact15 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS