Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) mismanaged its $160 million contract for electric school buses, according to the Montgomery County Inspector General.
The school district did not receive about two-thirds of the buses and did not require the company to pay penalties, according to a four-page report that was released Monday by the Office of Inspector General (OIG).
The report detailed efforts of MCPS to purchase 326 electric school buses. It hasn’t received 206 buses and failed to include provisions in the contract that the company would be penalized for late delivery.
“Finally, we substantiated MCPS’ reluctance to enforce the terms of the agreement and failure to include penalties to offset incurred expenses has led to millions of dollars in wasted spending and drastically hindered MCPS’s ability to meet its environmental goals,” according to the conclusion of the report.
It was pointed out in the report that MCPS is spending $14.7 million to acquire diesel buses to compensate for not receiving all the electric buses it ordered.
According to the report, the contractor “failed to comply with contract terms related to the delivery of electric school buses and that MCPS failed to exercise contract provisions to force the contractor into compliance or terminate the contract.”
MCPS accepted late delivery and “absorbed delays related to mechanical failures which rendered some buses inoperable for extended periods.”
While MCPS includes penalties for late delivery in its contract to buy diesel buses, it did not do that for the electric ones, according to the report. If it had used the same penalty rate, MCPS would have been entitled to $1.8 million.
According to the report, “MCPS should have assessed the contractor approximately $372,000 for failing to provide serviceable buses between FYs 2022 and 2024.”
MCPS issued a statement after receiving the report, noting it “will take the necessary actions to address the identified issues.”
The statement reads: “We value the Office of Inspector General (OIG) as an important partner and appreciate their ongoing work. In response to their investigative findings, we will take the necessary actions to address the identified issues. This includes implementing data tracking systems, enhancing management practices, and improving vendor communication and contracts. We will continue to collaborate closely with the OIG throughout this process.”
According to the report, the school district received 25 buses during Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, 61 in FY 2023, 120 in FY 2024 and 16 so far in FY 2025. Also, the contractor notified MCPS it won’t be able to deliver all buses it agreed to during the current Fiscal Year.
MCPS is spending over $14 million to acquire additional diesel buses to compensate for not receiving electric school buses in time to meet transportation demands, according to the report.
The investigation was initiated following complaints received through the OIG’s hotline.
