REVISE PUPIL TRANSPORTATION ACT
House Bill 6028 as reported from committee w/o amendment
Sponsor: Rep. Gary Howell
Committee: Transportation and Infrastructure
Complete to 6-7-18 (Enacted as Public Act 422 of 2018)
SUMMARY:
House Bill 6028 would amend several sections of the Pupil Transportation Act to revise provisions related to school buses, as described below. The bill would take effect 90 days after being enacted.
The Act currently prohibits radio speakers on a school bus from being closer to the driver than three seat positions away, except for speakers used for two-way communication devices. The bill would strike this provision.
The Act currently prescribes certain color and design specifications for school buses; however, the specifications do not apply to a motor carrier certified by the state transportation department using a motor bus for school-related event transportation. The Act also provides that, except for a bus leased seasonally to transport agricultural workers to and from a field for agricultural operations, a bus other than a school bus may not be painted in whole or in part with the colors or design elements prescribed for school buses.
The bill would amend the Act to remove the exemption from school bus color and design specifications for a motor carrier using a motor bus for school-related event transportation. However, the bill would also allow a bus that is owned and operated by a private carrier primarily under contract with a school system that is also used for occasional charter service to the public or for school-related event transportation to be painted in whole or in part with the colors or design elements specified for school buses.
In addition, the bill would remove references to “the beginning school bus driver training program” and instead specify that a person in charge of school bus operations at a school must have successfully completed “a training program” in his or her first year serving as the person or person in charge. Currently under the act, only continuing education programs required of a person in charge of school bus operations have to be approved by the superintendent of public instruction and be provided by an approved educational agency. The bill would require all training programs required of such a person to be approved by the superintendent and provided by an approved educational agency.
Currently under the Act, when a school bus is picking up or dropping off pupils on a roadway that the pupils are not required to cross, that has sufficient width for the school bus to pull to the far right or off the roadway to allow traffic to flow and provide safety for the pupils, and that has a speed limit of 45 miles per hour or less, the bus driver must activate the hazard warning lights before stopping and keep them on until the process of boarding or discharging passengers is finished. The bill would amend the above provision to change the relevant maximum speed limit from 45 miles per hour to 50 miles per hour.
Finally, the Act currently allows a local unit of government to enter into an agreement with a local school to use school buses to transport senior citizens or retired or disabled persons or “members of a nonprofit organization.” The bill would revise this provision to refer instead to “attendees of an activity, event, or outing sponsored by a nonprofit organization.”
MCL 257.1811 et al.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The bill would have no fiscal impact on the state or local units of government.
POSITIONS:
A representative of the Michigan Association for Pupil Transportation testified in support of the bill. (5-29-18)
The Michigan Association of School Boards indicated support for the bill. (5-29-18)
Fiscal Analyst: Samuel Christensen
■ This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House Fiscal Agency staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.