SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE

 

STATEMENT TO

 

SENATE, No. 2754

 

with committee amendments

 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

 

DATED:  JULY 26, 2018

 

      The Senate Transportation Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 2754.

      As amended and reported, this bill directs the Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Superintendent of the Division of State Police, the Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety, the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, and the Director of the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, to study: the safety of school bus passengers involved in emergency situations, including, but not limited to, school bus accidents, such as head-on, rear-end, and side-impact collisions, and situations where the school bus may roll over; safety technologies, including, but not limited to, speed restrictors, automatic braking, electronic stability control, and event data recorders, that are available in newly manufactured school buses or may be installed in school buses after manufacture; and the qualifications for school bus drivers, including, but not limited to, age, physical fitness requirements, and necessary experience.  The study is to include an evaluation of the statutory and regulatory requirements relating to school bus safety, the oversight of school bus operations, including, but not limited to, maintenance of vehicles, school bus drivers qualifications, and audits of school districts and contractors, and the current policies, plans, and procedures implemented by school districts.

      The committee amended the bill to provide for additional areas for the Commissioner of Education to study which include: the safety technologies that are available in newly manufactured school buses or that may be installed in school buses after manufacture; the qualifications for school bus drivers; and the oversight of school bus operations.

      As amended and reported, Senate Bill No. 2754 is identical to Assembly Bill No. 4224, which was also amended and reported by the committee on this date.