A5400

An Act concerning school bus safety, supplementing chapter 39 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and amending N.J.S.18A:39-3.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. (New section) a. There is established in the Department of Education the Office of the School Bus Safety Coordinator. The purpose of the office is to oversee the school busing industry and to coordinate enforcement and accountability among the department, school bus drivers, school bus contractors, and the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.

b. The Commissioner of Education shall appoint the School Bus Safety Coordinator, who shall be qualified by training and experience to perform the duties of the office, from among current department employees. The coordinator shall be a person of recognized judgment, integrity, and objectivity, and shall be skilled in communication, conflict resolution, and professionalism.

c. The coordinator shall organize and direct the work of the office, including the work of such professional and clerical staff as may be necessary to carry out the coordinator’s duties.

2. (New section) a. The duties of the School Bus Safety Coordinator shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

(1) collect and review a school bus driver’s name, address, and fingerprints prior to the school bus driver’s employment and upon application for renewal of a school bus driver’s license, and all subsequent duties assigned to the Commissioner of Education for a criminal history check or check for alcohol and drug-related motor vehicle violations pursuant to section 6 of P.L.1989, c.104 (C.18A:39-19.1);

(2) collect and review all training certifications for school bus drivers from employers pursuant to subsection b. of section 2 of P.L.2015, c.123 (C.18A:39-19.3);

(3) assist in the development of a student information card pursuant to section 3 of P.L.2015, c.123 (18A:39-19.4);

(4) collect and review statements provided by a board of education or contractor that verify a school bus driver, whose bus driver’s license is suspended or revoked, no longer operates a school bus for the board or contractor pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2018, c.152 (C.18A:39-19.6);

(5) the establishment of a publicly accessibly database which compiles the violations and subsequent fines of a school bus driver, the board of education, nonpublic school, or school bus contractor which employs the school bus driver, and the agency which levied the violation and fine against the school bus driver. The coordinator shall develop and implement an appeal mechanism to resolve any dispute raised by a school bus driver concerning inclusion in the database.

(6) determine if a board of education or contractor has failed to comply with the provisions of N.J.S.18A:39-20;

(7) review and recommend changes to the commissioner of the rules and regulations governing school bus safety; and

(8) any other duties the commissioner deems appropriate to ensure the safety of school buses for students in the State.

b. The coordinator shall treat communications received in the course of the coordinator’s duties, including personally identifiable information regarding students, parents or guardians, school bus drivers, and others from whom information is acquired, as confidential, except when disclosure is necessary to enable the coordinator to perform the duties of the office and consent for disclosure is obtained. Upon receipt of information that by law is confidential or privileged, the coordinator shall maintain the confidentiality of such information and shall not disclose or disseminate the information except as provided by applicable State or federal law.

3. (New section) The coordinator shall submit an annual report to the Governor, the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), and the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission which includes a summary of the services provided, and enforcement actions taken, by the coordinator during the school year, and any specific recommendations the coordinator deems appropriate and necessary concerning the oversight and management of the school busing industry.

4. N.J.S.18A:39-3 is amended to read as follows:

18A:39-3. a. No contract for the transportation of pupils to and from school shall be made, when the amount to be paid during the school year for such transportation shall exceed $7,500.00 or the amount determined pursuant to subsection b. of this section, and have the approval of the executive county superintendent of schools, unless the board of education making such contract shall have first publicly advertised for bids therefor in a newspaper published in the district or, if no newspaper is published therein, in a newspaper circulating in the district, once, at least 10 days prior to the date fixed for receiving proposals for such transportation, and shall have awarded the contract to the lowest responsible bidder, except that the board of education shall not award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder if the Office of the School Bus Safety Coordinator, established pursuant to section 1 of P.L. c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), determines that the bidder has a poor performance record or has committed multiple violations, as compiled in the database established pursuant to paragraph (5) of subsection a. of section 2 of P.L. c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

Nothing in this chapter shall require the advertisement and letting on proposals or bids of annual extensions, approved by the executive county superintendent, of any contract for transportation entered into through competitive bidding when--

(1) Such annual extensions impose no additional cost upon the board of education, regardless of the fact that the route description has changed; or

(2) The increase in the contractual amount as a result of such extensions does not exceed the rise in the Consumer Price Index as defined in section 3 of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-45) for that school year, regardless of the fact that the route description has changed or an aide has been added or removed; or

(3) (Deleted by amendment, P.L.1982, c.74.)

(4) The increase in the contractual amount as a result of an extension exceeds the rise in the Consumer Price Index as defined in section 3 of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-45) for that school year, but the following apply to the extensions:

(a) The increase is directly attributable to a route change to accommodate new student riders or safety concerns as provided for in the original bid, or the increase is directly attributable to the addition of an aide as provided for in the original bid; and

(b) The school destination remains unchanged from the original contract.

Any such extension as described in this paragraph shall require the approval of the executive county superintendent of schools.

Nothing in this chapter shall require the immediate bid of any contract renewal for the remainder of a school year in which the only change, in addition to route description, is the bus type. However, any such extension shall be approved by the executive county superintendent of schools and shall be bid for the next school year.

b. The Governor, in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, shall, no later than March 1 of each odd-numbered year, adjust the threshold amount set forth in subsection a. of this section, or subsequent to 1985 the threshold amount resulting from any adjustment under this subsection or section 17 of P.L.1985, c.469, in direct proportion to the rise or fall of the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers in the New York City and the Philadelphia areas as reported by the United States Department of Labor. The Governor shall, no later than June 1 of each odd-numbered year, notify all local school districts of the adjustment. The adjustment shall become effective on July 1 of each odd-numbered year.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.260, s.66)

5. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill establishes the Office of the School Bus Safety Coordinator in the Department of Education. The purpose of the office is to oversee the school busing industry and to coordinate enforcement and accountability among the department, school bus drivers, school bus contractors, and the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.

Under the bill, the duties of the School Bus Safety Coordinator include, at a minimum, the following:

(2) collect and review all training certifications for school bus drivers from employers pursuant to current law requiring training of school bus drivers and school bus aides on interacting with students with special needs;

(3) assist in the development of a student information card that is required under law to include information that should be readily available to a school bus driver and school bus aide for promoting proper interaction with a student with special needs;

(5) the establishment of a publicly accessibly database which compiles the violations and subsequent fines of a school bus driver, the board of education, nonpublic school, or school bus contractor which employs the school bus driver, and the agency which levied the violation and fine against the school bus driver. The coordinator will develop and implement an appeal mechanism to resolve any dispute raised by a school bus driver concerning inclusion in the database;

(6) determine if a board of education or contractor has failed to comply with the provisions of N.J.S.18A:39-20;

(7) review and recommend changes to the commissioner of the rules and regulations governing school bus safety; and

(8) any other duties the commissioner deems appropriate to ensure the safety of school buses for students in the State.

Under current law, a board of education is required to award a contract for the transportation of pupils to and from school to the lowest responsible bidder. This bill amends that law to provide that the board of education will not award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder if the Office of the School Bus Safety Coordinator determines that the bidder has a poor performance record or has committed multiple violations.

The provisions of this bill are based on an editorial that appeared in the Asbury Park Press on December 29, 2020 concerning ways to ensure the safe transportation of school students.