SENATE, No. 1552

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED OCTOBER 3, 1996

By Senators LaROSSA, INVERSO, Kyrillos and Ewing

An Act concerning the busing of school pupils for safety reasons and supplementing chapter 39 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

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

    1. A board of education which transports pupils to and from school pursuant to N.J.S.18A:39-1 may transport elementary school pupils who live less than two miles from school and secondary school pupils who live less than two and one-half miles from school if the board and the governing body of each municipality in which the school district is located jointly agree, and the Department of Education or the Department of Transportation concurs, that the transportation is necessary because of hazardous conditions which imperil the safety of the pupils. The transportation of pupils because of hazardous conditions shall be deemed to be required for a thorough and efficient system of education, and the cost of the transportation shall be exempt from the calculation of the budget cap of the school district.

    As used in this act, "hazardous conditions" shall include, but not be limited to, the absence of sidewalks on at least one side of the roadway and the necessity for pupils to cross a roadway with heavy traffic unprotected by a stop sign, traffic signal or crossing guard.

    2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall first apply to the 1997-98 school year.

STATEMENT

    This bill provides that a board of education which currently transports pupils to and from school may also transport elementary school pupils who live less than two miles from school and secondary school pupils who live less than two and one-half miles from school if the board and the governing body of each municipality in which the school district is located jointly agree, and the Department of Education or the Department of Transportation concurs, that the transportation is necessary because of hazardous conditions which imperil the safety of the pupils. The transportation of pupils because of hazardous conditions would be deemed to be required for a thorough and efficient system of education, and the cost of the transportation would be exempt from the calculation of the budget cap of the school district.

    As used in the bill, "hazardous conditions" include, but are not limited to, the absence of sidewalks on at least one side of the roadway and the necessity for pupils to cross a roadway with heavy traffic unprotected by a stop sign, traffic signal or crossing guard.

Provides that certain busing of pupils is necessary for a thorough and efficient system of education and the cost is exempt from budget cap.