FILE:  ED

Cf:  EDCA

STUDENT TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

The Concordia Parish School Board shall provide to eligible students school transportation services which shall meet the objectives of safety, efficiency, adequacy, and economy. Through the use of publicly and privately owned buses, the School Board shall maintain a student transportation program that shall conform to or exceed minimum standards as set forth by pertinent statutes and the Louisiana Department of Education, as well as regulations established by the Supervisor of Transportation.  It shall be unlawful for the School Board to permit the transport at one time a number of children on a school bus that exceeds the number of seats available on that bus.

INSURANCE

All vehicles, owned by either the School Board or contract bus operators, shall carry evidence of insurance and be registered, marked, and equipped according to law.  Contract bus operators who purchase their own insurance shall be required to annually submit to the Supervisor of Transportation proof of proper and valid insurance coverage prior to any usage of the bus.  All owner/operators employed by the School Board shall be responsible for obtaining and maintaining vehicle insurance on his, or her vehicle with liability coverage of no less than $1,000,000.  The Concordia Parish School Board shall be named as a certificate holder and additional named insured on such policy.  The School Board shall reimburse the owner/operator for the additional cost of said coverage exceeding $300,000.  Such reimbursement shall not exceed $1,000 for any annual period, and shall only be paid upon receiving a policy paid receipt, or statement of such coverage and payment from an authorized representative of the policy producer.  In addition, should for any reason referenced policy be discontinued or cancelled, any rebate of policy premiums shall become the property of the Concordia Parish School Board.  Should any coverage aspects or insurance policy provisions change during the year, the bus operator shall notify the Supervisor of Transportation immediately.

All school buses used to transport students shall at all times be driven by operators, regular and substitute, possessing a valid Commercial Driver's License (CDL) with proper endorsements, and having completed state-required pre-service certification training, in accordance with provisions outlined in Louisiana School Transportation Specifications and Procedures, Bulletin 119.  All school bus operators, including contract bus operators, shall be required to personally operate the school bus assigned or owned, except in the case of illness or emergency.  A school bus operator shall notify Durham School Services when he/she is unable to run his/her route so that a substitute drive can be secured.  Absences should be reported to Durham School Services at or before 6:00 a.m.  An absence report should be filed on the first day of return.

USE OF PARISH OWNED BUSES

Bus operators who need to use parish owned buses may do so with the following cost provisions:

The maximum time that a contract bus operator will be allowed to utilize a School Board owned bus will be 10 (ten) working days per school year.  Should there be extenuating circumstances requiring additional days, the following requirements shall be met:

1. A written request shall be submitted to the Supervisor of Transportation outlining the reasons the bus is needed.
   
   

2. Full documentation shall be attached to the request including, but not limited to, mechanic/garage statements, invoice for parts, etc.

BUS PURCHASES

When a new bus is purchased or the ownership of a bus is transferred, the requirements contained in the applicable laws and school district regulations shall be observed.  School buses used to transport students, including activity and backup buses, shall not be more than twenty-five (25) years old.  All replacement school buses, at the time they are acquired by the owner, shall be ten (10) or less model years old.  The number of years shall be reckoned from the date of introduction of the model year.  This shall apply to buses purchased by veteran owners/operators, by newly hired owners/operators and by the School Board, individual schools, booster clubs, etc., for the purposes of transporting children to and from school and school-related activities and for use as spare buses.  All buses so purchased shall be required to satisfactorily pass all mandated inspections prior to any usage.

Before any bus is purchased by an existing contract bus operator, a preliminary review and justification for the purchase of a new bus must be made and the bus must first be recommended by the Supervisor of Transportation.  Final approval for all bus purchases remains with the School Board.

School Bus Purchase Incentives

All pre-owned bus purchases that are five (5) model years old or less, bus operators will be paid a total of $2,500 purchase assistance allowance.  Such allowances will be added to the operations pay and will be paid at a rate of $500 per year for a term of five years, or until bus ownership is terminated.

Bus operators purchasing new buses will be paid a total purchase assistance allowance in the amount of $7,000.  Such allowances will be added to the operations pay and will be paid at a rate of $1,000 per year for a term of seven years or until bus ownership is terminated.

Newly Hired Bus Operators

Each newly hired bus operator shall be required to own his/her own buses, and that bus shall meet all federal, state, and local rules and regulations.  A newly hired bus operator shall be paid a substitute’s pay until the operator has purchased his/her bus.  The School Board may lease a bus for use by a newly hired bus operator if it becomes necessary.

Each newly hired bus operator shall have fifteen (15) days to have his/her bus accepted, certified and properly inspected.  If a newly hired operator has not obtained a certified and properly inspected bus within the fifteen (15) days, then the route for which the operator was hired shall be declared vacant and readvertised.

Ref:    La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:158, 17:158.1, 17:158.2, 17:158.3, 17:158.4, 17:158.5, 17:158.6, 17:159, 17:159.1, 17:159.2, 17:160, 17:162, 17:163, 17:164, 17:165, 17:166, 32:293, 32:378

Olive Morgan v. Livingston Parish School Board, First Circuit Court of Appeals, March 1991

Louisiana School Transportation Specifications and Procedures, Bulletin 119, Louisiana Department of Education

Atty. Gen. Opinion, #88-628

Board minutes, 8-3-93, 7-21-98, 1-3-00, 5-11-04, 3-8-05, 2-16-06, 7-11-06, 11-14-06, 5-8-07, 6-14-07, 1-10-08, 2-11-21

Concordia Parish School Board