20-Member School Bus Task Force Writes A Report, Then Disbands

The text as introduced · 955 words

89R8694 AND-D

By: Johnson
S.B. No. 1345

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the establishment of a public school transportation

task force.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Chapter 34, Education Code, is amended by adding

Section 34.016 to read as follows:

Sec. 34.016. PUBLIC SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION TASK FORCE. (a)

In this section, "task force" means the public school

transportation task force established under this section.

(b) The public school transportation task force is

established to study and make recommendations relating to

modernizing public school transportation in this state.

(c) The task force is composed of 20 members as follows:

(1) one member appointed by the governor;

(2) one member appointed by the lieutenant governor;

(3) one member appointed by the speaker of the house of

representatives; and

(4) 17 members appointed by the commissioner as

follows:

(A) three parents of students enrolled in a

school district who use the district's school transportation

system, or would use that transportation system if it were

available, at least one of whom must be a parent of a student

enrolled at a campus that receives supplemental funding under Part

A, Title 1, Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20

U.S.C. Section 6311 et seq.) and:

(i) one of whom resides in a rural school

district;

(ii) one of whom resides in a suburban

school district; and

(iii) one of whom resides in an urban school

district;

(B) three school district transportation

directors, one of whom is from a rural school district, one of whom

is from a suburban school district, and one of whom is from an urban

school district;

(C) two directors of a school district's special

education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, at least one of

whom is from a rural school district;

(D) two members who represent open-enrollment

charter schools, one of whom is from a school that offers a school

transportation system and one of whom is from a school that does not

offer a school transportation system;

(E) one member who represents a private

prekindergarten provider that partners with a school district under

Section 29.153(g);

(F) one member from an association that

represents school bus drivers or school transportation staff;

(G) one member who represents an off-campus

after-school program;

(H) two members who represent public

transportation providers; and

(I) two members who are chief financial officers

of a school district, one of whom is from a rural district and one of

whom is from an urban district.

(d) The task force shall hold its first meeting not later

than October 1, 2025, and shall elect a presiding officer from among

its membership. After the initial meeting, the task force shall

meet at the times and places that the presiding officer determines

appropriate.

(e) Members of the task force serve without compensation but

are entitled to reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses

incurred in performing official duties under this section.

(f) The agency shall provide information, assistance, and

administrative support to the task force. To the extent feasible,

the agency, in cooperation with school districts and

open-enrollment charter schools, shall provide the task force with

information relating to:

(1) criteria used by districts and schools to

determine student eligibility for school-provided transportation

and whether the criteria create barriers for a student to attend the

student's school of choice;

(2) school transportation system utilization patterns

and operations, including:

(A) the number of students eligible for

school-provided transportation who use the school transportation

system;

(B) whether routes are at capacity; and

(C) methodologies used by districts and schools

to identify utilization patterns and adjust transportation

operations accordingly;

(3) school transportation system staffing, including:

(A) the number of drivers required to cover

routes;

(B) driver pay rates and hours of operation;

(C) driver vacancies; and

(D) contracts with public transportation

providers or third-party transportation providers to satisfy

school transportation needs;

(4) school transportation system fleet

diversification, including:

(A) the types of vehicles used to satisfy school

transportation needs;

(B) the associated costs of vehicles described by

Paragraph (A), including purchasing, fuel, and maintenance costs;

(C) resale or salvage values of vehicles

described by Paragraph (A); and

(D) the costs of a potential transition to

electric vehicles; and

(5) discrepancies between the number of students

eligible for school-provided transportation and the number of

students who use that transportation and the causes of the

discrepancies.

(g) The task force shall study:

(1) transportation challenges that create barriers

for a student to attend the school district or open-enrollment

charter school of the student's choice;

(2) improvements to the method of providing funding

for school transportation systems under Section 48.151;

(3) existing and potential funding sources for school

transportation systems;

(4) potential partnerships among school districts,

open-enrollment charter schools, public and private transportation

providers, and local nonprofit organizations to meet school

transportation needs and create cost efficiencies while

maintaining safety standards;

(5) career pathways in school transportation and

logistics; and

(6) competitive salaries and benefits packages

necessary to recruit and retain school transportation drivers.

(h) Not later than December 1, 2026, the task force shall

submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the

house of representatives, and each legislative committee with

primary jurisdiction over primary and secondary education a report

on the task force's findings and any recommendations for

legislative or other action.

(i) The task force is abolished and this section expires

September 1, 2027.

SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.