3 days ago
Texas House passes bill tightening rules on school bus seat belts
For the first time, a bill requiring school districts to report the presence and cost of seat belts on their buses cleared a key hurdle on Tuesday when the Texas House overwhelmingly passed the proposal.
The bill, Senate Bill 546, would also eliminate the exemption that allows buses built before 2018 to operate without restraints.
The state-level conversation about enhancing students' transportation safety comes after a deadly bus crash in Bastrop County on March 22, 2024, that left a prekindergarten student and 33-year-old man dead.
The bill builds on decades of Texas laws promoting seat belt use on school buses, although many students across the state continue riding unrestrained daily.
SB 546 now heads back to the Senate for final approval before advancing to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk to become law.
Just before the House's final 104-38 vote Wednesday, Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, thanked Midland Republican Rep. Tom Craddick for carrying the bill through the House. The state hasn't provided the funding districts need to fully equip their buses with seat belts, she said.
'We do know there have been many tragedies of children on these school buses who have lost their lives,' Howard said.
Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, who authored the bill, said the proposal is about saving lives.
"In an age of discussing school safety and preventable deaths, it is clear that when school buses are equipped with seat belts, they could save the lives of children, bus drivers, and other passengers on board," Menéndez stated in his statement of intent.
The March 2024 crash involved a Hays school district bus from 2011 that didn't have seat belts.
Forty-four students from Tom Green Elementary School and 11 adults were returning from a field trip to the Capital of Texas Zoo in Bastrop County when a concrete pump truck collided with the bus, causing it to flip on its side.
A 2017 state law requires all school buses to have seat belts, but it excludes buses purchased before 2018. The law also allows districts to exempt themselves from the mandate if they can't afford purchasing new buses, which wouldn't change with SB 546.
By the end of the 2025-26 school year districts will be required to report to the Texas Education Agency how many buses they operate or contract that lack restraints, have only two-point seat belts or have three-point belts. Districts will also have to report the cost of transitioning their bus fleets to three-point safety belts.
While two-point belts only cover a rider's lap, three-point belts look like a standard car seat belt.
By Jan. 1, 2027, the TEA is expected to develop a report for state leaders on how much it would cost for all school buses statewide to have seat belts.
A November analysis by the American-Statesman revealed that while most school districts have switched to purchasing new buses with seat belts, many districts still use older buses without restraints. District officials and experts who spoke with the Statesman pointed to the financial burden of purchasing new buses, especially for rural districts, as a reason for the delayed transition.
In 13 Central Texas school districts the Statesman surveyed at the time, only four, including Austin, had bus fleets fully outfitted with seat belts. Four others had at least 75% of their buses equipped with restraints.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates transportation crashes, has recommended the use of three-point seat belts on school buses since 2018. Although child safety and transportation experts consistently report school buses are among the safest vehicles on the road, they also point to data that belts add protection in rollover crashes similar to the one in Bastrop County.
However, laws requiring seat belts on school buses are rare across the U.S. Texas is one of only eight states with any seat belt mandates, regardless of exemptions.
Since 2011, 13 crashes involving school buses have killed someone riding in the bus, according to data from the TEA.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas House passes bill tightening rules on school bus seat belts
