S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
7030
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
March 29, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. TITONE, ARROYO, COOK, GOTTFRIED, MAYER, SIMON,
McDONOUGH, SANTABARBARA -- read once and referred to the Committee on
Education
AN ACT to amend the education law and the vehicle and traffic law, in
relation to requiring comprehensive training for school bus drivers
and school bus attendants for safe and appropriate transportation of
children with disabilities; and to amend the family court act and the
education law, in relation to school district contracts for transpor-
tation
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 3650 of the education law, as
amended by section 5 of part E of chapter 501 of the laws of 2012, is
amended to read as follows:
2. (A) The commissioner, in consultation with the justice center for
the protection of people with special needs, shall promulgate rules and
regulations requiring every school bus driver operating a school bus
which has or will have one or more students with a disability as passen-
gers to receive COMPREHENSIVE training and instruction relating to the
understanding of, and attention to, the special needs of such students.
[Such training and instruction may be included with the training and
instruction required pursuant to paragraph a of subdivision one of this
section and shall be provided at least once per year or more frequently
as determined by the commissioner in consultation with the state compre-
hensive school bus driver safety training council.] TRAINING WILL
PROVIDE SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS AND SCHOOL BUS ATTENDANTS WITH THE KNOWLEDGE,
SKILLS, AND ATTITUDES NECESSARY TO SAFELY AND APPROPRIATELY TRANSPORT
AND SUPERVISE A CHILD WITH A DISABILITY AS DEFINED BY THE FEDERAL INDI-
VIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT. THIS TRAINING WILL INCLUDE, AT
A MINIMUM, AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CHARACTERISTICS AND NEEDS OF CHILDREN
AND YOUTH WITH DISABILITIES INCLUDING DISABILITIES AFFECTING INTELLECTU-
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09167-01-7
A. 7030 2
AL, COMMUNICATION, SOCIAL/EMOTIONAL, SENSORY PROCESSING ABILITIES, MOTOR
SKILLS, AND MEDICAL/HEALTH NEEDS. IN ADDITION, TRAINING DEVELOPED BY
INDEPENDENT DISABILITY SPECIALISTS WILL INCLUDE MODULES ON DISABILITY
AWARENESS AND SENSITIVITY, EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES TO PROMOTE POSITIVE
BEHAVIOR, AND COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS. For the purposes of this
subdivision, the term "student with a disability" shall have the same
meaning as such term is defined in subdivision one of section forty-four
hundred one of this chapter. [Any person employed as a school bus driver
on January first, two thousand nine who is subject to the provisions of
this subdivision shall comply with the requirements of this subdivision
by July first, two thousand nine. Any school bus driver hired after
January first, two thousand nine who is subject to the requirements of
this subdivision shall complete such training and instruction prior to
assuming his or her duties.] THE TRAINING AND INSTRUCTION REQUIRED BY
THIS SUBDIVISION MAY BE INCLUDED WITH THE TRAINING AND INSTRUCTION
REQUIRED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH A OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION AND
THIS SUBDIVISION AND SHALL BE PROVIDED AT LEAST ONCE PER YEAR OR MORE
FREQUENTLY AS DETERMINED BY THE COMMISSIONER IN CONSULTATION WITH THE
STATE COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL BUS DRIVER SAFETY TRAINING COUNCIL.
(B) ANY PERSON EMPLOYED AS A SCHOOL BUS DRIVER OR SCHOOL BUS ATTENDANT
SHALL RECEIVE NOT LESS THAN TEN HOURS OF TRAINING TO EQUIP THEM TO SAFE-
LY AND APPROPRIATELY TRANSPORT AND SUPERVISE CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES.
INCLUDED IN THIS TEN HOURS WILL BE NOT FEWER THAN TWO HOURS OF TRAINING
IN POSITIVE BEHAVIOR SUPPORT, INCLUDING PREVENTION OF BULLYING. ANNUAL-
LY, SUCH PERSONNEL WILL RECEIVE FOUR HOURS OF INSERVICE TRAINING WHICH
WILL INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE HOUR ON POSITIVE BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS
SUPPORT.
§ 2. Section 3650 of the education law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 3 to read as follows:
3. ANY PERSON, FIRM OR CORPORATION WHO EMPLOYS A SCHOOL BUS DRIVER,
WHO FAILS TO COMPLETE THE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN THIS
SECTION SHALL BE SUBJECT TO A FINE OF FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR A FIRST
VIOLATION AND TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR A SECOND VIOLATION. A THIRD
VIOLATION OF FAILING TO COMPLETE THE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS OF THIS
SECTION SHALL BE DEEMED A MATERIAL BREACH OF ANY CONTRACT FOR TRANSPOR-
TATION SERVICES AND SUCH CONTRACT SHALL BE DEEMED NULL AND VOID. A
SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY NOT ENTER INTO A CONTRACT, OR EXTEND AN EXISTING
CONTRACT, FOR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES UNTIL THE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS OF
THIS SECTION HAVE BEEN MET.
§ 3. Subdivision 4 of section 1229-d of the vehicle and traffic law,
as amended by section 6 of part E of chapter 501 of the laws of 2012, is
amended to read as follows:
(4) (A) The commissioner of education, in consultation with the
justice center for the protection of people with special needs, shall
promulgate rules and regulations requiring that every school bus attend-
ant serving a student or students with a disability receive COMPREHEN-
SIVE training and instruction relating to the understanding of and
attention to the special needs of such students. [Such training and
instruction may be included with the training and instruction required
pursuant to subdivision three of this section and shall be provided at
least once per year or more frequently as determined by the commissioner
of education in consultation with the state comprehensive school bus
driver safety training council.] TRAINING WILL PROVIDE SCHOOL BUS DRIV-
ERS AND SCHOOL BUS ATTENDANTS WITH THE KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ATTITUDES
NECESSARY TO SAFELY AND APPROPRIATELY TRANSPORT AND SUPERVISE A CHILD
WITH A DISABILITY AS DEFINED BY THE FEDERAL INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILI-
A. 7030 3
TIES EDUCATION ACT. THIS TRAINING WILL INCLUDE, AT A MINIMUM, AN INTRO-
DUCTION TO THE CHARACTERISTICS AND NEEDS OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH WITH
DISABILITIES INCLUDING DISABILITIES AFFECTING INTELLECTUAL, COMMUNI-
CATION, SOCIAL/EMOTIONAL, SENSORY PROCESSING ABILITIES, MOTOR SKILLS,
AND MEDICAL/HEALTH NEEDS. IN ADDITION, TRAINING DEVELOPED BY INDEPENDENT
DISABILITY SPECIALISTS WILL INCLUDE MODULES ON DISABILITY AWARENESS AND
SENSITIVITY, EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES TO PROMOTE POSITIVE BEHAVIOR, AND
COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS. For the purposes of this subdivision, the
term "student with a disability" shall have the same meaning as such
term is defined in subdivision one of section forty-four hundred one of
the education law. [Any person employed as a school bus attendant serv-
ing a student or students with a disability on January first, two thou-
sand nine shall comply with the requirements of this subdivision by July
first, two thousand nine. Any person hired after January first, two
thousand nine shall complete such training, instruction and testing
prior to assuming his or her duties as a school bus attendant serving a
student or students with a disability.] THE TRAINING AND INSTRUCTION
REQUIRED BY THIS SUBDIVISION MAY BE INCLUDED WITH THE TRAINING AND
INSTRUCTION REQUIRED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION THREE OF THIS SECTION AND
SHALL BE PROVIDED AT LEAST ONCE PER YEAR OR MORE FREQUENTLY AS DETER-
MINED BY THE COMMISSIONER IN CONSULTATION WITH THE STATE COMPREHENSIVE
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER SAFETY TRAINING COUNCIL.
(B) ANY PERSON EMPLOYED AS A SCHOOL BUS DRIVER OR SCHOOL BUS ATTENDANT
SHALL RECEIVE NOT LESS THAN TEN HOURS OF TRAINING TO EQUIP THEM TO SAFE-
LY AND APPROPRIATELY TRANSPORT AND SUPERVISE CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES.
INCLUDED IN THIS TEN HOURS WILL BE NOT FEWER THAN TWO HOURS OF TRAINING
IN POSITIVE BEHAVIOR SUPPORT, INCLUDING PREVENTION OF BULLYING. ANNUAL-
LY, SUCH PERSONNEL WILL RECEIVE FOUR HOURS OF INSERVICE TRAINING WHICH
WILL INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE HOUR ON POSITIVE BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS
SUPPORT.
§ 4. Section 1229-d of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by
adding a new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
(5) ANY PERSON, FIRM OR CORPORATION WHO EMPLOYS A SCHOOL BUS ATTEND-
ANT, WHO FAILS TO COMPLETE THE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN THIS
SECTION SHALL BE SUBJECT TO A FINE OF FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR A FIRST
VIOLATION AND TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR A SECOND VIOLATION. A THIRD
VIOLATION OF FAILING TO COMPLETE THE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS OF THIS
SECTION SHALL BE DEEMED A MATERIAL BREACH OF ANY CONTRACT FOR TRANSPOR-
TATION SERVICES AND SUCH CONTRACT SHALL BE DEEMED NULL AND VOID. A
SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY NOT ENTER INTO A CONTRACT, OR EXTEND AN EXISTING
CONTRACT, FOR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES UNTIL THE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS OF
THIS SECTION HAVE BEEN MET.
§ 5. Section 3635 of the education law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 9 to read as follows:
9. ANY STUDENT WITH A DISABILITY WHO REQUIRES AN INDEPENDENT EDUCATION
PROGRAM WHICH REQUIRES SPECIALIZED TRANSPORTATION SHALL BE SEPARATELY
TRANSPORTED.
§ 6. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 3 of section 236 of the family court
act, as amended by chapter 424 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read
as follows:
(b) Such order shall further require that such transportation shall be
provided within thirty days of the issuance of such order, and, shall be
provided as part of a municipal cooperation agreement, as part of a
contract awarded to the lowest responsible bidder in accordance with the
provisions of section one hundred three of the general municipal law, or
as part of a contract awarded pursuant to an evaluation of proposals to
A. 7030 4
the extent authorized by paragraphs e and f of subdivision fourteen of
section three hundred five of the education law and otherwise consistent
with the provisions of this subdivision, and that buses and vehicles
utilized in the performance of such contract shall meet the minimum
requirements for school age children as established by the commissioner
of transportation. WHEN, IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
OR THE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT AWARDS A CONTRACT OR CONTRACTS FOR TRANSPOR-
TATION, THE BOARD OR CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL INCLUDE EMPLOYEE
PROTECTION PROVISIONS RATIONALLY RELATING TO THE PROMOTION OF A POOL OF
QUALIFIED WORKERS AND THE AVOIDANCE OF LABOR DISPUTES, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO PROVISIONS FOR THE PREFERENCE IN HIRING OF EMPLOYEES PERFORM-
ING WORK FOR EMPLOYERS UNDER CONTRACTS WITH THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OR
THE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE PRESERVATION OF WAGES, BENEFITS AND
SENIORITY FOR SUCH EMPLOYEES, AND OTHER PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE
HIRING, COMPENSATION, AND RETENTION OF EMPLOYEES.
§ 7. Paragraph a of subdivision 14 of section 305 of the education
law, as amended by chapter 273 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read
as follows:
a. All contracts for the transportation of school children, all
contracts to maintain school buses owned or leased by a school district
that are used for the transportation of school children, all contracts
for mobile instructional units, and all contracts to provide, maintain
and operate cafeteria or restaurant service by a private food service
management company shall be subject to the approval of the commissioner,
who may disapprove a proposed contract if, in his opinion, the best
interests of the district will be promoted thereby. Except as provided
in paragraph e of this subdivision, all such contracts involving an
annual expenditure in excess of the amount specified for purchase
contracts in the bidding requirements of the general municipal law shall
be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, which responsibility shall
be determined by the board of education or the trustee of a district,
with power hereby vested in the commissioner to reject any or all bids
if, in his opinion, the best interests of the district will be promoted
thereby and, upon such rejection of all bids, the commissioner shall
order the board of education or trustee of the district to seek, obtain
and consider new proposals. PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT ALL CONTRACTS FOR
CITIES WITH A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION OR MORE SHALL INCLUDE EMPLOYEE
PROTECTION PROVISIONS RATIONALLY RELATING TO THE PROMOTION OF A POOL OF
QUALIFIED WORKERS AND THE AVOIDANCE OF LABOR DISPUTES, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO PROVISIONS FOR THE PREFERENCE IN HIRING OF EMPLOYEES PERFORM-
ING WORK FOR EMPLOYERS UNDER CONTRACTS WITH THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OR
THE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE PRESERVATION OF WAGES, BENEFITS AND
SENIORITY FOR SUCH EMPLOYEES, AND OTHER PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE
HIRING, COMPENSATION, AND RETENTION OF EMPLOYEES. All proposals for such
transportation, maintenance, mobile instructional units, or cafeteria
and restaurant service shall be in such form as the commissioner may
prescribe. Advertisement for bids shall be published in a newspaper or
newspapers designated by the board of education or trustee of the
district having general circulation within the district for such
purpose. Such advertisement shall contain a statement of the time when
and place where all bids received pursuant to such advertisement will be
publicly opened and read either by the school authorities or by a person
or persons designated by them. All bids received shall be publicly
opened and read at the time and place so specified. At least five days
shall elapse between the first publication of such advertisement and the
date so specified for the opening and reading of bids. The requirement
A. 7030 5
for competitive bidding shall not apply to an award of a contract for
the transportation of pupils or a contract for mobile instructional
units, if such award is based on an evaluation of proposals in response
to a request for proposals pursuant to paragraph e of this subdivision.
The requirement for competitive bidding shall not apply to annual, bien-
nial, or triennial extensions of a contract nor shall the requirement
for competitive bidding apply to quadrennial or quinquennial year exten-
sions of a contract involving transportation of pupils, maintenance of
school buses or mobile instructional units secured either through
competitive bidding or through evaluation of proposals in response to a
request for proposals pursuant to paragraph e of this subdivision, when
such extensions (1) are made by the board of education or the trustee of
a district, under rules and regulations prescribed by the commissioner,
and, (2) do not extend the original contract period beyond five years
from the date cafeteria and restaurant service commenced thereunder and
in the case of contracts for the transportation of pupils, for the main-
tenance of school buses or for mobile instructional units, that such
contracts may be extended, except that power is hereby vested in the
commissioner, in addition to his existing statutory authority to approve
or disapprove transportation or maintenance contracts, (i) to reject any
extension of a contract beyond the initial term thereof if he finds that
amount to be paid by the district to the contractor in any year of such
proposed extension fails to reflect any decrease in the regional consum-
er price index for the N.Y., N.Y.-Northeastern, N.J. area, based upon
the index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) during the preceding twelve
month period; and (ii) to reject any extension of a contract after ten
years from the date transportation or maintenance service commenced
thereunder, or mobile instructional units were first provided, if in his
opinion, the best interests of the district will be promoted thereby.
Upon such rejection of any proposed extension, the commissioner may
order the board of education or trustee of the district to seek, obtain
and consider bids pursuant to the provisions of this section. The board
of education or the trustee of a school district electing to extend a
contract as provided herein, may, in its discretion, increase the amount
to be paid in each year of the contract extension by an amount not to
exceed the regional consumer price index increase for the N.Y.,
N.Y.-Northeastern, N.J. area, based upon the index for all urban consum-
ers (CPI-U), during the preceding twelve month period, provided it has
been satisfactorily established by the contractor that there has been at
least an equivalent increase in the amount of his cost of operation,
during the period of the contract.
§ 8. This act shall take effect immediately, provided, however, that
any rules and regulations necessary for the implementation of this act
shall be promulgated within ninety days.