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Panel approves technical fix to clarify who must carry school-bus insurance
Summary
Senate Bill 408 clarifies that contractors—not individual drivers who do not directly contract with school systems—are responsible for maintaining insurance required by Tennessee law; committee advanced the bill unanimously.
The Senate Transportation and Safety Committee advanced Senate Bill 408, a statutory clarification to ensure that insurance obligations for school buses rest with contractors rather than with individual drivers who are not direct contractors with school systems.
Why it matters: Sponsors said the change aligns statutory language with how school districts contract for bus services and prevents individual drivers from becoming personally liable for insurance requirements the contracting entity should hold.
Senator Bailey presented the bill and explained that last year’s law had language that created a mismatch between the statute and insurance-industry terms. "Senate bill 4 0 8 replaces the terms owners and operators with contractors," Bailey said, which clarifies that contractors must maintain required coverage and provide proof to school systems. He told the committee that failing to correct the language could sharply raise costs for districts — he cited examples given to the committee where estimated costs could rise from about $35,500 to $887,500 for one county and similarly large increases for another county if the obligation were placed on drivers rather than contractors.
The committee took the bill up with no substantive amendments. After Senator Bailey moved the bill and a senator seconded, the committee recorded unanimous approval and reported the bill to the calendar.
Ending: Senate Bill 408 was advanced to the chamber calendar; sponsors said school boards and superintendents reviewed and accepted the clarification.
