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Committee advances bill letting districts use non‑yellow buses, prompting safety, funding debate
Summary
House Bill 396, which would allow school districts and charter schools to use vehicles other than traditional yellow school buses to transport students, passed the House Education Committee with a due‑pass recommendation after testimony raising safety and funding concerns.
The Idaho House Committee on Education voted to send House Bill 396 to the House floor with a due‑pass recommendation after discussion about safety standards, funding inequities and local control. Representative Dan Garner presented the bill, which the sponsor described as an effort to simplify student transportation funding and allow districts greater flexibility to use vehicles other than full‑size yellow school buses for small groups or specialized routes.
Representative Garner and Gideon Tolman, chief financial officer at the State Department of Education, told the committee the bill adds an “authorized operation” definition to align statute with…
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