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Victoria ISD hears timeline, costs to meet Texas three‑point seat‑belt law for school buses
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Summary
Victoria ISD transportation officials told trustees that Senate Bill 546 requires three‑point seat belts on all buses by Sept. 1, 2029; the district has 74 buses, 31 of which will need retrofit or replacement, with retrofit estimates around $1.8 million and replacements about $4.8 million.
Victoria Independent School District trustees on Thursday heard a detailed briefing on Senate Bill 546 and how it will affect the district’s bus fleet. Sean, VISD’s transportation director, told the board the state amended Transportation Code §547.701 to require three‑point seat belts for every passenger on every school bus; districts must be in compliance by Sept. 1, 2029.
Sean said VISD’s fleet totals 74 buses. ‘‘On our entire fleet, we have 74 buses. Forty‑three of them have three‑point seat belts, eight of them only have lap belts, and 23 have no seat belts at all,’’ he said. He identified 31 buses that will require either retrofit or replacement and noted many are between 11 and 21 years old and carry between roughly 113,000 and 357,000 miles.
The transportation director presented cost estimates for meeting the mandate: about $1,800,000 to retrofit buses that can accept retrofit kits and roughly $4,800,000 to replace the 31 buses that cannot be retrofitted. He said some retrofits require only replacing the back portion of seats, while older buses may need complete seat‑frame and floor replacement; one bus’s manufacturer is no longer in business and must be replaced.
Trustees pressed staff on enforcement and operational impacts. A trustee asked how the district will ensure students keep belts fastened; Sean said buses with an assistant make enforcement easier and that drivers are instructed to remind students to buckle up before departure. When a fellow trustee criticized the requirement as ‘‘another unfunded mandate,” board members discussed strategies to spread replacement purchases over multiple years to reduce budget shock.
Sean said the district will report required data to the Texas Education Agency in May and that TEA must submit statewide data to the Legislature in January 2027; as of the briefing, state funding to help districts was unknown. ‘‘All buses in operation must be in compliance by 09/01/2029,’’ he said.
The district’s planning options discussed by trustees included accelerating the replacement schedule, buying used buses that meet Texas specifications, and seeking grants, gifts or donations. Trustees asked staff to continue refining costs, replacement cycles and potential funding sources; no formal action on procurement was taken during the presentation.
