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Waller ISD board finds seat‑belt upgrades financially feasible under state mandate
Summary
The Waller ISD board unanimously determined on April 9 that the district can meet Texas Senate Bill 546’s three-point seat‑belt requirement using a mixed retrofit/purchase option (option 3); staff cited inventory counts, mileage, and detailed cost estimates and deadlines.
The Waller Independent School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously April 9 to declare it financially feasible to meet Senate Bill 546’s three-point seat‑belt requirement for school buses by adopting option 3 from staff’s cost analysis.
Chief Facilities and Operations Officer Kelly Baehren and Director of Transportation Jacob Erreguin presented the board with a fleet inventory and four cost scenarios. Staff reported the district operates 108 general‑education buses (66 already equipped with seat belts and 42 not equipped) and 31 special‑education buses (12 with two‑point belts and 19 with three‑point belts). They also identified 16 buses with more than 250,000 miles. Staff outlined estimated costs for each approach: purchasing new buses ($156,745.00 per bus), retrofitting eligible buses ($35,000 per bus), and permutations combining retrofits and purchases; option 3 (retrofit 43 buses and purchase 8 new buses) was presented with an estimated total of $2,649,168.50.
Vice President Jeff Flukinger moved that it was financially feasible for Waller ISD to purchase and/or retrofit buses with three‑point seat belts as mandated by the state under option 3; Secretary Ronald Campbell seconded the motion, which passed 7–0. Staff noted two statutory deadlines cited in the presentation: May 29, 2026 for the district’s seat‑belt cost report and Sept. 1, 2029 as the compliance date for three‑point seat belts.
The board’s determination triggers the district reporting obligations under SB 546; staff were shown the sample SB546 Seat Belt Costs Reporting Form and Step 3: Board Determination template for completion. No separate amendment or funding source was adopted during the meeting; the motion recorded only the board’s feasibility determination.
