Legislators push to strengthen school-bus-safety law
Posted on Thursday, March 20, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/bcdr/News/59887/
GRAVETTE — The state Senate Committee on Transportation, Technology and Legislative Affairs worked this week to encourage better enforcement of a 2007 schoolbus-safety law he sponsored, said state Sen. Kim Hendren, R-Gravette.
The committee, of which he’s a member, met for two days of hearings Monday and Tuesday, at Mount Magazine in Paris, Ark., and found lots of common ground about the need to enforce the law, Hendren said.
“ I would … characterize it as probably the most productive we’ve had to date on trying to reduce the number of incidences where these school buses (get ) passed while they’re loading and unloading children, ” he said.
In 2007, the Gravette senator was a sponsor of Act 718, enacted to strengthen “ the penalty for passing a school bus and to simplify the reporting of a violation of the passing of a school bus, ” the law states.
The law streamlined the process of reporting violators who illegally passed stropped school buses while they were loading or unloading passengers.
But the hearings on Monday and Tuesday concerned problems, including problems with enforcement of the law.
Statewide, since the law was passed, there has often been less reporting of violators and less follow-up by law enforcement than he’d hoped, though the situation has improved in Benton County, Hendren said before the hearings. That’s a situation he and other state lawmakers are determined to change, Hendren said Wednesday.
“ What we’re going to do is continue to look at it and begin to put together the suggestions we have and put together a bill to modify what we have. The suggestions that are leading right now, that I think were most interesting to the members, was to revise the bill, saying that the first thing the (bus ) driver needs to do that observes that happening is to contact by radio the appropriate law-enforcement agency. Currently, we say (in the state law ), go back and file the report at the office, ’” Hendren said Wednesday. Bus drivers will still be required to do that, but lawmakers had suggestions about how the law might be changed and improved, Hendren said.
He will help with efforts to consolidate, assimilate and put together all the suggestions various committee members have on what needs to be done to reduce the number of violations, Hendren said. “ That’s the main thing. It’s not to fine anybody, particularly, but just to reduce (the violations ), ” he said.
Lawmakers’ suggestions included having an 800 number posted on billboards by highways, saying that people who see violations should report them.
Hendren suggested (800 ) PASSBUS might be a good number if a line were set up and dedicated to the reports.
Another lawmaker urged that it be determined whether violations could be reported on 911 lines, although lawmakers were quick to point out the idea would be dropped if it were determined to interfere with 911 responsibilities.
Still another lawmaker would require that on every Arkansas school bus, there be a sign that states: “ Unlawful to pass bus stopped and loading or unloading children, ” Hendren said
“ That used to be on there, but some of them don’t have it anymore. And (legislators want to ) decide on the wording, (and add ), maybe ‘ up to a $ 1, 000 fine, ’ or whatever, and then put, ‘ If you observe this, call 911 and report it, ’” he said.