Final rule on school bus driver performance standards and measurements

Memorandum

To: Administrators and Managers of School Bus Operations
From: State School Bus Committee
Re: Final rule on school bus driver performance standards and measurements
Date: January 23, 2002

Public Law No. 54-1998 directed the State School Bus Committee to promulgate rule to prescribe performance standards and measurements for determining the physical ability necessary for a person to be a school bus driver. The rule, found at 575 IAC 1-8, became effective January 1, 2002. A copy is attached. The information below is intended to assist local administrators as they begin to implement these requirements. A question and answer document is also attached to provide information and clarification in an easy to use format.

The effective date of the rule was January 1, 2002.
The rule applies to any school bus driver who is issued an initial Standard Certificate (also know as a yellow card) after the effective date.
A school bus driver holding a valid Standard Certificate issued prior to January 1, 2002, is exempt from meeting the requirements of 575 IAC 1-8 as long as the driver attends the annual safety meeting and keeps the Standard Certificate continuously renewed. If a Standard
Certificate is allowed to expire, the holder becomes subject to 575 IAC 1-8 in addition to all other reinstatement requirements.
The measurement is Pass/Fail for all standards except Section 2, which is timed.

The following implementation decisions are up to the local school corporation:

The form documenting a driver’s passage of the standards.
The method of keeping the records within the school corporation that show drivers subject to 575 IAC 1-8 have met the standards. Do not send records to the School Bus Committee or the Department of Education.
The number of attempts a driver is given to meet the standards.
The reasonable time frame within which bus drivers subject to 575 IAC 1-8 must meet the standards for the first time.

NOTE: The timing of future compliance with the standards will correspond to the two-year renewal cycle of the school bus drivers physical fitness certificate required at IC 20-9.1-3-2. The physical fitness certificate requirement is coordinated with , and satisfied by, the issuance of the medical certificate required for a commercial drivers license or public passenger chauffeur license.

If you have questions or need further assistance please contact the Indiana Department of Education’s Division of School Traffic Safety and Emergency Planning by telephone at 317-232-0890 or by e-mail to tgummer@doe.in.gov.