Interpretation ID: aiam4308
Arizona Bus Sales
Inc.
P.O. Box 21226
Phoenix
AZ 85036;
Dear Mr. Miller: This responds to your April 14, 1987 letter to us asking about Federa requirements applicable to the sale of new school buses. You enclosed a copy of a bid from a school bus dealer offering to sell a 48-passenger activity bus to a school district. The bid describes options for changing the school bus paint and deleting 'school options.' You ask whether a bid with 'an option to modify paint, and delete school bus options' accords with our school bus regulations.; The answer to your question depends on the nature of the 'schoo options' which the bid makes nonobligatory. It is unclear from the bid whether the reference is to the school bus performance requirements mandated by our Federal motor vehicle safety standard, or to the way the school bus is painted and marked. If the 'school options' are the features required by Federal school bus safety standards, the answer to your question is no--i.e., the dealer may not sell a new school bus that fails to comply with those standards. On the other hand, Federal law does not prohibit school districts from changing the color or markings of their school buses. Instead, requirements for the identification of school buses are set by each State.; Our agency has two sets of regulations for school buses. The first set issued under the authority of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, applies to the manufacture and sale of new motor vehicles and includes our motor vehicle safety standards for school buses. Those standards set performance requirements that all new school buses must meet, including standards for passenger crash protection, emergency exits, rollover protection and fuel systems. The Safety Act requires manufacturers of school buses to certify that their vehicles comply with all applicable Federal school bus safety standards. The Act also requires school bus dealers to ensure that only complying school buses are sold. These requirements, set by Federal law, apply to *each* school bus manufacturer and seller.; A school bus dealer cannot elect whether to comply with thos requirements and choose to sell a new activity bus that does not comply with our school bus safety standards.; Our second set of school bus 'regulations,' issued under the Highwa Safety Act, include recommendations for identifying school buses. These recommendations are set forth in Highway Safety Program Standard No. 17, *Pupil Transportation Safety* (copy enclosed). While the 'standard' recommends that activity buses should be painted yellow and marked 'School Bus,' the decision to adopt its recommendations is made by each State. Therefore, questions you might have about activity bus identification should be addressed to your State officials.; I hope this information is helpful. Please contact me if you hav further questions.; Sincerely, Erika Z. Jones, Chief Counsel