Interpretation ID: 19882.drn

Pastor Carlo DeStefano
Fairwinds Baptist Church
801 Seymour Road
Bear, DE 19701

Dear Pastor DeStefano:

This responds to your April 14, 1999, letter requesting information on Federal statutes governing school bus safety. Dorothy Nakama of my staff spoke to your secretary, who informed us that your church operates Fairwinds Christian School, which teaches students from kindergarten through twelfth grade. Ms. Nakama was informed that you seek information about the school bus safety laws administered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to determine what your responsibilities are when transporting your students.

I am pleased to provide the following information. NHTSA is authorized to issue and enforce Federal motor vehicle safety standards applicable to new motor vehicles. Our statute at 49 U.S.C. 30112 requires any person selling or leasing a new vehicle to sell or lease a vehicle that meets all applicable standards. Accordingly, persons selling or leasing a new "school bus" must sell or lease a vehicle that meets the safety standards applicable to school buses. Our statute defines a "schoolbus" as any vehicle that is designed for carrying a driver and more than 10 passengers and which, NHTSA decides, is likely to be "used significantly" to transport "preprimary, primary, and secondary" students to or from school or related events. 49 U.S.C. 30125. By regulation, the capacity threshold for school buses corresponds to that of buses -- vehicles designed for carrying more than ten (10) persons. For example, a 15-person van that is likely to be used significantly to transport students is a "school bus."

Our statute thus regulates primarily manufacturers and sellers of new school buses. Any person selling a new school bus must sell a vehicle that is certified as meeting our school bus standards. Conventional buses (including 15-passenger vans) are not certified as doing so, and thus cannot be sold, as new vehicles, under circumstances where they are likely to be used to carry students on a regular basis.

In general, our school bus safety statute does not regulate school bus users. Instead, each State has the authority to set its own standards regarding the use of motor vehicles, including school buses. You should check Delaware law to see what your State law requires when your private school transports its students. For information on Delaware's requirements, you can contact Delaware's State Director of Pupil Transportation:

Mr. Ronald Love, State Supervisor, School Transportation
Delaware Department of Education
P. O. Box 1402
Dover, DE 19903
Telephone: (302) 739-4696

In closing, we wish to emphasize that school buses are one of the safest forms of transportation in this country, and that we therefore strongly recommend that all buses that are used to transport school children be certified as meeting NHTSA's school bus safety standards. Further, using buses that do not meet NHTSA's school bus standards to transport students could result in increased liability in the event of a crash. Since such liability would be determined by State law, you may wish to consult with your attorney and insurance carrier for advice on this issue.

I hope this information is helpful. For more information about the safety features of a school bus, I am enclosing NHTSA's publication: "School Bus Safety: Safe Passage for America's Children." If you have any further questions please feel free to contact Dorothy Nakama at this address or by telephone at (202) 366-2992.

Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
Enclosure
ref:VSA#571.3
d.5/25/99