Section 61.1028 - Reporting of Bus Collisions(a) Definitions. The following words and terms, when used in this section, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. (1) Collision --Any collision as described by Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 550, Subchapter B.(2) Motor bus--In accordance with Texas Education Code, § 34.003, and Texas Transportation Code, § 502.001, a motor bus is a vehicle designed to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver, and includes vehicles used to transport persons on the public highways for compensation, other than a vehicle operated by muscular power or a municipal bus.(3) Multifunction school activity bus--In accordance with Texas Transportation Code, § 541.201, a multifunction school activity bus is a subcategory of school bus. It must meet all FMVSS for a school bus except having traffic control devices, including flashing lights and stop arm, and it may not be painted in national school bus yellow. The multifunction school activity bus cannot be used to transport students from home to school or school to home or for any purpose other than school activities.(4) School activity bus--In accordance with Texas Transportation Code, § 541.201, a school activity bus is a bus designed to accommodate more than 15 passengers, including the operator, that is owned, operated, rented, or leased by a school district, county school, open-enrollment charter school, regional education service center, or shared services arrangement and that is used to transport public school students on a school-related activity trip, other than on routes to and from school. The term does not include a chartered bus, a bus operated by a mass transit authority, a school bus, or a multifunction school activity bus.(5) School bus--In accordance with Texas Transportation Code, § 541.201, a school bus is a motor vehicle that was manufactured in compliance with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for school buses in effect on the date of manufacture and that is used to transport preprimary, primary, or secondary students on a route to or from school or on a school-related activity trip other than on routes to and from school. A school bus is a bus owned, leased, contracted to, or operated by a school or school district that is regularly used to transport students to and from school or school-related activities; meets all applicable FMVSS; and is readily identified by alternately flashing lights, national school bus yellow paint, and the legend "School Bus." The term does not include a multifunction school activity bus, a school activity bus, or a motor bus.(b) Reporting.(1) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall report annually to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) the number of collisions in which their buses were involved in the past year. School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall report the collisions in a manner prescribed by the commissioner of education. School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall file annual collision reports to TEA only in the period beginning July 1 and ending July 31 and shall include the following information in the report: (A) the total number of bus collisions;(B) the date each collision occurred;(C) the type of bus, as specified in subsection (a) of this section, involved in each collision;(D) whether the bus involved in each collision was equipped with seat belts and, if so, the type of seat belts;(E) the number of students and adults involved in each collision;(F) the number and types of injuries that were sustained by the bus passengers in each collision; and(G) whether the injured passengers in each collision were wearing seat belts at the time of the collision and, if so, the type of seat belts.(2) A school district or open-enrollment charter school shall report a bus collision involving a school bus, a multifunction school activity bus, a school activity bus, or a motor bus if:(A) the bus is owned, leased, contracted, or chartered by a school district or charter school and was transporting school district or charter school personnel, students, or a combination of personnel and students; or(B) the bus was driven by a school district or charter school employee or by an employee of the school district's or charter school's bus contractor with no passengers on board and the collision involved a pedestrian.(3) A school district or open-enrollment charter school shall not report a bus collision involving a school bus, a multifunction school activity bus, a school activity bus, or a motor bus if: (A) the bus was driven by a school district or charter school employee or by an employee of the school district's or charter school's bus contractor, the collision occurred when no passenger other than the school district's or charter school's driver or bus contractor's driver was on board the bus, and the collision did not involve a pedestrian; or(B) the collision involved a bus chartered by a school district or charter school for a school activity trip and no school district or charter school personnel or students were on board the bus at the time of the collision.(4) A school district or open-enrollment charter school shall not report a collision that occurred in a vehicle that is owned, contracted, or chartered by a school district or charter school and is not a school bus, a multifunction school activity bus, a school activity bus, or a motor bus.19 Tex. Admin. Code § 61.1028
The provisions of this §61.1028 adopted to be effective August 28, 2008, 33 TexReg 6819; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 49, Number 33, August 16, 2024, TexReg 6198, eff. 8/21/2024