Washtenaw County school districts react: State budget cut axes school bus inspections
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A state budget decision has sent Washtenaw County school districts scrambling to figure out how to keep their buses running.
The recent round of budget cuts to the Michigan State Police includes inspectors in charge of making sure buses are safe to be on the road.
Each school bus is required to be inspected every year, but cuts to the school aid fund that pays for the inspectors included that funding
A mechanic works on a school bus in Howell. File photo
That’s left local school districts wondering what's next.
“We’re still trying to assess what this means,” said Ann Arbor Superintendent Todd Roberts.
Ann Arbor’s buses were inspected last November and need to be inspected sometime this school year. Roberts isn’t sure how that will happen.
“Who is out there and available out there to do it? Obviously we’re going to keep inspecting our buses to make sure they are safe,” he said.
Lincoln Superintendent Lynn Cleary is blunt with her assessment of what is going on.
"I have no plans to shut down our transportation department at this time. We had an excellent inspection last year and I know that our mechanics are the finest in the state. I will seek an independent party to inspect our fleet if required to do so.
"I will not use our children's safety as a pawn in this political standoff. The legislators should be ashamed of what they are doing to the education of our kids. I hope that our registered voters take note of all of this nonsense when they return to the polls at election time."
State police sent a letter to school districts across the state notifying them that the inspection program will cease on Oct. 31.
Chelsea Superintendent David Killips said the move isn’t likely to impact the district’s buses right away, but it could down the road.
"We had our last inspections last January," he said. "They are good for a year. We may need an interpretation on whether that year is considered to be January to January or will the last inspection stand until the end of the school year?
“Our understanding is that buses needed to be certified previously to be on the road. So, yes, it could curtail our busing program if this is not cleared up at the state level.”
Ypsilanti spokeswoman Emma Jackson said the district's buses were inspected last March, so officials don’t anticipate the elimination of inspectors will have any impact at this point.
Roberts said some discussion has occurred at the county level among superintendents about how to get their inspections done. He’s worried this is another thing districts will have to pay for.
Several state legislators told The Detroit News that the only option available may be a change in the law mandating the inspections.
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of all the things in the budget they kill this item. I would love if just once they would put out a line by line, simplified budget, Police, schools, and all the other crap they add in, so we can vote on where our money should go. I am guessing a public vote would keep some things they ax and ax the things they keep.
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Posted Oct 22 2009
It is called the Washington Monument trick. Frequently when government agencies are forced to make cuts, they cut something that they know the public will demand that their elected officials restore.
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Posted Oct 22 2009
Why shouldn't this cost of inspection be bourne on the individual districts? This way larger school districts (with more busses) would have a larger cost than smaller districts. Of course, private inspection companies would need to become available if there aren't any.
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Posted Oct 22 2009
They will do ANYTING to scare the public into passing another millage. Only because the legislators do not want to really do any work and bring the budget inline. I'm sure they can find the money somewhere instead of directing it at the schools. I thought the lottery was supposed to be for the schools anyway. Perhaps it's time to figure out that the current system isn't working and come up with a new way to alot the money for the schools. Duh.
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Posted Oct 22 2009
As a former CDL (large trucks) driver, I knew when something was wrong with my vehicle. There seems to be a bit of fear mongering going on in this article in that children will be hurt if inspections aren't conducted and so on. I'm not saying they never need to be done, just that perhaps there's a way to cut cost in this area, like doing inspections every two years or so...just a thought.
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Posted Oct 22 2009
"Perhaps it's time to figure out that the current system isn't working and come up with a new way to alot the money for the schools. Duh."
Proposal A was the "new way." Take the millage away from local control and let the state hand out money fairly. Fourteen years later, fairly means bankrupting every district in the state.
The old way was local control of funding. One of the best assets we have in the United States is locally-controlled education systems. Let's return to that.
Funding it with property taxes isn't a great solution -- I'm all for a progressive income tax with a low end of zero and a high end of 10 percent for Bill Ford, Jr. and Laurel Champion. Fund the schools with that. But first, you have to get rid of the conservative stupidity of Proposal A and crack open the Michigan Constitution -- the regressive income tax that rewards the rich and punishes the poor is enshrined therein.
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Posted Oct 22 2009
I do not understand why a State Police official is needed to certify the inspections. The bus mechanics are CERTIFIED. I am very sure that they are more than capable of performing a safety inspection. This appears to me to be a "non-issue".
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Posted Oct 23 2009
Does the State Police have mechanics that certify the safety or are they just the rubber stamp to try to take some of the liability off the school district?
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Posted Oct 23 2009