S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                 9499--A

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                               May 5, 2014
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  O'DONNELL  -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.
  SOLAGES -- read once and referred to the  Committee  on  Education  --
  committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
  recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the family court act and the education law, in  relation
  to contracts for the transportation of children

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 3 of section 236 of the family
court act, as amended by chapter 424 of the laws of 2012, is amended  to
read as follows:
  (b) Such order shall further require that such transportation shall be
provided within thirty days of the issuance of such order, and, shall be
provided  as  part  of  a  municipal cooperation agreement, as part of a
contract awarded to the lowest responsible bidder in accordance with the
provisions of section one hundred three of the general municipal law, or
as part of a contract awarded pursuant to an evaluation of proposals  to
the  extent  authorized by paragraphs e and f of subdivision fourteen of
section three hundred five of the education law and otherwise consistent
with the provisions of this subdivision, and  that  buses  and  vehicles
utilized  in  the  performance  of  such contract shall meet the minimum
requirements for school age children as established by the  commissioner
of transportation. WHEN, IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
OR THE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT AWARDS A CONTRACT OR CONTRACTS FOR TRANSPOR-
TATION,  THE  BOARD  OR  CITY  SCHOOL  DISTRICT  SHALL  INCLUDE EMPLOYEE
PROTECTION PROVISIONS RATIONALLY RELATING TO THE PROMOTION OF A POOL  OF
QUALIFIED WORKERS AND THE AVOIDANCE OF LABOR DISPUTES, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO PROVISIONS FOR THE PREFERENCE IN HIRING OF EMPLOYEES PERFORM-
ING  WORK  FOR  EMPLOYERS UNDER CONTRACTS WITH THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OR
THE CITY SCHOOL  DISTRICT,  THE  PRESERVATION  OF  WAGES,  BENEFITS  AND
SENIORITY  FOR  SUCH  EMPLOYEES,  AND  OTHER  PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE
HIRING, COMPENSATION, AND RETENTION OF EMPLOYEES.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD14970-02-4

              

A. 9499--A                          2

  S 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 14 of section  305  of  the  education
law,  as  amended by chapter 273 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read
as follows:
  a.  All  contracts  for  the  transportation  of  school children, all
contracts to maintain school buses owned or leased by a school  district
that  are  used for the transportation of school children, all contracts
for mobile instructional units, and all contracts to  provide,  maintain
and  operate  cafeteria  or restaurant service by a private food service
management company shall be subject to the approval of the commissioner,
who may disapprove a proposed contract if,  in  his  opinion,  the  best
interests  of  the district will be promoted thereby. Except as provided
in paragraph e of this subdivision,  all  such  contracts  involving  an
annual  expenditure  in  excess  of  the  amount  specified for purchase
contracts in the bidding requirements of the general municipal law shall
be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, which responsibility  shall
be  determined  by  the board of education or the trustee of a district,
with power hereby vested in the commissioner to reject any or  all  bids
if,  in his opinion, the best interests of the district will be promoted
thereby and, upon such rejection of all  bids,  the  commissioner  shall
order  the board of education or trustee of the district to seek, obtain
and consider new proposals. PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT  ALL  TRANSPORTATION
CONTRACTS  FOR  CITIES  WITH  A  POPULATION OF ONE MILLION OR MORE SHALL
INCLUDE  EMPLOYEE  PROTECTION  PROVISIONS  RATIONALLY  RELATING  TO  THE
PROMOTION  OF  A  POOL  OF  QUALIFIED WORKERS AND THE AVOIDANCE OF LABOR
DISPUTES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO PROVISIONS FOR THE PREFERENCE  IN
HIRING  OF  EMPLOYEES PERFORMING WORK FOR EMPLOYERS UNDER CONTRACTS WITH
THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OR THE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE PRESERVATION  OF
WAGES,  BENEFITS  AND SENIORITY FOR SUCH EMPLOYEES, AND OTHER PROVISIONS
RELATING TO THE HIRING, COMPENSATION, AND RETENTION  OF  EMPLOYEES.  All
proposals  for  such  transportation,  maintenance, mobile instructional
units, or cafeteria and restaurant service shall be in such form as  the
commissioner  may prescribe.   Advertisement for bids shall be published
in a newspaper or newspapers designated by the  board  of  education  or
trustee  of  the district having general circulation within the district
for such purpose. Such advertisement shall contain a  statement  of  the
time  when and place where all bids received pursuant to such advertise-
ment will be publicly opened and read either by the  school  authorities
or by a person or persons designated by them. All bids received shall be
publicly  opened  and  read at the time and place so specified. At least
five days shall elapse between the first publication of such  advertise-
ment  and the date so specified for the opening and reading of bids. The
requirement for competitive bidding shall not apply to  an  award  of  a
contract  for  the  transportation  of  pupils  or a contract for mobile
instructional units,  if  such  award  is  based  on  an  evaluation  of
proposals in response to a request for proposals pursuant to paragraph e
of  this  subdivision. The requirement for competitive bidding shall not
apply to annual, biennial, or triennial extensions  of  a  contract  nor
shall  the  requirement  for competitive bidding apply to quadrennial or
quinquennial year extensions of a contract involving  transportation  of
pupils,  maintenance  of  school  buses  or  mobile  instructional units
secured either through competitive  bidding  or  through  evaluation  of
proposals in response to a request for proposals pursuant to paragraph e
of  this  subdivision, when such extensions (1) are made by the board of
education or the trustee of a  district,  under  rules  and  regulations
prescribed  by  the  commissioner,  and,  (2) do not extend the original
contract period beyond five years from the date cafeteria and restaurant

A. 9499--A                          3

service commenced thereunder and in the case of contracts for the trans-
portation of pupils, for the maintenance of school buses or  for  mobile
instructional  units,  that  such contracts may be extended, except that
power  is hereby vested in the commissioner, in addition to his existing
statutory authority to approve or disapprove transportation  or  mainte-
nance  contracts,  (i)  to reject any extension of a contract beyond the
initial term thereof if he finds that amount to be paid by the  district
to  the  contractor  in  any  year  of  such proposed extension fails to
reflect any decrease in the regional consumer price index for the  N.Y.,
N.Y.-Northeastern, N.J. area, based upon the index for all urban consum-
ers (CPI-U) during the preceding twelve month period; and (ii) to reject
any extension of a contract after ten years from the date transportation
or  maintenance  service  commenced  thereunder, or mobile instructional
units were first provided, if in his opinion, the best interests of  the
district  will  be promoted thereby. Upon such rejection of any proposed
extension, the commissioner may order the board of education or  trustee
of  the  district  to  seek,  obtain  and  consider bids pursuant to the
provisions of this section. The board of education or the trustee  of  a
school  district  electing to extend a contract as provided herein, may,
in its discretion, increase the amount to be paid in each  year  of  the
contract  extension  by  an  amount  not to exceed the regional consumer
price index increase for the N.Y., N.Y.-Northeastern, N.J.  area,  based
upon  the  index  for  all urban consumers (CPI-U), during the preceding
twelve month period, provided it has been satisfactorily established  by
the  contractor  that  there has been at least an equivalent increase in
the amount of his cost of operation, during the period of the contract.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.