S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   248

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 7, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen. MARTINS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Education

AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to authorizing boards  of
  education to provide certain children transportation to school

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

  Section 1.  Paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 3635 of the educa-
tion law, as amended by section 11 of part A of chapter 97 of  the  laws
of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
  a.  Sufficient  transportation facilities (including the operation and
maintenance of motor vehicles) shall be provided by the school  district
for all the children residing within the school district to and from the
school  they  legally  attend,  who  are  in need of such transportation
because of the remoteness  of  the  school  to  the  child  or  for  the
promotion  of  the  best interest of such children.  Such transportation
shall be provided for all children attending grades kindergarten through
eight who live more than two miles from the school  which  they  legally
attend  and  for  all  children attending grades nine through twelve who
live more than three miles from the school which they legally attend and
shall be provided for each such child up to a distance of fifteen miles,
the distances in each case being measured by the nearest available route
from home to school; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT THE BOARD OF  EDUCATION  OF
ANY  SCHOOL  DISTRICT  SHALL, UPON WRITTEN PETITION OF A PARENT OR OTHER
PERSON IN PARENTAL RELATION OF A CHILD RESIDING WITHIN SUCH DISTRICT  OR
OF  ANY  REPRESENTATIVE  AUTHORIZED  BY  SUCH  PARENT OR OTHER PERSON IN
PARENTAL  RELATION,  SIGNED  BY  TWENTY-FIVE  QUALIFIED  VOTERS  OF  THE
DISTRICT OR FIVE PERCENT OF THE NUMBER OF VOTERS WHO VOTED IN THE PREVI-
OUS  ANNUAL ELECTION OF THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION, WHICHEVER
IS GREATER, MAKE AN INVESTIGATION TO DETERMINE WHETHER CHILDREN RESIDING
WITHIN THE TWO OR THREE MILE DESIGNATED AREA MAY FOR SAFETY REASONS  USE

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

                                                           LBD02192-01-5

S. 248                              2

AN  ALREADY ESTABLISHED PICK UP/DROP OFF LOCATION OUTSIDE OF SUCH TWO OR
THREE MILE DESIGNATED AREA. PETITIONS SHALL SPECIFY THE GEOGRAPHIC BOUN-
DARIES DETAILING POTENTIAL HAZARDS TO  CHILD  SAFETY.  PETITIONS  AND/OR
ADDITIONAL  WRITTEN  REQUESTS  FROM  INDIVIDUAL  PARENTS  OR  PERSONS IN
PARENTAL RELATION REQUESTING TRANSPORTATION MAY  BE  SUBMITTED  PROVIDED
THAT  SUCH  PETITIONS  AND/OR REQUESTS SHALL NOT BE SUBMITTED LATER THAN
THE FIRST DAY OF MARCH PRECEDING THE SCHOOL YEAR FOR  WHICH  TRANSPORTA-
TION  IS  REQUESTED. THE BOARD OF EDUCATION SHALL MAKE ITS DETERMINATION
BEFORE SUCH BOARD PRESENTS THE BUDGET FOR  THE  SCHOOL  YEAR  FOR  WHICH
TRANSPORTATION  IS  REQUESTED.    THE PARENT OR OTHER PERSON IN PARENTAL
RELATION OF A CHILD NOT RESIDING IN THE DISTRICT ON  THE  FIRST  DAY  OF
MARCH  MAY  SUBMIT A REQUEST WITHIN THIRTY DAYS AFTER ESTABLISHING RESI-
DENCE IN THE DISTRICT, BUT IN NO EVENT LATER THAN THE FIRST DAY OF  JULY
OF  THE  SCHOOL YEAR FOR WHICH TRANSPORTATION IS REQUESTED AND THE BOARD
OF EDUCATION SHALL MAKE ITS DETERMINATION WITHIN THIRTY DAYS OF  RECEIPT
OF  SUCH REQUEST.  The cost of providing such transportation between two
or three miles, as the case may be, and fifteen miles shall  be  consid-
ered  for  the purposes of this chapter to be a charge upon the district
and an ordinary contingent expense of the district. Transportation for a
lesser distance than two miles in the case of children attending  grades
kindergarten  through  eight  or  three  miles  in  the case of children
attending grades nine through twelve and for  a  greater  distance  than
fifteen  miles  may be provided by the district with the approval of the
qualified voters, and, if provided, shall  be  offered  equally  to  all
children  in  like  circumstances  residing  in  the district; provided,
however, that this requirement shall not apply to transportation offered
pursuant to section thirty-six hundred thirty-five-b of this article.
  S 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July  next  succeeding
the  date  on which it shall have become a law; provided that the amend-
ments to paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 3635 of  the  education
law  made  by section one of this act shall not affect the expiration of
such paragraph and shall be deemed to expire therewith.

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                 248--B

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 7, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced by Sens. MARTINS, VENDITTO -- read twice and ordered printed,
  and  when  printed  to  be  committed to the Committee on Education --
  committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
  recommitted  to  said committee -- committee discharged, bill amended,
  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to authorizing boards  of
  education to provide certain children transportation to school

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

  Section 1.  Subdivision 1 of section 3635  of  the  education  law  is
amended by adding a new paragraph h to read as follows:
  H. (I) A BOARD OF EDUCATION OF ANY SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL, UPON WRITTEN
REQUEST OF A PARENT OR GUARDIAN OF A CHILD ATTENDING GRADES KINDERGARTEN
THROUGH  EIGHT  WHO  LIVES  WITHIN  TWO  MILES FROM THE SCHOOL THAT THEY
LEGALLY ATTEND OR A PARENT OR GUARDIAN OF A CHILD ATTENDING GRADES  NINE
THROUGH  TWELVE  WHO  LIVES WITHIN THREE MILES FROM THE SCHOOL THAT THEY
LEGALLY ATTEND, MAKE A DETERMINATION AS  TO  WHETHER  A  CHILD  RESIDING
WITHIN THE TWO OR THREE MILE DISTANCE LIMITATION MAY FOR REASONS RELATED
TO  SAFETY  OR  OTHER  EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES USE AN ALREADY ESTAB-
LISHED PICK-UP AND/OR DROP-OFF POINT ON  AN  ALREADY  ESTABLISHED  ROUTE
OUTSIDE  OF SUCH TWO OR THREE MILE DISTANCE LIMITATION. WRITTEN REQUESTS
SHALL SPECIFY EXPLANATIONS FOR THE REQUEST, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
ANY POTENTIAL HARDSHIPS OR HAZARDS TO THE  CHILD'S  SAFETY  DUE  TO  THE
PARENT  OR  GUARDIAN'S  INABILITY  TO  ACCOMPANY  THEIR CHILD TO OR FROM
SCHOOL AS WELL AS THE PICK-UP  AND/OR  DROP-OFF  POINT  CLOSEST  TO  THE
CHILD'S PLACE OF RESIDENCE.
  (II)  UPON  RECEIPT  OF  SUCH  WRITTEN REQUEST, THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
SHALL DETERMINE WHETHER THE CHILD SHALL BE PERMITTED TO USE  AN  ALREADY
ESTABLISHED  PICK-UP  AND/OR  DROP-OFF POINT AND SHALL PROVIDE A WRITTEN
EXPLANATION TO THE PARENT OR GUARDIAN MAKING  SUCH  REQUEST  AS  TO  THE

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

                                                           LBD02192-05-5

S. 248--B                           2

REASONS  FOR  APPROVAL  OR  DENIAL FOR SUCH REQUEST. BEFORE THE BOARD OF
EDUCATION MAKES ITS DECISION, IT SHALL DETERMINE WHETHER PERMITTING  THE
CHILD  TO USE AN ALREADY ESTABLISHED PICK-UP AND/OR DROP-OFF POINT WOULD
INCUR ADDITIONAL COSTS TO THE SCHOOL DISTRICT THAT WOULD BE IN EXCESS OF
THE  AMOUNT  APPROPRIATED IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT BUDGET. IF IT IS DETER-
MINED THAT SUCH REQUEST WOULD  INCUR  ADDITIONAL  COSTS  TO  THE  SCHOOL
DISTRICT,  THEN  THE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION MUST IDENTIFY AND INCLUDE THE
NATURE AND AMOUNT OF THE ADDITIONAL COSTS IN THE WRITTEN EXPLANATION  TO
THE  PARENT OR GUARDIAN MAKING SUCH WRITTEN REQUEST AND RECEIVE APPROVAL
OF THE QUALIFIED VOTERS OF THE DISTRICT AT  THE  ANNUAL  MEETING  BEFORE
ALLOWING  THE  CHILD  TO  USE  THE PICK-UP AND/OR DROP-OFF POINT FOR THE
SCHOOL YEAR FOR WHICH  TRANSPORTATION  IS  REQUESTED.  IF  SUCH  WRITTEN
REQUEST IS APPROVED BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION, SUCH CHILD MAY BE PERMIT-
TED  TO  USE  THE PICK-UP AND/OR DROP-OFF POINT SPECIFIED IN THE REQUEST
IMMEDIATELY. NOTHING IN THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO REQUIRE THE
BOARD OF EDUCATION TO HOLD A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE DISTRICT IN ORDER TO
APPROVE SUCH REQUEST BY A PARENT OR GUARDIAN.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.