HF 353

as introduced - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to school safety; directing the commissioner 
  1.3             of transportation to make grants of federal 
  1.4             transportation enhancement funds to the Minnesota 
  1.5             safety council for use as grants to school districts 
  1.6             for development and implementation of safe routes to 
  1.7             school programs; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.8             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 174. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  [174.11] [SAFE ROUTE TO SCHOOL PROGRAMS.] 
  1.11     Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITION.] For purposes of this section, 
  1.12  a "safe routes to school program" is a program developed and 
  1.13  implemented by a school district that uses highway improvements, 
  1.14  student and public education, highway safety measures, or 
  1.15  traffic control measures and devices, or any combination 
  1.16  thereof, to enhance the safety of students walking or bicycling 
  1.17  to school. 
  1.18     Subd. 2.  [GRANT PROGRAM; USE OF FEDERAL ENHANCEMENT 
  1.19  FUNDS.] The commissioner of transportation shall expend not less 
  1.20  than five percent of funds made available to the commissioner 
  1.21  each fiscal year from the federal highway administration and 
  1.22  designated for transportation enhancements as a grant to the 
  1.23  Minnesota safety council to be spent as grants to school 
  1.24  districts for safe routes to school programs. 
  1.25     Subd. 3.  [CONDITIONS OF GRANT.] The commissioner shall 
  1.26  require as a condition of the grant each year that: 
  1.27     (1) the Minnesota safety council spend at least 95 percent 
  2.1   of the money it receives under this section each year as grants 
  2.2   to school districts; 
  2.3      (2) that the council award grants only under a competitive 
  2.4   process open to all school districts in the state; and 
  2.5      (3) that the council award grants on the basis of (i) 
  2.6   severity of the safety problems being addressed, (ii) number of 
  2.7   students affected, (iii) extent of involvement of students, 
  2.8   parents, teachers, local transportation authorities, law 
  2.9   enforcement agencies, and school officials in the development of 
  2.10  the program, (iv) effectiveness of the program in addressing 
  2.11  safety problems, and (v) effectiveness of the program in 
  2.12  increasing walking and bicycling to school.