HF 1670

as introduced - 87th Legislature (2011 - 2012) Posted on 05/05/2011 09:52am

A bill for an act
relating to pupil transportation; allowing federal substance testing to fulfill
testing requirements for type III vehicle drivers; amending Minnesota Statutes
2010, section 171.02, subdivision 2b.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 171.02, subdivision 2b, is amended to read:

Subd. 2b.

Exception for type III vehicle drivers.

(a) Notwithstanding subdivision
2, the holder of a class A, B, C, or D driver's license, without a school bus endorsement,
may operate a type III vehicle described in section 169.011, subdivision 71, paragraph (h),
under the conditions in paragraphs (b) through (o).

(b) The operator is an employee of the entity that owns, leases, or contracts for
the school bus.

(c) The operator's employer has adopted and implemented a policy that provides for
annual training and certification of the operator in:

(1) safe operation of a type III vehicle;

(2) understanding student behavior, including issues relating to students with
disabilities;

(3) encouraging orderly conduct of students on the bus and handling incidents of
misconduct appropriately;

(4) knowing and understanding relevant laws, rules of the road, and local school
bus safety policies;

(5) handling emergency situations;

(6) proper use of seat belts and child safety restraints;

(7) performance of pretrip vehicle inspections;

(8) safe loading and unloading of students, including, but not limited to:

(i) utilizing a safe location for loading and unloading students at the curb, on the
nontraffic side of the roadway, or at off-street loading areas, driveways, yards, and other
areas to enable the student to avoid hazardous conditions;

(ii) refraining from loading and unloading students in a vehicular traffic lane, on the
shoulder, in a designated turn lane, or a lane adjacent to a designated turn lane;

(iii) avoiding a loading or unloading location that would require a pupil to cross a
road, or ensuring that the driver or an aide personally escort the pupil across the road if it
is not reasonably feasible to avoid such a location;

(iv) placing the type III vehicle in "park" during loading and unloading; and

(v) escorting a pupil across the road under item (iii) only after the motor is stopped,
the ignition key is removed, the brakes are set, and the vehicle is otherwise rendered
immobile; and

(9) compliance with paragraph (k), concerning reporting certain convictions to the
employer within ten days of the date of conviction.

(d) A background check or background investigation of the operator has been
conducted that meets the requirements under section 122A.18, subdivision 8, or 123B.03
for school district employees; section 144.057 or chapter 245C for day care employees; or
section 171.321, subdivision 3, for all other persons operating a type III vehicle under
this subdivision.

(e) Operators shall submit to a physical examination as required by section 171.321,
subdivision 2.

(f) The operator's employer requires preemployment drug testing of applicants for
operator positions. Current operators must comply with the employer's policy under
section 181.951, subdivisions 2, 4, and 5. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the
operator's employer may use a Breathalyzer or similar device to fulfill random alcohol
testing requirements.

(g) The operator's driver's license is verified annually by the entity that owns, leases,
or contracts for the type III vehicle as required under section 171.321, subdivision 5.

(h) A person who sustains a conviction, as defined under section 609.02, of violating
section 169A.25, 169A.26, 169A.27, or 169A.31, or whose driver's license is revoked
under sections 169A.50 to 169A.53 of the implied consent law, or who is convicted of
violating or whose driver's license is revoked under a similar statute or ordinance of
another state, is precluded from operating a type III vehicle for five years from the date
of conviction.

(i) A person who has ever been convicted of a disqualifying offense as defined in
section 171.3215, subdivision 1, paragraph (c), may not operate a type III vehicle under
this subdivision.

(j) A person who sustains a conviction, as defined under section 609.02, of a moving
offense in violation of chapter 169 within three years of the first of three other moving
offenses is precluded from operating a type III vehicle for one year from the date of
the last conviction.

(k) An operator who sustains a conviction as described in paragraph (h), (i), or (j)
while employed by the entity that owns, leases, or contracts for the school bus, shall report
the conviction to the employer within ten days of the date of the conviction.

(l) Students riding the type III vehicle must have training required under section
123B.90, subdivision 2.

(m) Documentation of meeting the requirements listed in this subdivision must be
maintained under separate file at the business location for each type III vehicle operator.
The business manager, school board, governing body of a nonpublic school, or any
other entity that owns, leases, or contracts for the type III vehicle operating under this
subdivision is responsible for maintaining these files for inspection.

(n) The type III vehicle must bear a current certificate of inspection issued under
section 169.451.

(o) An employee of a school or of a school district, who is not employed for the sole
purpose of operating a type III vehicle, is exempt from paragraphs (e) and (f).

new text begin (p) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, if the testing under paragraph (f)
follows the testing procedures set forth for transportation workplace drug and alcohol
testing programs in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, part 40, any person who is also
required to comply with the alcohol and controlled substances testing requirements of
Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, part 219, 382, 653, or 654, is exempt from sections
181.950 to 181.957.
new text end