HF 2024

as introduced - 85th Legislature (2007 - 2008) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to student transportation; establishing procedures and standards for
contracting for private student transportation services; establishing a grant
program; appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 123B.

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

Section 1.

new text begin [123B.881] PRIVATIZATION OF PUBLIC STUDENT
TRANSPORTATION SERVICES.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin (a) For the purposes of this section, the terms defined in
this subdivision have the meanings given them.
new text end

new text begin (b) "District employee" means a public employee as defined in section 179A.03,
subdivision 14, and applies exclusively to student transportation employees in a
kindergarten through grade 12 school district.
new text end

new text begin (c) "Employee of a private contractor" means an employee of a private contractor as
defined by this subdivision, an employee of a subcontractor or independent contractor that
provides student transportation services to a private contractor, or a former employee of a
private contractor or subcontractor of a former independent contractor.
new text end

new text begin (d) "Private contractor" means an entity that enters into a privatization contract with
a kindergarten through grade 12 public school district.
new text end

new text begin (e) "Privatization contract" means an enforceable agreement or combination or
series of agreements by which a private contractor agrees with a school district to provide
services in place of services previously provided by employees of the school district, or
services that could be provided by employees of the school district.
new text end

new text begin (f) "Services" means all aspects of services provided by a private contractor to a
school district or by a subcontractor to a private contractor to implement a privatization
contract.
new text end

new text begin (g) "Subcontractor" means a subcontractor of a private contractor for work under a
privatization contract or an amendment to a privatization contract.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Privatization contracts; requirements. new text end

new text begin (a) This section applies to
school districts that put out a request for proposal for private contractors and privatization
contracts in an amount of $25,000 or more.
new text end

new text begin (b) A kindergarten through grade 12 school district shall prepare a specific written
statement of the services to be provided under a proposed privatization contract. The
statement must indicate whether the same or substantially similar services are being
provided by district employees. In the case of proposed new services, the statement must
include the district's reasons why it determined that those services could or should not
be provided by current or additional district employees. The district's solicitation of
services under a proposed privatization contract must be based on the statement. The
school district shall notify an exclusive representative of the employees that would be
affected by a proposed privatization contract of its intention to enter into such a contract,
and shall provide the exclusive representative with a copy of the statement prepared
under this paragraph.
new text end

new text begin (c) A formal solicitation of services under a proposed privatization contract must
require a responder to disclose:
new text end

new text begin (1) the length of continuous employment of the responder's current employees
identified by their job classification, which may include any relevant prior experience.
For the purposes of this section, "length of continuous employment" is the date of hire to
the present with summer and other regular school breaks not considered interruptions to
employment;
new text end

new text begin (2) the number of hours of accompanied behind-the-wheel training for drivers,
minimum length of time holding a valid driver's license, minimum length of time holding
a valid school bus endorsement for drivers, and minimum completed hours of training and
a content summary of the training;
new text end

new text begin (3) the responder's current annual rate of employee turnover as measured by the
number of new employees hired by the contractor in each classification during the most
recent school year, divided by the average number of employees employed at one time
in that classification during the same regular school year;
new text end

new text begin (4) the driver and aide recruitment and retention plan of the contractor, which must
include, but is not limited to:
new text end

new text begin (i) an explanation of the actions the contractor has taken or will take to recruit
qualified drivers for this contract;
new text end

new text begin (ii) the process for screening applicants to be certain that they meet the requirements
of the specifications;
new text end

new text begin (iii) an explanation of the training that drivers and aides receive prior to assignment
to routes specified herein;
new text end

new text begin (iv) an explanation of the actions of the employer to retain qualified drivers to meet
requirements of this specification, including an explanation of wage rates, summary of
available health insurance benefits, and employee premiums for such plans and policies on
compensated absences such as paid vacations, holidays, and sick leave; and
new text end

new text begin (v) annually or by request, whichever is more frequent, written reports to the district
summarizing:
new text end

new text begin (A) the number of accidents and traffic violations, including those with and without
injuries, a short description of each accident, including, but not limited to, injuries
sustained, damage to bus or property, whether the accident was determined to be
preventable or not, and the length of continuous employment of the driver involved; and
new text end

new text begin (B) the remedies undertaken by the contractor, including, but not limited to, new
policies and procedures, training for the driver in question, or termination;
new text end

new text begin (5) the number of hours, if any, planned for each employee relating to duties to
be performed by the employee in providing services under the proposed privatization
contract;
new text end

new text begin (6) any complaints issued by a federal, state, or local enforcement agency relating to
alleged violations of relevant laws or rules, including those relating to employee safety
and health and labor relations, along with any court decisions, administrative findings,
or penalties for violations of those laws and rules, listing the date, the court or agency,
and the law or rule found to be violated;
new text end

new text begin (7) any collective bargaining agreements or personnel policies covering the
employees to perform services under the proposed privatization contract; and
new text end

new text begin (8) any political contribution made by the responder or managerial employee of the
responder, during the four years immediately preceding the due date of the response, to an
elected official of the state, a candidate for elected state office, and, if the soliciting agency
is a local unit of government, an elected official or candidate for elected office of that unit.
new text end

new text begin If the responder is a subsidiary of a parent entity, the disclosures made in response to
clauses (5), (6), (7), and (8) must also apply to the parent entity.
new text end

new text begin (d) Notwithstanding section 123B.52, a school district must award a transportation
contract in the interest of student safety and cost-effectiveness.
new text end

new text begin (e) The minimum wage rate for an employee of a private contractor providing
services for a school district must be equal to or greater than the average wage, plus the
value of health and other benefits provided to the employees in the nearest school district
where student transportation services are owned and operated by the school district.
new text end

new text begin (f) The term of a privatization contract, including any extensions resulting from
amendments or change orders, may not exceed two years. No amendment or change order
is valid if it has the purpose or effect of avoiding any requirement of this section.
new text end

new text begin (g) A privatization contract must impose affirmative action standards on the private
contractor and any subcontractors that are at least as stringent as those applying to the
contracting school district. No privatization contract may cause the school district to fail
to meet its affirmative action standards or cause the displacement of district employees.
For the purposes of this paragraph, "displacement" means layoff, demotion, involuntary
transfer to a new classification or title, involuntary transfer or reassignment to a new
location requiring a change in residence, or reduction in hours of work, wages, or benefits.
new text end

new text begin (h) A private contract may not use public money paid to it under a privatization
contract to:
new text end

new text begin (1) support or oppose the organization of its employees by an exclusive
representative;
new text end

new text begin (2) facilitate or deter the ability of an exclusive representative of its employees to
carry out the exclusive representative's responsibilities or speak to employees on company
premises during nonpaid work time; or
new text end

new text begin (3) assist a subcontractor to facilitate or deter the lawful activities of an exclusive
representative of its employees.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Review of contract costs. new text end

new text begin (a) A district considering whether to enter into
a privatization contract for a service shall prepare a comprehensive written estimate of
having the same service provided in the most cost-effective manner by district employees.
The estimate must include all direct costs of having district employees provide the service,
including the cost of pension, insurance, and other employee benefits. The estimate is
nonpublic data, as defined in section 13.02, subdivision 9, until the day after the deadline
for receipt of responses under paragraph (b) when it becomes public data and must be
published in the State Register. A district may not count onetime revenue from the sale of
buses or bus yards for the purpose of determining cost savings. The district must bargain
in good faith.
new text end

new text begin (b) After soliciting and receiving responses, the school district shall publicly
designate the responder to which it proposes to award the contract. In making its selection,
the district shall consider the responder's past performance and record of compliance with
federal and state law. The district shall prepare a comprehensive written estimate of the
cost of the proposal based on the responder's bid, including the cost of a transition from
public to private provision of the service, any additional unemployment, and retirement
benefits resulting from the transfer, and costs associated with monitoring the proposed
contract. The school district shall include the amount in the cost estimate prepared under
this paragraph.
new text end

new text begin (c) Before awarding a privatization contract, a district must certify in writing that:
new text end

new text begin (1) the board has complied with this section;
new text end

new text begin (2) the quality of the services to be provided by the designated responder will equal
or exceed the quality of services that could be provided by district employees;
new text end

new text begin (3) the cost of the proposed contract, including all costs identified under paragraph
(b), will be at least 15 percent lower than the cost determined under paragraph (a),
taking into account any amendments to a collective bargaining agreement proposed by
an exclusive representative; and
new text end

new text begin (4) the proposed privatization contract is in the public interest.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Data practices. new text end

new text begin A privatization contract must comply with section 13.05,
subdivision 11. All data relating to a privatization contract are public data. The school
district shall submit copies of all public data associated with the privatization contract
to the state auditor.
new text end new text begin new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [123B.882] SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Driver pay. new text end

new text begin School bus drivers must be paid for the actual time
worked. If a route pay system or hourly estimation is used, drivers must be scheduled and
paid a minimum of an additional 15 minutes to allow for proper inspection of buses.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Right to refuse. new text end

new text begin School bus drivers who document needed bus repairs
shall have the right to refuse to operate the bus immediately for a safety-related repair
and after 48 hours for a nonsafety-related repair. The driver shall be provided an alternate
bus, if available, and time to inspect it. The driver shall not be penalized in any way for
fees, fines, or consequences incurred by the employer for delays or failure to operate the
route. Should the route be canceled due to the driver's documentation for needed repair,
the driver shall be paid the greater of a minimum of two hours pay or the time of reporting
to work to the time the driver is dismissed. Nothing in this section may diminish the
rights, pay, or benefits of drivers covered by a collective bargaining agreement with an
exclusive representative.
new text end

Sec. 3. new text begin PILOT PROJECT.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Establishment. new text end

new text begin A pilot project is established to investigate potential
cost savings and other benefits of multidistrict cooperation on student transportation
and efficiency.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Grant. new text end

new text begin $10,000,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the
Department of Education for a grant to Special School District No. 1, Minneapolis,
and Independent School District No. 625, St. Paul, for the purpose of acquiring land,
constructing necessary facilities, acquiring vehicles, and other costs associated with the
construction or improvement of a school bus facility.
new text end

new text begin Of that amount, $100,000 is for planning in fiscal year 2008. The remainder of
the funds shall be made available in fiscal year 2009, after the following requirements
have been certified to the commissioner:
new text end

new text begin (1) the districts have entered into a joint powers agreement for the purpose of
conducting joint student transportation operations;
new text end

new text begin (2) the authority is to be responsible for operating only the number of routes that are
operated by private contractors, as of the date of this provision's enactment;
new text end

new text begin (3) the authority must operate its own fleet of buses;
new text end

new text begin (4) the authority must be the sole owner of the facility;
new text end

new text begin (5) the authority has entered into agreement with the exclusive representative of
the largest number of school bus drivers in Minnesota. This agreement shall provide
nonsupervisory personnel necessary for the authority's operations; and
new text end

new text begin (6) the authority has developed a plan for integrating technologies into its operations
for the purpose of reducing air, noise, and groundwater pollution as a result of its
operations.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment.
new text end