Legal Focus

A new law passed along with this year's state budget on June 22, 2018, adds language to Pennsylvania's Public School Code of 1949, 24 P.S. § 1-121

In 2018, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), wil impose a new requirement on School Districts to report per-pupil expenses for student transportation. But, schools often don't recognize all of the true costs of transportation. Schools evaluating and comparing transportation cost generally consider the costs of fuel and buses, but often miss underlying transportation costs or costs that may be combined into other areas of a school districts budget. When schools understand the true cots ...

Over the years, people nationwide have become more aware of the negative health and environmental effects of diesel emissions. As a result, federal and state Departments of Environmental Protection (DEP) are taking steps to prevent health issues related to diesel emissions. This article provides helpful insights into Pennsylvania's idling restrictions.

“Hold Harmless”, “Defend”, “Indemnify” … what does it all really mean? This article explains contractual indemnity and will help you understand indemnity clauses. That is, who will be responsible for damages or injuries that may arise from performing the work of the contract?

After December 1, 2017, school bus contractors with 20 or more employees will be required to report workplace injuries electronically. OSHA, at 29 CFR § 1904, requires employers to keep records of workplace injuries on forms 300, 300A, and 301. After December 1, 2017, the required reporting will be done on the OSHA Injury Tracking Application (ITA). More reporting information can be found at https://www.osha.gov/dcsp/osp/states.html.

The compliance date for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) electronic logging device (ELD) requirement (keeping mileage logs electronically instead of on paper) is December 18, 2017. School bus operations are generally exempt from the federal ELD requirement according to 49 CFR 390.3 and 390.5. But, school bus contractors should be aware of the scope of the exemptions.

Homeless student transportation is an ongoing issue for many school districts. It is especially problematic if the student’s drop off location changes multiple times throughout the school year. The costs of transporting a single student outside of typical routes can be costly. Fortunately, the federal government created the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 (“McKinney-Vento”), as a way to provide funding to help pay for the school transportation needs of homeless students. This ...