Legal Focus

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.

Operators of diesel vehicles know that red dye in diesel fuel indicates that the fuel was provided to the end user without payment of “on-road” taxes. The most common permitted use of red dyed fuel is for farming and agricultural use. That is why red dyed diesel fuel is commonly called “off-road diesel”. The language of the exceptions permitting the use of red dyed diesel on public roads are reasonably interpreted to include certain school bus use on public roads, but the exception language ...

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 ...

According to the General Duties Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), 29 U.S.C. § 654, each employer must furnish employees a place of employment free from recognized hazards that are likely to cause serious physical harm to employees. In the school bus industry that usually means protection from school bus violence. In January, 2017, OSHA fined a Pennsylvania psychiatric hospital $32,000 for exposing its employees to workplace violence caused by patients. Similarly, a Massach...

What is your retirement plan? At this year’s PSBA Annual Convention at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center, Rich Kelly presented a workshop discussing Succession Planning. If you were unable to attend Rich’s presentation, this article to reviews what you need to know about planning to transition your business from one generation to the next and other ways your business can fund your retirement.

In 2014 New York legalized medical marijuana with passage of the Compassionate Care Act (CCA). This NY state law allows doctors to prescribe marijuana in a non-smokable form to patients with serious ailments that are recognized by the state on a predefined list of conditions. New York is one of twenty-nine states in the U.S. to have legalized marijuana. But, all of the state laws legalizing marijuana are in conflict with current federal law. This article discusses the conflict of the New York la...

The Pennsylvania Storage Tank and Spill Prevention Act (STSPA) requires owners and operators of Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) to comply with testing and inspections, ensuring no contaminants are released from their USTs. If owners or operators of USTs fail to comply with the requirements, they may be punished civilly under 35 P.S. §6021.1307, or criminally under 35 P.S. § 6021.1306. Civil penalties may be assessed up to $10,000 per day for each violation. 35 P.S. § 6021.1307 (a). This articl...