News & Insights

The end of the school year for students means the beginning of the summer charters season for school bus contractors. Summer camps, church groups, scout groups, and others frequently charter school buses for group trips in the summer. This note will talk about summer charter issues you should consider. But, be aware that all of the issues related to carrying non-student passengers for a fee are far more complex than can be addressed completely in this brief article.

Pennsylvania’s Child Protective Services Law (CPSL), 55 Pa. Code § 3490, et seq., was enacted to protect abused children and preserve/stabilize families by alerting appropriate law enforcement agencies to investigate and respond to suspected child abuse. The law requires that “Required Reporters” act to inform law enforcement of suspected child abuse and prioritizes law enforcement’s response to best protect children at risk.

Measles has been headline news recently. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), in the U.S. there were 644 reported cases of measles in 2014 and the first month of 2015 has seen over 100 reported cases, including cases in Pennsylvania. Several contractors have been notified of responsive plans or actions initiated by school district administrators that could result in an interruption of normal school bus operations. You should be prepared.

Many school bus contractors have called our offices with questions about news articles announcing that after January 30, 2015, CDL holders will no longer need to carry a federal medical examiner’s certificate. This article will provide you with the background information regarding this announcement and current status of the FMCSA rule.

School Boards are responsible for making decisions about bus stop locations and student walking routes, but they often delegate these duties to their contractors. Some bus stop locations and walking routes are easy to evaluate, but some may be more complicated and require assistance to make a determination about safety issues. Fortunately, Pennsylvania law, 67 Pa. Code 447.1, provides guidelines for determining if a walking route is safe, and a PennDOT Traffic Unit that is available to assist in...

On December 12, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued its Final Rule to Modernize Representation-Case Procedures, sometimes referred to as the “ambush election” Rules, which govern the procedures for union representation elections. The new rules go into effect on April 14, 2015. Read more about what this new rule means, if your company is a target for unionization and what you as an employer should do.

On October 22, 2014 Governor Corbett signed HB 435 of 2103, as amended, into law as Act153. This amendment to Pennsylvania’s Child Protective Services Law, 23 Pa.C.S. § 6301, et seq, (CPSL) expands background clearance requirements to include volunteers who will have contact with children (among other changes applicable to adoptive/ foster parents). Volunteer clearances are required by July 15, 2015 but the new law does not explicitly define the “employers, administrators, supervisors, or o...