ORS Chapter 327 — State Financing of Early

ORS 327.033. Approved transportation costs; expenditure limitations; rules. (1) As used in this section: (a) Active transportation means the arrival to, or departure from, a school by students who: (A) Reside less than three miles from school; and (B) Use human-powered forms of travel, including walking or bicycling. (b)(A) Active transportation costs means costs incurred by a school district for facilitating the use of active transportation, including costs incurred for: (i) A pedestrian or bicycle group; (ii) A crossing guard; or (iii) Staff time required for coordinating active transportation options. (B) Active transportation costs does not include costs incurred by a school district for: (i) Subcontracting the school districts transportation services to a private transportation provider; or (ii) The time of an individual who is not an employee of the school district. (c)(A) Alternative transportation means the arrival to, or departure from, a school by students using active transportation or public transportation. (B) Alternative transportation does not include transportation that is subcontracted by a school district to a private transportation provider. (d) Alternative transportation costs includes: (A) Active transportation costs; and (B) Costs incurred by a school district for public transportation, including costs incurred for staff time required for coordinating public transportation options. (e) Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement has the meaning given that term in ORS 468A.795. (f) Public transportation means forms of transportation that are provided by a public entity, charge set fares, run on fixed routes and are available to the public. (g) Retrofit has the meaning given that term in ORS 468A.795. (h) Suitable and sufficient means transportation that is appropriate for a particular student or group of students based on: (A) The age of the student; (B) The physical or mental capabilities of the student; (C) The distance the student is to be transported; and (D) The safety of the student to be transported. (2)(a) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to determine the amounts to reimburse a school district for costs incurred by the school district in transporting students described in ORS 327.006 (2)(a). (b) The rules adopted under this subsection must allow for the reimbursement of alternative transportation costs that are approved transportation costs in an amount that does not exceed five percent of the school districts transportation grant under ORS 327.013. Alternative transportation costs are considered approved transportation costs if: (A) The use of alternative transportation is included as part of a supplemental plan approved by the State Board of Education, as provided by ORS 327.043; or (B) The use of alternative transportation is included as part of a waiver approved by the State Board of Education, as provided by ORS 327.043. (c) Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of this subsection and subject to paragraph (d) of this subsection, alternative transportation costs related to public transportation are approved transportation costs only if the school district submits sufficient documentation to establish that: (A) No other transportation options, including active transportation options, are suitable and sufficient; (B) The school district engaged in efforts to recruit, and was subsequently unable to hire, sufficient workforce to ensure: (i) Reliable service by a school bus; and (ii) Timely transport of students to and from school; and (C) The school district conducted a good faith effort to hire, train and retain drivers of school buses in a manner that included competitive wages and hiring practices consistent with applicable collective bargaining agreements. (d) If, during the 2022-2023 school year, costs incurred by a school district for transit passes were considered approved transportation costs, the costs incurred by the school district after January 1, 2024, for transit passes shall continue to be considered approved transportation costs. (3) Approved transportation costs shall be estimated for the year of distribution. (4) In determining approved transportation costs related to school buses, the State Board of Education: (a) Shall include depreciation of original cost to the school district of district-owned buses, not in excess of 10 percent per year; (b) Shall include the costs to repower, retrofit or replace school buses powered by diesel engines for the purpose of reducing or eliminating diesel engine emissions, except that the board may not include the costs paid with moneys received from the state by a school district from the Clean Diesel Engine Fund under ORS 468A.801 (2)(a) to repower, retrofit or replace school buses powered by diesel engines for the purpose of reducing or eliminating diesel engine emissions; and (c) Shall include costs to school buses powered by diesel engines as allowed in the Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement, except that the board may not include costs paid from the Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement in the calculation of the transportation grant computed as provided in ORS 327.013. (5) School districts shall account separately for those funds received from the State School Fund attributable to the costs included under subsection (4) of this section, and expenditure of those funds shall be limited as follows: (a) The expenditure of funds attributable to costs under subsection (4)(a) of this section shall be limited to the acquisition of new buses. (b) The expenditure of funds attributable to costs under subsection (4)(b) and (c) of this section shall be limited to the costs to repower, retrofit or replace school buses powered by diesel engines for the purpose of reducing or eliminating diesel engine emissions. (6) The transportation grant computed as provided in ORS 327.013 when combined with costs paid from the Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement to replace school buses powered by diesel engines may not exceed the purchase price of the buses for which the funds described in this subsection were received. [1991 c.780 7a; 2007 c.855 3; 2009 c.458 1; 2017 c.742 13; 2023 c.524 1] Note: The amendments to