districts choose private carriers, and should parents be involved in the selection of those carriers. School districts opt for private con- tractors for a number of reasons. Published reports state private contractors owned 34.7 percent of approximately 472,000 school buses nationwide during the 2012-2013
school year, with the balance owned by school districts or states. Tat figure rep- resents an decrease from 2007-2008, when private contractors owned 35.6 percent of the nation’s school buses.
Te question then becomes one of liability. Tere was no hesitancy by the
Hamilton County Schools in Chattanooga to share its contract with Durham and to refer all questions concerning fleet oper- ations and transportation employees to the embattled contractor, which in turn is understandably keeping comments to a minimum in view of the ongoing investi- gation, as well as several lawsuits already filed. “We entered into an agreement for the transportation of our students from school to home and home to school,” said Hamilton Country Schools spokeswoman Amy Katcher. “Durham is responsible for driver training and driver oversight. It is up to Durham to discipline their drivers. Tey are not our employees.” Hamilton County’s contract with Durham expires on June 30.
COMPLIANCE, SHORTAGES AND THE X-FACTOR
School districts generally are already in compliance with the FMCSA rules as far as screening and training prospective drivers, as well as monitoring the behavior of veteran drivers. Te concern apparently is with the timely reporting and sharing of background information, an issue some feel the clearinghouse will eliminate. “Te clearinghouse will make the process much easier to obtain past CDL informa- tion relative to drug and alcohol testing when the employee was with another employer,” said Josh Rice, transportation director in the New Caney ISD near Hous- ton. “Many private companies and school districts are not prompt in their replies to requests for information and some don’t reply at all. A clearinghouse would be an easy way for school districts to obtain this needed information.”
While school districts cited competition
from better-paying employers as the main reason for driver shortages, many have adjusted to the problem. Te Clark County School District serving Las Vegas receives major competition for its drivers from local shuttle services, public transportation and limo services, and even neighboring states after the district train and credential the drivers at the district’s expense. It’s a dilem- ma faced by many districts nationwide. But Clark County School District is the largest publicly owned and operated fleet in the nation with 1,600 daily routes. Karen
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