Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 38, September 20, 2024
14.1. County boards providing transportation
for students participating in curricular and extra-curricular activities shall
require participating school officials to submit a planned schedule to the
county superintendent or his/her designee for approval. Procedure shall be as
follows:
14.1.a. the county director shall
receive a copy of the approved schedule far enough in advance to arrange safe
and adequate transportation.
14.1.b.
schedules for approved trips shall not interfere with the regular
transportation schedule.
14.1.c.
only operators employed by the county board shall operate type A, C, and D
buses on such trips.
14.1.d. all
buses used for such trips shall be covered by insurance as provided in W. Va.
Code §
18-5-13.
14.1.e. students transported in a bus on such
trips shall, in addition to the operator, be supervised by at least one
professional employee of the county board who shall provide a list of all
persons on the bus to the operator. Each bus shall be supervised by a
professional employee or person approved by the county board with assurances
that provisions for specialized health care needs are made, if necessary.
14.1.e.1. Students transported in a bus on
such trips shall be instructed on the location and operation of all emergency
exits and proper procedures for evacuating the bus in case of accident or
breakdown.
14.2. County boards providing curricular and
extra-curricular transportation shall file a report through the WVEIS at the
end of each month on curricular and extra-curricular trips.
14.3. Professional personnel permitted to
drive board-owned, rented, or leased vehicles with a designed seating capacity
of fewer than ten occupants, not including the operator, pursuant to W. Va.
Code §
18-5-13(f)(4),
shall have a valid driver's license. All occupants in these vehicles shall wear
restraints anytime the vehicle is in motion. Professional personnel shall be
defined per W. Va. Code §
18A-1-1. No more than
one county board-owned, rented, or leased vehicle as described above shall be
used for any single trip. A bus should be used for more than nine students
and/or passengers on curricular and extra-curricular trips.
14.4. Students may be transported to a
school-sponsored activity in a vehicle that has a designed seating capacity of
16 or more passengers such as a charter or public transit bus which is not
owned and operated by the county board only as follows:
14.4.a. Automobile insurance coverage:
14.4.a.1. a certificate of insurance must be
issued as follows:
14.4.a.1.A. the
certificate holder will be the county board.
14.4.a.1.B. the cetificate of insurance must
have evidence of a minimum of $5,000,000 per occurrence of automobile
liability.
14.4.a.1.C. the
certificate of insurance should provide for 30 day notice of cancellation. Any
certificate of insurance limited to a specific event or date is not
acceptable.
14.4.a.1.D. acceptance
will be for all locations and operations of the school system.
14.4.a.1.E. for the charter or a public
transit bus company to remain eligible to provide service, a new Certificate of
Insurance must be supplied to the county board whenever the insurance is
renewed, which normally occurs on an annual basis. The county board will not
contact the bus company before suspending the company from providing charter
service due to an expired certificate.
14.4.a.1.F. any notice from the insurance
company that a bus company's insurance has been cancelled for any reason will
result in the bus company's suspension from providing charter service to the
county board;
14.4.b. Preventive maintenance and
maintenance records are provided.
14.4.c. Bus or public transit ratings are
provided.
14.4.d. Driver training,
certification, and criminal history record check are provided.
14.4.e. The vehicle owner shall provide to
the county board proof that the vehicle and driver satisfy the requirements of
WVBE policy.
14.5. County
boards may lease pursuant to rules established by the county board.
14.5.a. Leased buses may be operated only by
operators regularly employed by the county board.
14.5.b. The lessee shall bear all costs and
expenses incurred by, or incidental to, the use of the bus.
14.5.c. The county board may lease buses to:
14.5.c.1. public and private nonprofit
organizations and private corporations to transport school-age children for
camps or educational activities;
14.5.c.2. any college, university, or
officially recognized campus organization for transporting students, faculty,
and staff to and from the college or university. Only college and university
students, faculty, and staff may be transported pursuant to this
paragraph.
14.5.c.3. public and
private nonprofit organizations, including education employee organizations,
for transportation associated with fairs, festivals, and other educational and
cultural events.
14.5.d.
The lease shall include provisions for:
14.5.d.1. compensation for
operators.
14.5.d.2. consideration
for insurance coverage, repairs, and other costs of service.
14.5.d.3. any rules concerning passenger
behavior.
14.5.e. The
county board may charge fees in addition to those charges otherwise required by
this subsection.
