House endorses Errington legislation to keep Indiana school buses running

INDIANAPOLIS — State Rep. Sue Errington (D-Muncie) is making progress in her efforts to keep Indiana school buses on the road.

House Bill 1109, passed 95-0 by House members today, would extend a current state law that allows school corporations to use money from other funds to help pay transportation costs.

Errington coauthored a law in 2014 that established a three-year moratorium to assist school corporations facing issues with transportation costs. House Bill 1109 extends the moratorium for another three years.

“This moratorium would benefit Indiana school corporations that have lost at least 10 percent of their transportation fund levies due to property tax caps and protected taxes. Schools in Muncie are faced with a loss of over 94 percent of their transportation funding,” said Errington. “This is a way for school corporations to find a way to pay their transportation costs.

“Indiana school corporations are having a hard time keeping their finances in a place where they can keep the buses on the road,” continued Errington. “This bill would give struggling school districts 3 more years of financial relief.”

While the bill would help schools temporarily, Errington stresses that this is a short-term fix to a complicated issue.

“The next step is to make this a permanent change,” said Errington. “We have the opportunity to provide significant relief to struggling school districts.

“Allowing these choices to be made locally will help ensure that our school buses remain running,” commented Errington. “Our number one priority is to provide safe and dependable transportation for Indiana students.”

The bill, coauthored by Errington, now moves to the Senate for further consideration.