BILL REQ. #:  S-3702.1 

Read first time 01/10/2006.   Referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

     AN ACT Relating to school district diesel prices; and amending 2005 c 518 s 505 (uncodified).

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   2005 c 518 s 505 (uncodified) is amended to read as follows:
FOR THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION -- FOR PUPIL TRANSPORTATION
General Fund -- State Appropriation (FY 2006) . . . . . . . . . . . . (($242,170,000))
       $254,189,000
General Fund -- State Appropriation (FY 2007) . . . . . . . . . . . . (($248,575,000))
       $258,670,000
          TOTAL APPROPRIATION . . . . . . . . . . . . (($490,745,000))
       $512,819,000

     The appropriations in this section are subject to the following conditions and limitations:
     (1) Each general fund fiscal year appropriation includes such funds as are necessary to complete the school year ending in the fiscal year and for prior fiscal year adjustments.
     (2) A maximum of $796,000 of this fiscal year 2006 appropriation and a maximum of $812,000 of the fiscal year 2007 appropriation may be expended for regional transportation coordinators and related activities. The transportation coordinators shall ensure that data submitted by school districts for state transportation funding shall, to the greatest extent practical, reflect the actual transportation activity of each district.
     (3) $5,000 of the fiscal year 2006 appropriation and $5,000 of the fiscal year 2007 appropriation are provided solely for the transportation of students enrolled in "choice" programs. Transportation shall be limited to low-income students who are transferring to "choice" programs solely for educational reasons.
     (4) Allocations for transportation of students shall be based on reimbursement rates of $41.51 per weighted mile in the 2005-06 school year and $42.01 per weighted mile in the 2006-07 school year exclusive of salary and benefit adjustments provided in section 504 of this act. Allocations for transportation of students transported more than one radius mile shall be based on weighted miles as determined by superintendent of public instruction multiplied by the per mile reimbursement rates for the school year pursuant to the formulas adopted by the superintendent of public instruction. Allocations for transportation of students living within one radius mile shall be based on the number of enrolled students in grades kindergarten through five living within one radius mile of their assigned school multiplied by the per mile reimbursement rate for the school year multiplied by 1.29.
     (5) For busses purchased between July 1, 2005, and June 30, 2007, the office of superintendent of public instruction shall provide reimbursement funding to a school district only after the superintendent of public instruction determines that the school bus was purchased from the list established pursuant to RCW 28A.160.195(2) or a comparable competitive bid process based on the lowest price quote based on similar bus categories to those used to establish the list pursuant to RCW 28A.160.195. The competitive specifications shall meet federal motor vehicle safety standards, minimum state specifications as established by rule by the superintendent, and supported options as determined by the superintendent in consultation with the regional transportation coordinators of the educational service districts.
     (6) Beginning with the 2005-06 school year, the superintendent of public instruction shall base depreciation payments for school district buses on the five-year average of lowest bids in the appropriate category of bus. In the final year on the depreciation schedule, the depreciation payment shall be based on the current state price. The superintendent may include a weighting or other adjustment factor in the averaging formula to ease the transition from the current-price depreciation system to the average depreciation system. Prior to making any depreciation payment in the 2005-06 school year, the superintendent shall notify the office of financial management and the fiscal committees of the legislature of the specific depreciation formula to be used. The replacement cost shall be based on the lowest bid in the appropriate bus category for that school year. A maximum of $50,000 of the fiscal year 2006 appropriation may be expended for software programming costs associated with the implementation of this subsection.
     (7) In addition to the allocations for transportation of students in subsection (4) of this section, school districts shall be allocated $3.05 per weighted mile in the 2005-06 school year and $1.79 per weighted mile in the 2006-07 school year exclusive of salary and benefit adjustments provided in section 504, chapter 518, Laws of 2005. The total amount allocated pursuant to this subsection shall be limited to $22,114,000 for the 2005-2007 biennium.