A bill

TO AMEND THE South carolina code of laws BY ADDING CHAPTER 68 TO TITLE 59 SO AS TO ENACT THE "SOUTH CAROLINA SCHOOL BUS PRIVATIZATION ACT OF 2024", INCLUDING PROVISIONS TO PROVIDE THAT THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA SHALL NOT OWN, PURCHASE, OR ACQUIRE ADDITIONAL SCHOOL BUSES ON OR AFTER JULY 1, 2028, AND ITS PRESENT FLEET OF SCHOOL BUSES BE SOLD OR DISPOSED OF ON A PHASED-IN BASIS BEGINNING IN 2025, TO PROVIDE THAT BEGINNING WITH THE 2025-2026 SCHOOL YEAR, SCHOOL DISTRICTS ON A PHASED-IN BASIS INDIVIDUALLY OR TOGETHER WITH OTHER DISTRICTS SHALL PROVIDE SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SERVICES OR BY CONTRACT MAY ENGAGE A PRIVATE ENTITY TO PROVIDE SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SERVICES WITH THE PRIVATE ENTITY PROVIDING ALL SCHOOL BUSES, PERSONNEL TO OPERATE, AND AUXILIARY SERVICES, AND TO PROVIDE FOR TERMS, CONDITIONS, PROCEDURES, AND REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO THE PROVISION OF THESE SERVICES, TO PROVIDE THAT STATE SCHOOL BUS MAINTENANCE FACILITIES, ON A PHASED-IN BASIS BEGINNING IN 2025, SHALL BE LEASED OR SOLD TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS OR PRIVATE SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION PROVIDERS OR IN THE ABSENCE OF A SALE OR LEASE CLOSED, TO ESTABLISH A "SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION REIMBURSEMENT FUND" CONSISTING OF SPECIFIED FUNDS WHICH MUST BE USED TO REIMBURSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS FOR THE COST OF SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SERVICES ON A FORMULA BASIS AND TO INCREASE TEACHER SALARIES FROM SAVINGS RESULTING FROM PRIVATIZATION, and TO PROVIDE FOR THE LIABILITY INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO PRIVATE ENTITIES PROVIDING SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SERVICES AND FOR SCHOOL BUS, DRIVER, PASSENGER, AND EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS IN REGARD TO THESE SERVICES; by AMENDing SECTION 59-67-460, RELATING TO CONTRACTS BY SCHOOL DISTRICTS FOR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES WITH PRIVATE CONTRACTORS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT OR A GROUP OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS IS AUTHORIZED BY CONTRACT TO HAVE THEIR SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SERVICES PROVIDED BY A PRIVATE ENTITY WHICH FURNISHES ITS OWN BUSES, PERSONNEL, AND AUXILIARY SERVICES PRIOR TO THE REQUIRED IMPLEMENTATION DATE OF THE DISTRICT'S ASSUMPTION OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR ALL SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SERVICES IN THE DISTRICT AS REQUIRED BY CHAPTER 68, TITLE 59; AND by REPEALing SECTION 59-67-460 effective july 1, 2028, relating to school transportation services WHEN THE RESPONSIBILITY TO PROVIDE these services IS TRANSFERRED FULLY TO THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS OF THIS STATE.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1.  Title 59 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

CHAPTER 68

School Bus Privatization

Article 1

General Provisions

    Section 59-68-100. This chapter is known and may be cited as the "South Carolina School Bus Privatization Act of 2024".

    Section 59-68-110. (A) The State of South Carolina, on and after July 1, 2024, shall not own, purchase, or acquire additional school buses as defined in Section 59-67-10 and its present fleet of school buses must be disposed of as provided in this chapter.

    (B) All state school bus maintenance facilities of the Department of Education, according to the schedule provided in Section 59-68-120, must be leased or sold to private entities providing school transportation services in this State as provided in this chapter, leased or sold to a school district or a group of school districts in this State providing their own transportation services in the manner permitted by this chapter, or in the alternative, closed when no longer needed.

    Section 59-68-120. (A)(1) After May 1, 2024, those school districts that do not wish to provide school transportation services for the students of the district themselves, shall prepare and publish requests for proposals soliciting responsive bids from private entities to furnish school transportation services for the district beginning with the 2025-2026 School Year or thereafter, but beginning no later than the 2027-2028 School Year, in the manner provided by this chapter, or shall negotiate an agreement for school transportation with a private carrier if permitted under state and local procurement provisions.  The governing body of the district then shall award a contract to a responsive bidder pursuant to the bid or negotiated agreement.  An integral part of the contract must be the requirement for the private carrier to acquire from the Department of Education the state-owned school buses and maintenance facilities previously employed in the school transportation services contemplated by the contract.  The prices for these state-owned buses and facilities must be set in advance as set forth in this chapter.  State school buses and maintenance facilities may be sold together or separately; provided, the state school bus maintenance facilities also may be leased rather than sold.  The Department of Education shall conduct these sales in the manner required by this chapter, and subject to the approval of the Department of Administration.  The proceeds of these sales must be deposited in the School Transportation Reimbursement Fund established in Section 59-68-130.  The private entities shall then begin providing school transportation services to the school districts with which they have contracts, beginning at the earliest with the 2025-2026 School Year, and beginning at the latest with the 2027-2028 School Year.  Nothing herein prevents the Department of Education from selling the state-owned school buses used in a particular school district and a state-owned school bus maintenance facility to a school district in the manner provided by this chapter which wishes to provide its own school transportation services.

       (2) The Department of Education, upon approval of the Department of Administration, is authorized to delay for a period not exceeding one year the scheduled implementation of the privatization of school transportation services in a particular school district, including the sale of state-owned school buses and state-owned school bus maintenance facilities where for justifiable reasons, including procurement protests, lack of responsive bidders, or other factors beyond the control of the school district, the institution of the provisions of this chapter for the furnishing of school transportation services cannot be reasonably and effectively accomplished.

    (B) The Department of Education shall specify the school buses and maintenance facilities to be sold in connection with the school transportation service for each school district.  The department may sell school buses and facilities to private carriers contracted to provide school transportation to school districts that previously used the same buses and facilities in their student transportation service, or the department may sell the appropriate assets to a school district or group of districts which together or separately wish to provide school transportation services directly in the manner authorized by this chapter.  All proceeds of these sales must be deposited in the School Transportation Reimbursement Fund.

    (C) Only those school buses determined to be in good operating condition by the department and less than fifteen years of age from the date of manufacture may be operated in school service after the sale.  If a school bus is fifteen years of age or older based on its date of manufacture, the private carrier or school district acquiring the bus shall remove it from the operating bus fleet and may dispose of the bus at wholesale auction or otherwise sell it on the open market.

    (D) To establish the prices to be charged, appraisals must be obtained by the State for each bus in the state fleet, and for each of the state's maintenance facilities. The buses may be priced in groups by age.  Thereafter, districts opting to provide their own transportation service and private contractors with agreements to provide service to specific districts may purchase the corresponding buses and facilities at appraised value and commence their own service within the period required by this chapter.

    Section 59-68-130. Funds received from the sale of state-owned school buses and state-owned maintenance facilities as required by Section 59-68-120, funds available from other sources due to the elimination of the requirement that the State of South Carolina obtain and provide school buses, including the elimination of appropriations to the Department of Education for state aid to school districts for school bus drivers, aides to drivers, and other transportation needs, funds saved by the Department of Education due to the closure of school bus maintenance facilities, and other funds, including those set aside for the purchase of school buses, all as determined by the General Assembly in the general appropriations act, must be placed annually into a special fund administered by the Department of Education to be known as 'School Transportation Reimbursement Fund'.  All interest or other income of the fund must remain in the fund.  Beginning with Fiscal Year 2025-2026, the Department of Education shall provide payments to school districts from this fund on a quarterly basis, as these districts begin the operation of their own student transportation, either by employing a private contractor, or by self-operation, in those amounts determined as provided by this chapter to reimburse them in the form of state aid for their costs incurred in providing school transportation services, with any savings realized over the amount spent for transportation in a district in Fiscal Year 2027-2028 to be used to increase teacher salaries in the district.

    Section 59-68-140. Local school districts, as authorized by Article 3 of this chapter, by contract may engage private entities providing school transportation services to provide student transportation services to all students within the district eligible to be furnished school transportation where the State has assumed this responsibility in the manner provided by law or, in the alternative, may provide these services on its own or together with other districts.  Private providers selected must provide complete transportation services for all eligible students in the district.

    Section 59-68-150. (A) School bus drivers must be considered for employment by either the private transportation entity awarded a contract to provide school transportation services to the particular district in which the school bus driver works or, alternatively, by the school district in which the school bus driver works if it elects to provide school transportation services itself or together with a group of other districts as provided in Article 3.

    (B) Employees of school bus maintenance facilities, who are in good standing, must be considered for employment by either the private contractor selected to provide school transportation services in the maintenance area where the employee is employed, or by a school dist