HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2756        FILED ON: 1/20/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3552

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Denise C. Garlick

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to school transportation.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2756        FILED ON: 1/20/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3552

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninetieth General Court
(2017-2018)

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An Act relative to school transportation.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Section 4 of chapter 30B of the General Laws, as amended by section 6 of chapter 218 of 2016, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (a) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(a) Except as permitted pursuant to this section and section 7, for the procurement of a supply or service in the amount of $10,000 or greater, but not more than $150,000, a procurement officer shall seek written quotations from no fewer than 3 persons customarily providing the supply or service. The procurement officer shall record: (1) the names and addresses of all person from whom quotations were sought, (2) the purchase description used for the procurement, (3) the names of the persons submitting quotations and (4) the date and amount of each quotation. Such information shall be retained in the file required pursuant to section 3. A governmental body may require that any procurement in an amount of not more than $150,000 be subject to section 5.

SECTION 2. Section 5 of said chapter 30B, as amended by sections 7 and 9 of said chapter 218, is hereby amended by striking out the figure “$50,000”, each time it appears, and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- $150,000.

SECTION 3. Section 6 of said chapter 30B, as amended by section 10 of said chapter 218, is hereby amended by striking out the figure “$50,000” and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- $150,000.

SECTION 4. Section 6A of said chapter 30B, as amended by section 11 of said chapter 218, is hereby amended by striking out the figure “$50,000 or more” and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- $150,000.

SECTION 5. Section 7 of said chapter 30B, as amended by section 12 of said chapter 218, is hereby amended by striking out the figure “$50,000” and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- $150,000.

SECTION 6. Section 56 of chapter 41 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- This section shall not prohibit payment to be made for: (i) school travel prior to the date of travel, or (ii) the payment of software licenses, software maintenance agreements or online subscription services for school curriculum prior to the fiscal year in which services will be rendered.

SECTION 7. Section 53F ½ of chapter 44 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “utility”, in line 4, the following words:- , school transportation service.

SECTION 8. Said section 53F ½ of said chapter 44, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “enterprise”, in line 22, the following words:-  ; provided, however, that the appropriate local entity for a school transportation service shall be the school committee.

SECTION 9. Section 49A of chapter 71 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 6 and 7, the words “, provided that no payment therefor shall be made prior to the commencement of said ensuing fiscal year” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- ; provided, that payment may be made prior to the commencement of said ensuing fiscal year.

SECTION 10. Said chapter 71 is hereby further amended by adding the following section:-

Section 98. Notwithstanding section 53 of chapter 44 or any general or special law to the contrary, a school district may establish a School Transportation Reimbursement Fund. Reimbursements made by the commonwealth pursuant to this section may be deposited into the fund and may carry forward for 1 fiscal year.  Funds received by a school district shall be deposited with the treasurer of the city or town and held as a separate account and expended by the school committee for the purposes of school transportation without further appropriation.

SECTION 11. Section 7D of chapter 90 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph:-

An application for a license pursuant to this section shall be acted upon within 14 days of submission to the registry. 

SECTION 12. The department of elementary and secondary education shall conduct an investigation and study of the feasibility and benefits of creating regional school transportation authorities for the purpose of providing school transportation for homeless students and students receiving services pursuant to chapter 71B. The department shall evaluate, at a minimum: (i) the cost, if any, to provide transportation services to said students to the commonwealth and the savings, if any, to school districts; (ii) the feasibility of using a transportation brokerage service, similar to the commonwealth’s transportation services for seniors and individuals receiving certain health and human services benefits; (iii) the number of children who would receive such transportation; and (iv) the most efficient and least expensive method of administering the transportation. The department shall make recommendations and shall submit its findings to the joint committee on education and to the house and senate committees on ways and means not later than December 31, 2018.