Vermont § 1282 - Operator, equipment, and inspection

§ 1282. Operator, equipment, and inspection

• (a) Before an individual may assume the duty of transporting school pupils in either a
  Type I or Type II school bus, the individual shall as a minimum: (1) For Type I, have a valid State of Vermont commercial driver’s license with a passenger
  endorsement and a school bus driver’s endorsement or, for Type II, have a valid State
  of Vermont license with a school bus driver’s endorsement or have a license from another
  jurisdiction valid for the class or type of vehicle to be driven. (2) Furnish the Department of Motor Vehicles or, in the case of an individual licensed
  in another jurisdiction, furnish his or her employer a certificate signed by a licensed
  physician, or a certified physician assistant, or a nurse practitioner in accordance
  with written protocols, that he or she is, as far as can be determined by reasonable
  inquiry and examination, mentally and physically competent to perform his or her duties.
  Any newly diagnosed diabetic or established diabetic must be stabilized and must be
  certified by his or her personal physician that he or she has not had a hypoglycemic
  reaction (loss of consciousness or near loss of consciousness) for the last two years
  or since his or her last physical, whichever is longer. Any diabetic must be recertified
  every six months by his or her personal physician who must state that the patient
  has not had a hypoglycemic reaction during that time. (3) Have completed training in school bus operation, including evacuation and emergency
  procedures, as the Commissioner deems necessary. (4) Be licensed for Type I or Type II, or both, Type I being an automatic qualification
  for a Type II operator. (5) Furnish to his or her employer, prior to the first date of employment as a school
  bus driver, a copy of his or her three-year operating record. (b) A school bus shall not be operated in the transportation of children to and from school
  unless and until it is inspected at an inspection station designated as such by the
  Department of Motor Vehicles. The inspection shall thoroughly cover mechanical conditions,
  standard equipment, extra equipment, and safety and comfort conditions all as provided
  in section 1281 of this title and, if the inspected vehicle meets all of these requirements, the inspection station
  shall give the owner or operator of the inspected vehicle a signed certificate so
  stating. This certificate shall be shown as soon as possible by the owner or operator
  to a school director in the town in which this vehicle is to be operated and shall
  thereafter be carried in some easily accessible place in the vehicle. Thereafter,
  so long as this bus remains in this service, it must be reinspected as provided in
  this section during each of the following periods: January to April, May to August,
  and September to December. School buses of the pleasure car type, if regularly used
  in this service, shall display signs required in subdivision 1283(a)(1) of this title when transporting schoolchildren. (c)(1) A school bus shall not regularly transport more passengers than seating space of 13
  inches for each child will permit. (2) Bus routing and seating plans shall be coordinated so as to eliminate standees when
  a school bus is in motion, and standees shall be permitted only in emergency situations. (3) There shall be no auxiliary seating accommodations such as temporary or folding jump
  seats in school buses. (d)(1) Not less often than every two years, and before the start of a school year, an individual
  licensed by the Department of Motor Vehicles to assume the duty of transporting school
  pupils in either a Type I or Type II school bus shall furnish the employer who employs
  him or her as a school bus driver the following: (A) a certificate signed by a licensed physician, a certified physician assistant, or
  a nurse practitioner in accordance with written protocols, certifying that the licensee
  is, as far as can be determined by reasonable inquiry and examination, mentally and
  physically competent to perform his or her duties and that he or she meets or exceeds
  the minimum hearing standards, based on voice testing, as prescribed by the Commissioner;
  and (B) a certificate signed by a properly registered and authorized medical doctor, ophthalmologist,
  optometrist, or nurse practitioner certifying that he or she meets or exceeds the
  minimum vision standards as prescribed by the Commissioner. (2) Upon receipt of a certificate required by this subsection that indicates that the
  school bus driver is not mentally or physically competent or does not meet the minimum
  hearing or vision standards, the employer shall immediately notify the Commissioner. (3) The certificates required under this subsection may be valid for up to two years from
  the examination. (e) In the event the school bus driver is subject to 49 C.F.R. Part 391, Subpart E, the provisions of those regulations rather than the standards of this
  section shall apply. (f) Subject to State Board of Education rules, which may provide for limited idling, the
  operator of a school bus shall not idle the engine while waiting for children to board
  or to exit the vehicle at a school and shall not start the engine until ready to leave
  the school premises. The Board, in consultation with the Agency of Natural Resources,
  the Department of Health, and the Department of Motor Vehicles, shall adopt rules
  to implement this subsection. The rules shall set forth periods or circumstances that
  reasonably require the idling of the engine, including periods when it is necessary
  to operate defrosting, heating, or cooling equipment to ensure the health or safety
  of the driver or passengers or to operate auxiliary equipment; and periods when the
  engine is undergoing maintenance or inspection. (Amended 1961, No. 137, § 2; 1971, No. 228 (Adj. Sess.), § 32; 1975, No. 149 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 6, 7; 1985, No. 119 (Adj. Sess.); 1987, No. 209 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1, 2; 1989, No. 33, § 1; 1989, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.), § 5, eff. March 15, 1990; 1989, No. 239 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 4, 5; 2003, No. 160 (Adj. Sess.), § 39, eff. June 9, 2004; 2007, No. 48, § 1, eff. May 25, 2007; 2015, No. 47, § 29; 2015, No. 158 (Adj. Sess.), § 71; 2019, No. 149 (Adj. Sess.), § 11, eff. Sept. 1, 2020; 2023, No. 85 (Adj. Sess.), § 294, eff. July 1, 2024.)