Public Act 096-0818
 		





SB0932 Enrolled
LRB096 07041 AJT 17127 b






    AN ACT concerning transportation.

 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 
represented in the General Assembly: 




 
    Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended  by changing 
Sections 6-106.1, 12-813.1, and 12-816 and  by adding Section 
12-811.5 as follows:
 
    (625 ILCS 5/6-106.1)  (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 6-106.1)
    Sec. 6-106.1. School bus driver permit.

    (a) The Secretary of State shall issue a school bus driver

permit to those applicants who have met all the requirements of 
the
application and screening process under this Section to 
insure the
welfare and safety of children who are transported 
on school buses
throughout the State of Illinois.  Applicants 
shall obtain the
proper application required by the Secretary 
of State from their
prospective or current employer and submit 
the completed
application to the prospective or current 
employer along
with the necessary fingerprint submission as 
required by the
Department of
State Police to conduct 
fingerprint based criminal background
checks on current and 
future information available in the state
system and current 
information available through the Federal Bureau
of 
Investigation's system.  Applicants who have completed the

fingerprinting requirements shall not be subjected to the

fingerprinting process when applying for subsequent permits or

submitting proof of successful completion of the annual 
refresher
course.  Individuals who on the effective date of this 
Act possess a valid
school bus driver permit that has been 
previously issued by the appropriate
Regional School 
Superintendent are not subject to the fingerprinting

provisions of this Section as long as the permit remains valid 
and does not
lapse.  The applicant shall be required to pay all 
related
application and fingerprinting fees as established by 
rule
including, but not limited to, the amounts established by 
the Department of
State Police and the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation to process
fingerprint based criminal background 
investigations. All fees paid for
fingerprint processing 
services under this Section shall be deposited into the
State 
Police Services Fund for the cost incurred in processing the 
fingerprint
based criminal background investigations.  All 
other fees paid under this
Section shall be deposited into the 
Road
Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of the 
Secretary of State in
administering this Section.  All 
applicants must:


        1. be 21 years of age or older;


        2. possess a valid and properly classified driver's 
    license
issued by the Secretary of State;


        3. possess a valid driver's license, which has not been

    revoked, suspended, or canceled for 3 years immediately 
    prior to
the date of application, or have not had his or 
    her commercial motor vehicle
driving privileges

    disqualified within the 3 years immediately prior to the 
    date of application;


        4. successfully pass a written test, administered by 
    the
Secretary of State, on school bus operation, school bus 
    safety, and
special traffic laws relating to school buses 
    and submit to a review
of the applicant's driving habits by 
    the Secretary of State at the time the
written test is 
    given;


        5. demonstrate ability to exercise reasonable care in 
    the operation of
school buses in accordance with rules 
    promulgated by the Secretary of State;


        6. demonstrate physical fitness to operate school 
    buses by
submitting the results of a medical examination, 
    including tests for drug
use for each applicant not subject 
    to such testing pursuant to
federal law, conducted by a 
    licensed physician, an advanced practice nurse
who has a 
    written collaborative agreement with
a collaborating 
    physician which authorizes him or her to perform medical

    examinations, or a physician assistant who has been 
    delegated the
performance of medical examinations by his or 
    her supervising physician
within 90 days of the date
of 
    application according to standards promulgated by the 
    Secretary of State;


        7. affirm under penalties of perjury that he or she has 
    not made a
false statement or knowingly concealed a 
    material fact
in any application for permit;


        8. have completed an initial classroom course, 
    including first aid
procedures, in school bus driver safety 
    as promulgated by the Secretary of
State; and after 
    satisfactory completion of said initial course an annual

    refresher course; such courses and the agency or 
    organization conducting such
courses shall be approved by 
    the Secretary of State; failure to
complete the annual 
    refresher course, shall result in
cancellation of the 
    permit until such course is completed;


        9. not have been convicted of 2 or more serious traffic 
    offenses, as
defined by rule, within one year prior to the 
    date of application that may
endanger the life or safety of 
    any of the driver's passengers within the
duration of the 
    permit period;


        10. not have been convicted of reckless driving, 
    driving while
intoxicated, or reckless homicide resulting 
    from the operation of a motor
vehicle within 3 years of the 
    date of application;


        11. not have been convicted of committing or attempting

    to commit any
one or more of the following offenses:  (i) 
    those offenses defined in
Sections 9-1, 9-1.2, 9-2, 9-2.1, 
    9-3, 9-3.2, 9-3.3, 10-1, 10-2, 10-3.1,
10-4,
10-5, 10-6, 
    10-7, 11-6,
11-9, 11-9.1, 11-14, 11-15, 11-15.1, 11-16, 
    11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-19.1,
11-19.2,
11-20, 11-20.1, 
    11-21, 11-22, 12-3.1, 12-4.1, 12-4.2, 12-4.3, 12-4.4,

    12-4.5,
12-6, 12-6.2, 12-7.1, 12-7.3, 12-7.4, 12-11,

    12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15, 12-16, 12-16.2, 12-21.5, 
    12-21.6, 12-33,
18-1,
18-2,
18-3, 18-4, 18-5,
20-1, 20-1.1, 
    20-2, 24-1, 24-1.1, 24-1.2, 24-3.3, 31A-1, 31A-1.1, and

    33A-2, and in subsection (a) and subsection (b), clause 
    (1), of Section
12-4 of the Criminal Code of 1961; (ii) 
    those offenses defined in the
Cannabis Control Act except 
    those offenses defined in subsections (a) and
(b) of 
    Section 4, and subsection (a) of Section 5 of the Cannabis 
    Control
Act; (iii) those offenses defined in the Illinois 
    Controlled Substances
Act; (iv) those offenses defined in 
    the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act; 
    (v) any offense committed or attempted in any other state 
    or against
the laws of the United States, which if 
    committed or attempted in this
State would be punishable as 
    one or more of the foregoing offenses; (vi)

the offenses 
    defined in Section 4.1 and 5.1 of the Wrongs to Children 
    Act and (vii) those offenses defined in Section 6-16 of the 
    Liquor Control Act of
1934;


        12. not have been repeatedly involved as a driver in 
    motor vehicle
collisions or been repeatedly convicted of 
    offenses against
laws and ordinances regulating the 
    movement of traffic, to a degree which
indicates lack of 
    ability to exercise ordinary and reasonable care in the

    safe operation of a motor vehicle or disrespect for the 
    traffic laws and
the safety of other persons upon the 
    highway;


        13. not have, through the unlawful operation of a motor

    vehicle, caused an accident resulting in the death of any 
    person; and


        14. not have, within the last 5 years, been adjudged to 
    be
afflicted with or suffering from any mental disability 
    or disease.


    (b) A school bus driver permit shall be valid for a period 
specified by
the Secretary of State as set forth by rule.  It 
shall be renewable upon compliance with subsection (a) of this

Section.


    (c) A school bus driver permit shall contain the holder's 
driver's
license number, legal name, residence address, zip 
code, social
security number and date
of birth, a brief 
description of the holder and a space for signature.  The

Secretary of State may require a suitable photograph of the 
holder.


    (d) The employer shall be responsible for conducting a 
pre-employment
interview with prospective school bus driver 
candidates, distributing school
bus driver applications and 
medical forms to be completed by the applicant, and
submitting 
the applicant's fingerprint cards to the Department of State 
Police
that are required for the criminal background 
investigations.  The employer
shall certify in writing to the 
Secretary of State that all pre-employment
conditions have been 
successfully completed including the successful completion
of 
an Illinois specific criminal background investigation through 
the
Department of State Police and the submission of necessary

fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 
criminal
history information available through the Federal 
Bureau of
Investigation system.  The applicant shall present the

certification to the Secretary of State at the time of 
submitting
the school bus driver permit application.


    (e) Permits shall initially be provisional upon receiving

certification from the employer that all pre-employment 
conditions
have been successfully completed, and upon 
successful completion of
all training and examination 
requirements for the classification of
the vehicle to be 
operated, the Secretary of State shall
provisionally issue a 
School Bus Driver Permit.  The permit shall
remain in a 
provisional status pending the completion of the
Federal Bureau 
of Investigation's criminal background investigation based

upon fingerprinting specimens submitted to the Federal Bureau 
of
Investigation by the Department of State Police.  The Federal 
Bureau of
Investigation shall report the findings directly to 
the Secretary
of State.  The Secretary of State shall remove the 
bus driver
permit from provisional status upon the applicant's 
successful
completion of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's 
criminal
background investigation.


    (f) A school bus driver permit holder shall notify the

employer and the Secretary of State if he or she is convicted 
in
another state of an offense that would make him or her 
ineligible
for a permit under subsection (a) of this Section.  
The
written notification shall be made within 5 days of the 
entry of
the conviction.  Failure of the permit holder to 
provide the
notification is punishable as a petty
offense for a 
first violation and a Class B misdemeanor for a
second or 
subsequent violation.


    (g) Cancellation; suspension; notice and procedure.


        (1) The Secretary of State shall cancel a school bus

    driver permit of an applicant whose criminal background 
    investigation
discloses that he or she is not in compliance 
    with the provisions of subsection
(a) of this Section.


        (2) The Secretary of State shall cancel a school
bus 
    driver permit when he or she receives notice that the 
    permit holder fails
to comply with any provision of this 
    Section or any rule promulgated for the
administration of 
    this Section.


        (3) The Secretary of State shall cancel a school bus

    driver permit if the permit holder's restricted commercial 
    or
commercial driving privileges are withdrawn or 
    otherwise
invalidated.


        (4) The Secretary of State may not issue a school bus

    driver permit for a period of 3 years to an applicant who 
    fails to
obtain a negative result on a drug test as 
    required in item 6 of
subsection (a) of this Section or 
    under federal law.


        (5) The Secretary of State shall forthwith suspend
a 
    school bus driver permit for a period of 3 years upon 
    receiving
notice that the holder has failed to obtain a 
    negative result on a
drug test as required in item 6 of 
    subsection (a) of this Section
or under federal law.


        (6) The Secretary of State shall suspend a school bus 
    driver permit for a period of 3 years upon receiving notice 
    from the employer that the holder failed to perform the 
    inspection procedure set forth in subsection (a) or (b) of 
    Section 12-816 of this Code. 
    The Secretary of State shall notify the State 
Superintendent
of Education and the permit holder's 
prospective or current
employer that the applicant has (1) has 
failed a criminal
background investigation or (2) is no
longer 
eligible for a school bus driver permit; and of the related

cancellation of the applicant's provisional school bus driver 
permit.  The
cancellation shall remain in effect pending the 
outcome of a
hearing pursuant to Section 2-118  of this Code.  
The scope of the
hearing shall be limited to the issuance 
criteria contained in
subsection (a) of this Section.  A 
petition requesting a
hearing shall be submitted to the 
Secretary of State and shall
contain the reason the individual 
feels he or she is entitled to a
school bus driver permit.  The 
permit holder's
employer shall notify in writing to the 
Secretary of State
that the employer has certified the removal 
of the offending school
bus driver from service prior to the 
start of that school bus
driver's next workshift.  An employing 
school board that fails to
remove the offending school bus 
driver from service is
subject to the penalties defined in 
Section 3-14.23 of the School Code. A
school bus
contractor who 
violates a provision of this Section is
subject to the 
penalties defined in Section 6-106.11.


    All valid school bus driver permits issued under this 
Section
prior to January 1, 1995, shall remain effective until 
their
expiration date unless otherwise invalidated.


(Source: P.A. 93-895, eff. 1-1-05; 94-556, eff. 9-11-05.)

 



    (625 ILCS 5/12-813.1)



    Sec. 12-813.1. School bus driver communication devices. 
Operation of a school bus while using a cellular radio

telecommunication device.

    (a) In this Section:

    "School bus driver" means a person operating a school bus 
who has a valid
school bus driver permit as required under 
Sections 6-104 and 6-106.1 of this
Code.

    "Cellular radio telecommunication device" means a device 
capable of sending
or receiving telephone communications 
without an access line for service and
which requires the 
operator to dial numbers manually. It does not, however,

include citizens band radios or citizens band radio hybrids.

    "Possession of a school bus" means the period of time from 
which a bus driver takes possession until the school bus driver 
returns possession of the school bus, whether or not the school 
bus driver is operating the school bus. 
    "Using a cellular radio telecommunication device" means 
talking or listening
to or dialing a cellular radio 
telecommunication device.

    To "operate" means to have the vehicle in motion while it 
contains one or
more passengers.

    (b) A school bus driver may not operate a school bus while 
using a cellular
radio telecommunication device.

    (c) Subsection (b) of this This Section does not apply:


        (1) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication 
    device for the
purpose of communicating with any of the 
    following regarding an emergency
situation:


            (A) an emergency response operator;


            (B) a hospital;


            (C) a
physician's office or health clinic;


            (D) an ambulance service;


            (E) a fire
department, fire district, or fire 
        company; or


            (F) a police department.


        (2) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication 
    device to call for
assistance in the event that there is a 
    mechanical breakdown or other
mechanical problem that 
    impairs the safe operation of the bus.


        (3) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication 
    device that has a
digital two-way radio service capability 
    owned and operated by the school
district, when that device 
    is being used as a
digital two-way radio.


        (4) When the school bus is parked.

    (d) A school bus driver who violates subsection (b) of this 
Section is guilty of a petty
offense punishable by a fine of 
not less than $100 and not more than $250.

    (e) A school bus must contain an operating two-way
radio 
while the school bus driver is in possession of a school bus. 
The two-way radio in this subsection must be turned on and 
adjusted in a manner that would alert the school bus driver of 
an incoming communication request. 
(Source: P.A. 92-730, eff. 1-1-03.)

 
    (625 ILCS 5/12-816)
    Sec. 12-816. Pre and post-trip Post-trip inspection policy 
for school buses.
    (a) In order to provide for the welfare and safety of 
children who are transported on school buses throughout the 
State of Illinois, each school district shall have in place, by 
January 1, 2008, a policy to ensure that the school bus driver 
is the last person leaving the bus and that no passenger is 
left behind or remains on the vehicle at the end of a route, a 
work shift, or the work day. This policy and procedure shall, 
at a minimum, require the school bus driver (i) to test the 
two-way radio and ensure that it is functioning properly before 
the bus is operated and (ii) before leaving the bus at the end 
of each route, work shift, or work day, to walk to the rear of 
the bus  and check the bus for children or other passengers in 
the bus. 
    (b) If a school district has a contract with a private 
sector school bus company for the transportation of the 
district's students, the school district shall require in the 
contract with the private sector company that the company have 
a post-trip inspection policy in place.



This policy and 
procedure shall, at a minimum, require the school bus driver 
(i) to test the two-way radio and ensure that it is functioning 
properly before the bus is operated and (ii) , before leaving 
the bus at the end of each route, work shift, or work day, to 
walk to the rear of the bus and check the bus for children or 
other passengers in the bus in and under each seat for sleeping 
children.
    (c) Before this inspection, the school bus driver shall 
activate the interior lights of the bus to assist the driver in 
seeing in and under the seats during a visual sweep of the bus.
    (d) This policy may include, at the discretion of the 
school district, the installation of a mechanical or electronic 
post-trip inspection reminder system which requires the school 
bus driver to walk to the rear of the bus to deactivate the 
system before the driver leaves the bus. The system shall 
require that when the driver turns off the vehicle's ignition 
system, the vehicle's interior lights must illuminate to assist 
the driver in seeing in and under the seats during a visual 
sweep of the bus.

(Source: P.A. 95-260, eff. 8-17-07.)
 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.