As Re-Referred by the House Rules and Reference Committee

136th General Assembly

Regular Session Sub. H. B. No. 3

2025-2026

Representatives Willis, Thomas, C.

Cosponsors: Representatives Fischer, McClain, Brennan, Johnson, Williams, Synenberg, Daniels, Brewer, Click, Hiner, Piccolantonio, Claggett, Sigrist, Cockley

To amend sections 4503.03, 4510.036, 4511.75, 4511.751, and 4511.76 and to enact sections 5.501, 3327.18, and 3327.19 of the Revised Code to address school bus safety, to designate this act as the School Bus Safety Act, and to make an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section 1. That sections 4503.03, 4510.036, 4511.75, 4511.751, and 4511.76 be amended and sections 5.501, 3327.18, and 3327.19 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 5.501. The month of August is designated as "School Bus Safety Awareness Month" to increase public awareness of the need to properly stop when a stopped school bus is loading and unloading passengers.

Sec. 3327.18. (A) The school bus safety fund is created in the state treasury. The fund shall consist of the criminal fines collected for violations of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code.

(B) The fund shall be administered by the director of education and workforce. Money in the fund shall be used to make grants to school districts for purposes of improving the safety features on school buses in accordance with section 3327.19 of the Revised Code.

(C) All investment earnings of the fund shall be credited to the fund.

Sec. 3327.19. (A) As used in this section:

(1) "Eligible applicant" means a board of education of a city school district, a local school district, an exempted village school district, a cooperative education school district, or a joint vocational school district, or a governing board of an educational service center.

(2) "School bus safety feature" means any of the following:

(a) External school bus cameras;

(b) Crossing arms;

(c) Lane departure warning systems;

(d) Electronic stability control;

(e) Lighted crossover mirrors;

(f) Colorado rack test-approved bus frames;

(g) Fully illuminated stop arms located at the front and rear of a school bus;

(h) Fully illuminated "school bus" signs;

(i) Collision avoidance systems;

(j) All light-emitting diode lights;

(k) Ground wash lights;

(l) Reflective chevron;

(m) Occupant restraining devices that conform to the school bus seat belt requirements of 49 C.F.R. 571;

(n) Silent panic alert technology that connects the school bus to a public safety answering point to allow immediate contact with emergency service;

(o) Broadband push-to-talk capabilities, integrated with traditional land mobile radio, if necessary, for direct interoperability with public safety and other emergency service broadband applications;

(p) Additional safety features that become available through advancements in technology and that are approved by the department of public safety and the department of education and workforce.

(3) "Emergency service" and "public safety answering point" have the same meanings as in section 128.01 of the Revised Code.

(B) The department of education and workforce shall administer a school bus safety grant program. Under the grant program, the department shall award grants to eligible applicants who apply to the department for funding to do any of the following:

(1) Purchase and install school bus safety features on an eligible applicant's school buses that do not currently have those features installed;

(2) Purchase and install school bus safety features to replace old, broken, or outdated safety features on an eligible applicant's current school buses;

(3) Purchase school bus safety features as additional features to be included on new school buses being purchased by the eligible applicant.

(C) The department shall use the school bus safety fund created under section 3327.18 of the Revised Code to provide grants to eligible applicants in accordance with this section.

(D) The director of education and workforce shall establish any procedures and requirements necessary to administer this section, including procedures and requirements governing the form of grant applications and grant award processes and amounts.

(E) An eligible applicant that receives a grant under this section shall do both of the following:

(1) Use the funds only for the purchase and installation of school bus safety features;

(2) Spend any grant funds awarded not later than two years after the date the funds are distributed to the eligible applicant.

Sec. 4503.03. (A)(1)(a) Except as provided in division (B) of this section, the registrar of motor vehicles may designate one or more of the following persons to act as a deputy registrar in each county:

(i) The county auditor in any county;

(ii) The clerk of a court of common pleas in any county;

(iii) An individual;

(iv) A nonprofit corporation as defined in division (C) of section 1702.01 of the Revised Code.

All fees collected and retained by a clerk for conducting deputy registrar services shall be paid into the county treasury to the credit of the certificate of title administration fund created under section 325.33 of the Revised Code.

(b) As part of the selection process in awarding a deputy registrar contract, the registrar shall consider the customer service performance record of any person previously awarded a deputy registrar contract pursuant to division (A)(1) of this section.

(2) Deputy registrars shall accept applications for the annual license tax for any vehicle not taxed under section 4503.63 of the Revised Code and shall assign distinctive numbers in the same manner as the registrar. Such deputies shall be located in such locations as the registrar sees fit. Except as provided in division (A)(3) of this section, there shall be at least one deputy registrar in each county.

(3) The registrar need not appoint a deputy registrar in a county to which all of the following apply:

(a) No individual, nonprofit corporation, or, where applicable, clerk of court of common pleas participates in the competitive selection process to be designated as a deputy registrar;

(b) Neither the county auditor nor the clerk of court of common pleas agrees to be designated as a deputy registrar;

(c) No individual or nonprofit corporation agrees to be designated as a deputy registrar;

(d) No deputy registrar operating an existing deputy registrar agency in another county agrees to be designated as the deputy registrar for that county.

(4) The registrar may reestablish a deputy registrar in any county without a deputy registrar if any of the following apply:

(a) The county auditor requests to be designated as a deputy registrar;

(b) The clerk of court of common pleas requests to be designated as a deputy registrar;

(c) A deputy registrar operating an existing deputy registrar agency in another county requests to be designated as a deputy registrar for that county;

(d) A qualified individual or nonprofit corporation requests to be designated as a deputy registrar. In the event that two or more qualified individuals, nonprofit corporations, or a combination thereof, request to be designated as a deputy registrar, the registrar may make the designation through the competitive selection process.

Deputy registrar contracts are subject to the provisions of division (B) of section 125.081 of the Revised Code.

(B)(1) The registrar shall not designate any person to act as a deputy registrar under division (A)(1) of this section if the person or, where applicable, the person's spouse or a member of the person's immediate family has made, within the current calendar year or any one of the previous three calendar years, one or more contributions totaling in excess of one hundred dollars to any person or entity included in division (A)(2) of section 4503.033 of the Revised Code. As used in this division, "immediate family" has the same meaning as in division (D) of section 102.01 of the Revised Code, and "entity" includes any political party and any "continuing association" as defined in division (C)(4) of section 3517.01 of the Revised Code or "political action committee" as defined in division (C)(8) of that section that is primarily associated with that political party. For purposes of this division, contributions to any continuing association or any political action committee that is primarily associated with a political party shall be aggregated with contributions to that political party.

The contribution limitations contained in this division do not apply to any county auditor or clerk of a court of common pleas. A county auditor or clerk of a court of common pleas is not required to file the disclosure statement or pay the filing fee required under section 4503.033 of the Revised Code. The limitations of this division also do not apply to a deputy registrar who, subsequent to being awarded a deputy registrar contract, is elected to an office of a political subdivision.

(2) The registrar shall not designate either of the following to act as a deputy registrar:

(a) Any elected public official other than a county auditor or, as authorized by division (A)(1) of this section, a clerk of a court of common pleas, acting in an official capacity, except that, the registrar shall continue and may renew a contract with any deputy registrar who, subsequent to being awarded a deputy registrar contract, is elected to an office of a political subdivision;

(b) Any person holding a current, valid contract to conduct motor vehicle inspections under section 3704.14 of the Revised Code.

(3) As used in division (B) of this section, "political subdivision" has the same meaning as in section 3501.01 of the Revised Code.

(C)(1) Except as provided in division (C)(2) of this section, deputy registrars are independent contractors and neither they nor their employees are employees of this state, except that nothing in this section shall affect the status of county auditors or clerks of courts of common pleas as public officials, nor the status of their employees as employees of any of the counties of this state, which are political subdivisions of this state. Each deputy registrar shall be responsible for the payment of all unemployment compensation premiums, all workers' compensation premiums, social security contributions, and any and all taxes for which the deputy registrar is legally responsible. Each deputy registrar shall comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws requiring the withholding of income taxes or other taxes from the compensation of the deputy registrar's employees. Each deputy registrar shall maintain during the entire term of the deputy registrar's contract a policy of business liability insurance satisfactory to the registrar and shall hold the department of public safety, the director of public safety, the bureau of motor vehicles, and the registrar harmless upon any and all claims for damages arising out of the operation of the deputy registrar agency.

(2) For purposes of Chapter 4141. of the Revised Code, determinations concerning the employment of deputy registrars and their employees shall be made under Chapter 4141. of the Revised Code.

(D)(1) With the approval of the director, the registrar shall adopt rules governing deputy registrars. The rules shall do all of the following:

(a) Establish requirements governing the terms of the contract between the registrar and each deputy registrar and the services to be performed;

(b) Establish requirements governing the amount of bond to be given as provided in this section;

(c) Establish requirements governing the size and location of the deputy's office;

(d) Establish requirements governing the leasing of equipment necessary to conduct the vision screenings required under section 4507.12 of the Revised Code and training in the use of the equipment;

(e) Encourage every deputy registrar to inform the public of the location of the deputy registrar's office and hours of operation by means of public service announcements;

(f) Allow any deputy registrar to advertise in regard to the operation of the deputy registrar's office, including allowing nonprofit corporations operating as a deputy registrar to advertise that a specified amount of proceeds collected by the nonprofit corporation are directed to a specified charitable organization or philanthropic cause;

(g) Specify the hours the deputy's office is to be open to the public and require as a minimum that one deputy's office in each county be open to the public for at least four hours each weekend, provided that if only one deputy's office is located within the boundary of the county seat, that office is the office that shall be open for the four-hour period each weekend;

(h) Specify that every deputy registrar, upon request, provide any person with information about the location and office hours of all deputy registrars in the county;

(i) Allow a deputy registrar contract to be awarded to a nonprofit corporation formed under the laws of this state;

(j) Establish procedures for a deputy registrar to request the authority to collect reinstatement fees under sections 4507.1612, 4507.45, 4509.101, 4509.81, 4510.10, 4510.22, 4510.72, and 4511.191 of the Revised Code and to transmit the reinstatement fees and two dollars of the service fee collected under those sections. The registrar shall ensure that at least one deputy registrar in each county has the necessary equipment and is able to accept reinstatement fees. The registrar shall deposit the service fees received from a deputy registrar under those sections into the public safety - highway purposes fund created in section 4501.06 of the Revised Code and shall use the money for deputy registrar equipment necessary in connection with accepting reinstatement fees.

(k) Establish standards for a deputy registrar, when the deputy registrar is not a county auditor or a clerk of a court of common pleas, to sell advertising rights to third party businesses to be placed in the deputy registrar's office;

(l) Allow any deputy registrar that is not a county auditor or a clerk of a court of common pleas to operate a vending machine;

(m) Specify that each deputy registrar and driver examination location shall display at all times, in a prominent place on the premises, a graphic that instructs drivers to stop and yield to a stopped school bus when it is either loading or unloading passengers.

The registrar shall create and issue the graphic for distribution to and display at each deputy registrar and driver examination location. The registrar also shall display the graphic on the bureau of motor vehicle's web site.

(n) Establish such other requirements as the registrar and director consider necessary to provide a high level of service.

(2) The rules may allow both of the following:

(a) The registrar to award a contract to a deputy registrar to operate more than one deputy registrar's office if determined by the registrar to be practical;

(b) A nonprofit corporation formed for the purposes of providing automobile-related services to its members or the public and that provides such services from more than one location in this state to operate a deputy registrar office at any location.

(3) As a daily adjustment, the bureau of motor vehicles shall credit to a deputy registrar the amount established under section 4503.038 of the Revised Code for each damaged license plate or validation sticker the deputy registrar replaces as a service to a member of the public.

(4)(a) With the prior approval of the registrar, each deputy registrar may conduct at the location of the deputy registrar's office any business that is consistent with the functions of a deputy registrar and that is not specifically mandated or authorized by this or another chapter of the Revised Code or by implementing rules of the registrar.

(b) In accordance with guidelines the director of public safety shall establish, a deputy registrar may operate or contract for the operation of a vending machine at a deputy registrar location if products of the vending machine are consistent with the functions of a deputy registrar.

(c) A deputy registrar may enter into an agreement with the Ohio turnpike and infrastructure commission pursuant to division (A)(11) of section 5537.04 of the Revised Code for the purpose of allowing the general public to acquire from the deputy registrar the electronic toll collection devices that are used under the multi-jurisdiction electronic toll collection agreement between the Ohio turnpike and infrastructure commission and any other entities or agencies that participate in such an agreement. The approval of the registrar is not necessary if a deputy registrar engages in this activity.

(5) As used in this section and in section 4507.01 of the Revised Code, "nonprofit corporation" has the same meaning as in section 1702.01 of the Revised Code.

(E)(1) Unless otherwise terminated and except for interim contracts lasting not longer than one year, contracts with deputy registrars shall be entered into through a competitive selection process and shall be limited in duration as follows:

(a) For contracts entered into between July 1, 1996 and June 29, 2014, for a period of not less than two years, but not more than three years;

(b) For contracts entered into on or after June 29, 2014, for a period of five years, unless the registrar determines that a shorter contract term is appropriate for a particular deputy registrar.

(2) All contracts with deputy registrars shall expire on the last Saturday of June in the year of their expiration. Prior to the expiration of any deputy registrar contract, the registrar, with the approval of the director, may award a one-year contract extension to any deputy registrar who has provided exemplary service based upon objective performance evaluations.

(3)(a) The auditor of state may examine the accounts, reports, systems, and other data of each deputy registrar at least every two years. The registrar, with the approval of the director, shall immediately remove a deputy who violates any provision of the Revised Code related to the duties as a deputy, any rule adopted by the registrar, or a term of the deputy's contract with the registrar. The registrar also may remove a deputy who, in the opinion of the registrar, has engaged in any conduct that is either unbecoming to one representing this state or is inconsistent with the efficient operation of the deputy's office.

(b) If the registrar, with the approval of the director, determines that there is good cause to believe that a deputy registrar or a person proposing for a deputy registrar contract has engaged in any conduct that would require the denial or termination of the deputy registrar contract, the registrar may require the production of books, records, and papers as the registrar determines are necessary, and may take the depositions of witnesses residing within or outside the state in the same manner as is prescribed by law for the taking of depositions in civil actions in the court of common pleas, and for that purpose the registrar may issue a subpoena for any witness or a subpoena duces tecum to compel the production of any books, records, or papers, directed to the sheriff of the county where the witness resides or is found. Such a subpoena shall be served and returned in the same manner as a subpoena in a criminal case is served and returned. The fees of the sheriff shall be the same as that allowed in the court of common pleas in criminal cases. Witnesses shall be paid the fees and mileage provided for under section 119.094 of the Revised Code. The fees and mileage shall be paid from the fund in the state treasury for the use of the agency in the same manner as other expenses of the agency are paid.

In any case of disobedience or neglect of any subpoena served on any person or the refusal of any witness to testify to any matter regarding which the witness lawfully may be interrogated, the court of common pleas of any county where the disobedience, neglect, or refusal occurs or any judge of that court, on application by the registrar, shall compel obedience by attachment proceedings for contempt, as in the case of disobedience of the requirements of a subpoena issued from that court, or a refusal to testify in that court.

(4) Nothing in division (E) of this section shall be construed to require a hearing of any nature prior to the termination of any deputy registrar contract by the registrar, with the approval of the director, for cause.

(F) Except as provided in section 2743.03 of the Revised Code, no court, other than the court of common pleas of Franklin county, has jurisdiction of any action against the department of public safety, the director, the bureau, or the registrar to restrain the exercise of any power or authority, or to entertain any action for declaratory judgment, in the selection and appointment of, or contracting with, deputy registrars. Neither the department, the director, the bureau, nor the registrar is liable in any action at law for damages sustained by any person because of any acts of the department, the director, the bureau, or the registrar, or of any employee of the department or bureau, in the performance of official duties in the selection and appointment of, and contracting with, deputy registrars.

(G) The registrar shall assign to each deputy registrar a series of numbers sufficient to supply the demand at all times in the area the deputy registrar serves, and the registrar shall keep a record in the registrar's office of the numbers within the series assigned. Except as otherwise provided in section 3.061 of the Revised Code, each deputy shall be required to give bond in the amount of at least twenty-five thousand dollars, or in such higher amount as the registrar determines necessary, based on a uniform schedule of bond amounts established by the registrar and determined by the volume of registrations handled by the deputy. The form of the bond shall be prescribed by the registrar. The bonds required of deputy registrars, in the discretion of the registrar, may be individual or schedule bonds or may be included in any blanket bond coverage carried by the department.

(H) Each deputy registrar shall keep a file of each application received by the deputy and shall register that motor vehicle with the name and address of its owner.

(I) Upon request, a deputy registrar shall make the physical inspection of a motor vehicle and issue the physical inspection certificate required in section 4505.061 of the Revised Code.

(J) Each deputy registrar shall file a report semiannually with the registrar of motor vehicles listing the number of applicants for licenses the deputy has served, the number of voter registration applications the deputy has completed and transmitted to the board of elections, and the number of voter registration applications declined.

Sec. 4510.036. (A) The bureau of motor vehicles shall record within ten days of conviction or bail forfeiture and shall keep at its main office, all abstracts received under this section or section 4510.03, 4510.031, 4510.032, or 4510.034 of the Revised Code and shall maintain records of convictions and bond forfeitures for any violation of a state law or a municipal ordinance regulating the operation of vehicles, streetcars, and trackless trolleys on highways and streets, except a violation related to parking a motor vehicle.

(B) Every court of record or mayor's court before which a person is charged with a violation for which points are chargeable by this section shall assess and transcribe to the abstract of conviction that is furnished by the bureau to the court the number of points chargeable by this section in the correct space assigned on the reporting form. A United States district court that has jurisdiction within this state and before which a person is charged with a violation for which points are chargeable by this section may assess and transcribe to the abstract of conviction report that is furnished by the bureau the number of points chargeable by this section in the correct space assigned on the reporting form. If the federal court so assesses and transcribes the points chargeable for the offense and furnishes the report to the bureau, the bureau shall record the points in the same manner as those assessed and transcribed by a court of record or mayor's court.

(C) A court shall assess the following points for an offense based on the following formula:

(1) Aggravated vehicular homicide, vehicular homicide, vehicular manslaughter, aggravated vehicular assault, or vehicular assault when the offense involves the operation of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley on a highway or street __________ 6 points

(2) A violation of section 2921.331 of the Revised Code or any ordinance prohibiting the willful fleeing or eluding of a law enforcement officer __________ 6 points

(3) A violation of section 4549.02 or 4549.021 of the Revised Code or any ordinance requiring the driver of a vehicle to stop and disclose identity at the scene of an accident __________ 6 points

(4) A violation of section 4511.251 of the Revised Code or any ordinance prohibiting street racing, stunt driving, or street takeover __________ 6 points

(5) A violation of section 4510.037 of the Revised Code or any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a motor vehicle while the driver's or commercial driver's license is under a twelve-point suspension __________ 6 points

(6) A violation of section 4510.14 of the Revised Code, or any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a motor vehicle upon the public roads or highways within this state while the driver's or commercial driver's license of the person is under suspension and the suspension was imposed under section 4511.19, 4511.191, or 4511.196 of the Revised Code or section 4510.07 of the Revised Code due to a conviction for a violation of a municipal OVI ordinance or any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a motor vehicle while the driver's or commercial driver's license is under suspension for an OVI offense __________ 6 points

(7) A violation of division (A) of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code, any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse, or a combination of them, or any ordinance substantially equivalent to division (A) of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code prohibiting the operation of a vehicle with a prohibited concentration of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance in the whole blood, blood serum or plasma, breath, or urine __________ 6 points

(8) A violation of section 2913.03 of the Revised Code that does not involve an aircraft or motorboat or any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a vehicle without the consent of the owner __________ 6 points

(9) Any offense under the motor vehicle laws of this state that is a felony, or any other felony in the commission of which a motor vehicle was used __________ 6 points

(10) A violation of division (B) of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code or any ordinance substantially equivalent to that division prohibiting the operation of a vehicle with a prohibited concentration of alcohol in the whole blood, blood serum or plasma, breath, or urine __________ 4 points

(11) A violation of section 4511.20 of the Revised Code or any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a motor vehicle in willful or wanton disregard of the safety of persons or property __________ 4 points

(12) A violation of any law or ordinance pertaining to speed:

(a) Notwithstanding divisions (C)(12)(b) and (c) of this section, when the speed exceeds the lawful speed limit by thirty miles per hour or more __________ 4 points

(b) When the speed exceeds the lawful speed limit of fifty-five miles per hour or more by more than ten miles per hour __________ 2 points

(c) When the speed exceeds the lawful speed limit of less than fifty-five miles per hour by more than five miles per hour __________ 2 points

(d) When the speed does not exceed the amounts set forth in divisions (C)(12)(a), (b), or (c) of this section __________ 0 points

(13) A violation of division (A) of section 4511.204 of the Revised Code or any substantially similar municipal ordinance:

(a) For a first offense within any two-year period __________ 2 points

(b) For a second offense within any two-year period __________ 3 points

(c) For a third or subsequent offense within any two-year period __________ 4 points.

(14) A violation of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code:

(a) For a first offense within any five-year period 2 points

(b) For a second or subsequent offense within any five-year period 4 points.

(15) Operating a motor vehicle in violation of a restriction imposed by the registrar __________ 2 points

(15) (16) A violation of section 4510.11, 4510.111, 4510.16, or 4510.21 of the Revised Code or any ordinance prohibiting the operation of a motor vehicle while the driver's or commercial driver's license is under suspension __________ 2 points

(16) (17) With the exception of violations under section 4510.12 of the Revised Code where no points shall be assessed, all other moving violations reported under this section __________ 2 points

(D) Upon receiving notification from the proper court, including a United States district court that has jurisdiction within this state, the bureau shall delete any points entered for a bond forfeiture if the driver is acquitted of the offense for which bond was posted.

(E) If a person is convicted of or forfeits bail for two or more offenses arising out of the same facts and points are chargeable for each of the offenses, points shall be charged for only the conviction or bond forfeiture for which the greater number of points is chargeable, and, if the number of points chargeable for each offense is equal, only one offense shall be recorded, and points shall be charged only for that offense.

Sec. 4511.75. (A) (A)(1) The driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley upon meeting or overtaking from either direction any school bus stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school child, person attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or child attending a program offered by a head start agency, shall stop at least ten feet from the front or rear of the school bus and shall not proceed until such school bus resumes motion, or until signaled by the school bus driver or a law enforcement officer to proceed.

(2) It is no defense to a charge under this division (A)(1) of this section that the school bus involved failed to display or be equipped with an automatically extended stop warning sign as required by division (B) of this section.

(B) Every school bus shall be equipped with amber and red visual signals meeting the requirements of section 4511.771 of the Revised Code, and an automatically extended stop warning sign of a type approved by the department of education and workforce, which shall be actuated by the driver of the bus whenever but only whenever the bus is stopped or stopping on the roadway for the purpose of receiving or discharging school children, persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or children attending programs offered by head start agencies. A school bus driver shall not actuate the visual signals or the stop warning sign in designated school bus loading areas where the bus is entirely off the roadway or at school buildings when children or persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities are loading or unloading at curbside or at buildings when children attending programs offered by head start agencies are loading or unloading at curbside. The visual signals and stop warning sign shall be synchronized or otherwise operated as required by rule of the board.

(C) Where a highway has been divided into four or more traffic lanes, a driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley need not stop for a school bus approaching from the opposite direction which has stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school child, persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or children attending programs offered by head start agencies. The driver of any vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley overtaking the school bus shall comply with division (A) of this section.

(D) School buses operating on divided highways or on highways with four or more traffic lanes shall receive and discharge all school children, persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, and children attending programs offered by head start agencies on their residence side of the highway.

(E) No school bus driver shall start the driver's bus until after any child, person attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or child attending a program offered by a head start agency who may have alighted therefrom has reached a place of safety on the child's or person's residence side of the road.

(F)(1) (F) Whoever violates division (A) of this section may be fined an amount is guilty of passing a stopped school bus, an unclassified misdemeanor. The court, including a mayor's court, shall punish the offender in accordance with divisions (F)(1) to (6) of this section.

(1)(a) Except as provided in divisions (F)(1)(b) and (c) of this section, the court shall impose upon the offender a fine of not to exceed five less than two hundred fifty and not more than one thousand dollars. A

(b) If, within five years of the violation, the offender has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a prior violation of this section, the court shall impose upon the offender a fine of not less than three hundred fifty and not more than two thousand dollars.

(c) In lieu of the fine range specified in division (F)(1)(a) of this section, the court may impose a fine of one hundred fifty dollars for an offender who has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a prior violation of this section if the offender attends and successfully completes the school bus safety course described in division (F)(4) of this section within a time frame specified by the court.

(2) A person who is issued a citation for a violation of division (A) of this section is not permitted to enter a written plea of guilty and waive the person's right to contest the citation in a trial but instead must appear in person in the proper court to answer the charge.

(2) In addition to and independent of any other penalty provided by law, the (3)(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (F)(3)(b) of this section, the court or mayor may impose upon an the offender who violates this section a class seven six suspension of the offender's driver's license, commercial driver's license, temporary instruction permit, probationary license, or nonresident operating privilege from the range specified in division (A)(7) (A)(6) of section 4510.02 of the Revised Code. When

(b) If, within five years of the violation, the offender has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a prior violation of this section, the court shall impose upon the offender a class five suspension of the offender's driver's license, commercial driver's license, temporary instruction permit, probationary license, or nonresident operating privilege from the range specified in division (A)(5) of section 4510.02 of the Revised Code.

(c) When a license is suspended under this section, the court or mayor shall cause the offender to deliver the license to the court, and the court or clerk of the court immediately shall forward the license to the registrar of motor vehicles, together with notice of the court's action.

(4) If, within five years of the violation, the offender has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a prior violation of this section, the court shall require the offender to attend and successfully complete a school bus safety course. The director of public safety shall develop the contents and determine the duration of the course.

(5)(a) Except as provided in division (F)(5)(b) of this section, the court shall assess points for the violation in accordance with section 4510.036 of the Revised Code.

(b) The court may waive the assessment of points for an offender who has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a prior violation of this section if the offender attends and successfully completes the school bus safety course described in division (F)(4) of this section within a time frame specified by the court.

(6) The court may impose any other penalty authorized under sections 2929.21 to 2929.28 of the Revised Code. However, the court shall not impose a fine or a suspension not otherwise specified in division (F) of this section. The court also shall not impose a jail term or community residential sanction.

(G) Any fine collected under this section shall be paid to the school bus safety fund created in section 3327.18 of the Revised Code and shall be used for the purposes established under that section.

(H) As used in this section:

(1) "Head start agency" has the same meaning as in section 3301.32 of the Revised Code.

(2) "School bus," as used in relation to children who attend a program offered by a head start agency, means a bus that is owned and operated by a head start agency, is equipped with an automatically extended stop warning sign of a type approved by the department, is painted the color and displays the markings described in section 4511.77 of the Revised Code, and is equipped with amber and red visual signals meeting the requirements of section 4511.771 of the Revised Code, irrespective of whether or not the bus has fifteen or more children aboard at any time. "School bus" does not include a van owned and operated by a head start agency, irrespective of its color, lights, or markings.

Sec. 4511.751. (A) As used in this section, "license plate" includes, but is not limited to, any temporary motor vehicle license registration issued under section 4503.182 of the Revised Code or similar law of another jurisdiction.

(B) When the operator of a school bus believes that a motorist has violated division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code, the operator shall report the license plate number and a general description of the vehicle and of the operator of the vehicle to the law enforcement agency exercising jurisdiction over the area where the alleged violation occurred. The information contained in the report relating to the license plate number and to the general description of the vehicle and the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation may be supplied by any person with first-hand knowledge of the information. Information of which the operator of the school bus has first-hand knowledge also may be corroborated by any other person, or an image, images, or video captured by a school bus camera installed pursuant to section 4511.76 of the Revised Code.

(C)(1) Upon receipt of the report of the alleged violation of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code, the law enforcement agency shall conduct an investigation to attempt to determine or confirm the identity of the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation. If

(2) If the identity of the operator at the time of the alleged violation is established, the reporting of the license plate number of the vehicle shall establish probable cause for the law enforcement agency to issue a citation for the violation of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code. However, if

(3) If the identity of the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation cannot be established, the law enforcement agency shall issue a warning to the owner of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation, except in the case of a leased or rented vehicle when the warning shall be issued to the lessee at the time of the alleged violation.

(4) A law enforcement agency shall not issue a citation in accordance with this section based solely on an image, images, or video captured by a camera installed pursuant to section 4511.76 of the Revised Code, but such image, images, or video may corroborate other evidence and a report made in accordance with this section.

(D)(1) The registrar of motor vehicles and deputy registrars shall provide access to, at the time of issuing license plates or a driver's license to any person, include with the license plate a summary of the following:

(a) The requirements of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code and the ;

(b) The procedures of, and penalty in, division (F) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code.;

(c) The process, described in division (B) of this section, that allows any person with first-hand knowledge of a violation of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code to corroborate the report made by the operator of a school bus.

(2) The registrar shall make the summaries required under division (D)(1) of this section available on the bureau of motor vehicles' web site.

Sec. 4511.76. (A) The department of public safety, by and with the advice of the department of education and workforce, shall educate the public regarding the laws pertaining to school bus safety and shall adopt and enforce rules relating to the construction, design, and equipment of all school buses both publicly and privately owned and operated in this state, including lighting rules governing both of the following:

(1) Lighting equipment required by section 4511.771 of the Revised Code, of all school buses both publicly and privately owned and operated in this state;

(2) School bus camera equipment that captures an image, images, or video solely for purposes of recording a violation of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code. The departments shall not authorize school bus camera equipment to be used for automated enforcement of a violation of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code.

(B) The department of education and workforce, by and with the advice of the director of public safety, shall adopt and enforce rules relating to the operation of all vehicles used for pupil transportation.

(C) No person shall operate a vehicle used for pupil transportation within this state in violation of the rules of the department of education and workforce or the department of public safety. No person, being the owner thereof or having the supervisory responsibility therefor, shall permit the operation of a vehicle used for pupil transportation within this state in violation of the rules of the department of education and workforce or the department of public safety.

(D) The department of public safety shall adopt and enforce rules relating to the issuance of a license under section 4511.763 of the Revised Code. The rules may relate to the condition of the equipment to be operated; the liability and property damage insurance carried by the applicant; the posting of satisfactory and sufficient bond; and such other rules as the director of public safety determines reasonably necessary for the safety of the pupils to be transported.

(E) A chartered nonpublic school or a community school may own and operate, or contract with a vendor that supplies, a vehicle originally designed and manufactured for not more than nine ten passengers, not including the driver, to transport students to and from regularly scheduled school sessions when one of the following applies:

(1) A student's school district of residence has declared the transportation of the student impractical pursuant to section 3327.02 of the Revised Code;

(2) A student does not live within thirty minutes of the chartered nonpublic school or the community school, as applicable, and the student's school district is not required to transport the student under section 3327.01 of the Revised Code;

(3) The governing authority of the chartered nonpublic school or the community school has offered to provide the transportation for its students in lieu of the students being transported by their school district of residence.

(F) A school district may own and operate, or contract with a vendor that supplies, a vehicle originally designed and manufactured for not more than nine ten passengers, not including the driver, to transport students to and from regularly scheduled school sessions, if both of the following apply to the operation of that vehicle:

(1) The number of students to be transported is not more than nine;

(2) The students attend a chartered nonpublic school or a community school, and the school district regularly transports students to that chartered nonpublic school or that community school.

(G) A school district or the governing authority of a chartered nonpublic school or community school that uses a vehicle originally designed and manufactured for not more than nine ten passengers, not including the driver, in accordance with division (E) or (F) of this section, shall ensure that all of the following apply to the operation of that vehicle:

(1) A qualified mechanic inspects the vehicle not fewer than two times each year and determines that it is safe for pupil transportation;

(2) The driver of the vehicle does not stop on the roadway to load or unload passengers;

(3) The driver of the vehicle meets the requirements specified for a driver of a school bus or motor van under section 3327.10 of the Revised Code and any corresponding rules adopted by the department of education and workforce. Notwithstanding that section or any department rules to the contrary, the driver is not required to have a commercial driver's license but shall have a current, valid driver's license, and shall be accustomed to operating the vehicle used to transport the students;

(4) The driver and all passengers in the vehicle comply with the requirements of sections 4511.81 and 4513.263 of the Revised Code, as applicable.

(H) As used in this section, "vehicle used for pupil transportation" means any vehicle that is identified as such by the department of education and workforce by rule and that is subject to Chapter 3301-83 of the Administrative Code.

(I) Except as otherwise provided in this division, whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If the offender previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more violations of this section or section 4511.63, 4511.761, 4511.762, 4511.764, 4511.77, or 4511.79 of the Revised Code or a municipal ordinance that is substantially similar to any of those sections, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.

Section 2. That existing sections 4503.03, 4510.036, 4511.75, 4511.751, and 4511.76 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.

Section 3. All items in this act are hereby appropriated as designated out of any moneys in the state treasury to the credit of the designated fund. For all operating appropriations made in this act, those in the first column are for fiscal year 2026 and those in the second column are for fiscal year 2027. The operating appropriations made in this act are in addition to any other operating appropriations made for these fiscal years.

Section 4.

SCHOOL BUS SAFETY

Of the foregoing appropriation item 200413, School Bus Safety, up to $100,000 in each fiscal year may be used by the Department of Education and Workforce to administer the school bus safety grant program under section 3327.19 of the Revised Code.

The remainder of the foregoing appropriation item 200413, School Bus Safety, shall be used to award school bus safety grants pursuant to section 3327.19 of the Revised Code.

Any unexpended and unencumbered portion of the foregoing appropriation item 200413, School Bus Safety, at the end of fiscal year 2026 is hereby reappropriated for the same purpose in fiscal year 2027.

Section 5. Within the limits set forth in this act, the Director of Budget and Management shall establish accounts indicating the source and amount of funds for each appropriation made in this act, and shall determine the manner in which appropriation accounts shall be maintained. Expenditures from operating appropriations contained in this act shall be accounted for as though made in, and are subject to all applicable provisions of, the main operating appropriations act of the 136th General Assembly.

Section 6. This act shall be known as the School Bus Safety Act.