§ 3635-B — Authorization to provide pupil transportation in child safety zones

§ 3635-b. Authorization to provide pupil transportation in child\nsafety zones. 1. This section shall apply where the board of education\nor trustees of a common, central, central high school, union free school\ndistrict, or city school district of a city with less than one hundred\ntwenty-five thousand inhabitants adopts a resolution to make\ntransportation in child safety zones available to resident pupils for a\nparticular school year. Such resolution shall continue in effect for\nsubsequent school years until the board adopts a resolution providing\notherwise.\n 2. A board of education or board of trustees is authorized to adopt a\nresolution providing for pupil transportation in child safety zones,\nwhere applicable, of a proposition to expend money for such\ntransportation presented pursuant to the provisions of subdivision\nnineteen of section two thousand twenty-one and section two thousand\ntwenty-two of this chapter. Such transportation may be provided without\nregard to like circumstances based solely upon the fact that the pupil\nresides within two miles, in the case of a pupil in grade kindergarten\nthrough eight, and within three miles, in the case of a pupil in grade\nnine through twelve, from the school such pupil legally attends,\nnotwithstanding the provisions of section thirty-six hundred thirty-five\nof this article. Such transportation may be provided upon the\ndetermination by the board that a hazardous zone exists which in the\nopinion of the board would be reasonably alleviated by the establishment\nof a child safety zone. For purposes of this section, child safety zone\nmeans a designated area of a school district, including at least one\npersonal residence, within which children who reside at a lesser\ndistance from the school they legally attend than the minimum\ntransportation limit of the district will be provided transportation on\nthe basis that their most direct walking route to school will traverse a\nhazardous zone.\n 3. The commissioner of transportation shall establish regulations for\ndetermination of a hazardous zone including, but not limited to, such\nfactors as the existence or nonexistence of sidewalks or walkways, the\ntype of road surface, width of road, footpath or sidewalk, the volume\nand average speed of traffic, density of population, violent crime\nstatistics, density of vacant buildings or structures, the commercial,\nindustrial or residential character of the area and the existence or\nnonexistence of traffic safety features such as traffic lights, street\nlights and traffic patrols. In preparing such regulations, the\ncommissioner of transportation shall consult with the commissioners of\neducation and motor vehicles and representatives from the state police\nwho have traffic safety responsibilities. Such regulations shall be used\nby boards of education in determining whether a hazardous zone exists.\n 4. The board of education of any school district shall, upon written\npetition of a parent or other person in parental relation of a child\nresiding within such district or of any representative authorized by\nsuch parent or other person in parental relation, signed by twenty-five\nqualified voters of the district or five percent of the number of voters\nwho voted in the previous annual election of the members of the board of\neducation, whichever is greater, make an investigation to determine\nwhether a hazardous zone exists requiring the establishment of a child\nsafety zone. Petitions shall specify the geographic boundaries\ncomprising the proposed hazardous zone and any child safety zone\nrequested. Petitions and/or additional written requests from individual\nparents or persons in parental relation requesting designation of an\narea as a child safety zone in conjunction with any proposed or existing\nhazardous zone may be submitted provided that such petitions and/or\nrequests shall not be submitted later than the first day of March\npreceding the school year for which transportation is requested. The\nschool board shall make its determination before the board presents the\nbudget for the school year for which transportation is requested. The\nparent or other person in parental relation of a child not residing in\nthe district on the first day of March may submit a request within\nthirty days after establishing residence in the district, but in no\nevent later than the first day of July of the school year for which\ntransportation is requested and the board shall make its determination\nwithin thirty days of receipt of such request.\n 5. The board of education or board of trustees of any school district\nmay directly, or by appointment of an advisory committee, make an\ninvestigation to determine if a hazardous zone exists within such\ndistrict. Such investigation shall be made pursuant to the regulations\nof the commissioner of transportation and shall include consultation\nwith state or local transportation authorities and the investigation of\nother, less costly, reasonable alternatives to the creation of a child\nsafety zone. If, after such investigation, the board shall determine\nthat a hazardous zone exists which can be reasonably alleviated, in the\nopinion of the board, only by establishing a child safety zone and\nproviding transportation in and through such child safety zone, and that\nno reasonable, less costly alternatives to such transportation exist to\nalleviate the situation, the board may adopt a separate resolution to\nexpend money for transportation in child safety zones at the annual\ndistrict meeting.\n 6. Where the trustees or board of education determines after the\nannual district meeting is held that the designation of a new hazardous\nsafety zone is needed as a result of a change in circumstances that was\nunknown to the board and not reasonably foreseeable at the time of the\nannual meeting, the trustees or board of education may call a special\ndistrict meeting to vote on a proposition to expend money for\ntransportation in child safety zones. The trustees or board of education\nshall establish procedures for submission of petitions and requests by\nindividual parents or persons in parental relation for the designation\nof child safety zones in conjunction with the proposed hazardous zone.\n 7. Whenever a school board determines that a hazardous safety zone\nexists or that a child safety zone should be established, it shall\nnotify the petitioner, each requestor of a child safety zone and any\nstate or local entity with jurisdiction over roadways or property within\nsuch zone.\n 8. The board of education or board of trustees shall conduct a public\nhearing with appropriate public notice, upon the board's determination\nthat a hazardous zone no longer exists or that the need for continuation\nof a child safety zone has been alleviated and that such designation is\nto be rescinded. Within twenty days after the public hearing, the board\nshall, by resolution, determine that a hazardous zone continues to exist\nor no longer exists and that the need for continuation of a child safety\nzone has or has not been alleviated and that the designation is or is\nnot rescinded.\n 9. In the event that the school board determines that a hazardous zone\ndoes not exist, or that other, less costly, reasonable alternatives to\nthe establishment of a child safety zone exist and may be used to\nalleviate the situation, it shall fully state the reasons for such\ndetermination in writing to the petitioner.\n 10. The cost of providing transportation, pursuant to the provisions\nof this section, shall be an ordinary contingent expense and shall be\nincluded as an item of expense for purposes of determining the\ntransportation quota of such district.\n 12. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose a duty upon\nschool boards to provide transportation services pursuant to this\nsection nor shall any board of education or board of trustees be held\nliable for failure to provide transportation pursuant to this section.\nThe determination that a hazardous zone exists or that a child safety\nzone has been established, and the petitions, investigatory materials\nand decision making documents created or reviewed in making such\ndetermination, shall not be admissible as evidence or used in civil\nlitigation or any suit or action for damages, nor shall any school board\nmembers, school board trustee, school employee, governmental official or\nany other individual be compelled or permitted, whether by subpoena or\nother process, to testify in any such civil litigation regarding such\ndetermination. A school board member, trustee, school officer or\nemployee shall have immunity from any civil or criminal liability that\nmight otherwise be incurred or imposed as a result of the provisions of\nthis section provided that such person shall have acted in good faith.\nFor the purpose of any proceeding, civil or criminal, the good faith of\nany such person shall be presumed.\n 13. The commissioner shall submit a report on the status of pupil\ntransportation in child safety zones to the governor, the speaker of the\nassembly, the temporary president of the senate, and the chairs of the\nassembly and senate standing education committees, prior to January\nfirst, two thousand one. The report shall, at a minimum, include the\nnumber of child safety zones established across the state and the total\nnumber of pupils transported per zone. The report shall also include the\ncommissioner's recommendations for modification of the child safety zone\nprovisions, including, but not limited to, the granting of state\ntransportation aid for pupil transportation within such zones and the\nprocess by which child safety zones are established.\n