(A) As used in this section:
(1) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, "assigned bus" means a school bus used to transport qualifying riders.
(2) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, "density" means the total riders per square mile of a school district.
(3) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, "nontraditional ridership" means the average number of qualifying riders who are enrolled in a community school established under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code, in a STEM school established under Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code, or in a nonpublic school and are provided school bus service by a school district during the first full week of October.
(4) "Qualifying riders" means the following:
(a) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, resident students enrolled in preschool and regular education in grades kindergarten to twelve who are provided school bus service by a school district, including students with dual enrollment in a joint vocational school district or a cooperative education school district, and students enrolled in a community school, STEM school, or nonpublic school;
(b) For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, students specified by the general assembly.
(5) "Qualifying ridership" means the following:
(a) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, the greater of the average number of qualifying riders counted in the morning or counted in the afternoon who are provided school bus service by a school district during the first full week of October;
(b) For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, a ridership determined in a manner specified by the general assembly.
(6) "Rider density" means the following:
(a) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, the following quotient:
A school district's total number of qualifying riders/ the number of square miles in the district
(b) For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, a number calculated in a manner determined by the general assembly.
(7) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, "riders" means students enrolled in regular and special education in grades kindergarten through twelve who are provided school bus service by a school district, including students with dual enrollment in a joint vocational school district or a cooperative education school district, and students enrolled in a community school, STEM school, or nonpublic school.
(8) "School bus service" means a school district's transportation of qualifying riders in any of the following types of vehicles:
(a) School buses owned or leased by the district;
(b) School buses operated by a private contractor hired by the district;
(c) School buses operated by another school district or entity with which the district has contracted, either as part of a consortium for the provision of transportation or otherwise.
(B) Not later than the first day of November, for fiscal years 2026 and 2027, or a date determined by the general assembly, for fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, of each year, each city, local, and exempted village school district shall report to the department of education and workforce its qualifying ridership and any other information requested by the department. Subsequent adjustments to the reported numbers shall be made only in accordance with rules adopted by the department.
(C) The department shall calculate the statewide transportation cost per student as follows:
(1) Determine each city, local, and exempted village school district's transportation cost per student by dividing the district's total costs for school bus service in the previous fiscal year by its qualifying ridership in the previous fiscal year.
(2) After excluding districts that do not provide school bus service and the ten districts with the highest transportation costs per student and the ten districts with the lowest transportation costs per student, divide the aggregate cost for school bus service for the remaining districts in the previous fiscal year by the aggregate qualifying ridership of those districts in the previous fiscal year.
(D) The department shall calculate the statewide transportation cost per mile as follows:
(1) Determine each city, local, and exempted village school district's transportation cost per mile by dividing the district's total costs for school bus service in the previous fiscal year by its total number of miles driven for school bus service in the previous fiscal year.
(2) After excluding districts that do not provide school bus service and the ten districts with the highest transportation costs per mile and the ten districts with the lowest transportation costs per mile, divide the aggregate cost for school bus service for the remaining districts in the previous fiscal year by the aggregate miles driven for school bus service in those districts in the previous fiscal year.
(E) The department shall calculate each city, local, and exempted village school district's transportation base payment as follows:
(1) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027:
(a) Calculate the sum of the following:
(i) The product of the statewide transportation cost per student and the number of students counted in the district's qualifying ridership for the current fiscal year who are enrolled in the district;
(ii) 1.5 times the statewide transportation cost per student times the number of students counted in the district's qualifying ridership for the current fiscal year who are enrolled in community schools established under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code or STEM schools established under Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code;
(iii) 2.0 times the statewide transportation cost per student times the number of students counted in the district's qualifying ridership for the current fiscal year who are enrolled in nonpublic schools.
(b) Calculate the sum of the following:
(i) The product of the statewide transportation cost per mile and the number of miles driven for school bus service as reported for qualifying riders for the current fiscal year who are enrolled in the district;
(ii) 1.5 times the statewide transportation cost per mile times the number of miles driven for school bus service as reported for qualifying riders for the current fiscal year who are enrolled in community schools or STEM schools;
(iii) 2.0 times the statewide transportation cost per mile times the number of miles driven for school bus service as reported for qualifying riders for the current fiscal year who are enrolled in nonpublic schools.
(c) Multiply the greater of the amounts calculated under divisions (E)(1)(a) and (b) of this section by the following:
(i) For fiscal year 2026, the greater of forty-five and eighty-three hundredths per cent or the district's state share percentage, as defined in section3317.02of the Revised Code;
(ii) For fiscal year 2027, the greater of fifty per cent or the district's state share percentage.
(2) For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, an amount determined by the general assembly.
(F) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, the department shall pay a district's efficiency adjustment payment in accordance with divisions (F)(1) to (3) of this section. For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, the department shall pay a district's efficiency adjustment payment in a manner determined by the general assembly, if the general assembly authorizes such a payment to districts.
(1) The department annually shall establish a target number of qualifying riders per assigned bus for each city, local, and exempted village school district. The department shall use the data from the previous fiscal year in establishing the target number. The target number shall be based on the statewide median number of riders per assigned bus as adjusted to reflect the district's density in comparison to the density of all other districts. The department shall post on the department's web site each district's target number of riders per assigned bus and a description of how the target number was determined.
(2) The department shall determine each school district's efficiency index by dividing the district's number of riders per assigned bus by its target number of riders per assigned bus.
(3) The department shall determine each city, local, and exempted village school district's efficiency adjustment payment as follows:
(a) If the district's efficiency index is equal to or greater than 1.5, the efficiency adjustment payment shall be calculated according to the following formula:
0.15 X the district's transportation base payment calculated under division (E) of this section
(b) If the district's efficiency index is less than 1.5 but greater than or equal to 1.0, the efficiency adjustment payment shall be calculated according to the following formula:
{[(The district's efficiency index - 1) X 0.15]/0.5} X the district's transportation base payment calculated under division (E) of this section
(c) If the district's efficiency index is less than 1.0, the efficiency adjustment payment shall be zero.
(G) In addition to funds paid under divisions (E), (F), and (H) of this section, each city, local, and exempted village district shall receive in accordance with rules adopted by the department a payment for students transported by means other than school bus service and whose transportation is not funded under division (C) of section3317.024of the Revised Code. The rules shall include provisions for school district reporting of such students.
(H)(1) For purposes of division (H) of this section, a school district's "transportation supplement percentage" means the following:
(a) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, the following quotient:
(28 - the district's rider density) / 100
If the result of the calculation for a district under division (H)(1)(a) of this section is less than zero, the district's transportation supplement percentage shall be zero.
(b) For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, a percentage calculated in a manner determined by the general assembly.
(2) The department shall pay each district a transportation supplement calculated according to the following formula:
The district's transportation supplement percentage X the amount calculated for the district under division (E)(1)(b) of this section X 0.55
(I)(1) If a school district board and a community school governing authority elect to enter into an agreement under division (A) of section3314.091of the Revised Code, the department shall make payments to the community school according to the terms of the agreement for each student actually transported under division (C)(1) of that section. If a community school governing authority accepts transportation responsibility under division (B) of that section, the department shall make payments to the community school for each student actually transported or for whom transportation is arranged by the community school under division (C)(1) of that section, calculated as follows:
(a) For any fiscal year which the general assembly has specified that transportation payments to school districts be based on an across-the-board percentage of the district's payment for the previous school year, the per pupil payment to the community school shall be the following quotient:
(i) The total amount calculated for the school district in which the child is entitled to attend school for student transportation other than transportation of children with disabilities; divided by
(ii) The number of students included in the district's transportation ADM for the current fiscal year, as calculated under section3317.03of the Revised Code, plus the number of students enrolled in the community school not counted in the district's transportation ADM who are transported under division (B)(1) or (2) of section3314.091of the Revised Code.
(b) For any fiscal year which the general assembly has specified that the transportation payments to school districts be calculated in accordance with this section and any rules of the department implementing this section, the payment to the community school shall be the following:
(i) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027, either of the following:
(I) If the school district in which the student is entitled to attend school would have used a method of transportation for the student for which payments are computed and paid under division (E) of this section, 1.0 times the statewide transportation cost per student, as calculated in division (C) of this section;
(II) If the school district in which the student is entitled to attend school would have used a method of transportation for the student for which payments are computed and paid in a manner described in division (G) of this section, the amount that would otherwise be computed for and paid to the district.
(ii) For fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, an amount calculated in a manner determined by the general assembly.
The community school, however, is not required to use the same method to transport the student.
As used in this division, "entitled to attend school" means entitled to attend school under section3313.64or3313.65of the Revised Code.
(2) A community school shall be paid under division (I)(2) of this section only for students who are eligible as specified in section3327.01of the Revised Code and division (C)(1) of section3314.091of the Revised Code, and whose transportation to and from school is actually provided, who actually utilized transportation arranged, or for whom a payment in lieu of transportation is made by the community school's governing authority. To qualify for the payments, the community school shall report to the department, in the form and manner required by the department, data on the number of students transported or whose transportation is arranged, the number of miles traveled, cost to transport, and any other information requested by the department.
Last updated July 22, 2025 at 4:01 PM