Committee to redefine ‘school bus’ for federal compliance

by Tom Lacock, Cowboy State Free Press reporter

EVANSTON – It may be yellow and have a stop sign on the side, but the federal government has a problem with what the state of Wyoming calls a school bus.

When the state adopted a new definition of school-bus endorsement for drivers licenses, it excluded those who drive groups from community colleges and the University of Wyoming from the endorsement requirement.

But the state Department of Transportation’s Tom Loftin Wednesday told the Legislature’s Joint Transportation, Highway and Military Affairs Committee the fix is simply rewording the statute.

“By changing that, it will change absolutely nothing that the state of Wyoming is doing or is trying to do,” said Loftin, WYDOT support services administrator.

But the change does require drafting of a bill, passage by the Legislature and the governor’s signature.

The federal Highway Administration audits a number of aspects of state transportation departments that receive federal money every three years. If a state doesn’t comply with the audit the government can withhold 5-to-10 percent of federal highway funds authorized for the state.

The audit also found Wyoming’s “hazardous materials” definition does not comply with national standards.

Loftin said the state’s definition did meet those standards at one time, but the federal law has changed and the state has not.