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Hawaii2026Enacted

HB1785

Rules for Student Bus Contracts When Service Stops

Last scannedAug 24, 2026, 11:30 PM

In one sentence

This law lets the Department of Education ask the Governor to remove bus routes from a contract if service stops for five school days in a row, and it allows charging penalties to help pay for new buses.

What it does

  • Allows the Superintendent to recommend removing or suspending specific bus routes after a contractor misses five consecutive instructional days on those routes.
  • Requires written approval from the Governor before the Department of Education can remove a route or hire a temporary replacement carrier.
  • Permits temporary agreements with new carriers for up to thirty months without standard bidding rules, as long as safety standards are met.
  • Mandates that the Department find a permanent contractor through competitive bidding within thirty months of starting a temporary agreement.
  • Requires charging a penalty equal to 25% of the daily contract value for each day service is missed without an approved reason.

Who it affects

  • School bus contractors who fail to provide scheduled transportation services on their routes.
  • The Department of Education and its Superintendent regarding how they manage contracts.
  • Students who rely on school buses when a contractor fails to operate specific routes.
  • The Governor, who must approve the removal or suspension of routes.

Limits and unknowns

  • The Governor may set specific conditions or timelines for suspending routes.
  • This law does not change rights, duties, or penalties that happened before the effective date of this Act.
  • Temporary agreements are limited to only the scope of the suspended or removed routes.

Plain language

Terms to know

Interim agreement
A temporary contract with a new carrier used while waiting for a permanent replacement service to be found through standard bidding.
School Bus Fare Revolving Fund
A state account that holds money from student bus fares and penalties, which can be spent on bus services or replacing failed contractors.

Official record

Sources

Validated
Official bill pageIntroduced textCurrent bill textStored full record

Official summary

RELATING TO STUDENT TRANSPORTATION. DOE; Superintendent; Student Transportation; Penalty; School Bus Fare Revolving Fund Authorizes the Superintendent to hire a new contractor if a contractor under a student transportation contract fails to provide service on a contracted service capacity or designated service segment for five or more consecutive instructional days. Authorizes the Department of Education to assess a penalty if a contractor fails to provide service on a designated service segment without an approved justification. Authorizes the use of the School Bus Fare Revolving Fund to offset costs associated with procuring replacement services. (CD1)

Official activity

Bill history

  1. Act 238, on 07/13/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1340).H
  2. Act 238, 07/13/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1340).S
  3. Received notice of passage on Final Reading in House (Hse. Com. No. 888).S
  4. Transmitted to Governor.H
  5. Received notice of Final Reading (Sen. Com. No. 816).H
  6. Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0).H
  7. Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . 0 No(es): none. 0 Excused: none.S
  8. 48 Hrs. Notice (as amended CD 1) 05-06-26S
  9. Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 108-26).S
  10. Forty-eight (48) hours notice Wednesday, 05-06-26.H
  11. Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 108-26) as amended in (CD 1).H
  12. The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.S
  13. The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 5 Ayes: Representative(s) La Chica, Lee, M., Olds, Woodson, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.H
  14. Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Thursday 04-30-26 2:45PM in conference room 229.H
  15. Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Wednesday 04-29-26 3:00PM in conference room 229.H
  16. Conference committee meeting scheduled for 04-28-26 2:55PM; Conference Room 229.S
  17. Received notice of Senate conferees (Sen. Com. No. 778).H
  18. Senate Conferees Appointed: Kim Chair; Hashimoto Co-Chair; DeCorte.S
  19. Received notice of appointment of House conferees (Hse. Com. No. 786).S
  20. House Conferees Appointed: La Chica, Lee, M. Co-Chairs; Olds, Woodson, Souza.H

Changes

Amendments

3 stored

CD1

This amendment gives the Department of Education new powers to quickly replace school bus contractors who fail to provide service for five days in a row.

HD1

This amendment gives the Department of Education a new way to quickly replace school bus contractors who fail to run their routes for five days in a row.

SD1

This amendment gives the Department of Education new powers to quickly replace school bus contractors who fail to provide service for five days in a row.