School boards; mental health awareness training for full-time school bus drivers.

Plain English Breakdown

The bill's status is 'Enacted' as of the last action date, but it does not specify an effective date.

Mental Health Training for School Bus Drivers

This law permits school boards to require full-time school bus drivers to complete mental health awareness training and directs a state agency to develop a two-hour version of the existing training program.

What This Bill Does

• Permits each school board to require full-time school bus drivers to take mental health awareness training at least once.
• Directs the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to create a shortened, two-hour version of an existing mental health first aid course for use by school boards.

Who It Names or Affects

• Full-time school bus drivers employed by local school divisions
• Local school boards that employ full-time school bus drivers

Terms To Know

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services

A state agency responsible for providing mental health services.

Mental health awareness training

Training that teaches people how to recognize signs of mental illness and respond appropriately.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify what happens if a school bus driver fails to complete the required training.
• It is unclear whether this law will be fully implemented by the next legislative session in 2027.

Official Summary Text

School boards; mental health awareness training; full-time school bus drivers.
Permits any school board to require each school bus driver employed on a full-time basis in the local school division to complete mental health awareness training at least once. The bill requires the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to consider condensing and abbreviating the existing mental health first aid training program into a two-hour module that any school board may utilize in order to train full-time school bus drivers.

Current Bill Text

HOUSE BILL NO. 495

AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE

(Proposed by the House Committee on Education

on February 11, 2026)

(Patron Prior to Substitute--Delegate Guzman)

A BILL to amend and reenact §
22.1-298.6
of the Code of Virginia, relating to school boards; mental health awareness training; full-time school bus drivers.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That §
22.1-298.6
of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§
22.1-298.6
. Mental health awareness training.

A. Each school board shall adopt and implement policies that require each teacher and other relevant personnel, as determined by the school board, employed on a full-time basis, to complete a mental health awareness training or similar program at least once.

Any
school board may adopt and implement policies that require each school bus driver employed on a full-time basis to complete a mental health awareness training or similar program at least once.

B. Each school board shall provide required personnel the training required by subsection A and may contract with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, a community services board, a behavioral health authority, a nonprofit organization, or other certified trainer as defined in §
37.2-312.2
to provide such training. Such training may be provided via an online module.

2. That the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services shall consider condensing and abbreviating the existing mental health first aid training program into a two-hour module that any school board may utilize in order to train full-time school bus drivers in accordance with the provisions of subsection A of §
22.1-298.6
of the Code of Virginia, as amended by this act.