By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
The San Benito Consolidated Independent School District (SBCISD) has three years to pay millions of dollars to comply with a new state law that requires all school buses, regardless of model year, to be equipped with passenger seatbelts to enhance student safety during transportation.
Senate Bill 546 was signed into law by Texas Governor Greg Abbott last summer after passage during the 89th Texas Legislature.
On February 11, SBCISD Transportation Director Fernando Rosa expanded on the matter during a regular meeting of the San Benito CISD Board of Trustees at the John F. Barron Administration Building.
Director Rosa said this bill amends an existing Texas law governing school bus transportation.
The updated version, Director Rosa said, “requires all school buses operated by or contracted for use by a school district to be equipped with three-point seatbelts for every passenger, including the driver.”
He explained to the trustees that the three points are similar to those in passenger vehicles: a side base where the belt is located, the belt crossing the torso, and the locking mechanism.
According to Rosa, SBCISD has 66 school buses, 22 of which are fully equipped with “three-point” seat belts.
These buses were produced from 2019 to 2024, with SBCISD introducing eight two years ago and five each of the previous years.
The report shows that 11 have two-point seat belts, and 33 others have no seat belts at all, dating from 2007 through the 2010s. Moreover, 16 buses introduced in 2016 lack seat belts.
Obviously, pricing was a key factor during the presentation. SBCISD has buses that seat 77 passengers. Retrofitting them would cost between $33,000 and $35,000.
Rosa said the cost could be $45,000. It’s estimated that updating the seatbelts on these buses will cost $1.4 million.
Special-needs buses are less expensive to bring into compliance, at $25,000 to $27,000. Rosa said the cost could exceed $37,000.
It’s estimated to cost $407,000 to update the seatbelts on this type of smaller bus. The price includes parts and labor and could require a complete flooring change, Rosa said.
In response to a trustee’s question about price, a fully equipped, compliant bus can cost between $180,000 and $200,000.
Currently, SBCISD doesn’t have staff certified to update buses under SB 546. In response to another trustee’s question about whether the seatbelt work is done in-house, Rosa said it must be outsourced, likely in the Rio Grande Valley.
Rosa said he will look into having staff certified to install seat belts.
In response to SB 546, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) asked all transportation departments in each school district to submit a report on their current status and make it public, ideally during a school board meeting.
“We are required to show you those findings and explain what it’s going to take for our school buses to reach compliance with this standard by 2029,” Rosa said.
His transportation department was also required to produce a report, outline its public obligations, and provide cost estimates for the school board.
Rosa said this report is more of a “survey” to showcase what SBCISD has. It’s still early in the process, but he adds that grant funding could be available. If so, SBCISD would apply for it to offset the cost to local taxpayers.
Currently, the Austin Independent School District is the only entity whose entire fleet of buses meets all requirements for SB 546 compliance.