S.Amdt. 4324

1. Adds SEC. __. BUS UTILITY AND SAFETY IN SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION OPPORTUNITY AND PURCHASING wherever appropriate

   Adds a section

   Inserted: SEC. __. BUS UTILITY AND SAFETY IN SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION OPPORTUNITY AND PURCHASING.

   Inserted: (a) Findings and Purpose.--

   Inserted: (1) Findings.--Congress finds that--

   Inserted: (A) school transportation issues remain a concern for parents, local educational agencies, lawmakers, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the Environmental Protection Agency;

   Inserted: (B) millions of children face potential future health problems because of exposure to noxious fumes emitted from older school buses;

   Inserted: (C) many rural local educational agencies are operating outdated, unsafe school buses that are failing inspection, resulting in a depletion of the school bus fleets of the local educational agencies; and

   Inserted: (D) many rural local educational agencies are unable to afford newer and safer buses.

   Inserted: (2) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to establish within the Department of Education a Federal cost-sharing program to assist rural local educational agencies with older, unsafe school bus fleets in purchasing newer, safer school buses.

   Inserted: (b) Definitions.--In this section:

   Inserted: (1) Rural local educational agency.--The term "rural local educational agency" means a local educational agency, as defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801), with respect to which--

   Inserted: (A) each county in which a school served by the local educational agency is located has a total population density of fewer than 10 persons per square mile;

   Inserted: (B) all schools served by the local educational agency are designated with a school locale code of 7 or 8, as determined by the Secretary of Education; or

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   Inserted: (C) all schools served by the local educational agency have been designated, by official action taken by the legislature of the State in which the local educational agency is located, as rural schools for purposes relating to the provision of educational services to students in the State.

   Inserted: (2) School bus.--The term "school bus" means a vehicle the primary purpose of which is to transport students to and from school or school activities.

   Inserted: (3) Secretary.--The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Education.

   Inserted: (c) Grant Program.--

   Inserted: (1) In general.--From amounts made available under paragraph (5) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall provide grants, on a competitive basis, to rural local educational agencies to pay the Federal share of the cost of purchasing new school buses.

   Inserted: (2) Application.--

   Inserted: (A) In general.--Each rural local educational agency that seeks to receive a grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary for approval an application at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information (in addition to information required under subparagraph (B)) as the Secretary may require.

   Inserted: (B) Contents.--Each application submitted under subparagraph (A) shall include--

   Inserted: (i) documentation that, of the total number of school buses operated by the rural local educational agency, not less than 50 percent of the school buses are in need of repair or replacement;

   Inserted: (ii) documentation of the number of miles that each school bus operated by the rural local educational agency traveled in the most recent 9-month academic year;

   Inserted: (iii) documentation that the rural local educational agency is operating with a reduced fleet of school buses;

   Inserted: (iv) a certification from the rural local educational agency that--

   Inserted: (I) authorizes the application of the rural local educational agency for a grant under this section; and

   Inserted: (II) describes the dedication of the rural local educational agency to school bus replacement programs and school transportation needs (including the number of new school buses needed by the rural local educational agency); and

   Inserted: (v) an assurance that the rural local educational agency will pay the non-Federal share of the cost of the purchase of new school buses under this section from non-Federal sources.

   Inserted: (3) Priority.--

   Inserted: (A) In general.--In providing grants under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to rural local educational agencies that, as determined by the Secretary--

   Inserted: (i) are transporting students in a bus manufactured before 1977;

   Inserted: (ii) have a grossly depleted fleet of school buses; or

   Inserted: (iii) serve a school that is required, under section 1116(b)(9) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316(b)(9)), to provide transportation to students to enable the students to transfer to another public school served by the rural local educational agency.

   Inserted: (4) Payments; federal share.--

   Inserted: (A) Payments.--The Secretary shall pay to each rural local educational agency having an application approved under this subsection the Federal share described in subparagraph (B) of the cost of purchasing such number of new school buses as is specified in the approved application.

   Inserted: (B) Federal share.--The Federal share of the cost of purchasing a new school bus under this section shall be 75 percent.

   Inserted: (5) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section--

   Inserted: (A) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; and

   Inserted: (B) such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012.

   The amendment doesn't say where this goes; the clerk decides.

   Original wording

   At the appropriate place, insert the following:

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As printed